Castleport Test Prep

NBRC Credential Verification: Free Lookup, Phone Check, or $5 Letter

The National Board for Respiratory Care (NBRC) verifies the credentials it has issued: CRT, RRT, CPFT, RPFT, CRT-NPS, RRT-NPS, CRT-SDS, RRT-SDS, RRT-ACCS and AE-C. Match the method to the proof your employer or licensing board actually asked for.

What you need Official next step Cost and limits
Check or print someone's NBRC credential record Open NBRC's free credential lookup Free. The printout does not include the date the credential was earned.
Get a verbal confirmation Call NBRC at 913-895-4900 Free oral verification.
Send official verification as the credential holder Log in to the NBRC Practitioner Portal and order a credential verification $5. Emailed official letter.
Get emailed verification as an employer or verifier Find the practitioner's record, then order emailed verification $5.
Check a state respiratory care license Find the state licensing agency A separate check with the state board. NBRC does not issue licenses.

Sources: NBRC verification options and fees (Practitioner Services FAQ) and NBRC Credentialed Practitioners. Credential names: NBRC Candidate Handbook, p. 15.

By the Castleport Test Prep Editorial Team. Last verified October 29, 2026, covering NBRC verification options, fees, published timing, request form, credential maintenance, state-board examples and contact routes.

Which one does a licensing board want?

Use the form of verification your board requires. Board materials from Florida and Georgia tell applicants to have NBRC send credential verification to the board directly.

Don't order on autopilot, though. California's Respiratory Care Board says that in most cases it receives exam results directly from NBRC for California new graduates. Applicants who tested elsewhere or already hold a credential must request official verification through the NBRC Practitioner Portal. Read your board's current application instructions before you pay.

Before you order: five things to confirm

This is our checklist, not an NBRC form. Use it to check that the letter goes to the right place under the right name.

  • Person: The name on NBRC's record matches the name the recipient has. If your name changed, fix that first (see below).
  • Credential: You know which credential the recipient needs. CRT and RRT are different credentials, and some states and jobs require a specific one.
  • Recipient: You have the exact organization, department, mailing address and email from the recipient's own instructions. NBRC's request form asks for the receiver's name, address and email.
  • Proof format: You've confirmed whether a printout is acceptable, whether the earned date is needed, and whether NBRC must send the verification directly.
  • Timing: You know the recipient's deadline and have checked NBRC's published processing times (below). Save your order confirmation.

How to order your $5 verification letter online

  1. Log in to the NBRC Practitioner Portal. No account? Follow NBRC's account-setup guidance. If you've forgotten which email you log in with, email info@nbrc.org with your current name, address, the last four digits of your Social Security number, and the email address you want to use (NBRC FAQ).
  2. Select Credential Verifications. That's the portal option named on NBRC's current request form.
  3. Enter the receiver exactly as the board or employer specified, then pay the $5 fee.
  4. Keep your order confirmation in case the recipient says nothing arrived.

How to request the letter by mail, fax or email

Use NBRC's Request for Credential Verification form (PDF). It asks for:

  • Your first and last name and the last four digits of your Social Security number
  • Your mailing address, email and phone number
  • The receiver's name, address and email
  • Payment of $5: check or money order payable to NBRC, or a credit card (no cash)

Send it to: The National Board for Respiratory Care, ATTN: Credential Verification, 10801 Mastin St., Ste. 300, Overland Park, KS 66210. Paying by credit card? You can fax the form to 913-712-9283 or email it to service@nbrc.org instead.

Watch for outdated NBRC forms on state board websites

Georgia's Form D, revised October 11, 2019, lists a $5 fee for active members and $20 for inactive members, and has a Social Security number field without a last-four-digits limit.

NBRC's current fee table lists $5, and its current form asks only for the last four digits of your SSN. If your board requires its own form, follow the board's instructions, but confirm the fee and address with NBRC before you mail payment.

How long NBRC verification takes

NBRC publishes these timelines, and its pages don't describe delivery the same way:

  • Online requests: NBRC's Credentialed Practitioners page says to allow two days.
  • Mailed requests: NBRC's current request form says they're processed within 7–10 business days after NBRC receives them.
  • Delivery: The same form says verification letters are emailed within 24 hours after processing. The Credentialed Practitioners page still tells you to allow 5–7 business days for U.S. mail delivery on top of processing.

If your deadline is tight, call NBRC and ask how your letter will be delivered and when.

Three separate clocks are running: NBRC posting a newly earned credential, NBRC processing your verification order, and the board reviewing your application. A fast letter doesn't guarantee a fast board review.

Verifying someone else's credential

NBRC gives employers, recruiters and credentialing staff four routes (NBRC FAQ):

  1. Look up and print for free using the online credential search. NBRC's Candidate Handbook (Recognition and Use of Credentials, p. 15) says credential status is available to the public through this search.
  2. Call NBRC at 913-895-4900 for free verbal verification.
  3. Order an emailed verification for $5 after finding the person's record.
  4. Ask the practitioner to order an official letter for $5 from their own account. Never ask for their login.

Match the person, not just the name. A shared name isn't confirmation. If more than one record could fit, call NBRC before treating any result as verified.

Check the state license separately. An NBRC credential is not a license to practice. NBRC holds the credential record; the state board holds the license record, including license status and discipline. Use NBRC's state licensing agency list to find the right board.

When the record is missing or something goes wrong

Situation What to do
No matching record in the lookup Try a former or maiden name and confirm the spelling. If you still can't confirm the right person, call NBRC. An unsuccessful search alone doesn't show that someone lacks a credential.
You just passed and the credential isn't showing yet Check your own Practitioner Portal account, where NBRC posts a digital certificate, then call NBRC if the credential isn't there. NBRC lists your credential date as the day you passed (Candidate Handbook, p. 13). Don't send a score report in place of verification unless your board says it accepts one.
You can't log in, or your name on file is wrong Use NBRC's login and name-change help (below and in the NBRC FAQ) before ordering a letter.
A digital badge won't display NBRC's Digital Badge FAQ lists three common causes: the annual payment isn't current, a credential has expired, or the badge link is wrong. Badges run through December 31 of the year paid. A missing badge alone doesn't prove expiration, so check the credential record.
You ordered a letter and the recipient says it never arrived Check your saved order and the receiver address and email you entered. Ask the recipient to check their mail handling, including spam. Then contact NBRC about that order before paying for another.
The credential has expired See Expired credentials.

Contact NBRC at 913-895-4900, toll-free 888-341-4811, or info@nbrc.org (NBRC Contact).

If your name has changed

Update NBRC before ordering, so the letter matches the name on your application.

  • NBRC's Candidate Handbook (Name and Address Changes, p. 8) says name changes are made by calling NBRC Customer Care at 913-895-4900.
  • NBRC's FAQ also describes email: for a last-name change, send info@nbrc.org your current name, previous name and address. If both your first and last names changed, include official name-change documentation.

Call first to find out which route NBRC wants for your situation.

Expired credentials

NBRC credentials earned on or after July 1, 2002 are awarded for five years, counted from the end of the month they were issued. Credentials covered by NBRC's pre-July 1, 2002 exemption aren't subject to the Credential Maintenance Program and don't expire; all AE-C credential holders must participate in CMP. To see your own expiration date, log in to the Practitioner Portal (Candidate Handbook, pp. 6–7; CMP brochure, p. 2; NBRC expiration-date guidance).

If a credential has expired (NBRC CMP brochure, pp. 7–8):

  • Within six months of expiration: enter qualifying continuing education online and pay a $250 reinstatement fee. The CE must have been earned during the five-year term.
  • More than six months ago: apply as a new candidate under the admission policies in effect at that time and pass the exam again. If you have multiple expired credentials, you must apply for and pass the examinations required to reinstate them.

NBRC says any use of an expired credential designation, including on patient charts or a license application, violates its Judicial and Ethics Policies. It also notes that some states require a current NBRC credential to keep a license (NBRC CMP brochure, p. 7; North Carolina board, National Board for Respiratory Care).

NBRC credential vs. state license

NBRC credential verification and state license verification are two different checks, from two different authorities:

  • NBRC is the source for CRT, RRT and specialty credentials.
  • Your state board is the source for your license to practice. Renewing one doesn't renew the other (NBRC). Follow each authority's instructions for updating contact details and continuing education records.

Find your board through NBRC's state licensing agency list and follow its current instructions.

Sources

Checked October 29, 2026:

How we check facts: How we verify information.

Castleport Test Prep is an independent exam prep publisher and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the National Board for Respiratory Care. Exam and credential names identify their subjects, and trademarks belong to their respective owners. Castleport cannot verify anyone's credential; NBRC and state boards hold the official records.