Does being a member state mean I can work there on a compact privilege?

Not always, and this is the distinction that causes the most trouble. A state has to do two things: enact the compact, and then actually stand up the systems to issue and accept privileges. Between those two events the state is a member on paper while a compact privilege still does not authorize you to practice there. Check the status of the specific state before you accept work in it.

Who does the PT Compact cover?

Physical therapists (PTs) and physical therapist assistants (PTAs). It works much like the Nurse Licensure Compact: you hold a license in your home state and, if you are eligible, obtain a compact privilege to practice in another member state rather than a second full license.

Is the PT Compact the same as the nursing compact?

They are separate agreements with separate member lists, separate commissions, and separate rules. A nurse licensure compact multistate license has no bearing on physical therapy practice, and PT Compact membership says nothing about a state’s nursing compact status. The two lists genuinely differ — California is outside both, but Alaska and Nevada issue PT compact privileges while their nursing positions are their own question.

CompactStates.com — https://www.compactstates.com · Always confirm license status with the issuing board of nursing.

Physical therapy compact states

Which states are in the PT Compact, which of them will actually accept a compact privilege today, and which will not.

How many states are in the PT Compact?

41 jurisdictions have joined the Physical Therapy Licensure Compact. 38 are issuing and accepting compact privileges right now. 3 more — Maine, Michigan, Rhode Island — have enacted it but are not yet issuing or accepting, so a compact privilege does not authorize practice in them today. The remaining 10 states are not members.

PT Compact Commission — Which states are in the PT Compact? ↗Last reviewed 2026-09-22

Issuing and accepting compact privileges (38)

Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Georgia
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maryland
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin

Enacted, but not yet issuing or accepting (3)

These states have passed the compact into law and are counted as members, but have not begun issuing or accepting compact privileges. A PT or PTA cannot rely on a compact privilege to work in them yet — the membership is real, the privilege is not.

Maine
Michigan
Rhode Island

Not a member of the PT Compact (10)

California
Florida
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Massachusetts
Minnesota
New Mexico
New York
Wyoming

How this differs from the nursing compact

The PT Compact and the Nurse Licensure Compact are separate agreements with separate member lists and separate commissions. Holding a multistate nursing license tells you nothing about physical therapy practice, and a state’s PT Compact status tells you nothing about its nursing compact status. The structure is the same — home-state license, privilege to practice elsewhere — but the lists genuinely differ, so check the one that matches your credential.

Territories

The PT Compact Commission publishes status for the 50 states and the District of Columbia. It does not enumerate Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa or the Northern Mariana Islands, so this data set makes no claim about them.

Frequently asked questions

41 jurisdictions have joined the Physical Therapy Licensure Compact. 38 of them are actively issuing and accepting compact privileges. The other 3 — Maine, Michigan, Rhode Island — have enacted the legislation but are not yet issuing or accepting privileges, so a compact privilege does not authorize practice there today.

Sources

PT Compact Commission — Which states are in the PT Compact?
Reviewed 2026-09-22
The commission’s own named list, grouped into actively issuing (38) and enacted-but-not-yet-issuing (3). Its status map independently labels 41 jurisdictions, which is the same total.
FSBPT — Jurisdiction Licensure Reference Guide, PT Compact members
Reviewed 2026-09-22
FSBPT’s Jurisdiction Licensure Reference Guide lists 38 members and 15 non-members, and disagrees with the commission on four jurisdictions: it records Alaska, Michigan and Nevada as non-members, and counts Maine and Rhode Island among plain members. The commission — the compact’s own governing body — lists Alaska and Nevada as actively issuing, and separates Maine, Michigan and Rhode Island as enacted-but-not-yet-issuing. The commission’s page is dated and named, so it is used here.

How many states are in the PT Compact?

Issuing and accepting compact privileges (38)

Enacted, but not yet issuing or accepting (3)

Not a member of the PT Compact (10)

How this differs from the nursing compact

Territories

Frequently asked questions

How many states are in the PT Compact?

Does being a member state mean I can work there on a compact privilege?

Who does the PT Compact cover?

Is the PT Compact the same as the nursing compact?

What about Puerto Rico, Guam and the other territories?