Transferring a California teaching licence to Texas

Texas does not have reciprocity with any other state, meaning it does not automatically recognize or accept out-of-state teaching certificates to move into immediate issuance of a standard certificate in Texas.

House Bill 1178, enacted by the 89th Texas Legislature, requires that any out-of-state certificate submitted for a Review of Credentials must be both valid and active at the time the complete application is received.

19 TAC §§230.111 and 230.113 amended to be effective 2 August 2026, 51 TexReg 4864, under TEC §21.0521 as added by HB 1178, 89th Leg. R.S. 2025.

The certificate or other credential issued by the authorized licensing agency in another state or territory of the United States may not be an expired certificate, a temporary permit, a credential issued by a city or school district, or a certificate for which academic or other program deficiencies are indicated.

19 TAC §230.111(c). A 'standard certificate' is defined at 19 TAC §230.1(22) as one issued to a person who has met all requirements for a class of certification.

An applicant issued a one-year certificate under this section who does not complete the appropriate examination requirements to establish eligibility for a standard certificate during the validity of the one-year certificate, is not eligible for any type of certificate or permit authorizing employment for the same certificate until he or she has satisfied the appropriate examination requirements.

19 TAC §230.113(d).

19 TAC §230.101(a)(6)(B). Section last amended effective 19 May 2024, 49 TexReg 3551.

TEA republishes these two figures continuously. Treat as a snapshot.

The preliminary credential is issued for a maximum of five years.

Leaflet CL-560C carries a printed revision date of May 2021.

The Multiple Subject Teaching Credential authorizes the holder to teach all subjects in a self-contained classroom, such as the classrooms in most elementary schools, in grades preschool, K-12, or in classes organized primarily for adults.

What is unresolved: every receiving state we have researched asks whether the incoming certificate is "comparable" in subject and grade level. Texas’s Core Subjects is EC-6, Colorado’s Elementary Education is K-6, Florida’s is K-6. California’s is none of those — it is a setting authorisation. How a receiving state maps it is that state’s determination and no published text we have found resolves it.

Individuals prepared outside of California who have less than two years of out-of-state full-time teaching experience (see Terms and Definitions) may qualify for a California teaching credential by documenting all of the following in their application packet:

The out-of-state credential does NOT have to be valid at the time of application, and a photocopy front and back is acceptable verification. Both are unusually forgiving.

Letter from the out-of-state employer verifying at least two years of out-of-state full-time teaching experience accompanied by two satisfactory performance evaluations (see Terms and Definitions).

The performance evaluations are the part people cannot retrieve later. Request them before leaving the district.

An individual issued a professional level teaching credential by another state or U.S. territory with a middle school or departmentalized classroom teaching authorization that is not comparable and that does not list a comparable authorization may verify subject matter competence for the Single Subject Credential with a degree major or 32 semester units (or the equivalent in quarter units).

Thirty-two semester units is roughly a full academic year of study. It is the price of a grade-band or subject mismatch.

Earn an authorization to teach English learners by one of the following methods:

A teacher whose home-state credential already carries a full English learner authorisation can submit a copy of it. Whether a particular state’s ESL or bilingual endorsement counts as "full" is not defined in this leaflet.