HAR §16-110-20. Requirements for permanent physical therapist license

(a) A person seeking a permanent license to practice as a physical therapist in the State shall submit an application for the license on forms provided by the board. (b) An applicant for licensure shall provide the board with: (1) A certified transcript indicating graduation from a physical therapy education program from a school or college accredited by CAPTE; or (2) In the case of a person who is a graduate of a school or college of physical therapy located outside the United States that is not accredited by CAPTE, a certified credentials evaluation indicating successful completion of a program or programs, including education and training, equivalent to programs in the United States accredited pursuant to paragraph (1). That evaluation shall be prepared within one year from the date of the application's submission and shall be performed by a credentials evaluation agency approved by the board. Additionally the applicant shall take and pass one of the following English language proficiency tests if the school or college is in a country, state, or province where the official language is other than English: (A) The Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) with a score of not less than 560 for a paper-based examination, a score of 213 for a computer based examination, or the passing score for each exam as recommended by the FSBPT; the Test of Written English with a score of not less than 4.5 or the passing score as recommended by the FSBPT; and the Test of Spoken English with a 110-9 §16-110-20 score of not less than 50 or the passing score as recommended by the FSBPT; or (B) The TOEFL ibt exam with a passing score as recommended by the FSBPT. (c) Each applicant for licensure shall be required to take the standardized physical therapist licensure examination scheduled and administered by the board's designated licensing examination service; (d) The passing score for the licensure examination shall be the criterion-referenced passing score recommended by the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy. (e) Each applicant shall ensure that after each administration of the licensure examination the licensing examination service reports directly to the board the applicant's score on the licensing examination. The board shall notify the applicant of the applicant's licensure examination score. (f) Any applicant who fails to achieve a passing score on the licensure examination may be entitled to re-take the examination; (g) In the case of an applicant who was initially licensed by taking the standardized physical therapist licensure examination prior to November 1994, the passing score shall be that number of correctly answered questions on the licensure examination which statistically represents one standard deviation below the national mean at the time the applicant sat for the standardized physical therapist examination. (h) For an applicant seeking an examination waiver, the Board may waive the licensure examination if the applicant received a passing score pursuant to this section. Additionally, the applicant shall provide the written verification, from each physical therapy licensing authority that granted the applicant a physical therapist license, of the applicant's passing the required licensure examination, the status of the license, whether or not the license is or has been encumbered, and whether disciplinary action has been taken against the applicant or is currently pending, or the applicant is being investigated. (i) An applicant may submit a letter of completion by the licensure examination date from the appropriate college authority which states that the student is in the final year of that physical therapy program and has completed the physical therapy program which at the time of graduation was accredited by CAPTE to be accepted in lieu of the final transcript to sit for the licensure examination. However, the license shall not be issued, even if the applicant has passed the licensure examination for physical therapists, until the final transcript is submitted showing graduation from the physical therapy program. [Eff 6/5/87; 110-10 §16-110-40 am and comp 12/4/92; am and comp 10/13/94; am and comp 12/9/10] (Auth: HRS §461J-5) (Imp: HRS §§461J-2, 461J-5, 461J-6, 461J-7) SUBCHAPTER 4