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LicenseReciprocity

Transfer Your Physical Therapy License to South Carolina: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)

Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: South Carolina Board of Physical Therapy Examiners (SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation) ↗

South Carolina is an active PT Compact member, which opens two doors. If your home state is also a compact member and you hold an active license there, you can buy a South Carolina compact privilege through the commission — a practice authorization, not a South Carolina license — after meeting any South Carolina jurisprudence requirement. If you are relocating to South Carolina, or your home state is not a member, you apply to the South Carolina Board of Physical Therapy Examiners (SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation) for licensure by endorsement instead: $110 (Board application fee set by S.C. Code of Regulations 10-30(1); the same application fee applies to endorsement applicants (40-45-240 licenses 'on the payment of the applicable fee'). SLED/FBI fingerprint costs and the $90 FSBPT score-transfer fee are separate. NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.), with your NPTE score transferred through the FSBPT rather than retaken.

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Verdict

PT Compact member — multistate license honored

Whether South Carolina costs you a full license or just a privilege depends on what you are actually doing. Working in South Carolina while your license and residence stay in another member state — a travel assignment, a satellite clinic, telehealth across the line — means buying a South Carolina compact privilege and keeping your home license; South Carolina charges no full-license fee for that path, though it may require its jurisprudence exam first. Relocating to South Carolina is the other case: your residence changes, South Carolina becomes your home state, and that is licensure by endorsement with the South Carolina Board of Physical Therapy Examiners (SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation), after which South Carolina can anchor privileges of its own.

South Carolina is an ACTIVE PT Compact member (enacted by 2018 Act No. 226; Compact Commission rules are incorporated by reference in Regulation 101-16), so a PT whose home state is also an active member can work in SC on a compact privilege instead of endorsing. The endorsement path is a real application under 40-45-240 - there is no automatic reciprocity. The $110 application fee was read from the official S.C. Code of Regulations (10-30), not from the board website: llr.sc.gov refused connections from the research network on 2026-08-07, so board_url and application_url are the board's published page addresses but could not be load-tested.

South Carolina requirements at a glance

Out-of-state physical therapy license transfer requirements for South Carolina, verified 2026-08-07
ExamNPTE is not retaken; official examination scores are transferred to the Board (FSBPT Score Transfer Service, $90 per report) and the Board may license an out-of-state PT without examination on payment of the fee (S.C. Code 40-45-240). South Carolina requires no jurisprudence exam to obtain the license, but 3 contact hours of ethics, professionalism and/or South Carolina jurisprudence are required each biennium as continuing education.
Additional requirements
  • Graduate from a Board-approved physical therapy program; foreign-educated applicants need a Board-approved credentials evaluation using the FSBPT Course Work Tool
  • Undergo a fingerprint-based SLED state criminal record check and an FBI national criminal record check
  • Speak English as a native language or demonstrate Board-approved English proficiency
  • Submit proof of current licensure in the other jurisdiction plus official transcripts and examination scores
  • Document 1,000 supervised clinical practice hours if you did not graduate from a Board-approved school
Fees$110 (Board application fee set by S.C. Code of Regulations 10-30(1); the same application fee applies to endorsement applicants (40-45-240 licenses 'on the payment of the applicable fee'). SLED/FBI fingerprint costs and the $90 FSBPT score-transfer fee are separate. NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.)
Processing timeno processing timeframe appears in the Board's statute (S.C. Code Title 40 Chapter 45) or regulations (Chapter 101); llr.sc.gov was unreachable from the research network on the access date, so the board site could not be checked

Step by step

  1. Confirm South Carolina's current requirements on the South Carolina Board of Physical Therapy Examiners (SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation) website — rules change.
  2. Submit the endorsement application to the South Carolina Board of Physical Therapy Examiners (SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation) (application linked on this page).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
  4. Graduate from a Board-approved physical therapy program; foreign-educated applicants need a Board-approved credentials evaluation using the FSBPT Course Work Tool.
  5. Undergo a fingerprint-based SLED state criminal record check and an FBI national criminal record check.
  6. Speak English as a native language or demonstrate Board-approved English proficiency.
  7. Submit proof of current licensure in the other jurisdiction plus official transcripts and examination scores.
  8. Document 1,000 supervised clinical practice hours if you did not graduate from a Board-approved school.
  9. Pay the fees ($110 (Board application fee set by S.C. Code of Regulations 10-30(1); the same application fee applies to endorsement applicants (40-45-240 licenses 'on the payment of the applicable fee'). SLED/FBI fingerprint costs and the $90 FSBPT score-transfer fee are separate. NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.)) and allow no processing timeframe appears in the Board's statute (S.C. Code Title 40 Chapter 45) or regulations (Chapter 101); llr.sc.gov was unreachable from the research network on the access date, so the board site could not be checked.

Official links

South Carolina Board of Physical Therapy Examiners (SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation) ↗South Carolina application ↗Physical Therapy Licensure Compact ↗

Coming from a specific state?

Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into South Carolina:

Alabama → South CarolinaAlaska → South CarolinaArizona → South CarolinaArkansas → South CarolinaCalifornia → South CarolinaColorado → South CarolinaConnecticut → South CarolinaDelaware → South CarolinaDistrict of Columbia → South CarolinaFlorida → South CarolinaGeorgia → South CarolinaIllinois → South CarolinaIndiana → South CarolinaIowa → South CarolinaKansas → South CarolinaKentucky → South CarolinaLouisiana → South CarolinaMaryland → South CarolinaMichigan → South CarolinaMississippi → South Carolina
All 42 origin states
Missouri → South CarolinaMontana → South CarolinaNebraska → South CarolinaNevada → South CarolinaNew Hampshire → South CarolinaNew Jersey → South CarolinaNew York → South CarolinaNorth Carolina → South CarolinaNorth Dakota → South CarolinaOhio → South CarolinaOklahoma → South CarolinaOregon → South CarolinaPennsylvania → South CarolinaSouth Dakota → South CarolinaTennessee → South CarolinaTexas → South CarolinaUtah → South CarolinaVermont → South CarolinaVirginia → South CarolinaWashington → South CarolinaWest Virginia → South CarolinaWisconsin → South Carolina

Frequently asked questions

Does my physical therapy license transfer to South Carolina?

South Carolina is an active PT Compact member, which opens two doors. If your home state is also a compact member and you hold an active license there, you can buy a South Carolina compact privilege through the commission — a practice authorization, not a South Carolina license — after meeting any South Carolina jurisprudence requirement. If you are relocating to South Carolina, or your home state is not a member, you apply to the South Carolina Board of Physical Therapy Examiners (SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation) for licensure by endorsement instead: $110 (Board application fee set by S.C. Code of Regulations 10-30(1); the same application fee applies to endorsement applicants (40-45-240 licenses 'on the payment of the applicable fee'). SLED/FBI fingerprint costs and the $90 FSBPT score-transfer fee are separate. NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.), with your NPTE score transferred through the FSBPT rather than retaken.

Do I have to retake the NPTE to get licensed in South Carolina?

No. NPTE is not retaken; official examination scores are transferred to the Board (FSBPT Score Transfer Service, $90 per report) and the Board may license an out-of-state PT without examination on payment of the fee (S.C. Code 40-45-240). South Carolina requires no jurisprudence exam to obtain the license, but 3 contact hours of ethics, professionalism and/or South Carolina jurisprudence are required each biennium as continuing education.. No state requires a second NPTE.

How much does it cost to transfer a PT license to South Carolina by endorsement?

$110 (Board application fee set by S.C. Code of Regulations 10-30(1); the same application fee applies to endorsement applicants (40-45-240 licenses 'on the payment of the applicable fee'). SLED/FBI fingerprint costs and the $90 FSBPT score-transfer fee are separate. NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.) (Board application fee set by S.C. Code of Regulations 10-30(1); the same application fee applies to endorsement applicants (40-45-240 licenses 'on the payment of the applicable fee'). SLED/FBI fingerprint costs and the $90 FSBPT score-transfer fee are separate. NOT the PT Compact privilege fee.).

How long does South Carolina take to process an endorsement application?

no processing timeframe appears in the Board's statute (S.C. Code Title 40 Chapter 45) or regulations (Chapter 101); llr.sc.gov was unreachable from the research network on the access date, so the board site could not be checked — no processing timeframe appears in the Board's statute (S.C. Code Title 40 Chapter 45) or regulations (Chapter 101); llr.sc.gov was unreachable from the research network on the access date, so the board site could not be checked.

Is South Carolina in the PT Compact?

Yes — South Carolina is an active member as of 2026-08-07. A PT or PTA whose home state is also a member can buy a South Carolina compact privilege instead of a full license; relocating to South Carolina still requires licensure by endorsement.

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]