District of Columbia Physical Therapist license renewal and CE requirements
District of Columbia physical therapists must complete 40 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the District of Columbia Board of Physical Therapy (DC Health).
Since June 16, 2024 licenses renew every two years and expire on the last day of the licensee's birth month. Before the transition, all physical therapy licenses expired at midnight on January 31 of each odd-numbered year (17 DCMR 6701.1). Renewals are filed through the DC Health online licensing portal.
Summary
District of Columbia physical therapists must complete 40 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the District of Columbia Board of Physical Therapy (DC Health). Since June 16, 2024 licenses renew every two years and expire on the last day of the licensee's birth month. Before the transition, all physical therapy licenses expired at midnight on January 31 of each odd-numbered year (17 DCMR 6701.1). Renewals are filed through the DC Health online licensing portal. District of Columbia also mandates specific subjects. LGBTQ Cultural Competency continuing education: 2 contact hours every renewal cycle. Public Health Priorities designated by the Director of DC Health: 4 contact hours every renewal cycle. No more than 20 contact hours may be self-study or online and the first renewal is exempt.
District of Columbia Physical Therapist renewal and continuing education rules
"Not stated" means the board's pages and rules we read do not address it. We do not fill in typical values.
| Renewal cycle | Two-year (24 months) |
|---|---|
| Renewal deadline | Tied to the licensee's birth month |
| Continuing education required | Yes |
| Hours per cycle | 40 contact hours |
| Self-study or online cap | At most 20 contact hours |
| Carryover to next cycle | Not stated |
| First renewal exempt | Yes |
| Other accepted activities | Serving as an instructor or speaker at a conference, seminar, or workshop (credit for preparation and presentation, up to 50 percent of the requirement); In-service training (maximum 10 credits per year); Authoring or editing a published book (40 hours), a published paper, journal article, or poster (20 hours), or a book review, review paper, or abstract (10 hours); Participating in research as a principal investigator or research assistant |
17 DCMR 6706.4(a) requires four continuing education units or forty credit hours during the two-year period before the license expires, of which no more than two units or twenty credit hours may be earned through internet courses; one unit is ten hours and one credit hour is at least 50 minutes. The Board's April 2024 Policy Statement 24-001 reinstated the in-person requirement after the public health emergency but treats live, synchronous, interactive real-time courses (for example live webinars) as in-person. The first renewal of a license is exempt from continuing education (17 DCMR 6706.2). During the 2024 transition to birth-month expiration, licensees who received less than two years on their license may meet 50 percent of the CE requirement, with the LGBTQ and public health priority components still mandatory. Carryover was not addressed in the sources read.
Required CE topics for District of Columbia physical therapists
State-specific subject mandates. Where a mandate applies only to some licensees, the scope is listed.
| Topic | Hours | Frequency | Applies to | Citation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LGBTQ Cultural Competency continuing educationTwo hours of LGBTQ continuing education are required each renewal (DC Health licensing page; Board Policy Statement 24-001). The underlying DC Code or DCMR citation was not read. | 2 contact hours | Every renewal | All licensees | Not stated |
| Public Health Priorities designated by the Director of DC HealthTen percent of the total required continuing education (4 of 40 hours) must be in the public health priority topics published by the Director every five years. The February 13, 2025 notice lists five domains: sexual and reproductive health, chronic disease management, One Health, healthcare professional retention and capacity building (including suicide prevention, burnout, substance use, implicit bias and cultural humility), and community and patient safety (including fall prevention, infection control, and cognitive impairment). The notice says the requirement lives in profession-specific Title 17 rules and may still be in rulemaking for some professions; the DC Health PT page and Policy 24-001 both state it applies to physical therapists. | 4 contact hours | Every renewal | All licensees | Not stated |
Documentation and audit
| Proof submitted at renewal | No, attestation only |
|---|---|
| Keep records for | 5 years |
| Board audits compliance | Yes |
| Approved providers | Credits are valid only if approved by the Board under 17 DCMR 6707. Pre-approved sponsors include APTA, FSBPT, the American Occupational Therapy Association, Joint Commission accredited facilities, accredited colleges and universities, and AMA Physician Category I or American Nurses Association programs substantially related to physical therapy; other programs must be administered or approved by a recognized physical therapy or health care organization or submitted to the Board 60 days in advance. Licensees attest on the renewal form and submit proof only if selected for the random audit, within 30 days of notice, and must keep sponsor, program, location, subject, instructor, dates, hours, and verification records for at least five years. |
Common questions
- How many CE hours does a District of Columbia PT need to renew?
- District of Columbia physical therapists must complete 40 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the District of Columbia Board of Physical Therapy (DC Health). 17 DCMR 6706.4(a) requires four continuing education units or forty credit hours during the two-year period before the license expires, of which no more than two units or twenty credit hours may be earned through internet courses; one unit is ten hours and one credit hour is at least 50 minutes. The Board's April 2024 Policy Statement 24-001 reinstated the in-person requirement after the public health emergency but treats live, synchronous, interactive real-time courses (for example live webinars) as in-person. The first renewal of a license is exempt from continuing education (17 DCMR 6706.2). During the 2024 transition to birth-month expiration, licensees who received less than two years on their license may meet 50 percent of the CE requirement, with the LGBTQ and public health priority components still mandatory. Carryover was not addressed in the sources read.
- How often does a District of Columbia PT license need to be renewed?
- Physical Therapist licenses in District of Columbia renew every two years. Since June 16, 2024 licenses renew every two years and expire on the last day of the licensee's birth month. Before the transition, all physical therapy licenses expired at midnight on January 31 of each odd-numbered year (17 DCMR 6701.1). Renewals are filed through the DC Health online licensing portal.
- What specific CE topics are required for District of Columbia physical therapists?
- LGBTQ Cultural Competency continuing education: 2 contact hours every renewal cycle. Public Health Priorities designated by the Director of DC Health: 4 contact hours every renewal cycle.
- Do District of Columbia physical therapists have to submit CE certificates at renewal?
- Licensees attest to completion at renewal rather than submitting certificates, the board audits a sample of renewals and asks for documentation, and records must be kept for 5 years. Credits are valid only if approved by the Board under 17 DCMR 6707. Pre-approved sponsors include APTA, FSBPT, the American Occupational Therapy Association, Joint Commission accredited facilities, accredited colleges and universities, and AMA Physician Category I or American Nurses Association programs substantially related to physical therapy; other programs must be administered or approved by a recognized physical therapy or health care organization or submitted to the Board 60 days in advance. Licensees attest on the renewal form and submit proof only if selected for the random audit, within 30 days of notice, and must keep sponsor, program, location, subject, instructor, dates, hours, and verification records for at least five years.
- Is the first District of Columbia PT renewal exempt from CE?
- Yes. District of Columbia does not require continuing education for a PT's first renewal.
Sources
Last verified September 7, 2026. Every value above was read from one of these.
- Physical Therapy Licensing, DC HealthState board page, accessed September 7, 2026
- Board of Physical Therapy Policy Statement 24-001, Live Interactive Real-Time CEs to Count as In-Person CEs (April 10, 2024)State board page, accessed September 7, 2026
- 17 DCMR Chapter 67 Physical Therapy (compilation dated July 1, 2011), sections 6701, 6706, 6707, 6708Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 7, 2026
- DC Health Public Notice Identifying Public Health Issues for Continuing Education (February 13, 2025)State board page, accessed September 7, 2026
- Licensure for PTs and PTAs in the District of Columbia, APTA District of ColumbiaThird-party summary, accessed September 7, 2026
The 40-hour requirement and 20-hour internet cap were read in 17 DCMR 6706.4(a) (DC Health's chapter 67 PDF, compilation dated 2011) and re-confirmed as current by the Board's 2024 Policy Statement 24-001, which cites the same section. The birth-month cycle comes from the DC Health licensing page describing the June 16, 2024 transition; the 2011 DCMR text still shows January 31 odd-year expiration but section 6701.2 authorizes the Director to change the renewal system, so this is a superseded date rather than a conflict. First-renewal exemption, five-year retention, 30-day audit response, and alternative activities are from the 2011 DCMR text and may have been amended since; the current DCMR was not retrieved from dcregs.dc.gov. The LGBTQ and public health priority mandates are stated on the DC Health page and in Policy 24-001 but their code citations were not read. The topic key public_health_priorities is not in the canonical list because no canonical key matches a Director-designated topic list. The DCMR 6707.3 half-of-CEUs cap on online, video, and teleconference courses is consistent with the 20-hour internet cap in 6706.4.
Provided for general reference. Requirements change through legislative sessions and rulemaking, so confirm with the District of Columbia Board of Physical Therapy (DC Health) before relying on them for a renewal. Spot something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.