licenses & feesstate

No-Fee Temporary Licence for Servicemembers and Their Spouses

An Ohio licensing board issues a temporary professional licence to an applicant on active duty in Ohio, or to the spouse of one, and charges no fee for it. The temporary military spousal licence runs up to six years.

Verified August 22, 2026

What this benefit is

What it's worth: No fee to issue the military or military spouse licence; the spousal temporary licence lasts up to six years

The fee waived is the board’s issuance fee. A criminal records check and any third-party examination are separate charges.

Who is entitled to it

You are on active duty.
You are the spouse of a servicemember.
Your home is in Ohio.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

How to claim it

1Apply online through the state eLicense system and choose the temporary military spouse application type.
2Expect to show proof of active duty in Ohio (or of marriage to someone on active duty here), a BCI/FBI background check, and a valid unrestricted licence in another jurisdiction.
3Ask the board separately about credit for military training: Ohio Rev. Code §5903.03 makes each board publish which military programmes, specialties and lengths of service count toward the education and experience requirements.
4Do not expect that credit to excuse the examination — the board’s guidance says passing the licensing exam is still required even where the military service meets the education and experience requirements.

Form: Temporary military spouse application
File with: Your Ohio licensing board, through the state eLicense portal
Documents you will need: dd214
No renewal: Once granted it does not need renewing.

CorrectionOhio Rev. Code §5903.10 is often described as extending a licence through deployment. It does not. It lets a licence that expired during active service be renewed at the usual cost without penalty or re-examination — the board’s own page says in terms that this "does not extend the expiration date of a license." If your posting requires a live licence, renew before you go; boards will arrange an early renewal if you ask.

Worth knowingThe six-year term on the temporary military spousal licence is unusually long. It is a temporary licence in name, but in practice it can carry a spouse through an entire posting without a second application.

Known gapOhio has more than thirty separate licensing boards. The fee and term above come from one board’s published application of the statute; boards can differ in the documents they ask for, though not in the statutory fee position.

Sources

authority · published policyOhio Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy and Athletic Trainers Board — Military Benefits (setting out Ohio Rev. Code §§4743.041, 5903.03 and 5903.10 as the board applies them)

Why only one source type: The state statute server (codes.ohio.gov) refuses connections and the browser is denied navigation to it, so the licensing board’s own published account of the three sections is the read source.

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.