Regulation for nurse practitioner qualification
[Enforced Jan. 7, 2021] [Ministry of Health and Welfare Ordinance No. 778, Jan. 7, 2021, amendment to other laws]
Ministry of Health and Welfare (Medical Resource Policy Division) 044-202-2455
Article 1 (Purpose)
The purpose of this regulation is to stipulate the qualification classification, qualification standards, certification, and other matters necessary for the qualification of nurse practitioners in accordance with Article 78 of the Medical Service Act.
Article 2 (Qualifications)
Nurse practitioner qualifications are divided into health, anesthesia, psychiatric, family, infection control, industrial, emergency, geriatric, critical care, hospice, oncology, clinical, and pediatrics.
Article 3 (Requirements for Qualification)
A person who is eligible to be certified as a nurse practitioner must meet any of the following criteria and pass the nurse practitioner qualification examination (hereinafter referred to as the "qualification examination") conducted by the Minister of Health and Welfare.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
1. One who has completed a nurse practitioner training program in accordance with section 4
2. One who has been qualified as a nurse practitioner in the field in a foreign country recognized by the Minister of Health and Welfare.
Article 4 (Nurse Practitioner Training)
① The nurse practitioner training shall be conducted by a nurse practitioner training institution designated by the Minister of Health and Welfare, and the training period shall be at least two years.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
② A person who is eligible to apply for a nurse practitioner training course shall have at least three years of practical experience as a nurse at an organization in the field of the relevant field according to Appendix 1 within 10 years before receiving the education.
Article 5 (Standards and Procedures for Designating Training Institutions)
① An institution that can be designated as a nurse practitioner training institution under Article 4 (1) shall be any of the following and meet the criteria for designation as a nurse practitioner training institution in Appendix 2.
1. A university with a nursing program with a graduate program
2. A special graduate or specialized graduate school with a nursing major
② To be designated as a nurse practitioner training institution pursuant to Paragraph (1), an institution shall submit an application for designation as a nurse practitioner training institution in the form of Appendix 1 to the Minister of Health and Welfare by attaching the following documents.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
1. A document with the name and history of the faculty member (full-time professor of the major and adjunct professor of the practical training)
2. Status of practice agreement organizations and agreement letters
3. Training plans and curriculum
4. Facilities and equipment used for the nurse practitioner training program
③ If the Minister of Health and Welfare recognizes that an application under Paragraph (2) meets the criteria for designation under Paragraph (1), the Minister shall designate it as a nurse practitioner training institution and issue a nurse practitioner training institution designation certificate in the form of Appendix 2.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
Article 6 (Number of Trainees)
① When the Minister of Health and Welfare designates a nurse practitioner training institution under Article 5 (3), the number of trainees shall be specified for each field (hereinafter referred to as “specialty”) under Article 2.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
② If the head of a nurse practitioner training institution intends to change the number of trainees for each specialty established under Paragraph (1), he/she shall submit an application for changing the number of trainees in the form of Appendix No. 3 to the Minister of Health and Welfare, attaching the documents specified in Article 5 (2).
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
③ In the event of an application for a change in the number of trainees pursuant to Paragraph 2, the Minister of Health and Welfare shall approve the change in the number of trainees and reissue a certificate of designation if he/she determines that it meets the designation criteria of Paragraph 1 of Article 5.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
Article 7 (Subjects and Issuance of Certificates for Specialized Nursing Training Courses)
① The subjects of the nurse practitioner curriculum shall be divided into common subjects, major theory subjects, and major practical subjects, and the credit standards for each subject shall be as shown in Table 3.
The head of the nurse practitioner training institution shall issue a certificate of completion in the form of Appendix 4 to a person who has completed the nurse practitioner training program.
Article 7.2 (Report on Recruitment and Completion Status of Nurse Practitioner Trainees)
① The head of a nurse practitioner training institution shall submit a report on the recruitment status of nurse practitioner trainees in Form 2 of Appendix 4 to the Minister of Health and Welfare within 30 days from the last day for enrollment in the course, attaching a copy of the list of trainees by specialty.
② The head of a nurse practitioner training institution shall submit a report on the completion status of nurse practitioner trainees in the form of Appendix 4 No. 3 to the Minister of Health and Welfare within 30 days from the date of completion of the nurse practitioner course, attaching a copy of each list of graduates by specialty.
[ Newly established on March 19, 2012]
Article 7.3 (Revocation of Designation, etc.)
The Minister of Health and Welfare may revoke the designation or order corrective action if an institution designated as a nurse practitioner training institution under Article 5 (3) falls under any of the following items. In this case, a hearing must be held to cancel the designation.
1. When the institution fails to meet the criteria for designation as a nurse practitioner training institution under Article 5.1
2. When the number of trainees selected exceeds the number of trainees per specialty in accordance with Article 6.1.
[ Newly established on March 19, 2012]
Article 8 (Execution and Announcement of Qualifying Examination)
① The Minister of Health and Welfare shall conduct a qualification examination at least once every year. However, if the Minister recognizes that it is not appropriate to conduct the examination in consideration of the supply and demand of medical personnel, he or she may not conduct the qualification examination limited to the relevant specialty.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
② The Minister of Health and Welfare shall designate an organization designated by the Minister of Health and Welfare to conduct and administer the qualification examination.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
③ A qualification test management organization that conducts a qualification examination pursuant to Paragraph (2) shall, with the approval of the Minister of Health and Welfare, determine the matters necessary to conduct the qualification examination, such as the date, place, test subject, test method, application form, document acceptance, and return policy of the test fee, and announce them in a daily newspaper, gazette, internet website, or other effective method at least 30 days before the examination is conducted.
< Revised on March 19, 2010, April 7, 2011, January 7, 2021 >
Article 9 (Qualification and Procedures for Taking Qualifying Examinations)
① Those who are eligible to take the qualification examination shall be those who fall under any of the subparagraphs of Article 3.
② Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if a specialty field of nurse practitioner qualification is newly established, a person who falls under any of the following subparagraphs may take the qualification examination in that field only once in a period of three years from the date of the first qualification examination taken by a person who has completed a nurse practitioner training course in the newly established field.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
1. A person who has obtained or is in the process of obtaining a master's degree in the same or similar field as the newly established field prior to the start of the nurse practitioner training program in the newly established field (only those who obtain a master's degree before the date of receipt of the first application for the qualification examination), and who has practical experience in accordance with Article 4 (2) before the date of receipt of the first application for the qualification examination. In this case, the scope of similar fields shall be determined by the Minister of Health and Welfare.
2. A person who has been employed for at least four years in a position of full-time instructor or higher in the field of nursing at a university or community college within the 10 years preceding the date of receipt of the initial application for the licensure examination as a faculty member in a nurse practitioner curriculum in a newly established field
③ A person who intends to take the qualification examination shall submit an application in the form of Appendix 5 (including an application in electronic form) to the head of the qualification examination management organization.
< Revised on December 30, 2016.>
④ A person who intends to take the qualification examination shall pay the examination fee determined by the head of the qualification examination management organization with the approval of the Minister of Health and Welfare.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 and April 7, 2011 >
⑤ The examination fee pursuant to paragraph 4 shall be returned in accordance with the following subparagraphs. < New 2011. 4. 7. >
1. In case of overpayment of examination fee: The entire amount of overpayment
2. In case of failure to take the test due to reasons attributable to the testing agency: All paid fees
3. If the applicant cancels the application within the application period: All paid fees
4. If the applicant cancels the application up to 20 days before the examination date : All paid fees
5. If the applicant cancels the application up to 10 days before the examination date : 50 % of the paid fees
Article 10 (Examination Subjects and Methods, etc.)
① The qualification examination is divided into the first and second examinations, but the first examination is a written exam and the second examination is a practical exam.
② The second examination can be taken by those who passed the first examination, and those who passed the first examination are exempted from the first examination only for the next examination.
③ To pass the exam, the applicant must score at least 60 percent of the total points in the first and second examinations.
④ The head of the qualification examination management organization shall determine the examination method, scoring ratio, and other necessary matters related to the execution of the examination.
Article 11 (Announcement of Qualifiers)
① The head of the qualification examination management organization shall determine and announce the qualifiers.
② The qualifiers of paragraph 1 shall submit the following documents to the head of the qualification examination management organization within 10 days from the date of announcement of the qualifiers.
< Revised on December 30, 2016. >
1. A copy of the certificate of completion pursuant to Article 7, Paragraph 2 or a copy of a foreign professional nursing license
2. Copy of nursing license
3. 3 photos (3.5cm by 4.5 cm) used on the application.
③ The head of the qualification examination management organization shall submit the following documents to the Minister of Health and Welfare within 15 days from the date of announcement of the qualifiers.
< Revised on March 19, 2010, December 30, 2016, and March 28, 2017 >
1. A list of qualifiers that includes the applicant's full name, date of birth, nurse license number and license date and examination number
2. A copy of a certificate of completion pursuant to Article 7.2 or a copy of a foreign nurse practitioner certificate
3. 1 photo (3.5cm by 4.5 cm) used on the application.
Article 12 (Issuance of Certificates)
When the Minister of Health and Welfare receives a report on the results of the examination conducted by the head of the qualification examination management organization, the Minister shall write the following items in the nurse practitioner certification ledger and issue a nurse practitioner certificate in the form of Appendix 6 to the qualifiers.
< Revised on March 19, 2010 >
1. Name and resident registration number
2. Nurse practitioner qualification number and qualification date
3. Date of passing the nurse practitioner qualification exam
4. Nursing license number and license date
Article 13 (Applicable Provisions)
In addition to what is provided for in these regulations, the provisions of the Enforcement Regulations of the Medical Service Act concerning nurse licenses shall apply to the issuance, renewal, reissuance, fees, etc. of qualifications.
Article 14 (Regulatory Review)
The Minister of Health and Welfare shall review the adequacy of the requirements for certification of nurse practitioners under Article 3 every three years as of January 1, 2014 (meaning before January 1 of each third year) and take measures to improve them.
[ Newly established on December 31, 2013]
Supplementary provisions
< No. 778, Jan. 7, 2021 > (Decree of the Ministry of Health and Welfare on the Partial Amendment of Four Decrees to Expand the Method of Statutory Notification)
Article 1
(Effective Date) This rule is effective on the date of promulgation.
Article 2
(General applicability of this rule to announcements) This rule applies to announcements made on or after the effective date of this rule.
Appendix / Formats
[Exhibit 1] Nurse practitioner work experience (related to Article 4, Section 2) Download attachment