AANP certification, now under the NPCB name

• AANPCB is the legal name: the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board, an independent nonprofit.
• NPCB is the brand it now operates under, in the words of its 2025 Annual Report (p. 1, read Nov 7, 2026). The FNP handbook says "doing business as Nurse Practitioners Certification Board".
• AANP, the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, is a membership association. Membership lowers the exam fee but has no part in awarding the credential.

The letters after a holder's name come from the NP-C mark: the population goes in front, as in FNP-C or AGNP-C (Annual Report, p. 3).

All four share one frame: 150 questions including 15 pretest items that carry no score, 3 h at a Prometric center, and a pass/fail cut score with no percentage. Of the four, only the family exam has study pages on this site for now: FNP-C, with the application steps on FNP-C exam info. ENP-C is a specialty on top of the family credential (FNP + emergency pathway).

Two older exams are closed. The board retired its Adult NP exam in 2016 and its Gerontological NP exam earlier (2011 in the Annual Report, 2012 in the 2025 statistics); holders of ANP-C and GNP-C can still recertify.

AANP members pay $240 instead of $315 for an initial exam; for ENP-C the discount goes to AAENP members. Each FNP attempt is charged at the full price. The full path for the family exam is on FNP-C cost.

• Brand: the new name in place of AANPCB on the site, the handbooks and the portal.
• Attempts: the FNP exam now allows 3 per calendar year; AGNP, PMHNP and ENP keep 2 a calendar year.
• Retired status: a holder who stops practicing for good can ask for it, but then cannot practice under the credential (FNP Renewal Handbook, June 4, 2026, PDF p. 6).

Accreditation did not change: ABSNC and NCCA accredit all four programs.

The board is the primary source for its own certifications and answers verification requests through the online system on its website. A verification sent to a state board of nursing is free; employers and other third parties pay a fee (FNP Renewal Handbook, June 4, 2026, PDF p. 14). An expired certification may not be presented as current, and its holder may not use the NP-C letters (same handbook, PDF p. 6).

Every 5 years, by practice hours plus CE or by passing the exam again. The hour rules, the preceptor allowance and the fees are on AANP recertification. How this compares with the other big NP board is on AANP vs ANCC.