Physical Therapy License from Ohio to Hawaii: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-01 · source: Hawaii Board of Physical Therapy (Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division) ↗
A physical therapy license transfers from Ohio to Hawaii by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Hawaii Board of Physical Therapy (Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division), verify your Ohio license, and meet Hawaii's endorsement requirements. NPTE is not retaken; Hawaii licenses out-of-state applicants under its 'exam waiver' provision once the FSBPT Score Transfer Service sends the passing score directly to the Board. Hawaii has no separate state jurisprudence exam for licensure..
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Moving from Ohio into Hawaii leaves the compact behind: Hawaii has not joined the compact, so no Ohio privilege reaches it. You transfer by licensure by endorsement with the Hawaii Board of Physical Therapy (Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division) — your NPTE score moves through the FSBPT rather than being retaken, and Hawaii adds its own jurisprudence exam and background check. Your Ohio license and any privileges you hold elsewhere stay valid as long as your residence remains in Ohio; file Hawaii's application before you rely on income there.
What changes, Ohio → Hawaii
| Ohio (current) | Hawaii (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| PT Compact status | PT Compact member — multistate license honored | Licensure by endorsement |
| Application fee | $100 (The Board's current PT/PTA endorsement application instructions - the packet linked from its PT-PTA Endorsement Application page - state a non-refundable application fee of $100.00, paid by card with the online eLicense application. That equals the one-hundred-dollar ceiling OAC 4755-4-01(B)(1) (effective August 21, 2025) sets for the initial licensing fee. Billed separately: the criminal records check ($22 to BCI plus $25.25 to the FBI, and whatever the fingerprinting vendor charges), the FSBPT NPTE score transfer, and the Ohio Jurisprudence Assessment Module ($48, paid to FSBPT). The application fee is waived for an applicant who is a current member of the armed forces - that waiver is imposed by OAC 4755-3-04(G) in the Board's LSC-authenticated laws-and-rules compilation cited in this row, NOT by the endorsement packet, which does not mention it. Biennial renewal is a separate fee, likewise capped at $100 by rule. This is not the PT Compact privilege fee.) | $185–$300 (exam-waiver (endorsement) applicants pay a bundled total that depends on the licensing year: $185 if licensed in an EVEN-numbered year ($50 application + $85 license + $50 Compliance Resolution Fund) or $300 if licensed in an ODD-numbered year ($50 application + $85 license + $100 CRF + $65 half renewal). The $50 application fee is non-refundable. A temporary license costs an extra $50.) |
| Processing time | Neither the Ohio Revised Code nor the Board's rules state a processing timeframe; OAC 4755:2-1-01(E) provides only that an application still incomplete one year after filing is abandoned. | the Board publishes no processing timeframe; it states only that an application is abandoned and destroyed if the license process is not completed within one year of filing (HAR 16-110-10(d)) |
| Licensing authority | Ohio Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy and Athletic Trainers Board (OTPTAT Board) - Physical Therapy Section | Hawaii Board of Physical Therapy (Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Hawaii sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Hawaii's current requirements on the Hawaii Board of Physical Therapy (Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Hawaii Board of Physical Therapy (Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Have a certified transcript sent directly to the Board from your CAPTE-accredited physical therapy program.
- Request the FSBPT Score Transfer Service to forward your NPTE score directly to the Board.
- Have every state or territory where you hold or held a license complete the Board's Verification of License form and send it directly.
- Provide a Social Security Number and be a U.S. citizen, U.S. national, or alien authorized to work in the United States.
- Mail the completed application and fees to the Board of Physical Therapy, DCCA-PVL Licensing Branch.
- Pay the fees ($185–$300 (exam-waiver (endorsement) applicants pay a bundled total that depends on the licensing year: $185 if licensed in an EVEN-numbered year ($50 application + $85 license + $50 Compliance Resolution Fund) or $300 if licensed in an ODD-numbered year ($50 application + $85 license + $100 CRF + $65 half renewal). The $50 application fee is non-refundable. A temporary license costs an extra $50.)) and allow the Board publishes no processing timeframe; it states only that an application is abandoned and destroyed if the license process is not completed within one year of filing (HAR 16-110-10(d)).
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Hawaii accept a Ohio physical therapy license?
A physical therapy license transfers from Ohio to Hawaii by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Hawaii Board of Physical Therapy (Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division), verify your Ohio license, and meet Hawaii's endorsement requirements. NPTE is not retaken; Hawaii licenses out-of-state applicants under its 'exam waiver' provision once the FSBPT Score Transfer Service sends the passing score directly to the Board. Hawaii has no separate state jurisprudence exam for licensure..
Do I retake the NPTE moving from Ohio to Hawaii?
No — the NPTE is taken once and your score transfers through the FSBPT. NPTE is not retaken; Hawaii licenses out-of-state applicants under its 'exam waiver' provision once the FSBPT Score Transfer Service sends the passing score directly to the Board. Hawaii has no separate state jurisprudence exam for licensure..
What does the move cost?
$185–$300 (exam-waiver (endorsement) applicants pay a bundled total that depends on the licensing year: $185 if licensed in an EVEN-numbered year ($50 application + $85 license + $50 Compliance Resolution Fund) or $300 if licensed in an ODD-numbered year ($50 application + $85 license + $100 CRF + $65 half renewal). The $50 application fee is non-refundable. A temporary license costs an extra $50.) (exam-waiver (endorsement) applicants pay a bundled total that depends on the licensing year: $185 if licensed in an EVEN-numbered year ($50 application + $85 license + $50 Compliance Resolution Fund) or $300 if licensed in an ODD-numbered year ($50 application + $85 license + $100 CRF + $65 half renewal). The $50 application fee is non-refundable. A temporary license costs an extra $50.).
How long will it take?
the Board publishes no processing timeframe; it states only that an application is abandoned and destroyed if the license process is not completed within one year of filing (HAR 16-110-10(d)) — the Board publishes no processing timeframe; it states only that an application is abandoned and destroyed if the license process is not completed within one year of filing (HAR 16-110-10(d)).
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-01.
- Hawaii DCCA — Board of Physical Therapy ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Hawaii DCCA — Physical Therapy Application Forms and Publications ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Hawaii DCCA — Physical Therapist License Application, Information/Requirements and Instructions (PT-02 0226) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- PT Compact — States by Category ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Ohio OTPTAT Board - Physical Therapy Laws and Rules, effective April 3, 2026 (LSC-authenticated ORC and OAC text: OAC 4755:2-1-01, 4755:2-1-03, 4755:2-1-04, 4755-3-04, 4755-3-05, 4755-4-01, 4755-4-02; this is the source for the armed-forces application-fee waiver at 4755-3-04(G) and the prioritised military processing at 4755-3-04(H)(2)) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- PT Compact - member state map ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- FSBPT - NPTE Score Transfer Service ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Ohio OTPTAT Board - Physical Therapist/Physical Therapist Assistant Endorsement Application Instructions (the application packet linked from the Board's PT-PTA Endorsement Application page; source of the $100 application fee; otptat.ohio.gov blocks automated clients and returns HTTP 404 to every automated fetch - open in a browser) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-01)
- Ohio OTPTAT Board - PT-PTA Endorsement Application page (otptat.ohio.gov blocks automated clients and returns HTTP 404 to every automated fetch - open in a browser) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-01)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-01
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