1. (a) Qualifications for provisional licensure.

   1. (1) The board may grant a provisional license to an applicant who meets the following qualifications.

      1. (A) The applicant must have current licensure in another state, the District of Columbia, or territory of the United States that maintains professional standards considered by the board to be substantially equivalent to those set forth in the Act.
      2. (B) The applicant must have passed the national examination according to Texas' standards or the Registry Examination with a score of 75% or more.
      3. (C) The applicant must be sponsored by and practice with a person licensed by the board under this Act.
   2. (2) An applicant may be excused from paragraph (1)(C) of this subsection if it constitutes a hardship to the applicant. Hardship is established by the employer stating in writing to the board that the applicant is unable to secure a sponsor. If the applicant is self-employed, a letter may be provided by the applicant to this effect.
   3. (3) Current licensure in good standing means that the applicant can have no past disciplinary actions by the licensing entity or current complaints pending. Applications involving pending current complaints will be reviewed by the board.

   4. (4) Determination of substantially equivalent. Determination by the board as to whether a state, the District of Columbia or a territory of the United States maintains professional standards substantially equivalent to those set forth by the Act will be based on whether at the time the applicant was licensed in the state:

      1. (A) the licensing entity required passage of the national examination at at least Texas' passing rate or the Registry Examination with a score of 75% or more; and
      2. (B) an applicant for a license as a physical therapist must present evidence satisfactory to the board that the applicant has completed an accredited program or equivalent program in physical therapy education. "Equivalent program" means that the applicant shall provide official documentation from a board-approved educational credentials review agency certifying completion of a program equivalent to a Commission on Accreditation of Physical Therapy Education accredited program and completion of a minimum of 60 academic semester credits or the equivalent from an accredited institution of higher learning. An applicant for a physical therapist assistant license must present evidence satisfactory to the board that the applicant has completed an accredited physical therapist assistant program or an accredited physical therapy program.
   5. (5) An applicant must apply for permanent licensure and pay all applicable fees including a provisional license fee before a provisional license can be issued.
   6. (6) The applicant must have the board in the state in which they are currently licensed provide directly to this board on a form prescribed by the board the information required in paragraph (l)(A) and (B) of this subsection. The applicant must provide to the board the information required in paragraph (l)(C) of this subsection by submitting a form directly to the board office agreeing to the sponsorship, providing the sponsor's name, address, and phone number, and including a notarized signature of the applicant. The applicant must have the education credentialing entity submit directly to the board the applicant's evaluation as required by paragraph (4) of this subsection.
   7. (7) A provisional license is valid until the date the board approves or denies the provisional licensee's application for a permanent license.
   8. (8) A provisional license is required to maintain a current address with the board at all times. Failure to do so may result in revocation of the provisional license.
   9. (9) An applicant who fails to meet the requirements for a provisional license may still apply for a permanent license.

2. (b) Permanent license.

   1. (1) The issuance of a permanent license to a person currently licensed in another state, District of Columbia, or territory of the United States will be made after the submission by the applicant of information required in §329.1 of this title (relating to General Licensing Procedure) and the submission of scores on the national examination provided directly from a board-approved reporting service or scores on the Registry Examination provided directly from the American Physical Therapy Association or from the state in which the applicant is currently licensed.
   2. (2) The application for a permanent license is valid for 180 days.
   3. (3) The board must complete the processing of a provisional licensee's application for a license not later than the 180th day after the date the provisional license is issued. The board may extend the 180-day limit if the results on an examination have not been received by the board.
   4. (4) An applicant who fails to qualify for a permanent license under this section may apply for licensure by examination.

3. (c) Examination scores. The applicant for a permanent license must meet one of the following conditions concerning passage of the national examination or the Registry Examination.

   1. (1) The applicant must have passed the national examination given on or after January 1, 1993, with a passing score as determined by the board.
   2. (2) The applicant must have obtained a score of 1.5 standard deviations below the nationwide mean on an examination given prior to January 1, 1993.
   3. (3) The applicant must have obtained a score of 75% or higher for the Registry Examination taken prior to September 1971.

Source Note:The provisions of this §329.6 adopted to be effective November 11, 1993, 18 TexReg 7546; amended to be effective January 3, 1995, 19 TexReg 10099; amended to be effective June 20, 1995, 20 TexReg 4122.