In the title complex, [Ni(C(4)H(3)N(2)O(2))(2)(H(2)O)(2)], the Ni(II) ion is located on an inversion center and shows a distorted octa-hedral geometry, defined by two N,O-bidentate 1H-imidazole-4-carboxyl-ate ligands in the equatorial plane and two water mol-ecules in the axial positions. Inter-molecular N-H⋯O hydrogen bonds link the complex mol-ecules into layers parallel to (10[Formula: see text]), which are further linked into a three-dimensional supra-molecular network through O-H⋯O hydrogen bonds.