Nebraska Physical Therapist license renewal and CE requirements

Summary

Nebraska physical therapists must complete 20 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Board of Physical Therapy. All physical therapist licenses expire on November 1 of each odd-numbered year (172 NAC 137-010). Complete at least 20 hours of acceptable continuing education during the preceding 24-month period on or before that November 1 date. No more than 10 contact hours may be self-study or online.

Nebraska 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.

172 NAC 137-011 requires at least 20 hours of acceptable continuing education for a physical therapist during the 24-month period before the November 1 odd-year expiration (physical therapist assistants need 10). An hour is at least 60 minutes of participation (contact hour); one academic semester hour equals 15 contact hours and one quarter hour equals 10. The Board does not pre-approve programs or providers; activities must relate to physical therapy and may focus on research, treatment, documentation, management, or education. Caps per 24-month period: home study (must include a testing mechanism) 10 hours, webinars (sponsoring group, attendance not self-monitored) 10 hours, management courses 4 hours. The 10-hour cap recorded in max_self_study_or_online is the home study cap; webinars have a separate 10-hour cap. Courses under 60 minutes, orientation, staff meetings, on-the-job training, and courses for lay persons are not accepted (172 NAC 137-011.03). The Nebraska Law Tutorial is no longer required for renewal.

Required CE topics for Nebraska physical therapists

The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Board of Physical Therapy 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

Common questions

How many CE hours does a Nebraska PT need to renew?

Nebraska physical therapists must complete 20 contact hours of continuing education every two years to renew their license with the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Board of Physical Therapy. 172 NAC 137-011 requires at least 20 hours of acceptable continuing education for a physical therapist during the 24-month period before the November 1 odd-year expiration (physical therapist assistants need 10). An hour is at least 60 minutes of participation (contact hour); one academic semester hour equals 15 contact hours and one quarter hour equals 10. The Board does not pre-approve programs or providers; activities must relate to physical therapy and may focus on research, treatment, documentation, management, or education. Caps per 24-month period: home study (must include a testing mechanism) 10 hours, webinars (sponsoring group, attendance not self-monitored) 10 hours, management courses 4 hours. The 10-hour cap recorded in max_self_study_or_online is the home study cap; webinars have a separate 10-hour cap. Courses under 60 minutes, orientation, staff meetings, on-the-job training, and courses for lay persons are not accepted (172 NAC 137-011.03). The Nebraska Law Tutorial is no longer required for renewal.

How often does a Nebraska PT license need to be renewed?

Physical Therapist licenses in Nebraska renew every two years. All physical therapist licenses expire on November 1 of each odd-numbered year (172 NAC 137-010). Complete at least 20 hours of acceptable continuing education during the preceding 24-month period on or before that November 1 date.

Does Nebraska require specific CE topics for physical therapists?

The Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, Board of Physical Therapy does not list mandated subject areas for PT renewal on the pages we verified; the 20 contact hours may be in any approved subject.

Do Nebraska physical therapists have to submit CE certificates at renewal?

The board audits a sample of renewals and asks for documentation. The Board of Physical Therapy does not pre-approve continuing education or continuing education providers; acceptability is judged against the subject-matter and format criteria in 172 NAC 137-011. 172 NAC 137-002.03 defines an audit as the selection of licensees for verification of satisfactory completion of continuing competency requirements during a specified time period.

Sources

Last verified September 7, 2026. Every value above was read from one of these.

• Title 172, Chapter 137, Licensure of Physical Therapy, Nebraska Administrative Code, effective 06/20/2020Statute or administrative rule, accessed September 7, 2026
• Physical Therapy, Nebraska DHHS Licensure UnitState board page, accessed September 7, 2026
• Nebraska Physical Therapy Continuing Competency Requirements (DHHS handout)State board page, accessed September 7, 2026

Cycle (November 1 of odd years), 20 hours in the preceding 24 months, acceptable activities, and category caps were read from 172 NAC 137-010 and 137-011 in the 2020 regulation PDF hosted by the Nebraska Government Publications archive, and the DHHS Physical Therapy page repeats the same expiration date and 20-hour figure. The DHHS handout mirrors the rule but its header still cites the 11/02/2019 to 11/01/2021 period. Nebraska mandates no specific CE subjects for PTs; the jurisprudence exam and law tutorial are optional credit-earning activities, not requirements. The chapter read does not state a first-renewal exemption or proration, a carryover rule, a record-retention period, or whether certificates are submitted at renewal (audit and waiver mechanics are governed by 172 NAC 10, which was not fetched), so those fields are null. The official rules.nebraska.gov site could not be fetched (JavaScript-only), so the 2020 govdocs copy is cited; a later amendment could exist.