Minnesota Physical Therapist Assistant license renewal and CE requirements

Summary

Minnesota physical therapist assistants must complete 20 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Minnesota Board of Physical Therapy. Every licensed physical therapist and physical therapist assistant must apply to the board before January 1 each year for an extension of the license and pay the fee set by the board (Minn. Stat. 148.73). The license is renewed annually while continuing education runs on a separate two-year cycle; the first two-year cycle begins on the January 1 following initial licensure and later cycles run consecutively from there. Minnesota also mandates specific subjects. Professional ethics directly related to the practice of physical therapy: 2 contact hours every renewal cycle.

Minnesota Physical Therapist Assistant 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.

Minn. R. 5601.2100 states in one sentence that every two years each physical therapist and physical therapist assistant licensed by the board shall obtain 20 contact hours of continuing education credit, and that a minimum of two of the 20 hours each cycle shall be on professional ethics directly related to the practice of physical therapy. Minnesota is therefore a state where the physical therapist assistant requirement is identical to the physical therapist requirement, and Minn. Stat. 148.73 says so directly: for purposes of that section, the continuing education requirements for physical therapist assistants are the same as those for physical therapists. One hour of credit is given for each 60 minutes spent on educational activities (5601.2500), and individual self-directed study programs do not earn credit. The two-year cycle begins on the January 1 following initial licensure; credits earned between the licensure date and that January 1 may be applied to the first cycle (5601.2200). The activity categories in 5601.2300 are written for physical therapists and physical therapist assistants together, with two credential-specific items: APTA credentialed residency or fellowship activity and ABPTS certification are listed for physical therapists, while the APTA advanced proficiency program certification is the physical therapist assistant equivalent under the coursework category. The rules read do not address carryover or set an online cap.

Required CE topics for Minnesota physical therapist assistants

State-specific subject mandates. Where a mandate applies only to some licensees, the scope is listed.

Documentation and audit

Common questions

How many CE hours does a Minnesota PTA need to renew?

Minnesota physical therapist assistants must complete 20 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Minnesota Board of Physical Therapy. Minn. R. 5601.2100 states in one sentence that every two years each physical therapist and physical therapist assistant licensed by the board shall obtain 20 contact hours of continuing education credit, and that a minimum of two of the 20 hours each cycle shall be on professional ethics directly related to the practice of physical therapy. Minnesota is therefore a state where the physical therapist assistant requirement is identical to the physical therapist requirement, and Minn. Stat. 148.73 says so directly: for purposes of that section, the continuing education requirements for physical therapist assistants are the same as those for physical therapists. One hour of credit is given for each 60 minutes spent on educational activities (5601.2500), and individual self-directed study programs do not earn credit. The two-year cycle begins on the January 1 following initial licensure; credits earned between the licensure date and that January 1 may be applied to the first cycle (5601.2200). The activity categories in 5601.2300 are written for physical therapists and physical therapist assistants together, with two credential-specific items: APTA credentialed residency or fellowship activity and ABPTS certification are listed for physical therapists, while the APTA advanced proficiency program certification is the physical therapist assistant equivalent under the coursework category. The rules read do not address carryover or set an online cap.

How often does a Minnesota PTA license need to be renewed?

Physical Therapist Assistant licenses in Minnesota renew every year. Every licensed physical therapist and physical therapist assistant must apply to the board before January 1 each year for an extension of the license and pay the fee set by the board (Minn. Stat. 148.73). The license is renewed annually while continuing education runs on a separate two-year cycle; the first two-year cycle begins on the January 1 following initial licensure and later cycles run consecutively from there.

What specific CE topics are required for Minnesota physical therapist assistants?

Professional ethics directly related to the practice of physical therapy: 2 contact hours every renewal cycle. Citations: professional ethics directly related to the practice of physical therapy (Minn. R. 5601.2100).

Do Minnesota physical therapist assistants have to submit CE certificates at renewal?

Licensees attest to completion at renewal rather than submitting certificates and the board audits a sample of renewals and asks for documentation. At the license renewal immediately following each two-year continuing education cycle, physical therapists and physical therapist assistants attest to compliance with Minn. R. 5601.2100 to 5601.2500. The board periodically selects a sample of licensed physical therapists and physical therapist assistants and requests evidence of the continuing education attested to, and may request evidence for up to two consecutive compliance periods; documentation may come from the licensee or from state or national organizations that keep those records (5601.2600). Courses planned, sponsored, or cosponsored by an accredited university, college, or medical school, a state or national medical or osteopathic association, APTA or another national or state physical therapy association, or approved by FSBPT are credited automatically, and other activities require board approval (5601.2400).

Sources

Last verified September 8, 2026. Every value above was read from one of these.

• Minn. R. 5601.2100 Continuing Education Requirement; Physical Therapists and Physical Therapist Assistants, 20 contact hours every two years with 2 hours of ethicsStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
• Minn. R. 5601.2200 Two-Year Continuing Education Cycle, first cycle begins the January 1 following initial licensureStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
• Minn. R. 5601.2300 Categories of Credited Activities for Physical Therapists and Physical Therapist AssistantsStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
• Minn. R. 5601.2600 Verification of Compliance; Physical Therapists and Physical Therapist AssistantsStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
• Minn. Stat. 148.73 Renewals, every licensed physical therapist and physical therapist assistant shall apply before January 1 each year, and PTA continuing education requirements are the same as those for physical therapistsStatute or administrative rule, accessed September 8, 2026
• Continuing Education, Minnesota State Board of Physical TherapyState board page, accessed September 8, 2026

Minnesota applies one requirement to both credentials, and this record says so rather than borrowing the physical therapist number. Minn. R. 5601.2100 names physical therapists and physical therapist assistants together in the sentence that sets 20 contact hours every two years and the 2 hour ethics minimum, and Minn. Stat. 148.73 states that the continuing education requirements for physical therapist assistants are the same as those for physical therapists. The same statute puts the annual January 1 renewal application on physical therapist assistants by name. The activity categories, the two-year cycle start, and the attestation and sampling process were read in Minn. R. 5601.2200, 5601.2300, and 5601.2600, all of which are titled for physical therapists and physical therapist assistants. The only credential-specific credit in the categories rule is that physical therapists earn coursework credit for APTA credentialed residencies, fellowships, and ABPTS certification while physical therapist assistants earn it for the APTA advanced proficiency program certification. The board's homepage, renewal page, and CE FAQ redirect to a bot-verification wall and could not be read, so the Continuing Education page serves as both board_url and renewal_url. Not stated in the rules read: a record retention period in years, an online or self-study cap (self-directed study earns no credit at all), carryover, and any first-renewal exemption, although a licensee's first annual renewal may fall before any continuing education is due because the first cycle starts the January 1 after licensure.