LPN phone screen questions: license and compact status, scope fit, IV certification, med pass and shifts

An LPN phone screen is a 15 to 20 minute recruiter call that confirms the practical or vocational nurse can practice in the job's state by the start date and that the job fits inside LPN scope there. Confirm the license (LPN, or LVN in California and Texas), whether it is multistate under the Nurse Licensure Compact, any board action, the IV certification the role needs, and the setting, med pass size and charge duties of the last two years. Then cover documentation, shifts, why they want to move and the hourly rate they need. Scope and IV rules differ by state and compact membership keeps changing, so screen against the job's state as of November 2026.

This page is the first-call version. The deeper bank, with scope limits from the Texas Board of Nursing, IV questions and setting fit, is in LPN screening questions. For RNs, use nurse phone screen questions; for nursing assistants, CNA phone screen questions. The Nursys lookup and its employer terms are covered in how to verify a nursing license, and sourcing in Boolean search strings for LPNs.

What do you need from the client before the call?

Many failed LPN placements start with a requisition for "a nurse" where some duties need an RN, or with a med pass twice the size the candidate is used to. Get these facts first; the LPN job description template shows where each belongs in the posting.

How should a 20-minute LPN phone screen run?

1. Opening (1 minute). The setting, med pass and shifts in two sentences, how long the call will take, and your consent line if you record.
2. Knockouts (4 to 5 minutes). License and compact status, board action, IV certification, shifts, work authorization.
3. License route for the job's state (3 minutes). Which license they will work under, and what is pending.
4. Scope, med pass and charge (5 minutes). What they did alone, what went to the RN, how big the pass was.
5. Motivation, pay expectations and logistics (4 minutes). Why now, hourly rate needed, start date.
6. Their questions and the next step (2 minutes). Consent to submit and interview availability.

The timings are a planning example. If a knockout fails, say so kindly and end the call or redirect to another opening.

Which knockout questions come first?

The authorization wording follows the Justice Department's Immigrant and Employee Rights Section FAQ, which says an employer may generally ask whether applicants have the legal right to work in the United States and whether they will need visa sponsorship (as of November 2026).

How do you confirm the license and compact status?

The Nurse Licensure Compact's FAQ says the compact pertains to RN and LPN/VN licenses only, so a practical nurse can hold one multistate license from a compact home state. The NLC map shows, as of November 2026:

• 43 jurisdictions in the compact.
• Of those, Massachusetts and the U.S. Virgin Islands have enacted it but are awaiting implementation, and Guam is partially implemented.
• Michigan and the District of Columbia with pending legislation.
• No pending legislation in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Nevada, New York and Oregon.

A multistate license follows the nurse's primary state of residence, not where they last worked. The residence questions, the 60-day rule after a move, and what to say when the driver's license and the license state do not match are in nurse phone screen questions; the rules are the same for LPNs.

Does the job fit inside LPN scope?

State boards set LPN scope, and the setting's own rules add limits. Two federal rules decide a lot of LPN placements, as of November 2026:

• Nursing facilities. 42 CFR 483.35 requires a licensed nurse as charge nurse on each tour of duty, and a registered nurse for at least 8 consecutive hours a day, 7 days a week, unless waived; the current text is as amended on December 3, 2025. That is why so many evening and night charge roles go to LPNs.
• Medicare home health. 42 CFR 484.55 says a registered nurse conducts the initial assessment visit and completes the comprehensive assessment, unless therapy is the only service ordered. A home health LPN role is visits under the plan of care, not admissions.

If the client's answers to the intake questions put admissions, initial assessments, care plans or telephone triage on the LPN, raise it before you screen anyone; in many states that is RN work. The Texas Board of Nursing's published limits are a clear example, summarized in LPN screening questions. Treat any scope answer as information for the client's nurse leader, not a legal judgment you make.

How do you check IV certification for the job's state?

IV rules for practical nurses differ more than most. California is the strictest example to screen for. As of November 2026, the Board of Vocational Nursing and Psychiatric Technicians' FAQ says:

• An LVN must be certified by the Board to perform intravenous therapy or blood withdrawal.
• The Board does not recognize out-of-state IV or blood withdrawal certification. The LVN needs a California-approved course, or a verification of competency from a California-licensed physician or registered nurse.
• Renewal of the certification is not required, and a Board certification should show on the license, so check the license record.

So an LVN moving to California with an IV certificate from Arizona cannot start IVs there on it, and a client that needs IV skills on day one should know that before the submittal. Other states leave more to facility policy; ask the client what proof it needs, then ask the candidate for it.

How do you check the med pass, charge duty and documentation in a few minutes?

• "How many residents or patients were on your med pass, and how long did it take?" Good: a number and a time ("24 residents, about two hours, with insulin and two G-tubes"). Weak: no idea, after months on the hall.
• "Have you been the charge nurse? On which shifts, and for how many aides?" Good: shifts, numbers and who they called. Weak: "sometimes", with no detail, for a charge role.
• "A resident's condition changes on your shift. What do you do?" Good: a focused check, notifies the RN or provider under policy, documents, follows up. Weak: changes treatment alone, or waits for the day shift.
• "Which EHR do you document in, and when are your notes done?" Good: names it, notes closed before the end of the shift. Weak: charting hours after the shift most days.

How do you test motivation on an LPN phone screen?

How do you ask about pay without asking salary history?

Many states and cities bar employers and their agents from asking about current or past pay, as of November 2026; the list is in salary history ban states. LPN pay is hourly, usually with shift and weekend differentials, and per diem or agency rates differ from staff rates, so ask in the model the job uses.

If the candidate volunteers a number, keep it out of your notes and the submittal and record the expectation instead. This is general information, not legal advice; check the law where the job is located.

When should you advance an LPN?

An example rule to agree with the client: advance when every knockout passes, license readiness and scope awareness score at least 2, and two other areas score 3. Hold when one fact, such as an IV course date, needs confirming. Decline when a knockout fails.

What should you not ask an LPN on a phone screen?

The EEOC says pre-employment inquiries should be limited to what is essential for deciding whether someone is qualified, and its guidance on pre-employment questions allows asking whether a candidate can perform the job's functions, with or without reasonable accommodation, but not disability-related questions before an offer. The same guidance says employers may not ask applicants about job-related injuries or workers' compensation history.

If a candidate raises a health condition or a need for accommodation, note that they raised it and pass it to the employer's process; see ADA accommodations in interviews. If you take LPN screens through your computer, Interview Signal keeps the license, compact and IV questions pinned until asked and writes the notes, with no bot in the call.