Kansas Occupational Therapist license renewal and CE requirements
Kansas occupational therapists must complete 40 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts.
Every occupational therapy license issued by the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts expires on March 31 and is renewed annually. The board's renewal window for OT and OTA licenses runs from February 15 to April 30, with the late renewal period from April 1 to April 30; a license not renewed by March 31 expires and may be renewed late within 30 days with a late fee. Continuing education evidence is filed with the renewal only in odd-numbered years, and it must cover 40 contact hours earned in the preceding 24 months.
Summary
Kansas occupational therapists must complete 40 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts. Every occupational therapy license issued by the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts expires on March 31 and is renewed annually. The board's renewal window for OT and OTA licenses runs from February 15 to April 30, with the late renewal period from April 1 to April 30; a license not renewed by March 31 expires and may be renewed late within 30 days with a late fee. Continuing education evidence is filed with the renewal only in odd-numbered years, and it must cover 40 contact hours earned in the preceding 24 months. No more than 20 contact hours may be self-study or online and the first renewal is exempt.
Kansas Occupational 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 | Annual (12 months) |
|---|---|
| Renewal deadline | Same date for every licensee, 03/31 each cycleFirst renewal is prorated. |
| Continuing education required | Yes |
| Hours per cycle | 40 contact hoursCounted over a two-year window, separate from the renewal cycle. |
| Category 1 minimum | 30 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 | College or university courses (10 contact hours per college credit hour with a grade of C or a pass); Home study, correspondence, or internet courses where the provider evaluates the licensee's knowledge (class I other courses, maximum 20 contact hours); In-service training, attending or instructing (maximum 4 contact hours each, class II maximum 8 contact hours); Professional reading, printed or audio, video or electronic (class III, maximum 2 contact hours); Professional publication (30 hours for a book or original paper, 15 hours for a review paper, case report, abstract, or book review); Instructor preparation for a class I program (3 contact hours per hour presented, first presentation only, maximum 30 contact hours); Fieldwork supervision of a level II student (1 contact hour per week of full-time fieldwork of at least 35 hours, maximum 24 contact hours) |
K.A.R. 100-54-7(a)(1) requires each licensee to submit evidence of completing at least 40 contact hours of continuing education during the preceding 24 months, filed before or with the renewal application in each odd-numbered year, and (a)(2) says no continuing education evidence is required for renewal in even-numbered years. So the license renews every 12 months but the continuing education period is 24 months. A contact hour is 60 minutes of instruction unless the regulation says otherwise. At least 30 of the 40 contact hours must come from class I (attendance at an education presentation), class IV (professional publication), class V (instructor preparation of class I programs) or class VI (level II fieldwork supervision); that 30 hour floor is what is recorded here as the category minimum. Within class I, home study, correspondence and internet courses are capped at 20 contact hours, which is the only online or self-study cap. Class II in-service training is capped at 8 contact hours and class III professional reading at 2. Content must relate to the field of occupational therapy or similar areas. A licensee who cannot meet the requirement may ask the board for an extension of up to six months for a substantiated medical condition, natural disaster, death of a spouse or immediate family member, or other compelling reason.
Required CE topics for Kansas occupational therapists
The Kansas State Board of Healing Arts pages and rules we read do not mandate specific subject areas for this license type. Hours may be in any approved subject.
Documentation and audit
| Proof submitted at renewal | Yes |
|---|---|
| Keep records for | Not stated |
| Board audits compliance | Not stated |
| Approved providers | Kansas does not name an approving body in K.A.R. 100-54-7; content must relate to the field of occupational therapy or similar areas and instructional staff must be competent in the subject matter and in instructional method as shown by experience, education or publication. Evidence is filed with the renewal rather than kept for a later audit: the licensee submits documented evidence of attendance at, participation in, or presentation of class I and class II activities, personal verification for class III reading, copies of publications for class IV, and employer verification for class VI fieldwork supervision. The board has partnered with CE Broker so licensees can track and manage continuing education. |
Common questions
- How many CE hours does a Kansas OT need to renew?
- Kansas occupational therapists must complete 40 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts. K.A.R. 100-54-7(a)(1) requires each licensee to submit evidence of completing at least 40 contact hours of continuing education during the preceding 24 months, filed before or with the renewal application in each odd-numbered year, and (a)(2) says no continuing education evidence is required for renewal in even-numbered years. So the license renews every 12 months but the continuing education period is 24 months. A contact hour is 60 minutes of instruction unless the regulation says otherwise. At least 30 of the 40 contact hours must come from class I (attendance at an education presentation), class IV (professional publication), class V (instructor preparation of class I programs) or class VI (level II fieldwork supervision); that 30 hour floor is what is recorded here as the category minimum. Within class I, home study, correspondence and internet courses are capped at 20 contact hours, which is the only online or self-study cap. Class II in-service training is capped at 8 contact hours and class III professional reading at 2. Content must relate to the field of occupational therapy or similar areas. A licensee who cannot meet the requirement may ask the board for an extension of up to six months for a substantiated medical condition, natural disaster, death of a spouse or immediate family member, or other compelling reason.
- How often does a Kansas OT license need to be renewed?
- Occupational Therapist licenses in Kansas renew every year. Every occupational therapy license issued by the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts expires on March 31 and is renewed annually. The board's renewal window for OT and OTA licenses runs from February 15 to April 30, with the late renewal period from April 1 to April 30; a license not renewed by March 31 expires and may be renewed late within 30 days with a late fee. Continuing education evidence is filed with the renewal only in odd-numbered years, and it must cover 40 contact hours earned in the preceding 24 months.
- Does Kansas require specific CE topics for occupational therapists?
- The Kansas State Board of Healing Arts does not list mandated subject areas for OT renewal on the pages we verified; the 40 contact hours may be in any approved subject.
- Do Kansas occupational therapists have to submit CE certificates at renewal?
- Proof of completion must be submitted with the renewal. Kansas does not name an approving body in K.A.R. 100-54-7; content must relate to the field of occupational therapy or similar areas and instructional staff must be competent in the subject matter and in instructional method as shown by experience, education or publication. Evidence is filed with the renewal rather than kept for a later audit: the licensee submits documented evidence of attendance at, participation in, or presentation of class I and class II activities, personal verification for class III reading, copies of publications for class IV, and employer verification for class VI fieldwork supervision. The board has partnered with CE Broker so licensees can track and manage continuing education.
- Is the first Kansas OT renewal exempt from CE?
- Yes. Kansas does not require continuing education for a OT's first renewal.
Sources
Last verified September 9, 2026. Every value above was read from one of these.
- K.A.R. 100-54-7, Continuing education; license renewal (Kansas Administrative Regulations, Kansas Secretary of State)Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 9, 2026
- K.A.R. 100-54-6, License; temporary license; renewal; late renewalStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 9, 2026
- K.A.R. 100-54-8, Continuing education; expired, canceled, and revoked licensesStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 9, 2026
- K.A.R. Agency 100, Article 54, Occupational Therapy (section listing)Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 9, 2026
- Renewal Dates, Kansas State Board of Healing ArtsState board page, accessed September 9, 2026
- Occupational Therapist licensure types and designations, Kansas State Board of Healing ArtsState board page, accessed September 9, 2026
- Occupational Therapy Assistant licensure types and designations, Kansas State Board of Healing ArtsState board page, accessed September 9, 2026
Kansas puts occupational therapy inside a multi-profession medical board rather than a therapy board: the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts licenses occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants under K.A.R. Agency 100, Article 54, alongside physicians, physical therapists, respiratory therapists and others. Article 54 covers both credentials, and K.A.R. 100-54-7 states its requirement for "each licensee" without separating them, so the figures in this occupational therapist record come from a rule that reaches both, not from the other credential's record. That the article covers assistants is explicit elsewhere in it: 100-54-1(a) opens "Each applicant for licensure as an occupational therapist or occupational therapy assistant" and 100-54-8(c) names "An occupational therapist or an occupational therapy assistant". The board's own renewal dates table also lists OT and OTA on one line, February 15 to April 30, so the two renew on the same date. There is no separate OTA total, no separate category split and no OTA-only subject mandate anywhere in Article 54. The regulation states no mandated subject at all, so mandatory_topics is empty. NBCOT is not named as a renewal condition; Article 54 requires a board-recognized written examination for initial licensure. First renewal is prorated rather than simply exempt: a licensee first licensed within one year of a continuing education renewal date owes nothing, and one licensed more than one but less than two years before it owes 20 contact hours. Not stated in the regulations read: whether hours carry over, a record retention period, and whether the board audits beyond requiring evidence at renewal. Supervision of occupational therapy assistants is governed by K.A.R. 100-54-12 and is not continuing education. The board's site returns 403 to automated fetches, so its pages were read in a browser; the regulation text was read as the authenticated HTML of the current version on the Kansas Secretary of State's Kansas Administrative Regulations site.
Provided for general reference. Requirements change through legislative sessions and rulemaking, so confirm with the Kansas State Board of Healing Arts before relying on them for a renewal. Spot something out of date? Tell us and we will fix it.