v1.0 — All Systems Operational

API Documentation

Verify healthcare licenses across all 50 states with a single API call. RN, LPN, NP, PA, MD, and DO — powered by official government data.

⚡

<100ms

Response Time

🗄️

5.3M+

License Records

🇺🇸

All 50

States Covered

Get Your Free API Key Code Examples Interactive Swagger

Getting Started

The API-Cert API lets you verify healthcare professional licenses in real-time. All requests are made to the following base URL:

Base URL

https://api.api-cert.com

Note: The production domain api.api-cert.com currently proxies to api-cert-api.onrender.com. Both work, but use the canonical domain for production integrations.

To get started:

Register for a free API key (50 verifications/month)
Include your key in the X-API-Key header
Make your first verification request

Authentication

All authenticated endpoints require an API key passed via the X-API-Key header.

Header

X-API-Key: your_api_key_here

To get your key, register with the /v1/register endpoint or email us for a free key. The key is shown only once upon registration — store it securely.

Register

POST/v1/registerPublic — no auth required

Create a new account and receive a free API key. The key is displayed only once in the response.

Request Body

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`email`	string	required	Your email address
`name`	string	optional	Your full name
`company`	string	optional	Your organization

Example Request

curl -X POST https://api.api-cert.com/v1/register \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "email": "[email protected]",
    "name": "Jane Smith",
    "company": "HealthTech Inc"
  }'

Response — 201 Created

{
  "api_key": "ac_live_abc123...",
  "key_prefix": "ac_live_abc",
  "tier": "free",
  "monthly_quota": 50,
  "rate_limit_rpm": 10,
  "message": "Store this key securely — it will not be shown again."
}

Verify License

POST/v1/verifyRequires API key

Verify a single healthcare professional's license. Returns the license status, expiration, and results of exclusion checks against federal databases.

Request Body

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`license_type`	string	required	One of: RN, LPN, NP, PA, MD, DO
`state`	string	required	2-letter state code (e.g. CA, NY, TX)
`last_name`	string	required	Provider's last name
`first_name`	string	optional	Provider's first name (improves accuracy)
`license_number`	string	optional	License number if known (improves accuracy)

Example Request

curl -X POST https://api.api-cert.com/v1/verify \
  -H "X-API-Key: your_api_key_here" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "license_type": "RN",
    "state": "MA",
    "last_name": "Chen",
    "first_name": "Sarah"
  }'

Response — 200 OK

{
  "verified": true,
  "license_type": "RN",
  "state": "MA",
  "full_name": "SARAH J. CHEN",
  "license_number": "RN298741",
  "status": "ACTIVE",
  "expiration_date": "2027-06-30",
  "issue_date": "2019-08-15",
  "oig_excluded": false,
  "sam_excluded": false,
  "cms_precluded": false,
  "disciplinary_flag": false,
  "npi_number": "1234567890",
  "latency_ms": 4
}

Bulk Verify

POST/v1/verify/bulkRequires API key

Submit up to 100 verification requests in a single call. Returns a job ID that you can poll for results. Requires Redis-backed async processing.

Request Body

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`requests`	array	required	Array of verification objects (max 100). Each object follows the same schema as /v1/verify.

Example Request

curl -X POST https://api.api-cert.com/v1/verify/bulk \
  -H "X-API-Key: your_api_key_here" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "requests": [
      { "license_type": "RN", "state": "CA", "last_name": "Smith" },
      { "license_type": "MD", "state": "NY", "last_name": "Johnson", "first_name": "Robert" }
    ]
  }'

Response — 202 Accepted

{
  "job_id": "bulk_abc123",
  "status": "processing",
  "total_requests": 2,
  "message": "Poll GET /v1/verify/bulk/bulk_abc123 for results."
}

State Coverage

GET/v1/statesRequires API key

Returns the coverage matrix showing which license types are supported in each state, along with the data source and last update timestamp.

Example Request

curl https://api.api-cert.com/v1/states \
  -H "X-API-Key: your_api_key_here"

Response — 200 OK

{
  "states": {
    "CA": {
      "supported_types": ["RN", "LPN", "NP", "PA", "MD", "DO"],
      "source": "California DCA",
      "last_updated": "2026-03-15T06:00:00Z"
    },
    "NY": {
      "supported_types": ["RN", "LPN", "NP", "PA", "MD", "DO"],
      "source": "NYSED Office of the Professions",
      "last_updated": "2026-03-15T06:00:00Z"
    }
  }
}

Upgrade Tier

POST/v1/upgradeRequires API key

Initiate a Stripe Checkout session to upgrade your subscription tier. Returns a URL to redirect the user to complete payment.

Request Body

Parameter	Type	Required	Description
`tier`	string	required	One of: 'starter', 'growth', 'scale'
`success_url`	string	optional	URL to redirect after successful payment
`cancel_url`	string	optional	URL to redirect if user cancels

Response — 200 OK

{
  "checkout_url": "https://checkout.stripe.com/c/pay/cs_live_...",
  "tier": "starter",
  "price": "$99/mo"
}

Usage Stats

GET/v1/usageRequires API key

Returns your current billing period usage statistics including requests made, quota remaining, and rate limit status.

Example Request

curl https://api.api-cert.com/v1/usage \
  -H "X-API-Key: your_api_key_here"

Response — 200 OK

{
  "tier": "free",
  "period_start": "2026-03-01",
  "period_end": "2026-03-31",
  "requests_used": 12,
  "requests_remaining": 38,
  "monthly_quota": 50,
  "rate_limit_rpm": 10
}

Code Examples

Complete examples showing registration and license verification.

cURL

# 1. Register for an API key
curl -X POST https://api.api-cert.com/v1/register \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"email": "[email protected]"}'

# Save the api_key from the response, then:

# 2. Verify a license
curl -X POST https://api.api-cert.com/v1/verify \
  -H "X-API-Key: YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "license_type": "RN",
    "state": "CA",
    "last_name": "Smith",
    "first_name": "Jane"
  }'

Python

python — requests

import requests

BASE = "https://api.api-cert.com"

# 1. Register
reg = requests.post(f"{BASE}/v1/register", json={
    "email": "[email protected]"
})
api_key = reg.json()["api_key"]

# 2. Verify a license
headers = {"X-API-Key": api_key}
resp = requests.post(f"{BASE}/v1/verify", headers=headers, json={
    "license_type": "RN",
    "state": "CA",
    "last_name": "Smith",
    "first_name": "Jane"
})

result = resp.json()
print(f"Status: {result['status']}")        # ACTIVE
print(f"OIG Excluded: {result['oig_excluded']}")  # False
print(f"Latency: {result['latency_ms']}ms") # 4

Node.js

node — fetch

const BASE = "https://api.api-cert.com";

// 1. Register
const reg = await fetch(`${BASE}/v1/register`, {
  method: "POST",
  headers: { "Content-Type": "application/json" },
  body: JSON.stringify({ email: "[email protected]" })
});
const { api_key } = await reg.json();

// 2. Verify a license
const resp = await fetch(`${BASE}/v1/verify`, {
  method: "POST",
  headers: {
    "X-API-Key": api_key,
    "Content-Type": "application/json"
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    license_type: "RN",
    state: "CA",
    last_name: "Smith",
    first_name: "Jane"
  })
});

const result = await resp.json();
console.log(`Status: ${result.status}`);
console.log(`OIG Excluded: ${result.oig_excluded}`);

Rate Limits & Pricing

All plans include access to every endpoint. Rate limits are enforced per-minute. When you exceed your quota or rate limit, the API returns 429 Too Many Requests.

Tier	Price	Monthly Quota	Rate Limit
Free	$0	50 requests	10 RPM
Starter	$99/mo	500 requests	60 RPM
Growth	$299/mo	2,000 requests	120 RPM
Scale	$799/mo	10,000 requests	300 RPM

Upgrade programmatically via POST /v1/upgrade or contact us for enterprise volume.

Status Values

The status field in verification responses indicates the current state of the license. Possible values:

ACTIVE

License is current and in good standing. The provider is authorized to practice.

CONDITIONAL

License is active but has conditions, restrictions, or a probationary status attached.

INACTIVE

License exists but is not currently active. The provider may have voluntarily deactivated or failed to renew.

EXPIRED

License has passed its expiration date and has not been renewed.

SUSPENDED

License has been temporarily suspended by the state board, often pending investigation or disciplinary action.

REVOKED

License has been permanently revoked by the state board. The provider is not authorized to practice.

UNKNOWN

The license was found but the status could not be definitively determined from the source data.

UNVERIFIED

No matching license record was found. The provider may not hold a license of this type in this state.

Error Handling

The API uses standard HTTP status codes. Errors return a consistent JSON structure:

Error Response Format

{
  "error": "Descriptive error message",
  "code": "ERROR_CODE",
  "status": 401
}

401Unauthorized

Missing or invalid API key. Check your X-API-Key header.

429Too Many Requests

Rate limit or monthly quota exceeded. Upgrade your tier or wait for the next billing period.

400Bad Request

Invalid or missing parameters. Check the request body against the endpoint schema.

Data Sources

API-Cert aggregates data from authoritative government sources to provide comprehensive verification:

•State Licensing Boards — Official license records from each state's board of nursing, medical board, or equivalent authority.
•NPPES (NPI Registry) — National Plan and Provider Enumeration System for NPI number cross-referencing.
•OIG LEIE — Office of Inspector General's List of Excluded Individuals/Entities.
•SAM.gov — System for Award Management exclusion records.
•CMS Preclusion List — Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services preclusion database.

Data is refreshed daily. Use the GET /v1/states endpoint to see per-state data source details and last update timestamps.

Ready to get started?

Get your free API key and start verifying healthcare licenses in minutes. No credit card required. 50 free verifications per month.

Get Your Free API Key

Or register via the API:

curl -X POST https://api.api-cert.com/v1/register -H "Content-Type: application/json" -d '{"email":"[email protected]"}'