Pennsylvania OT and OTA license renewal and continued competency

Pennsylvania rule 49 Pa. Code § 42.53 states that an occupational therapist “shall complete a minimum of 24 contact hours in each biennial period in acceptable continued competency activities listed in § 42.55”. Occupational therapy assistants have the same 24-hour requirement.

Quoted from official pages checked November 12, 2026. Confirm current requirements, fees, and dates on those sites. This page is not legal advice and does not guarantee eligibility, certification, or licensure.

Source read on November 12, 2026: 49 Pa. Code § 42.53, Continued competency requirements on the Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin site. It covers occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants. The list of acceptable activities is in § 42.55, which was not read for this page.

Required topic

“At least 2 hours of the required 24 hours shall be completed in child abuse recognition and reporting”.

First renewal

Apart from the 2 hours of child abuse recognition and reporting training, a licensee is exempt from the requirement for the first biennial renewal period after initial licensure (paraphrased).

Reactivation and reinstatement

A licensee reactivating a lapsed or inactive license must show the required hours, including the child abuse training, for the 2 years before applying; a licensee whose license was suspended or revoked must complete the hours for each biennium of the suspension or revocation (paraphrased).

Records

The section read does not set a retention period or name a carryover allowance.

What this page does not do

It covers the state occupational therapy license only, and only what the official page or pages named above say. It does not cover NBCOT certification renewal, does not list fees, and does not replace the board’s own instructions. Rules change; check the board before you renew.