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LicenseReciprocity

Physical Therapy License from Illinois to Montana: Does It Transfer? (2026)

Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Montana Board of Physical, Rehabilitative, and Developmental Health Care Professionals (formerly the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners), Department of Labor & Industry ↗

A physical therapy license transfers from Illinois to Montana by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Montana Board of Physical, Rehabilitative, and Developmental Health Care Professionals (formerly the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners), Department of Labor & Industry, verify your Illinois license, and meet Montana's endorsement requirements. The NPTE is not retaken; FSBPT must verify a passing NPTE score of 600 or higher directly to the Board. Montana also requires a completed open-book state jurisprudence examination (ARM 24.177.501), with a $25 fee for each retake..

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Verdict

Licensure by endorsement

This direction has a payoff. Illinois is outside the active compact, so you have had no privileges to work with — but Montana is an active member. Endorse into Montana with the Montana Board of Physical, Rehabilitative, and Developmental Health Care Professionals (formerly the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners), Department of Labor & Industry, establish it as your home state and primary residence, and Montana becomes your springboard: from there you can buy compact privileges into every other active member state without another full license. Your NPTE score transfers through the FSBPT; you do not re-sit the exam.

What changes, Illinois → Montana

Side-by-side: Illinois vs Montana (Physical Therapy (PT/PTA)), verified 2026-08-07
Illinois (current)Montana (destination)
PT Compact statusLicensure by endorsementPT Compact member — multistate license honored
Application fee$100 (68 Ill. Adm. Code 1340.57(a)(1) sets the application fee for a physical therapist or physical therapist assistant license at $100. The separate examination-eligibility fee in that subsection applies only to examination applicants, not endorsement applicants. Renewal is calculated at $30 per year.)$225 ($100.00 physical therapist application fee (all applicants) + $125.00 out-of-state licence application fee, per the Board's application form (rev. 2025-03-14) and licensing checklist. The department also charges an extra $5.00 litigation-fund fee to applicants and licensees of qualifying boards from 1 July 2025 (HB 227). Jurisprudence re-examination is $25 per retake and a pre-exam temporary licence is $100. Fingerprint background-check costs are separate. This is NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.)
Processing timeneither IDFPR nor 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1340 publishes a processing timeframe for endorsement applicationsthe Board publishes no processing timeframe for out-of-state applications; it notes only that if all other requirements are met it can issue a provisional licence with a reservation of rights, valid for 60 days, while outstanding licence verifications are completed
Licensing authorityIllinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Professional Regulation (Illinois Physical Therapy Board)Montana Board of Physical, Rehabilitative, and Developmental Health Care Professionals (formerly the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners), Department of Labor & Industry

The destination column is what you must satisfy — Montana sets the rules for this move.

Step by step

  1. Confirm Montana's current requirements on the Montana Board of Physical, Rehabilitative, and Developmental Health Care Professionals (formerly the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners), Department of Labor & Industry website (linked below) — rules change.
  2. Submit the endorsement application to the Montana Board of Physical, Rehabilitative, and Developmental Health Care Professionals (formerly the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners), Department of Labor & Industry (application linked below).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
  4. Pass the Montana open-book jurisprudence examination (ARM 24.177.501).
  5. Submit fingerprints for a Montana Department of Justice and FBI criminal background check (MCA 37-11-312).
  6. Provide a certificate of graduation or transcripts from a CAPTE-accredited physical therapy program.
  7. Have licence verifications sent from every jurisdiction where you hold or have held a licence (ARM 24.177.507).
  8. Foreign-trained applicants must submit an FCCPT educational evaluation and, from a non-English-speaking culture, a passing TOEFL score (ARM 24.177.510).
  9. Pay the fees ($225 ($100.00 physical therapist application fee (all applicants) + $125.00 out-of-state licence application fee, per the Board's application form (rev. 2025-03-14) and licensing checklist. The department also charges an extra $5.00 litigation-fund fee to applicants and licensees of qualifying boards from 1 July 2025 (HB 227). Jurisprudence re-examination is $25 per retake and a pre-exam temporary licence is $100. Fingerprint background-check costs are separate. This is NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.)) and allow the Board publishes no processing timeframe for out-of-state applications; it notes only that if all other requirements are met it can issue a provisional licence with a reservation of rights, valid for 60 days, while outstanding licence verifications are completed.

Official links

Montana Board of Physical, Rehabilitative, and Developmental Health Care Professionals (formerly the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners), Department of Labor & Industry ↗Montana application ↗Physical Therapy Licensure Compact ↗

Related guides

Reverse: Montana → IllinoisPhysical Therapy in IllinoisPhysical Therapy in MontanaAll physical therapy statesThe PT Compact explained

Frequently asked questions

Does Montana accept a Illinois physical therapy license?

A physical therapy license transfers from Illinois to Montana by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Montana Board of Physical, Rehabilitative, and Developmental Health Care Professionals (formerly the Board of Physical Therapy Examiners), Department of Labor & Industry, verify your Illinois license, and meet Montana's endorsement requirements. The NPTE is not retaken; FSBPT must verify a passing NPTE score of 600 or higher directly to the Board. Montana also requires a completed open-book state jurisprudence examination (ARM 24.177.501), with a $25 fee for each retake..

Do I retake the NPTE moving from Illinois to Montana?

No — the NPTE is taken once and your score transfers through the FSBPT. The NPTE is not retaken; FSBPT must verify a passing NPTE score of 600 or higher directly to the Board. Montana also requires a completed open-book state jurisprudence examination (ARM 24.177.501), with a $25 fee for each retake..

What does the move cost?

$225 ($100.00 physical therapist application fee (all applicants) + $125.00 out-of-state licence application fee, per the Board's application form (rev. 2025-03-14) and licensing checklist. The department also charges an extra $5.00 litigation-fund fee to applicants and licensees of qualifying boards from 1 July 2025 (HB 227). Jurisprudence re-examination is $25 per retake and a pre-exam temporary licence is $100. Fingerprint background-check costs are separate. This is NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.) ($100.00 physical therapist application fee (all applicants) + $125.00 out-of-state licence application fee, per the Board's application form (rev. 2025-03-14) and licensing checklist. The department also charges an extra $5.00 litigation-fund fee to applicants and licensees of qualifying boards from 1 July 2025 (HB 227). Jurisprudence re-examination is $25 per retake and a pre-exam temporary licence is $100. Fingerprint background-check costs are separate. This is NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.).

How long will it take?

the Board publishes no processing timeframe for out-of-state applications; it notes only that if all other requirements are met it can issue a provisional licence with a reservation of rights, valid for 60 days, while outstanding licence verifications are completed — the Board publishes no processing timeframe for out-of-state applications; it notes only that if all other requirements are met it can issue a provisional licence with a reservation of rights, valid for 60 days, while outstanding licence verifications are completed.

Sources

Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.

Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-08-07

How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]