Do You Owe CEUs at the First Renewal of a New State License?

Often not: several boards waive continuing education at the first renewal of a license they have just issued, so a new state license can reach its first renewal without a single course logged against it. The waiver is each board's own rule, though, and some prorate the hours instead, so read the board's wording for your discipline before you count on it.

By ProTherapy Staffing, published October 22, 2026.

Which boards waive CEUs for the first renewal?

Four published rules show the pattern:

Notice what the waiver is attached to: the license that board issued. Your other licenses keep their own requirements and their own dates.

What if the board prorates the hours instead?

Some boards scale the requirement to the time you have held the license. New York's answers for physical therapist assistants say 36 hours of approved continuing education are due in each three-year registration period, that a newly licensed assistant does not need continuing education in the first three-year period, and that a registration period shorter than three years needs one hour for each month.

That is the shape to look for in any board's rule: what the first period owes, what a short period owes, and when the full requirement starts. If the rule does not say, ask the board in writing and keep the answer with your certificates.

For a traveler, the difference matters most when a license is issued close to a renewal date. A waiver means nothing is due at that first date; a proration means a small number of hours may be due within months. Either way, the full requirement arrives with the next cycle, and that is the one to plan your courses around.

If you want a contract planned around the licenses you hold and their renewal dates, ask a ProTherapy recruiter: Find my next contract.

Why does a new license reach its first renewal so quickly?

Because many boards renew everyone on the same date, whatever day your license was issued. New Mexico renews physical therapy licenses every two years, and they expire on the first of February following no more than two years of licensure. A license issued late in a cycle can reach its first renewal within months, which is exactly when a first-renewal waiver helps.

The same rule shows the other edge. New Mexico wants the hours earned during the current renewal period and permits no carryover, so courses taken before a cycle opens may not count for it. Our guide to keeping CEUs current across state licenses shows how to list every license with its cycle so the dates do not surprise you.

Does a compact privilege get the same first-renewal break?

A privilege does not run its own renewal cycle. The PT Compact Commission says all compact privileges expire on the same date as the home state license in effect when you bought them, and you must renew the home license before you can renew the privilege. So the continuing education that keeps a privilege alive is, first, the continuing education that keeps your home license alive.

Whether a remote state asks for anything else when you renew a privilege, such as a jurisprudence exam, is that state's rule. Our page on CEUs and compact privileges covers it.

How do I use a first-renewal waiver without getting caught later?

Frequently asked questions

Do I need CEUs for my first Ohio PT renewal?

No. Ohio's rule says license holders are not required to obtain any continuing education units for the first renewal. Later two-year cycles need 24 units for PTs and 12 for PTAs.

Does a first-renewal waiver in one state cover my other licenses?

No. Each board's waiver applies to the license it issued, so your other licenses keep their own requirements and renewal dates.

Can I carry extra hours into the next New Mexico cycle?

No. New Mexico's rule permits no carryover hours, and the hours must be earned during the current two-year renewal period.

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