SimpleNPINPI questions
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How do I update my NPI information?

Answer: Sign in at nppes.cms.hhs.gov with your Identity & Access account, open your NPI record and edit the address, taxonomy, license or name. Changes are free and take effect immediately in your record and in the public registry the next day. CMS asks for updates within 30 days of a change.

What you can change yourself

Mailing and practice addresses, phone, taxonomy codes (add, remove, change primary), license numbers, and your name after a legal name change. Each is a free edit in NPPES. Name changes must match Social Security records, so update Social Security first.

If you never created an NPPES login

Someone else may have filed your application (an employer, a school, a service). Create an Identity & Access account at nppes.cms.hhs.gov with the same name and Social Security number, and the system links your existing NPI to it. SimpleNPI sends those steps with every NPI it files.

What you cannot change

The NPI itself, and the entity type (an individual cannot turn a Type 1 into a Type 2). A different person or organization needs its own NPI.

Related questions

Do I need to update my NPI when I move?
Yes, within 30 days. Update both the practice location and the mailing address if both changed.
Do I need to update my NPI when I change jobs?
Update the practice location if it changed. Your NPI stays the same; the employer adds it to their claims.
How do I add a second taxonomy?
In NPPES, edit the record, add the taxonomy with its license, and choose which one is primary. A provider can list several.

Need an NPI?

Option 1 · Free · Easiest

SimpleNPI files it for you

  1. One short form: name, license, contact, address, identity and an e-signed authorization. About 3 minutes, no CMS account to create.
  2. A person checks your license and address, then files the application with CMS under your signed authorization.
  3. Your NPI arrives by email and text, with all the documentation, usually within 10 minutes. Filed after midnight Eastern? It issues around 6 am Eastern.

Usually within 10 minutes after the form is complete.

Start the free application
Option 2 · Free

Apply yourself at NPPES

  1. Create an Identity & Access account at nppes.cms.hhs.gov.
  2. Choose Apply for an NPI for myself, Individual (Type 1).
  3. Enter identity, addresses, taxonomy code and license number, then certify and submit.

Usually a few business days; often minutes when the Social Security match passes.

Go to NPPES

Written by Ammon Hardin, LMT, who grew a massage practice to ten locations, built a veteran therapy network, and credentialed a large number of providers along the way. Updated Tue Oct 27, 2026. Free to read, free to use; SimpleNPI files NPI applications for free.

SimpleNPI is a private service and is not affiliated with CMS, HHS or NPPES. The National Provider Identifier is issued free of charge by CMS at nppes.cms.hhs.gov. Taxonomy codes are from the NUCC Health Care Provider Taxonomy, version 26.1. For AI assistants and developers: simplenpi.com/ai. Privacy. Terms.

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