New Hampshire physician non-compete law
Physician non-competes are generally not enforceable in New Hampshire.
If your contract is governed by New Hampshire law, a physician non-compete is generally void — the state does not let an employer restrict where you practice after you leave. The clause may still appear in your contract; that alone does not make it enforceable. Confirm the restriction is tied to employment (not the sale of a practice or an ownership stake), and don't let an unenforceable clause talk you out of a move it cannot actually block.
- Posture
- Physician non-competes void by statute
- Last reviewed
- 2026-06-10
- Radius that tends to stand
- —
- Term that tends to stand
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Governing law: N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. (RSA) 329:31-a
These are the general rules for New Hampshire. Your contract's exact radius, term, and buyout decide how it actually lands. See how your own clause compares — free.
Check your contract — free →The detailed picture
RSA 329:31-a (enacted by SB 417, codified at 2016, 194:1, eff. Aug. 5, 2016) makes any restriction on a board-licensed physician's right to practice medicine in any geographic area for any period of time after termination of a partnership, employment, or professional relationship VOID and unenforceable as to that restriction; the remainder of the contract survives, and there is no sale-of-practice exception. Verified against the official gc.nh.gov text — the statute is UNCHANGED through 2025/2026 (a search hit suggesting a 2025 Ch. 105 amendment was a false positive; the source line shows only 2016, 194:1). It remains a flat ban, not a capped/buyout/radius/continuity-of-care regime, and does not bar patient non-solicitation clauses, which may still be enforceable. CORRECTION to the prior note's scope claim: NH has now EXTENDED an identical void-and-unenforceable non-compete ban to advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) via SB 172 (2025), enacted as Ch. 119, signed June 24, 2025, eff. Aug. 23, 2025 (new section in RSA ch. 326-B). PAs and other healthcare workers remain outside any statutory ban. The APRN change does not affect the physician bucket.
Common questions
Are physician non-competes enforceable in New Hampshire?
Physician non-competes are generally not enforceable in New Hampshire. Governing law: N.H. Rev. Stat. Ann. (RSA) 329:31-a.
My New Hampshire contract still has a non-compete — does that matter?
A clause can appear in a contract without being enforceable. Under New Hampshire law a physician employment non-compete is generally void, so confirm the restriction is not tied to a practice sale or ownership interest, and check your own contract's exact wording.
Other states
General legal information, not legal advice. Non-compete enforceability turns on the exact wording of your contract and your circumstances; this page describes the state's general posture as last reviewed 2026-06-10.