How to Become a Nurse Practitioner in Saskatchewan

The short answer

To practise as a nurse practitioner in Saskatchewan you must already hold a practising Saskatchewan registered nurse licence, complete an approved nurse practitioner education program, apply to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan (CRNS) as a graduate nurse practitioner, pass the registration examination, and be granted a licence to practise in the nurse practitioner category. Nurse practitioner is not a separate college and not a separate profession: it is an additional registration class on top of registered nurse, granted by the same regulator that licenses Saskatchewan's registered nurses. In the nurse practitioner category, a registered nurse may diagnose and treat common medical disorders, order and interpret screening and diagnostic tests, order medical imaging, prescribe drugs in the schedules set out in the bylaws, and perform minor surgical and invasive procedures, in accordance with the practice standards and entry-level competencies, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws.

First: the CRNS register is the gate

Saskatchewan regulates nursing through the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan (CRNS), and the CRNS portal renews all licence types — graduate nurse, registered nurse, nurse practitioner, and registered nurse with additional authorized practice. Membership in the nurse practitioner category is limited to a registered nurse who has practising membership status in the general practice category and who has been granted a licence to practise within the nurse practitioner category, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws. Only a registered nurse licensed to practise in the nurse practitioner category may follow their name with "nurse practitioner" or "NP" while practising as a nurse practitioner, on the same page. The route is a registration process with the College, not a course certificate: the CRNS assesses your education, your examination result, your criminal record check, and your good standing before it issues the licence.

Step 1: Hold a practising Saskatchewan RN licence

This is the handoff point, not the start of the story. Before the nurse practitioner steps begin, you must be a registered nurse with practising membership in the CRNS general practice category — currently licensed as a registered nurse and a member in good standing, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws. This guide does not walk through the registered nurse route again: our guide to how to become a registered nurse in Saskatchewan covers the approved baccalaureate programs, the NCLEX-RN, and CRNS registration. Come back here once you hold that licence.

Step 2: Complete an approved nurse practitioner program

You must successfully complete an NP nursing education program approved or recognized by council, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws. Saskatchewan's two in-province routes are:

• University of Saskatchewan — Master of Nursing, Nurse Practitioner (MN-NP). The program prepares nurse practitioners who will work in diverse health care settings with all ages, and graduates will be prepared to write the CNPE and will be eligible to apply for registration as Nurse Practitioner in Saskatchewan as well as other Canadian jurisdictions, according to University of Saskatchewan, Master of Nursing (M.N.): Nurse Practitioner. Admission requires a bachelor's degree in nursing, a cumulative weighted average of at least 75% over the final 60 credit units of the BSN or approved post-BSN post-secondary courses, current registration as a Registered Nurse in a Canadian province or territory, 3,600 hours of clinical practice in Canada as a Registered Nurse within the past five years, and the equivalent of three credit units in each of physical assessment, pharmacology, physiology, statistics, and research methods at the undergraduate level, on the same page. The degree requires a minimum of 45 credit units, on the same page. Saskatchewan applicants are prioritized to fill seats funded by the Saskatchewan Ministry of Advanced Education, and proof of Saskatchewan residency will need to be provided, on the same page.
• University of Regina — Collaborative Nurse Practitioner Program (CNPP), with Saskatchewan Polytechnic. The program prepares primary care nurse practitioners at the graduate level, and the degree awarded is a Master of Nursing with a specialization in Nurse Practitioner, according to University of Regina, Nursing. Applicants must be licensed to practise as an RN in a Canadian province or territory, demonstrate completion of an approved baccalaureate nursing program, and provide a CV and cover letter plus three references, on the same page. The program is 33 credit hours over two years full-time or four years part-time, with 702 preceptored practice education hours, delivered entirely online in an asynchronous format except for a week-long residency expectation in the first year, on the same page. Applications from out-of-province candidates are welcome, but first consideration is given to Saskatchewan residents, on the same page.

Confirm admission requirements, format, and application deadlines on the program's own pages — they differ by university, and this guide states no tuition figure because none was verified on a CRNS or university page.

Step 3: Apply to the CRNS as a graduate nurse practitioner

Once you have completed an approved NP program, you apply for graduate nurse practitioner registration. The bylaws set out what a registered nurse in this position must have done: successfully completed an NP nursing education program approved or recognized by council; completed an application for graduate nurse practitioner registration; paid the requisite fees; applied to take, or be awaiting the results of, the nurse practitioner registration examinations; met all of the other requirements for registration as a graduate nurse practitioner; provided a criminal record check conducted by the local Canadian police service or other authorized body, obtained within the six months preceding the filing of the application; and disclosed on an ongoing basis any outstanding charges under the Criminal Code (Canada), the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (Canada) or any similar legislation, and any outstanding allegations or findings of professional incompetence or misconduct, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws.

A registered nurse who meets those requirements may be granted a graduate nurse practitioner licence in the nurse practitioner category, on the same page. The licence allows you to use the title "Graduate Nurse Practitioner" or "GNP", is issued for a maximum period of eight months to allow you to write the nurse practitioner examination, receive the results, and obtain nurse practitioner registration, and requires supervision by a nurse practitioner registered with the College or by a physician in good standing with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan, on the same page.

The fees for this stage, under the CRNS fee schedule for the December 1, 2026 to November 30, 2027 membership year: an NP assessment is $150.00 plus $7.50 GST, $157.50 in total, and the Canadian Nurse Practitioner Examination application fee is $130.00 plus $6.50 GST, $136.50 in total, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Membership and Administration Fee Schedule. All fees are non-refundable and must be paid within 90 days of application or request to avoid cancellation, on the same page.

Step 4: Pass the registration examination

To be eligible for registration and the issuance of a licence to practise registered nursing in the nurse practitioner category, a person must write and pass the nurse practitioner examination required, which the bylaws list as the Canadian Nurse Practitioner Exam: Family/All Ages (CNPE: F/AA) and the Canadian Nurse Practitioner Licensure Exam (CNPLE), according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws. Confirm with the CRNS which examination applies to your stream and cohort — the bylaws name both examinations, and no transition date was verified on a CRNS page.

If you are unsuccessful on your first attempt, the graduate nurse practitioner licence may be renewed for a maximum period of eight months to allow you to rewrite the examination, on receipt by the registrar of a satisfactory reference from a nurse practitioner or a physician working directly with you and a letter from your employer agreeing to continue supervision, on the same page. The graduate nurse practitioner licence is cancelled upon failing the required examination on the third attempt, and a person who fails an examination on the third attempt is no longer eligible to write that examination until they satisfactorily complete an approved or recognized NP nursing education program, on the same page.

Step 5: Your nurse practitioner licence, and keeping it

To obtain initial licensing in the nurse practitioner category, a registered nurse must be a member in good standing, be currently licensed as a registered nurse, and have satisfactorily completed a nurse practitioner category registered nursing program and a demonstration of nurse practitioner competencies, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws. Once the CRNS has everything it needs, it issues your licence to practise in the nurse practitioner category. Do not hold yourself out as a nurse practitioner, or start NP work, until that licence is in place.

The licence cost, under the CRNS fee schedule for the December 1, 2026 to November 30, 2027 membership year, is $464.10 plus $23.21 GST, $487.31 in total, for a full-year practising NP registration, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Membership and Administration Fee Schedule. Professional liability protection is required for licensing, and effective July 16, 2026, all applicants eligible for licensing are required to obtain the liability protection directly from the Canadian Nurses Protective Society (CNPS), on the same page.

Keeping the licence is an ongoing obligation. To maintain eligibility for registration in the nurse practitioner category, a registered nurse must work in nurse practitioner activities approved by the College for at least 900 hours in the three years immediately preceding the application, and hold a membership in the nurse practitioner category with the College or a regulatory body recognized by the College while working in those activities, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws. To register for the subsequent year, you must maintain that eligibility and complete the prescribed inventory and renewal form and submit it with the annual registration fee to the registrar by November 1, on the same page. A registered nurse who practises less than 900 hours in the nurse practitioner category in the preceding three years must satisfactorily complete additional nurse practitioner education courses or learning activities and provide references as required by the College, on the same page.

Not the same thing: RN with Additional Authorized Practice

Saskatchewan has a second advanced route that is not nurse practitioner registration. Additional Authorized Practice (AAP) is an advanced designation granted to registered nurses by the CRNS that allows eligible RNs to provide additional health-care services in community settings through expanded assessment, prescribing and clinical decision-making responsibilities, and the CRNS retains the exclusive authority to grant the RN(AAP) designation, according to Saskatchewan Polytechnic, Additional Authorized Practice (AAP). Saskatchewan Polytechnic offers three courses that provide the knowledge and competencies needed to support nurses in achieving the AAP designation, on the same page. Do not confuse the two: RN(AAP) is a designation added to a general-practice RN licence, while nurse practitioner is a separate registration category with its own licence, examination, and title.

If you trained outside Saskatchewan

Already an NP in another Canadian jurisdiction: a person who last practised registered nursing outside Saskatchewan in an advanced practice role recognized by council as equivalent to the nurse practitioner category must produce evidence establishing to the satisfaction of council that they were in good standing as a nurse practitioner in the jurisdiction where they last practised, including evidence of registration indicating whether they were the subject of an investigation or any practice limitations, restrictions or conditions in that jurisdiction, according to the College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws. Contact the CRNS before applying rather than following the new-graduate steps unchanged.

Trained outside Canada: internationally educated nurses apply through the National Nursing Assessment Service first and then to the CRNS — that is the registered-nurse route, covered in our guide to how to become a registered nurse in Saskatchewan. The nurse practitioner steps in this guide start from a Saskatchewan RN licence, so complete that route first.

Figures this guide does not state

This guide states no CRNS NP application fee as a separate figure, because the fee schedule lists the NP assessment ($157.50 in total) and the practising NP registration ($487.31 in total) but no separately itemized NP application fee — confirm the full cost of applying with the CRNS before you budget. It states no dollar figure for CNPS professional liability protection for nurse practitioners, because the December 1, 2026 to November 30, 2027 fee schedule states only that liability protection is obtained directly from the CNPS effective July 16, 2026, with no amount — confirm the current rate with the CNPS before you pay. It states no NP program tuition, because none was verified on a university page. It states no salary figure and no processing-time promise for NP registration, because no CRNS page states a fixed processing time for initial nurse practitioner registration. It states no CNPE or CNPLE examination date, because the CRNS pages name both examinations without giving sitting dates — confirm the next sitting with the CRNS or the examination administrator.

Related guides

• How to Become a Registered Nurse in Saskatchewan — the RN route this guide starts from: the approved baccalaureate programs, the NCLEX-RN, and CRNS registration.
• How to Become a Nurse Practitioner in Manitoba — the sibling guide: Manitoba's CRNM RN(NP) class, the CNPLE, and the graduate nurse practitioner route.
• How to Become a Nurse Practitioner in Alberta — the sibling guide: Alberta's CRNA transition-to-NP process, the 4,500-hour rule, and the CNPE.
• How to Become a Nurse Practitioner in Ontario — the sibling guide: Ontario's CNO Extended Class, the approved NP program, and the CNPLE.
• How to Become a Paramedic in Saskatchewan — another Saskatchewan regulated health profession with its own college, program, and registration examination.

Sources

• College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Bylaws — regulatory bylaws effective August 28, 2026: nurse practitioner category membership limited to a registered nurse with practising membership in the general practice category, the graduate nurse practitioner licence and its eight-month term and supervision requirement, the CNPE: F/AA and CNPLE examinations, the third-attempt rule, the 900-hour maintenance requirement, renewal by November 1, and the NP title
• College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Membership and Administration Fee Schedule — December 1, 2026 to November 30, 2027 membership year: practising NP registration $464.10 plus $23.21 GST, NP assessment $157.50 in total, CNPE exam application fee $136.50 in total, liability protection directly from CNPS effective July 16, 2026, fees non-refundable and payable within 90 days
• University of Saskatchewan, Master of Nursing (M.N.): Nurse Practitioner — the MN-NP program prepares graduates to write the CNPE and apply for registration as Nurse Practitioner in Saskatchewan, the BSN and 75% average and current RN registration and 3,600-hour admission requirements, the 45-credit-unit degree, and Saskatchewan seat priority
• University of Regina, Nursing — the Collaborative Nurse Practitioner Program with Saskatchewan Polytechnic, the Master of Nursing with a specialization in Nurse Practitioner, the 33-credit-hour program with 702 preceptored practice hours, the online format with a one-week residency, and Saskatchewan resident first consideration
• Saskatchewan Polytechnic, Additional Authorized Practice (AAP) — AAP as an advanced designation granted to RNs by the CRNS, the three courses supporting the designation, and the CRNS as the exclusive granting authority
• College of Registered Nurses of Saskatchewan, Homepage — the CRNS portal renews graduate nurse, registered nurse, nurse practitioner, and registered nurse with additional authorized practice licences