North Dakota Radiologic Technologist Licensing Guide
License Snapshot
Board Processing Time
2-4 weeks
Board turnaround on a complete application — see lead time below
Application Fee
$216
Renewal: $150 · Temp license available
Credential
ARRT
Required national certification
Renewal
See details
Every 2 years
State Overview
North Dakota licenses radiology as more than a single credential. Alongside the general radiologic technologist license, it recognizes 4 separate base licenses (MRI Technologist, Radiation Therapist, Nuclear Medicine Technologist, and Sonographer (Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound)), plus 2 add-on authorizations (CT Technologist and Mammography), plus a limited-permit tier (Limited X-Ray Machine Operator (LXMO)).
A few other modalities are not licensed by the state at all, rather than carrying their own North Dakota license. The specialty section below covers each, including where a single-modality candidate may not be placeable.
Across radiology, ARRT certification is the national credential that anchors state licensure. A license you hold in another state does not transfer automatically, so you apply directly to North Dakota's licensing board for each assignment.
General Requirements
If you perform radiology procedures in North Dakota, the baseline below applies regardless of where you trained or which modality you work in.
- National certification: an active ARRT credential is the prerequisite the state license is built on. The state credential sits on top of ARRT, not instead of it.
- Credential required: ARRT (or other board-recognized national certifying body) registration in radiography; accredited radiologic technology program; ARRT exam; fingerprint-based state/federal criminal history check. No state-mandated CE to retain the base license per general guidance, though NDAC 114-02-01-04 requires 5 CE hours per declared modality per 2-year cycle.
- Scope of the base license: Full-scope diagnostic radiography under NDCC 43-62 and NDAC Title 114, administered by the North Dakota Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Board (NDMIRTB).
- Verification: ARRT or direct board verification.
Fees & Credentials
North Dakota issues more than one radiology credential, so fees vary by what you actually do. The table below is one row per state-recognized credential.
| Credential | Application | Renewal | Cycle |
|---|---|---|---|
| Radiographer (General Radiologic Technologist) | $25 | $150 | Every 2 years |
| MRI Technologist | $25 | $150 | Every 2 years |
| Radiation Therapist | $25 | $150 | Every 2 years |
| Nuclear Medicine Technologist | $25 | $150 | Every 2 years |
| Sonographer (Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound) | $25 | $150 | Every 2 years |
| Limited X-Ray Machine Operator (LXMO) | $25 | $75 | Every 2 years |
There is no state fee line for Medical Physicist, because North Dakota does not license those modalities. Their absence from the table is the point, not an omission.
All-in $216.25 = $25 application + $150 license + $41.25 background check. It is not $25 — the live page dropped $191 of mandatory cost.
Renewal & Continuing Education
- Renewal cycle: every 2 years, (biennially, prior to January 1st).
- Continuing education: your CE is whatever ARRT requires to keep your credential active. North Dakota does not appear to add its own hour mandate for the general license.
- CT Technologist CE: 5 hours of continuing education appropriate and relevant to CT per 2-year cycle, in addition to other declared modalities (NDAC 114-02-01-04).
- MRI Technologist CE: 5 hours of MRI-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle (NDAC 114-02-01-04).
- Radiation Therapist CE: 5 hours of radiation-therapy-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle (NDAC 114-02-01-04).
- Nuclear Medicine Technologist CE: 5 hours of nuclear-medicine-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle (NDAC 114-02-01-04).
- Sonographer (Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound) CE: 5 hours of sonography-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle (NDAC 114-02-01-04).
- Mammography CE: 5 hours of mammography-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle, in addition to other declared modalities (NDAC 114-02-01-04).
- Limited X-Ray Machine Operator (LXMO) CE: 12 continuing education hours per 2-year cycle for the LXMO credential.
Getting Licensed
Radiology licensure is ARRT-primary, so the path is shorter than the multi-step endorsement other professions run. For most candidates it is four steps:
- Hold the right ARRT credential for the work you will do (Radiography for general x-ray; the matching post-primary credential for a modality the state licenses).
- Complete a board-approved program if the state requires one for your credential.
- Apply to North Dakota Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Board through the application portal.
- Have ARRT verify your credential to the board directly. You do not self-attest the certification.
Common slip-ups travelers hit here: incomplete ARRT verification documentation submitted; board requires official verification directly from ARRT or current state board, not photocopies.
Processing & Timing
Board processing time is how long the board takes once it has a complete application. In North Dakota: 2-4 weeks (depending on background results). Boards rarely publish a guaranteed turnaround, so treat this as a planning number rather than a promise.
Recommended lead time before your start date is the total runway, and it runs longer than the board's processing window. Start the application as early as you can, because your ARRT verification has to reach the board before it can act.
If you need more than one credential here, for example a base license plus an add-on authorization, they may process as separate items rather than in one pass. Do not assume you can layer the second credential on at the last minute.
North Dakota endorsement carries moderate risk due to 2-6 week processing and state-specific background check delays. Temporary license (valid 180 days) provides strong mitigation, allowing work to begin within 1-2 weeks while permanent license processes.
Specialty Differences
Most of the radiology family in North Dakota runs on the general license. A handful of credentials genuinely diverge, and those are the ones worth reading closely. Below is one subsection per real difference, then roll-up lines for everything else.
CT Technologist
Divergence: add-on authorization. CT is practiced under the single NDMIRTB license as a declared modality on top of an active base license.
- Credential: Appropriate national registry in CT (e.g., ARRT post-primary CT certification) must be held to declare and practice CT as a modality
- CE: 5 hours of continuing education appropriate and relevant to CT per 2-year cycle, in addition to other declared modalities (NDAC 114-02-01-04)
How it differs from the general license: North Dakota does not issue a standalone CT license, but CT is a regulated declared modality: a technologist must hold the appropriate national CT registry (ARRT post-primary) and complete 5 CT-specific CE hours per cycle. No separate state fee applies because ND charges a single license fee covering all declared modalities.
MRI Technologist
Divergence: separate license. MRI Technologist is enumerated as a distinct licensed profession by the NDMIRTB under NDCC 43-62.
- Fee: $25 application, $150 renewal, every 2 years
- Credential: Appropriate national MRI registry (e.g., ARRT-MR or ARMRIT). North Dakota offers a Conditional Licensure pathway for MRI professionals working toward registry
- CE: 5 hours of MRI-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle (NDAC 114-02-01-04)
How it differs from the general license: North Dakota explicitly lists Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologist as its own licensed profession, separate from the radiographer license, even though MRI uses no ionizing radiation. A Conditional Licensure track exists specifically for MRI professionals not yet registry-certified.
Radiation Therapist
Divergence: separate license. Radiation Therapist is enumerated as a distinct licensed profession under NDCC 43-62, administered by NDMIRTB.
- Fee: $25 application, $150 renewal, every 2 years
- Credential: Appropriate national registry in radiation therapy (e.g., ARRT-T)
- CE: 5 hours of radiation-therapy-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle (NDAC 114-02-01-04)
How it differs from the general license: Radiation therapy is its own NDMIRTB license category distinct from diagnostic radiography, requiring the appropriate radiation therapy registry rather than a radiography registry.
Nuclear Medicine Technologist
Divergence: separate license. Nuclear Medicine Technologist is enumerated as a distinct licensed profession under NDCC 43-62, administered by NDMIRTB.
- Fee: $25 application, $150 renewal, every 2 years
- Credential: Appropriate national registry in nuclear medicine (e.g., NMTCB or ARRT-N)
- CE: 5 hours of nuclear-medicine-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle (NDAC 114-02-01-04)
How it differs from the general license: Nuclear medicine is its own NDMIRTB license category, requiring the nuclear medicine national registry (NMTCB/ARRT-N) rather than a radiography registry.
Sonographer (Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound)
Divergence: separate license. Sonographer is enumerated as a distinct licensed profession under NDCC 43-62, administered by NDMIRTB.
- Fee: $25 application, $150 renewal, every 2 years
- Credential: Appropriate national registry in sonography (e.g., ARDMS or CCI). ND offers a Conditional Licensure pathway for sonography students
- CE: 5 hours of sonography-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle (NDAC 114-02-01-04)
How it differs from the general license: Unlike many states that leave ultrasound unregulated because it uses no ionizing radiation, North Dakota licenses Sonographer as its own profession requiring the appropriate national ultrasound registry. A Conditional Licensure track exists for sonography students.
Mammography
Divergence: add-on authorization. Mammography is practiced under the single NDMIRTB license as a declared modality on top of an active base license.
- Credential: Appropriate national registry in mammography (ARRT post-primary M) must be held to declare and practice mammography as a modality. (Federal MQSA standards also apply.)
- CE: 5 hours of mammography-specific continuing education per 2-year cycle, in addition to other declared modalities (NDAC 114-02-01-04)
How it differs from the general license: North Dakota does not issue a standalone mammography license, but mammography is a regulated declared modality requiring the appropriate national mammography registry (ARRT post-primary M) and 5 mammography-specific CE hours per cycle. No separate state fee applies under ND's single-fee model.
Limited X-Ray Machine Operator (LXMO)
Divergence: limited-scope tier. Restricted scope: approx. 30 board-approved procedures (chest, extremities, spine, skull/sinuses) under general supervision; no fluoroscopy and no contrast media administration.
- Fee: $25 application, $75 renewal, every 2 years
- Credential: Completion of a board-recognized structured LXMO program, documented clinical competency (97 evaluations) within 9 months, and passing the ARRT state-administered limited scope radiography exam (Core plus modules: Chest, Extremities, Skull/Sinus, Spine). Applicants typically hold an allied-health license (nurse, PA, MT, etc.). 12 CE hours per cycle
- CE: 12 continuing education hours per 2-year cycle for the LXMO credential
How it differs from the general license: The LXMO is a reduced-scope credential below the full radiographer license: it does not require ARRT radiographer certification, is limited to board-approved plain-film procedures, prohibits fluoroscopy and contrast, requires only general (not direct) supervision after competency, and carries a lower $75 renewal fee.
Medical Physicist
Divergence: no state credential. The NDMIRTB does not issue a medical physicist license. A medical physicist is required to sit as one member of the nine-member board, but medical physicists are not an NDMIRTB-licensed profession; they are not listed among the board's license categories.
How it differs from the general license: North Dakota does not license medical physicists as a profession. The role appears only as a required board seat, not as a credential the board issues. (Texas, Florida, Hawaii, and New York are the states commonly cited as licensing medical physicists; North Dakota is not among them.).
Before you pay: confirm your modality
Within radiology, whether a modality needs its own state credential is not consistent, and it is the thing travelers most often get wrong. MRI, nuclear medicine, radiation therapy, sonography, and CT can each be a separate state license in one state, a facility credential checked against your ARRT registration in the next, and nothing extra in a third.
The divergences we verified for North Dakota are above. What we cannot see is your specific assignment and the site you land at. Before you submit any application fee for an advanced modality, confirm with your recruiter whether North Dakota issues a state credential for it or whether the facility handles that against your certification. We would rather you ask first than pay for something the role never required.
Official Resources
North Dakota Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Board
Board Website·Application Portal
Phone: (701) 425-0861
Frequently Asked Questions
Please note that while Fusion Medical Staffing strives to provide the most current and accurate information, we cannot guarantee the completeness or timeliness of the information provided. Requirements and processes can change frequently. Healthcare professionals are strongly encouraged to verify details directly with North Dakota Medical Imaging and Radiation Therapy Board's official website.
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