To get a physical therapy license in Florida, you need a degree from a CAPTE-accredited program, passing scores on both the National Physical Therapy Examination and the Florida Laws and Rules Examination, a clean Level 2 background check, and an online application submitted to the Board of Physical Therapy Practice with a $180 fee. The same path applies whether you trained in the United States or abroad, though foreign graduates add a credential evaluation step at the front.
Education You Need
Florida requires graduation from a physical therapy program accredited by an agency recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation or the U.S. Department of Education. In practice that means the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE). Because CAPTE now accredits only Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) programs for entry-level practice, every new graduate holds a DPT.
DPT programs run about three years and combine coursework in anatomy, neuroscience, and biomechanics with supervised clinical rotations. The rotations are part of the accredited curriculum; the Florida Department of Health does not separately approve them.
If You Trained Outside the United States
Foreign-educated applicants must have their credentials evaluated for equivalency to a U.S. entry-level degree before Florida will consider the application. The Board of Physical Therapy Practice recognizes three credentialing agencies: the Foreign Credentialing Commission on Physical Therapy (FCCPT), International Education Research Foundation (IERF), and International Consultants of Delaware (ICD). The agency sends its evaluation directly to the board. Once your education is deemed equivalent, the remaining steps are the same as for U.S. graduates.
Exams You Must Pass
National Physical Therapy Examination
Every applicant takes the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE), administered by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT). The PT version has 225 multiple-choice items covering musculoskeletal, neuromuscular, cardiovascular, and other clinical systems. You cannot register on your own. The Florida board must first verify your education and issue an authorization to test.
The NPTE costs $485. If you fail, you can retake it on the next scheduled date, and the re-examination application to Florida is $100. The FSBPT caps lifetime attempts at six. Three consecutive failures trigger a mandatory remediation requirement before your next attempt, and you get only two more tries after that.
Florida Laws and Rules Examination
Florida also requires a jurisprudence exam covering state-specific regulations. The FSBPT develops and administers it, and the fee is $65. There are 40 scored questions drawn from Chapter 456 of the Florida Statutes (general provisions for health professions), Chapter 486 (the Physical Therapy Practice Act), and Rule 64B17 of the Florida Administrative Code. Patient care makes up 35 percent of the questions and legislative intent and definitions another 25 percent. A passing score stays valid for five years.
Applying and Paying
Once your education and exam requirements are in place, you apply online at flhealthsource.gov. The combined application and initial licensing fee paid to the Board of Physical Therapy Practice is $180. The NPTE and jurisprudence exam fees go to the FSBPT separately.
Your application must include proof of educational credentials, verification of passing exam scores, and disclosure of any disciplinary actions in other states. Initial review takes about ten business days after everything is submitted. If the board finds a deficiency, staff notify you in writing. Submitting all documents together the first time avoids the back-and-forth that stalls most applications.
Background Check
Since July 2025, every health care practitioner applying for initial licensure or renewal in Florida must complete background screening. For physical therapists, that is a Level 2 fingerprint-based check processed through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement and the FBI. You submit fingerprints and a photo through an approved Livescan provider.
A criminal record is not an automatic bar. The board reviews cases individually and weighs the nature of the offense, how much time has passed, and evidence of rehabilitation. If you have a record, plan to provide court documents, a personal statement, and, if appropriate, letters of recommendation. Convictions for healthcare fraud, patient abuse, or other conduct that undermines patient safety carry the highest risk of denial.
Starting to Practice Before Your NPTE Results
New graduates from U.S.-accredited programs can apply for a temporary permit to treat patients while awaiting NPTE results. No separate fee applies beyond the $180 application and licensing fee. Before the permit is issued, you must pass the Florida Laws and Rules Examination, carry malpractice insurance, and name a supervising physical therapist. That supervisor must have held a Florida license for at least six months, can oversee only one permittee at a time, and must cosign all patient records you produce.
A temporary permit is valid for six months from your graduation date, regardless of when you sit for the NPTE or what score comes back. It cannot be renewed. If your permanent license has not issued by the expiration date, you have to stop practicing immediately. Foreign-educated graduates cannot use the temporary permit route.
Endorsement If You’re Already Licensed Elsewhere
An out-of-state PT with an active license can apply through Florida’s streamlined endorsement pathway, called MOBILE. To qualify:
- Your current out-of-state license must be active, unencumbered, and in good standing.
- You must have passed the NPTE. Transferring your score through the FSBPT costs $90.
- You must have actively practiced physical therapy for at least two years during the four years immediately before applying.
- No disciplinary action can have been taken against you in the five years before application, and no proceedings can be pending in any jurisdiction.
- You cannot have a report in the National Practitioner Data Bank, unless the report was successfully appealed or the underlying conduct would not violate Florida law.
You still have to pass the Florida Laws and Rules Examination. Have your current state board send license verification directly to Florida, transfer your NPTE scores through the FSBPT, then apply online and upload the supporting documents.
The PT Compact Does Not Cover Florida
If you were counting on the Physical Therapy Licensure Compact to shortcut Florida licensure, it will not work. As of 2026, 37 states issue and accept compact privileges, but Florida is not among them. The PT Compact Commission determined that Florida is ineligible for membership, so PTs licensed elsewhere cannot use compact privileges to practice in Florida, and Florida PTs cannot use them to practice in member states. Anyone coming into Florida needs a full Florida license until the legislature resolves the conflicts between state law and the compact’s model statute.
Keeping Your License After You Get It
Florida physical therapy licenses renew every two years on a biennium running from December 1 of an odd-numbered year through November 30 of the next odd-numbered year. Active-to-active renewal is $80.
Each cycle requires 24 contact hours of approved continuing education. At least 12 must come from a live lecture or approved webinar; the other 12 can be self-paced. Requirements and allowances include:
- Prevention of medical errors, worth up to three hours toward the total.
- A one-hour HIV/AIDS course, required for your first renewal only, worth up to three hours toward the total.
- A one-time human trafficking course, which physical therapists were required to complete by January 1, 2021. It is not a recurring obligation.
- Approved topics including clinical practice, clinical research, professional ethics, risk management (capped at five hours per biennium), and Florida physical therapy law.
If you first become licensed in the second half of a biennium, you are exempt from the CE requirement at your first renewal, though the medical errors and HIV/AIDS courses still apply. Missing the renewal deadline puts your license in delinquent status, and if left unresolved it can be nullified.