Each physician licensed to practice medicine in Texas using the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact (IMLC) must complete a biennial registration/renewal and pay a fee. You must complete the IMLC portion of the renewal (including the payment of fees), and the TMB portion of the renewal before the expiration date of your license to avoid penalty fees.
Physician licenses expire at one of 4 times during the year, February 28th, May 31st, August 31st, or November 30th. These registration periods are assigned by the TMB at the time of licensure, and the fees are pro-rated appropriately for the initial registration. Even number licenses expire in even number years and odd number licenses expire in odd number years.
After the initial registration, we are not able to offer the option of a shorter or annual registration. In addition, there are no registration fee exemptions for physicians who are in training, or in military service.
Physicians can register online 60-90 days prior to expiration. Registration reminders will be sent out from the Texas Medical Board at least 60 days in advance of the expiration date.
- Step 1 – Submit renewal and payment to the IMLC
- Step 2 – Complete the TMB online renewal (plus fingerprints if this is your first renewal)
IMLC Renewal and payment
You may begin the IMLC portion of your Texas License renewal on the IMLC website: https://www.imlcc.org/renew/
The IMLC website includes example renewal forms you can review, as well as an instruction video if needed. You will need to access your IMLC portal account to complete this portion of the renewal and submit your fees.
IMLC fees are submitted to TMB on a regular schedule, however please allow 7-14 business days for TMB to receive the payment. Even so, you do not have to wait for TMB to receive the IMLC payment before you complete the TMB portion of your renewal. A renewal is not considered complete, and therefore the expiration date will not be updated, until we receive the fees from the IMLC.
Note: You may complete the IMLC portion of the renewal and payment of fees, and the TMB portion of the renewal in whatever order you choose, however both must be completed before your registration/renewal will be processed and your expiration date updated.
TMB Online Renewal
You can access the TMB online registration/renewal questions by selecting the Physician Online Registration/Renewal link. You will need your license number and the last 4 digits of your social security number. If this is your first renewal, you will not be able to access this link until you have completed your fingerprints and the TMB have received the results. See the information below regarding the fingerprint process.
Once you finalize and submit the registration/renewal you will receive a receipt that this portion of your TMB renewal has been completed.
Note: You may complete the IMLC portion of the renewal and payment of fees, and the TMB portion of the renewal in whatever order you choose, however both must be completed before your registration/renewal will be processed and your expiration date updated.
Email renewal reminders are sent 60-90 days before the expiration date, from no.reply@tmb.state.tx.us. We recommend that you add this email address to your contacts list so they will not be lost. Please check your junk and spam mail for these notices if you are not receiving them.
If you have questions about the renewal process, please contact us at Compact-General@tmb.state.tx.us. Staff will respond to your inquiry within 2-3 business days.
Fingerprint Requirement
As of 9/1/2023, criminal history background checks through the Department of Public Safety and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are required prior to the first renewal for current licenses issued through the IMLC. Detailed Instructions for getting your fingerprints done will be provided in your email renewal reminder, or upon request. Processing times vary (average turnaround time is less than 10 business days), but please note that the criminal history results can take up to 4-6 weeks for processing. A Board issued 6-digit ID number is required for submitting your fingerprints and will be included with your renewal reminder, or upon request.
Per Title 28, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Section 50.12, FBI fingerprinting reports are only allowed to be used for the purposes requested. Therefore, we are not able to access fingerprint results that were submitted to another state or agency. If you have been previously fingerprinted for another license or by another state or agency, we apologize for the inconvenience; however you will still be required to submit the fingerprint criminal history background prior to the next registration/renewal of your license.
How much is it going to cost?
As of 1/1/2019 the fee for fingerprinting is $38.25. This fee includes the fingerprint vendor processing fee, DPS processing fee and FBI processing fee. There may be an additional fingerprint vendor processing fee if using an approved out-of-state live scan location. IdentoGo will inform you if the location selected is subject to this additional fee.
Does the fingerprinting fee benefit the TMB?
There is no financial gain for the TMB. The TMB participates in the DPS contract with IdentoGo by IDEMIA (formerly known as MorphoTrust USA, LLC) for the digital fingerprint system for criminal background checks on licensees and applicants. This contract is maintained by DPS and licensee and applicants pay a fee directly to the vendor for fingerprint services. No portion of the fee comes to or through the TMB.
When do we have to do it?
Fingerprint results will not be REQUIRED until your renewal. Fingerprinting for physicians began with the February 2024 expiration dates. Licensees will receive advance notice from the TMB of when they should begin the process.
What is my Board issued 6-digit ID number?
A Board issued 6-digit ID number is required for submitting your fingerprints. This 6-digit ID number is assigned at the time of application submission. This 6-digit ID number will be included in your post card and email renewal reminders. If you wish to submit your fingerprints early, please contact us at Registrations@tmb.state.tx.us and request your 6-digit ID number and instructions for your fingerprint submission.
What if my Board issued ID number is only 5 digits long?
A Board issued 6-digit ID number is required for submitting your fingerprints. This ID number is assigned at the time of application submission. If you were assigned a 5-digit ID number at the time of your application submission, please use a leading zero when submitting your fingerprints. Example: ID number “12345” becomes “012345”.
IdentoGo is not accepting my 6-digit ID number. What do I need to do?
Per the instructions provided for setting up your appointment with IdentoGo, please be sure to enter your Board issued 6 digit ID number with “MB-“ in front, no spaces – example: MB-123456 or MB-012345
What is the TMB “Service code” for IdentoGo?
The TMB service code for IdentoGo is only able to be provided directly to licensure applicants or existing licensees. The service code is provided in the detailed instructions that are part of the email renewal notice. If you have not received your email renewal notice, or you would like to complete the fingerprint requirement early, please contact us at Registrations@tmb.state.tx.us and we will provide you with your ID number, and instructions that include the TMB service code.
I submitted my fingerprints. Why am I still not able to enter the online registration?
Please note that the fingerprint background check results will be required prior to a license being able to access the online registration system. While processing times vary (average turnaround time is less than 10 business days), please note it can take 4-6 weeks for hard card submissions. If you believe that you should be able to access the online registration system, and you are not able to, please contact us a Registrations@tmb.state.tx.us.
I was previously printed by another entity or state. Can you use those results?
Per Title 28, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Section 50.12, FBI fingerprinting reports are only allowed to be used for the purposes requested. Therefore, we are not able to access fingerprint results that were submitted to another agency. If you have been previously fingerprinted for another license or by another agency, we apologize for the inconvenience; however you will still be required to submit the fingerprint criminal history background prior to the next registration/renewal of your license.
Late fees
There is a 30 day grace period for the expiration date of a physician license. Once the 30 day grace period past the expiration date has occurred, you will no longer have access to the TMB portion of the renewal online or the IMLC online renewal. At that time, your license renewal will solely be taken care of through the TMB, and a hard copy renewal form will need to be completed. In addition, a penalty fee of $75 will be added. After 90 days, the penalty fee will increase to $150. If a license has been expired for one year or longer it is automatically cancelled.
If you need to renew your license after the 30-day grace period, please contact us at Registrations@tmb.state.tx.us and request a hard copy registration/renewal form.
Print a copy of your license
The Texas Medical Board has transitioned to electronic licenses for a more paperless experience and to allow for enhanced licensee control. As of 9/1/2019 the Board no longer issues paper licenses after a completed registration/renewal.
Once we have received your TMB online renewal responses and the payment of your renewal fees from IMLCC, the registration/renewal of your Texas medical license will be complete and your expiration date updated. After that you will be able to log into your “MyTMB” account on our website and view, save or print a copy of your active license.