Louisiana licenses physicians through the Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners (LSBME), a single board for both MDs and DOs. LSBME requires FCVS (Federation Credentials Verification Service) for all physician applicants and uses CE Broker as the mandatory CME tracking system — licensees cannot renew if CE Broker does not show the proper credits. Physicians who hold a Louisiana Controlled Dangerous Substances (CDS) license must complete a Board-approved 3-hour CDS-CME course before their first license renewal. Louisiana is a fully participating Interstate Medical Licensure Compact (IMLC) state.
Louisiana Medical License Requirements
Degree from an LCME-accredited (MD) or AOA/COCA-accredited (DO) medical school. International medical graduates must hold ECFMG certification and graduate from an LSBME-recognized international medical school.
Postgraduate training in an LSBME-approved program. US/Canadian graduates need at least one year of accredited training; international medical graduates need additional training under LSBME rules.
Pass all three steps of the USMLE or COMLEX.
FCVS (Federation Credentials Verification Service) profile is mandatory for all physician applicants. Applicants are advised to begin FCVS at least four months ahead of the intended start date.
Criminal history record check with fingerprint submission. Background check is initiated only after the application is on file with LSBME.
CE Broker account — Louisiana requires CE Broker for CME tracking; renewal is blocked if CE Broker does not reflect compliant credits.
Louisiana Controlled Dangerous Substances (CDS) license is a separate filing required to prescribe controlled substances in Louisiana, in addition to federal DEA registration.
How Much Does an Louisiana Medical License Cost?
| Fee | Amount | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Initial Application Fee (Physicians) | $300 | Non-refundable; payable to LSBME at submission |
| FCVS Profile Fee | $425 | Paid to FSMB; mandatory for LSBME applicants. Verify current pricing at fsmb.org |
| Biennial Renewal | $200 | Renewal cycle is 24 months; verify current fee with LSBME |
| Louisiana CDS License | $25 | Required for prescribing controlled substances in Louisiana; verify current fee with LSBME |
Fees above are paid to Louisiana and the FSMB. Our service fee is separate — see pricing.
We handle the Louisiana application end-to-end.
Eligibility screening, document prep, board follow-ups, and tracking — so you don't lose a Board meeting cycle to a missing form.
View full pricingHow Long Does It Take to Get an Louisiana Medical License?
Typical Processing
8-12 weeks from a complete submission to license issuance
Recommended Lead Time
Begin FCVS at least 4 months before intended start of practice
FCVS lead time is the dominant scheduling factor. LSBME does not initiate the criminal background check until your application is on file, so the background-check clock starts after submission. Files with disciplinary history take longer for additional Board review.
Where Louisiana Applications Get Delayed
FCVS is mandatory and is the dominant scheduling factor. Begin FCVS at least 4 months before intended start of practice — not at the same time as the LSBME application.
CE Broker is required and is hard-blocked at renewal. Licensees who track CME on a personal spreadsheet but never reflect it in CE Broker cannot renew until they back-fill — and audit findings stick.
The Louisiana CDS license is separate from the federal DEA registration. New licensees regularly skip it and discover the gap when they try to write their first controlled-substance prescription.
The 3-hour Board-approved CDS-CME course must be completed before your first license renewal if you hold a CDS license. The course covers four required topics; LSBME maintains a pre-approved list. Generic opioid CME does not qualify.
LSBME does not initiate the background check until the application is on file — so applicants who try to 'pre-clear' fingerprinting waste the effort.
Renewal cycle ends December 31 of the renewal year. Most physicians default to a calendar-year mental model, which works here but only if you remember it is biennial, not annual.
A one-time Board orientation course is required for new licensees in addition to standard CME — easy to overlook between FCVS, CDS-CME, and the regular CME schedule.
Renewing Your Louisiana Medical License
Renewal Cycle
Biennial; 24-month renewal cycle, with all licenses expiring December 31 of the renewal year
Renewal Fee
$200
CME Requirement
20 AMA PRA Category 1 credits per year (40 per biennial cycle). All CME must be tracked in CE Broker. A one-time Board orientation course is required for new licensees. Prescribers with a CDS license must complete a Board-approved 3-hour CDS-CME course before their first renewal — covering best practices for prescribing CDS, drug diversion training, addiction treatment, and chronic pain treatment — and a refresher every three years thereafter.
Late Grace Period
Late renewal carries a fee. License lapses after extended non-renewal; reinstatement requirements apply.
How Louisiana Issues Medical Licenses: LSBME and CE Broker
The Louisiana State Board of Medical Examiners (LSBME) licenses both MDs and DOs through a single board. Two procedural details set Louisiana apart from most other states: FCVS is mandatory for all physician applicants, and CE Broker is required for CME tracking. CE Broker is not optional reporting — it is hard-coded into the renewal flow, and licensees cannot renew if CE Broker does not show the proper credits or first-time-renewal courses. Both mechanisms are administratively external to LSBME and add their own lead times.
Where Most Louisiana Applications Get Stuck
Three Louisiana-specific issues drive most delays:
- FCVS lead time. LSBME requires every physician applicant to file through FCVS, and a new FCVS profile takes weeks to assemble (LSBME's own guidance is to begin at least four months ahead of the intended start date). Applicants who start FCVS at the same time as the LSBME application universally miss their target start date.
- CE Broker compliance gaps. CE Broker is the only Board-recognized CME tracking system for Louisiana licensees. CME completed but not reflected in CE Broker cannot be used for renewal — and back-filling at the renewal deadline is too late if courses haven't synced or aren't on the approved list.
- Forgetting the Louisiana CDS license. Louisiana issues its own Controlled Dangerous Substances license, separate from the federal DEA registration. New licensees who plan to prescribe controlled substances regularly forget the state filing and discover the gap when their first prescription bounces.
What You'll Pay
The LSBME initial application fee for physicians is $300, non-refundable. The FSMB FCVS profile fee adds approximately $425 (verify current pricing at fsmb.org). Biennial renewal is $200, payable through CE Broker / LSBME at renewal time — verify current pricing on the LSBME site. The Louisiana CDS license is approximately $25 and is required separately to prescribe controlled substances.
Realistic Timeline
From a complete file, LSBME targets 8-12 weeks to license issuance. The dominant scheduling driver is FCVS, which LSBME advises beginning at least four months before your intended start of practice. The criminal background check is initiated only after your application is on file with LSBME, so trying to pre-clear fingerprinting before submission is wasted effort. Files with disciplinary history take longer for additional Board review. If you have an eligible State of Principal Licensure and use the IMLC pathway, a Louisiana license typically issues in 4-6 weeks instead.
The CDS License and CDS-CME Course
Louisiana issues its own Controlled Dangerous Substances (CDS) license — a state-level analog to the federal DEA registration. A CDS license is required to prescribe or dispense controlled substances in Louisiana, period. Beyond the license itself, a 2017 Louisiana statute requires every CDS licensee to complete 3 hours of Board-approved CME before the first license/permit renewal, covering all four of: best practices for prescribing CDS, drug diversion training, appropriate treatment for addiction, and treatment of chronic pain. LSBME maintains a pre-approved list of qualifying courses; generic opioid CME does not satisfy the requirement. The course must be repeated every three years thereafter.
Renewal and CME
Louisiana licenses run on a biennial (24-month) cycle, with renewal due December 31 of the renewal year. CME is 20 AMA PRA Category 1 credits per year (40 per biennial cycle), all tracked in CE Broker. New licensees must also complete a one-time Board orientation course. CDS licensees layer the 3-hour CDS-CME course on top before their first renewal. LSBME audits via CE Broker's audit module — credits not in CE Broker effectively don't exist for compliance purposes.
Single State Versus IMLC
Louisiana is a fully participating IMLC state. If you have an eligible State of Principal Licensure (SPL), the IMLC pathway is typically 4-6 weeks versus 8-12 weeks for the LSBME direct application — and the IMLC pathway bypasses the FCVS build that drives most LSBME timelines. The IMLC application fee through Louisiana is $700, higher than the $300 LSBME fee, but you pay it once to enable adding additional states quickly. If Louisiana is your first state or you don't have SPL eligibility, the LSBME direct application is the right path.
How White Glove Helps
We manage Louisiana applications end-to-end: kicking off FCVS four months ahead of your intended start date, filing through the LSBME online portal, opening your CE Broker account at the start so credits sync from day one, filing the Louisiana CDS license alongside the medical license so you can prescribe controlled substances on day one, and selecting a Board-approved 3-hour CDS-CME course before your first renewal. We track the biennial December 31 cycle and the one-time Board orientation course so nothing surfaces at renewal as a surprise.
Louisiana Medical License FAQ
How much does a Louisiana medical license cost?
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How long does it take to get a Louisiana medical license?
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Does Louisiana participate in the IMLC?
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What is the Louisiana CDS license and do I need one?
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Why does Louisiana require CE Broker?
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What CME does Louisiana require for renewal?
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What Working with Us Costs
Transparent, a la carte service fees. The state and FSMB fees listed above are paid directly to those agencies. Our concierge service is separate.
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