How to Check a Physical Therapist's License and Credentials
How to verify a physical therapist's license, what the DPT degree and CAPTE accreditation mean, PT vs PTA vs aide, and what specialist certification is.
Physical therapy is a licensed profession in every state. Before you start a course of care, it is reasonable to check who will be treating you and what their credentials mean. This guide explains the license, the degree, the difference between a physical therapist, a physical therapist assistant and an aide, and what specialist certification is. It also explains why the clinic listings on this site cannot answer those questions for you.
Step 1: Check the license
Physical therapists and, in most states, physical therapist assistants need a license or certification from the state where they practice. Each state has a board or agency that issues licenses and regulates the profession. The Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT) keeps a directory of licensing authorities for every state, with contact details and links to each board's license verification page, practice act and, for many states, discipline information.
To look someone up, ask the clinic for the full name of the therapist who will evaluate you, then search the board for the state where the clinic is located. Check that the license is active and whether any public discipline is listed. Board lookups are the primary source; a business website or a printed certificate on the wall is not.
The national exam
FSBPT develops and administers the National Physical Therapy Examination (NPTE), which has separate exams for physical therapists and physical therapist assistants. FSBPT describes it as a test of basic entry-level competence and says it is only one part of what licensing authorities assess. Some states add other requirements, such as a jurisprudence exam on state law.
Practicing across state lines
Some therapists work in another state under a compact privilege through the Physical Therapy Licensure Compact instead of holding a separate license there. The Physical Therapy Compact Commission offers an online compact privilege verification search. If a therapist is not in a state board's lookup, ask whether they practice under a compact privilege and check there.
Step 2: Understand the degree
According to APTA, to practice as a physical therapist in the U.S. today a person must earn a Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT) degree from a program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education (CAPTE) and pass a state licensure exam. APTA says professional DPT programs typically take three years. ChoosePT, APTA's consumer site, suggests looking for the credentials "PT" or "DPT" after a therapist's name in its guide to choosing a physical therapist.
CAPTE says it is the only agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation to accredit entry-level physical therapist and physical therapist assistant education programs. You can search its directory of accredited programs, including a master list of programs that were accredited in the past. A degree is background, though. The license is what allows someone to practice, so always check that first.
Step 3: Know who does what
Physical therapist (PT)
APTA explains that physical therapists examine patients and develop a treatment plan. They may carry out that plan themselves or ask a physical therapist assistant to carry out parts of it, and they monitor and adjust the plan as care goes on.
Physical therapist assistant (PTA)
According to APTA, physical therapist assistants are educated and licensed clinicians who provide care under the direction and supervision of a licensed physical therapist. They graduate from a CAPTE-accredited PTA program, which typically takes about two years, and pass a national exam to obtain the licensure or certification most states require. The Medicare Benefit Policy Manual, Chapter 15 adds that PTAs may not perform evaluations or make clinical judgments and decisions, and that a physical therapist must supervise them. The manual notes that the required level of supervision differs by setting and by state law.
Aides and technicians
Some clinics also have aides or technicians on staff. The same Medicare manual says an aide may help the therapist by providing unskilled services, but that services provided by aides are not therapy services and are not covered by Medicare, even when a therapist supervises them. It is fair to ask which parts of your visit will be done by a PT, which by a PTA and which by an aide.
Step 4: Specialist certification, explained
Some physical therapists earn board certification as clinical specialists. This is run through APTA's Specialist Certification Program, governed by the American Board of Physical Therapy Specialties (ABPTS). Specialty areas include orthopaedics, sports, neurology, geriatrics, pediatrics, oncology, cardiovascular and pulmonary, pelvic and women's health, wound management and clinical electrophysiology, among others.
ABPTS explains that candidates must hold an unrestricted physical therapist license, meet requirements for hours of experience in the specialty and pass a specialty exam, as described on its certification process page. According to its maintenance page, certification lasts 10 years and specialists must then maintain or renew it. Not every therapist seeks it. ChoosePT points out that all licensed physical therapists are qualified to treat a broad range of conditions, so a therapist without specialist certification is still fully licensed.
To confirm a claim of specialist certification, use the ABPTS certification verification page, which links to the online directory of board-certified clinical specialists. Certification belongs to an individual therapist, never to a clinic.
What a listing on this site does and does not show
This directory lists organizations only, such as clinics, practices and rehab companies. It does not list individual therapists. Each listing comes from the federal NPPES registry, which you can also search yourself at the NPI Registry. The specialty shown, Clinic/Center Physical Therapy (261QP2000X) or Physical Therapist (225100000X), is the code the organization chose when it registered. It is self-reported. It is not a license, an accreditation, or proof of any therapist's training or certification. Where we matched a clinic to CMS data, we also show Medicare enrollment, group size and group Medicare assignment. Those are billing facts, not a review of quality.
So use a listing to find a clinic, then do your own checks: get the name of your therapist, look up the license with the state board, and verify any specialist certification with ABPTS. For questions to ask at the clinic, see choosing a clinic and your first visit.
Where to raise a concern
If you have a concern about a physical therapist's or assistant's conduct or care, contact the state board that issued the license; FSBPT's directory lists them all. We list registry records and do not rate, endorse or recommend any clinic.
General information only, current as of the date above. The information on Physical Therapy Index is not medical advice and does not replace a doctor, nurse, discharge planner or other qualified professional. Do not use it to make decisions about diagnosis or treatment. If you have a medical emergency, call 911. Rules and programs change; check the official sources linked in this guide.