How to Become Certified in MA

How to Become Certified as an EMT

Be sure to have completed the ICS, NIMS and 51A online trainings and print out your certificates

• IS 700 NIMS

• ICS 100

• 51-A

1. Successfully complete your EMT course.

2. Register at www.nremt.org by 1) Creating and Account and 2) Applying for Certification.

3. Wait for your EMT Instructor to verify you on the NREMT site.

4. Pass the Practical Exam offered by OEMS (schedule through your training program) and the NREMT Written Exam (schedule it through your NREMT account) in either order.

5. Submit a copy of your NREMT certification to OEMS with your Application for Certification in MA.

   1. The licensing site is available at Health Professions Licensing Portal. 

   2. User guide with instructional videos  Health Professions Licensing System User Guide. 

   3. All initial certification applications will require the upload of current BLS CPR and ACLS (if applicable) credentials, and a CORI authorization form, which must be notarized and completed in its entirety.  

1. Successfully complete your EMT course

You must begin your pursuit by successfully completing your course. There will be a limited time for you to complete your Practical and Written Exams- look over the State's Certification Regulations (download below) so that you don't miss deadlines. Dates are based on the course completion date of your program.

2. Register at www.nremt.org by 

• Creating and Account and 

• Applying for Certification

You need to both create an account and apply for certification. OEMS has a sheet of directions and you can follow a step-by-step guide (download below) for completing this online task as well. Go to NREMT to create your account.

3. Wait for your EMT Instructor to verify you on the NREMT site

Once you create your NREMT account the program director overseeing your course must verify that you have passed the course. This is done online by the program director.

4. Pass the Practical Exam offered by OEMS (schedule through your training program) and the NREMT Written Exam (schedule it through your NREMT account) in either order

The order in which you take the tests is up to you. Most programs schedule an practical exam at the end of the course- this is the best time to take it since your skills should be polished. The site offering the exam will charge you an exam fee.

If you need to retake the Practical Exam, contact a site offering the exam (see "Upcoming Exams" at bottom of this page). You can't apply for a retest until OEMS mails you the Green Sheet which you must bring to the site where you are being retested. It can take several weeks to receive that sheet from OEMS once you've failed the exam- be patient and book your retest when you have the Green Sheet in hand. 

If your first time taking the Practical Exam is not at the site where you took the EMT course, your instructor must complete an Authorization for EMT Basic Practical-Outside Candidate Form (available at the bottom of this page) and that should accompany your registration for the exam.

Scheduling your NREMT written exam is done online through your NREMT account- the cost is $98 and you will choose a location where the computer-based exam is offered.

5. Apply for MA certification through OEMS.

Once the NREMT has notified you in writing that you have passed your exams you can apply to the State for MA certification.

The licensing site is available at Health Professions Licensing Portal. 

A user guide with instructional videos:  Health Professions Licensing System User Guide. 

All initial certification applications will require the upload of current BLS CPR and ACLS (if applicable) credentials, and a CORI authorization form, which must be notarized and completed in its entirety.  

If you do not have a social security card, the NREMT requires that you email Jeremy Miller, jmiller@nremt.org at National Registry with a copy of your passport (or student visa) to be assigned a pseudo-social security number. When you apply for MA certification, and must do so on paper, and include the No-SSC Form (download below), an acknowledgement you do not hold a SSN, and attestation that if/when they are assigned one, they will notify the Department immediately. This attestation must be submitted with you paper application, and all other appropriate supporting documentation. Do not use the pseudo-social assigned by NREMT for their MA application. 

If you have held a state EMS certification in another state, you must complete the top portion of the State Verification Form (download below) and submit it to the state EMS office where you held certification; that office will fax/mail the form directly to MA OEMS once completed.

A CORI will have to be done if you:

Have you ever: a) been convicted of; b) entered a plea of guilty, nolo contendere, or no contest to; or, c) admitted to sufficient facts, in connection with a felony or misdemeanor in any jurisdiction, other than a minor traffic violation, even if the matter was continued without a finding or the court withheld adjudication so that you would not have a record or conviction? For purposes of this question, driving under the influence or driving while impaired is not a minor traffic violation.

    With regard to charges of criminal offenses, convictions, and disciplinary proceedings provide documentation, including, but not limited to, that which fully describes the offense, copies of relevant court documents or administrative proceedings, dispositions and current status.

If any of these apply to you, send the CORI Acknowledgment Form (download below) with your application as well.

Students have 2 years from course end date to complete the requirements for NREMT certification. Within those two years, they must pass two exams (written and practical). Each of those exams are valid for 1 year within the eligibility window from that course. The written must be taken over of expired, but the practical (if they have passed it previously) can be done with a skills verification. The A/R is linked here from the OEMS website: http://www.mass.gov/eohhs/gov/departments/dph/programs/hcq/oems/psychomotor-skills-verification-for-nremt-certification.html

Below is the most recent NREMT Handbook for EMTs