Texas Medical License

Do you wonder how to complete graduate training and provide health care in the state of Texas? If you do, then you must obtain a Texas medical license to practice medicine in the state.

To become a licensed physician, you must do your research on the licensing process. In addition to it, we have already done the research to deliver the process in an easy-to-understand manner.

For more information concerning Texas medical licenses and the rules and requirements related to the procedure, check the points below.

How do I get a copy of my Texas medical license?

If you need to have another copy of your Texas medical license, then you should login to your My TMB account and follow the instructions to print a copy of your active license.

The time it takes to get a medical license in Texas

From the time of submitting the application, it will take the Texas Medical Board about 51 days to process the physician licensure application.

However, the actual licensing process will take you longer as you will need to meet all the state requirements and pass the required examinations. Therefore, the process is different for each individual and mainly depends on your skills.

It may be interesting to know that you can shorten the licensing process by not answering “yes” to all the application questions and properly following all the instructions.

In case you do not answer the questions correctly or honestly, it will automatically make the process longer.

How to get a Texas medical license

Eligibility requirements for licensure

Education

In the first place, you must attend and graduate from an approved US or Canadian medical school or college.

Specialty board certifications by an ABMS or BOS board or substantial equivalence list schools are also acceptable. The latter is a list of schools, which correspond with the teaching standards of the Texas Medical Board.

To qualify for a medical license, you must also complete postgraduate training. Thus, you should complete medical training in an American Osteopathic Association or Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education program.

Another option may be practicing medicine for two years in a health care system under a temporary medical license.

Examinations

The other main requirement for licensure is passing the medical exams. Make sure that you fully understand the material and then make a step towards taking the exam.

You must take and pass the exam within three attempts. What is more, you must pass all the examinations within seven years. Thee timeframe may be 10 years if you:

• are specialty board certified by an ABMS or BOS
• have practiced under a Texas Faculty Temporary License for one calendar year

Do not forget about passing the Texas Medical Jurisprudence Examination with a total score of 75% or higher. It is helpful to know that there is no limit on the number of attempt for this exam. The examination fee is $34.

Competency

The last requirement is showing competency by working 20 hours per week for 40 weeks in a medical care system for two years prior the application date.

To obtain more information, check this eligibility checklist for physician licensure.

Pre-licensure stage

Texas medical licensing is a two-stage process, which includes pre-licensure and licensing. The article describes two of the stages in details.

Step 1: Register with LIST

The Texas Medical Board uses the online Licensure Inquiry System of Texas (LIST) to communicate with physician applicants and answer their questions about application requirements.

If it is your first time using the portal, you must create an account and log in. After you register, you will receive an email, which includes your LIST username and password. Write down or keep in mind the password, as you are going to need it every time you enter your LIST account.

In general, applicants get their username and password the first day after applying.

It is preferable to check your LIST account every now and then. The reason for this is that you will be able to see the process of the application. Besides, you can also ask questions through the portal and get answers to them.

The Texas Medical Board, as a rule, provides answers to such questions in three or five business days. However, you should not repeat the same question or ask basic questions, which have already been answered.

In case you have problems with logging in to your account, call at (512) 305-7030 and ask for assistance.

Step 2: Prepare pre-licensure documents

For this step, you will need to prepare pre-licensure documents, which LIST has asked for. To put it differently, you will need to provide required documents for the Texas Medical Board.

You will need to provide information, documents on the followings:

• Training and Work History (post-graduate training, professional affiliations within the last five years)
• Education (medical schools, degrees, awards, internships and certifications)
• Criminal history (background check, disciplinary actions, felonies and malpractice history)
• Mental and Physical Health (addictions, mental disorders or physical/neurological conditions)

Note that you must provide only real, legit documents and answer the given questions honestly. Otherwise, fake information will affect the process in a negative way and entail additional delays.

For the pre-licensure phase, the Board will not check the provided documents. On the contrary, they will only check whether you have them or not, and then verify them for the next stage.

It is advisable to check the LIST account constantly so that you provide additional documents in case the Board needs them.

Note that you will not be eligible for a Texas medical license until you complete the whole licensing process.

Licensing stage

After you provide all the necessary documents, your application will be enter the licensure stage and be assigned to a licensing analyst.

For this phase, they will review your documents and provided information. Afterwards, the application status will change to “Application Complete”.

The Board issues medical licenses twice a month and gives registration instructions. Thereby, you will have 90 days to register and activate the license.

In case you fail to activate the license in time, it will entail additional fees and penalties.

Do not forget to pay the license fee ($817) before the application procession starts.

These are all the steps you must complete for Texas medical licensure. You will not have any problems providing that you meet the requirements as the Board requires you to do.