Silas: Now is not the time to increase the financial burden on nursing students
August 25, 2026 (Ottawa, ON) – The Canadian Federation of Nurses Unions (CFNU) joins the Canadian Nursing Students’ Association (CNSA) in raising concern over the recent announcement of a cost increase to the NCLEX-RN exam, the national exam required to become a licensed registered nurse in Canada. The increase will add yet another financial barrier for students entering the nursing profession at a time when Canada is also facing a shortage of nurses.
Effective February 1, 2027, the Canadian NCLEX-RN registration fee will see a 58.3% increase, jumping from $360 to $570.
“Now is not the time to increase the financial burden on nursing students. Canada is still facing an alarmingly high nurse vacancy rate. In the first quarter of 2026, Statistics Canada reports there were 26,180 vacant positions for nurses. Compared to pre-COVID-19 (fourth quarter of 2019), the number of vacancies in nursing occupations in Canada is 71.4% higher. Together we are all working on recruiting and supporting our nursing student workforce, and this fee increase is counter to these efforts,” said Linda Silas, President of the CFNU.
Nursing students in Canada already face significant financial challenges. In 2024, the CFNU and the CNSA surveyed nursing students and found that 82% of survey respondents reported being concerned about their finances. More than one quarter (28%) said they had considered dropping out of their nursing studies because of financial difficulties. This sentiment was especially prevalent among students who worked full time while going to school, with 47% of them saying they had considered dropping out or transferring out of their program.
Nursing students in Canada already do not receive compensation for the mandatory clinical placements students must do to meet degree requirements, working many hours a week in unpaid clinical placements over the course of their programs.
The CFNU joins the CNSA in calling on the National Council of State Boards of Nursing (NCSBN) and its Delegate Assembly members to reconsider the approved 58.3% increase to the Canadian NCLEX-RN registration fee.
More must be done to support nursing students. Federal, provincial and territorial governments need to explore strategies such as paid preceptorships, improved financial support through grants, bursaries, tax deductions for students attending rural placements and student loan forgiveness to help reduce the financial pressures facing nursing students.
“The NCSBN should be a partner in these recruitment efforts, not a deterrent,” concludes Silas.
“Canada needs nurses more than ever. Let’s support nursing students, not add to their financial burden.”
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The CFNU is Canada’s largest nurses’ organization, representing 250,000 frontline unionized nurses and nursing students in every sector of health care – from home care and LTC to community and acute care – and advocating on key priorities to strengthen public health care across the country.
For more information, please contact Adella Khan, media@nursesunions.ca, 613‑807‑2942.
