License Renewal for 2026 is now open. All Minnesota PT and PTA Licenses expire on December 31, 2025. You must have an active license to practice as a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant in Minnesota. Practice under a non-renewed credential is basis for discipline under MS 148.75(a)(18). Any practice after December 31, 2025, will be looked at as practicing without a license until your license has been renewed for 2026. For more information Click Here
Please see the ADA Exam Accommodations page for information on requesting accommodations. The request forms located at the bottom of the page include a list of the documentation needed by the Board to approve testing accommodations for applicants.
Yes, for recent graduate applicants, who have not started practicing/working as a licensed PT/PTA, your Program Director, Professor, or Clinical Instructor may complete the recommendation form(s) for you. Please note, they must be a licensed physical therapist in the United States or Canada.
No, you do not need your official transcript to register and be made eligible to sit for the NPTE. Please do not have your transcript sent to the Board until after your graduation date, and after/once your degree granted and degree granted date are posted on your official transcript. You will need your official transcript sent to the Board prior to final licensure.
No, your criminal background check does not need to be complete to register and take the NPTE. However, your criminal background check must be complete prior to final licensure. Please see the Application Instructions for documents/information required by the board to approve applicants to test.
If you have already been made eligible by another state to take the NPTE, you would need to complete the application for licensure process as PT or PTA licensed in another state. The other option is canceling your exam registration and re-signing up with FSBPT to be made eligible by the state of Minnesota. We highly recommend contacting or calling the Board office to discuss your options.
Temporary permits to practice physical therapy are available to new graduates before they have taken the NPTE. Temporary permits can be issued after the date of graduation and after the applicant has provided the Board with their scheduled testing date and Prometric confirmation number. Please contact the Board with any questions.
Pay the retake fee to the MN Board of PT. Mail a check or money order (made payable to the MN Board of PT) for $50.00 to the Board of PT office. Please note, the exam administration fee must be paid for each exam attempt.
Once the Board has made you eligible, you will be emailed your Authorization to Test (ATT) letter by FSBPT and will be able to schedule your exam appointment with Prometric.
If you did not receive a passing score on the NPTE, your temporary permit will expire on the expiration date listed on your temporary permit approval letter. Temporary permits are only issued once and are non-renewable. Practice on an expired temporary permit is unlicensed practice and is subject to possible disciplinary action under MS 148.75 (a)(1), (18), and 148.76, subd. 1, (1). Please contact the Board immediately if you have any questions about the status of your temporary permit.
Yes, both documents are required to be submitted to the MN Board of PT for licensure. However, only the Certification of Education form must be received prior to being made eligible to sit for the NPTE. Your official transcript is not required for the Board to make you eligible for the NPTE but is required before you can be licensed. Your official transcript should be sent after you have graduated, and must have the degree granted and degree granted date posted.
It is the applicant's responsibility to make sure their file is complete; i.e. completed application, exam scores and documentation have been received by the board. The board will not review applicants with incomplete files. Applicants who answer yes to a question on their application or provide incomplete information are reviewed by the licensure committee at a PT Board meeting. Wall certificates and license cards will be issued after the Board meeting or review date.
Applicants (licensed in another state) that wish to practice before the Board grants final licensure can be issued a temporary permit only after their application for licensure is complete and all requirements for licensure have been met. Temporary permits can only be issued once and are nonrenewable. Please contact the Board with any questions.
There is no jurisprudence exam for applicants for initial licensure. However, after you are licensed in Minnesota, you will be required to complete and pass the jurisprudence exam each year as part of the license renewal process.
Each licensed physical therapist and physical therapist assistant must complete at least 20 contact hours of continuing education credit every two years as a condition of licensure renewal. 2.0 of these 20 hours must be on ethics directly related to the professional responsibility of the licensee. Newly licensed physical therapists and physical therapist assistants commence their two year cycle on January 1 immediately following the date licensure was granted, and continuing education credits may be accrued during the first partial year in addition to the two full years of licensure. Licensees are required to attest to completion of continuing education by reporting to the Board at renewal time. Continuing education documentation must be retained by each licensee in the event they are selected for an audit.
Physical Therapists and Physical Therapist Assistants must practice 320 hours during the past five years in order to be issued a license, renew, reinstate following a lapse in licensure or return to active licensure status from inactive status. Alternatively, physical therapists and physical therapist assistants may choose to retake and pass the National Physical Therapy Exam or complete a board approved supervised clinical practice. The supervised clinical practice length and site must be pre-approved by the board.
