• Officer Support

  Licensure (Professional License Only)

  As a Commissioned Corps officer of the U.S. Public Health Service, keeping professional licensure and certifications up-to-date is mandatory. Maintaining active and unrestricted licenses and certifications are essential to adhere to Commissioned Corps Appointment Standards, meet the conditions of service, maintain Basic Readiness, receive Special Pay, and be eligible for promotion. Professional licenses are defined as licenses that are required as a condition of your commission for your qualifying degree.

  To ensure that category professional licensure and certification requirements are met, it is important that a copy of your current, unrestricted professional licenses or certifications are available in your Electronic Official Personnel Folder (eOPF).

  Professional Licenses should be uploaded through Electronic Document Upload (eDOC-U). Please follow the eDOC-U Licensure Quick Reference Instructions or the guide provided on the “Help” link when in eDOC-U.

  Licensure tips:

  • Upload only CLEAR and LEGIBLE documents.
  • Upload each license or certification as a separate document!
    • Each license number must be entered into the “license number” field in eDOC-U or it does not exist.
  • Upload new licenses as soon as they are available.
    • Licenses must be verified by a licensure specialist. Processing time varies according to the amount of submissions by all Corps officers.
  • You are responsible for ensuring a current, active copy of your license is in your eOPF.

  All professional licenses will be verified by the Licensure Specialist. Any documents that are illegible (cannot be read clearly), or contain incorrect information (such as incorrect expiration dates) will be rejected by the licensure specialist. If this happens, you will receive an email stating the reason for the document rejection. If a document is rejected, please re-upload again with the necessary corrections.

  Licenses and certification renewal documents should be uploaded well before the expiration date. It is your responsibility to ensure that a current active license or certification is in your eOPF at all times. An expired license is grounds for separation from the Corps. Processing time after eDOC-U submission varies according to the amount of documents submitted by the Corps for processing.

  For any questions regarding licensure and certification renewals, please email PHSLicensure@hhs.gov.

  For additional information related to professional license, you may refer to Commissioned Corps Licensure and Certification Policy: Inst 251.01: -- Professional Licensure/Certification (Old CCPM: CC26.1.4).

  Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

  1. Why doesn’t my primary license information auto-generate into eDOC-U when I try to upload my license?

  If you have a secondary license, the initial primary license default is the license with the latest expiration date. After you select the primary license in eDOC-U the first time, it should maintain the hierarchy.

  2. Where should I look to make sure my current primary license is correct?

  You should check your Promotion Information Report (PIR) under “General Information.” Compliance is also posted on your Officer Secure Area (OSA) dashboard, but the PIR is the actual primary record.

  3. My licensure credentials are not in the eDOC-U licensure drop-down menu. What should I do?

  Licensure upload is only for licenses that are required as a condition of your commission for your qualifying degree. If your license is not in the drop-down menu, it is probably not a required professional license. Check under the “Board Certification” eDOC-U document option instead of the “Licensure” option. If you still cannot find your licensure or certification in formation in eDOC-U, please email the Licensure Specialist at PHSLicensure@hhs.gov.
• USER ASSISTANCE

  Please check our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) . FAQs are located at the top of the page next to the search function.

  Having Access Issues or Need IT Help? Please contact the Commissioned Corps Helpdesk at: CCHelpDesk@hhs.gov

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Protecting, Promoting and Advancing the Health and Safety of Our Nation. Commissioned Corps Headquarters
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