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LicenseReciprocity

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

Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Wisconsin Physical Therapy Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) ↗

A physical therapy license transfers from Illinois to Wisconsin by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Wisconsin Physical Therapy Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services), verify your Illinois license, and meet Wisconsin's endorsement requirements. NPTE is not retaken; endorsement candidates must have FSBPT send the NPTE score directly to the Department. Wisconsin additionally requires every applicant to pass an online, open-book examination on the Wisconsin statutes and rules governing physical therapy, which can only be taken after the Department has processed the application..

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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 Wisconsin is an active member. Endorse into Wisconsin with the Wisconsin Physical Therapy Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services), establish it as your home state and primary residence, and Wisconsin 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 → Wisconsin

Side-by-side: Illinois vs Wisconsin (Physical Therapy (PT/PTA)), verified 2026-08-07
Illinois (current)Wisconsin (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.)not verifiable on an official page on 2026-08-07. DSPS sets initial credential fees administratively under Wis. Stat. 440.03(9)(a); the last per-profession initial-fee schedule DSPS publishes online lists $56.00 for a Physical Therapist effective 7/1/2021, but DSPS announced an updated fee schedule on 2025-08-08 that superseded it, and no current initial-credential fee document could be located on dsps.wi.gov. The current PT renewal fee is documented: $68 biennially, due 02/28 of odd years (RDAF rev. 08/07/2025).
Processing timeneither IDFPR nor 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1340 publishes a processing timeframe for endorsement applicationsDSPS publishes no processing timeframe for PT endorsement applications; it warns only that a file with no activity for a year may be withdrawn
Licensing authorityIllinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Professional Regulation (Illinois Physical Therapy Board)Wisconsin Physical Therapy Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services)

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

Step by step

  1. Confirm Wisconsin's current requirements on the Wisconsin Physical Therapy Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) website (linked below) — rules change.
  2. Submit the endorsement application to the Wisconsin Physical Therapy Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) (application linked below).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
  4. Pass the online open-book Wisconsin Statutes and Rules exam after your application has been processed.
  5. Submit Form 2687 authorizing release of FBI information, with a recent head-and-shoulders photograph, and provide fingerprints as required by Wis. Stat. 440.03(13)(c).
  6. Have FSBPT send your NPTE scores directly to the Department.
  7. Have every state board where you hold or have held a PT/PTA license send verification directly to the Department.
  8. Have your school return the Certificate of Professional Education (Form 3196) directly to the Department.
  9. Pay the fees (not verifiable on an official page on 2026-08-07. DSPS sets initial credential fees administratively under Wis. Stat. 440.03(9)(a); the last per-profession initial-fee schedule DSPS publishes online lists $56.00 for a Physical Therapist effective 7/1/2021, but DSPS announced an updated fee schedule on 2025-08-08 that superseded it, and no current initial-credential fee document could be located on dsps.wi.gov. The current PT renewal fee is documented: $68 biennially, due 02/28 of odd years (RDAF rev. 08/07/2025).) and allow DSPS publishes no processing timeframe for PT endorsement applications; it warns only that a file with no activity for a year may be withdrawn.

Official links

Wisconsin Physical Therapy Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) ↗Wisconsin application ↗Physical Therapy Licensure Compact ↗

Related guides

Reverse: Wisconsin → IllinoisPhysical Therapy in IllinoisPhysical Therapy in WisconsinAll physical therapy statesThe PT Compact explained

Frequently asked questions

Does Wisconsin accept a Illinois physical therapy license?

A physical therapy license transfers from Illinois to Wisconsin by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Wisconsin Physical Therapy Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services), verify your Illinois license, and meet Wisconsin's endorsement requirements. NPTE is not retaken; endorsement candidates must have FSBPT send the NPTE score directly to the Department. Wisconsin additionally requires every applicant to pass an online, open-book examination on the Wisconsin statutes and rules governing physical therapy, which can only be taken after the Department has processed the application..

Do I retake the NPTE moving from Illinois to Wisconsin?

No — the NPTE is taken once and your score transfers through the FSBPT. NPTE is not retaken; endorsement candidates must have FSBPT send the NPTE score directly to the Department. Wisconsin additionally requires every applicant to pass an online, open-book examination on the Wisconsin statutes and rules governing physical therapy, which can only be taken after the Department has processed the application..

What does the move cost?

not verifiable on an official page on 2026-08-07. DSPS sets initial credential fees administratively under Wis. Stat. 440.03(9)(a); the last per-profession initial-fee schedule DSPS publishes online lists $56.00 for a Physical Therapist effective 7/1/2021, but DSPS announced an updated fee schedule on 2025-08-08 that superseded it, and no current initial-credential fee document could be located on dsps.wi.gov. The current PT renewal fee is documented: $68 biennially, due 02/28 of odd years (RDAF rev. 08/07/2025). (not verifiable on an official page on 2026-08-07. DSPS sets initial credential fees administratively under Wis. Stat. 440.03(9)(a); the last per-profession initial-fee schedule DSPS publishes online lists $56.00 for a Physical Therapist effective 7/1/2021, but DSPS announced an updated fee schedule on 2025-08-08 that superseded it, and no current initial-credential fee document could be located on dsps.wi.gov. The current PT renewal fee is documented: $68 biennially, due 02/28 of odd years (RDAF rev. 08/07/2025).).

How long will it take?

DSPS publishes no processing timeframe for PT endorsement applications; it warns only that a file with no activity for a year may be withdrawn — DSPS publishes no processing timeframe for PT endorsement applications; it warns only that a file with no activity for a year may be withdrawn.

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]