Colorado Physician Assistant Licensing Process (PA-C)

Other Critical Steps

DEA Registration
You will need a Colorado address on your DEA license confirmed before you can work your first assignment. This is not a prerequisite for your PA-C license to be granted, but you will need to register your DEA license in Colorado prior to starting work in the state in order to prescribe legally.

There are two ways to ensure you have a DEA license registered in the state you will work in. Some providers decide to purchase an additional DEA license dedicated to locums work, but most choose to simply transfer their existing DEA license to Colorado immediately prior to their assignment starting. Whichever path you choose, you can apply for a new license or make changes to your existing DEA registration at the DEA website.

Keep in mind that if you choose to transfer your existing DEA license to a new state, the process can take up to 5 business days, so you must account for that transition time.

Supervision Agreement (SA)
If your license is approved prior to the registration of your primary supervising physician, you will have 180 days from the approval date to do so. Failure to register a primary supervising physician within 180 days will result in your license being placed in an inactive status. If you do not register a primary supervising physician within 180 days, you will need to apply for reactivation of your license prior to practicing.

How do I register a new Primary Supervising Physician?
If you have obtained a primary physician supervisor and submitted the registration form prior to the approval of your application for licensure, the primary supervising physician will be registered at the time of licensure and an active license will be issued.

If you do not have a primary supervising physician prior to the approval of your application for licensure, the license will be issued in an ACTIVE–Pending supervisor registration status. You are allowed by Board Policy 20-9 to remain in a pending status for 180 days. If you do not register a primary supervising physician within 180 days, the license will convert to an INACTIVE status. No refund of fees will be issued if you fail to register a primary supervising physician within 180 days. You must then submit an application for reactivation and pay a reactivation fee.

To register a new primary supervising physician, use the Primary Supervising Physician Registration Form and check the option “New registration of a primary physician supervisor.”