Louisiana licenses physical therapists and PT assistants through the Louisiana Physical Therapy Board. No one may begin clinical practice without a provisional license or a license. Everything below comes from the board's own pages and rules, checked October 18, 2026. Fees and rules change, so confirm on the linked pages before you pay.
Check with your board. PT Ticket is a study aid, not clinical or legal guidance. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the Federation of State Boards of Physical Therapy (FSBPT), CAPTE, the PT Compact Commission or any state board; NPTE and FSBPT are their marks, used here only to name the exam.
Louisiana at a glance
Physical therapist (PT)
PT assistant (PTA)
Exam
NPTE-PT (225 questions, 5 hours), $485 to FSBPT
NPTE-PTA (180 questions, 4 hours), $485 to FSBPT
Board fees
$250 application (LAC 46:LIV §501), card only
$250
Law exam
Board jurisprudence exam online: 40 questions, 75% to pass, free
Same
Background check
Required; start it only after your online application is in
Same
Provisional license
90 days while waiting on the fixed-date NPTE, with a Supervisory Request Form
Same
PT Compact
Member, issuing and accepting privileges. A PT or PTA licensed in another member state can buy a Louisiana compact privilege instead of a full license, and a Louisiana license held where you live lets you buy privileges in the other member states. (PT Compact, checked October 18, 2026)
Louisiana, step by step
Louisiana Physical Therapy Board
Apply online with a non-university email, your FSBPT ID, program name and expected graduation date, and pay the $250 fee by card. Upload a recent 2x2 photo and color copies of your Social Security card and a driver's license or passport.
Jurisprudence exam: linked from your applicant checklist; 40 questions on the Louisiana Practice Act and Rules, 75% to pass, no fee.
Transcript: your school sends an official transcript directly to the board (a Certificate of Dean/Registrar can stand in until the degree posts).
Background check: follow the board's instructions after you apply; results that arrive before an application is on file are destroyed.
The NPTE: Louisiana is an Alternate Approval Pathway state for CAPTE graduates, so FSBPT makes you eligible to test once you register and choose Louisiana; the board still recommends starting your license application early.
Provisional license (optional): because the NPTE runs on fixed dates, you can get a 90-day provisional license by completing all of the above and sending a Supervisory Request Form.
Every state licenses physical therapists and PT assistants on the NPTE, with the same passing score everywhere (600 on a 200-800 scale): a CAPTE-accredited degree, your state board's application, then NPTE registration with FSBPT ($485 plus Prometric's sitting fee), which your board approves before FSBPT sends your Authorization to Test. The PT exam is 225 questions in 5 hours and the PTA exam 180 questions in 4 hours, both on fixed dates four times a year; you may test 3 times in 12 months and 6 times in a lifetime (FSBPT NPTE Candidate Handbook). The full walk-through: How to get your PT license.