The quickest and easiest way to apply for Massachusetts licensure is via our Educator Licensure And Renewal (ELAR) portal. Please note: first-time users of the Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR portal will need to create a profile prior to submitting an electronic application via Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR.
Applicants who experience difficulties applying or submitting a payment for a license/endorsement in Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR, have the option to download, print, and mail in (do not upload a licensure application into your Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR account) a hard-copy of the form to the Office of Educator Licensure via standard mail methods. Please note that this submission method can involve a substantially longer processing time.
There is a $100 application fee for the first license. The fee for each additional application is $25.
Licensure applications undergo an initial evaluation once the following items have been received by the Office of Educator Licensure:
If a license is not approved after a first evaluation is conducted by our evaluator team, you will receive a detailed evaluation letter. This letter can be accessed via your Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR account. To view the letter, log into Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR, click on the Check license status and history, make a payment link on your Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR Welcome page. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click on the correspondence history button. There you should see your previous and most recent correspondence, notifying you of outstanding requirements and how you may satisfy those requirements.
Once you have applied for a license you can log into your Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR account at any time to check the status of a license application, upload additional documents, and even view submitted documentation and correspondence.
Once you have applied for a license, you will need to upload (fastest method), mail, or fax all required supporting documentation to our office.
Applicants seeking a Provisional, Initial, or Professional license, who have not already done so, should upload or send in:
Official copies of all college transcripts (*Official copies do not need to be in a sealed envelope. An official transcript/copy of official transcript must show the registrar's signature, degree conferred, and date degree is conferred (if applicable).
Please note: when uploading official copies of transcripts;
Applicants who have worked under a Massachusetts MA Initial license for three or more years and are now seeking a Massachusetts MA Professional license; as well as any other applicant who needs to verify employment under a license, should send in:
Employment/Induction and Mentoring Verification Form
For Out of State Applicants seeking a Temporary license please send in the following:
For Out of State Applicants seeking an Initial license through reciprocity (National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification NASDTEC Interstate Agreement) please send in one the following:
Out-of-State Approved Program Verification Form (original copy should be mailed and not uploaded) or
If you are seeking licensure on the basis of foreign (non-United States U.S.) coursework and/or diploma(s), you will be required to provide the Office of Educator Licensure with a detailed equivalency report of all college-level coursework completed. Please note that independent evaluations must be conducted by a nationally recognized agency.
Supporting documentation should be:
You will receive a confirmation email upon our receipt of your supporting documentation. However, if you would like to verify that we have received all requested documentation, please log into your Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR account and select the Check license status and history, make payment link on your Welcome to Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR homepage. Scroll to the bottom of the Inquiry - Activity Summary page to find the View Documents button in order to view your submitted documentation.
Sending in Required Documents Frequently Asked Questions FAQs
You can log-in to your Educator Licensure and Renewal ELAR account to check the status of your licensure application at any time. The most common licensure statuses that you will see there include:
Last Updated: September 18, 2026