Rhode Island § 5-88-1 - Military Member and Spouse License Issuance

§ 5-88-1. Issuance of professional service license.

(a) Except as provided in § 5-88-2, notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, each business/profession-related board shall issue a license, certification, or permit to perform professional services regulated by each such board to a person:

(1) Who is certified or licensed in another state for at least one year to perform professional services in a state other than Rhode Island;

(2) Who is a member of the armed forces of the United States, or whose spouse is a member of the armed forces of the United States;

(3) Who is subject to military orders for a change of station to a duty station in Rhode Island, or in the process or whose spouse is the subject of a military transfer to Rhode Island; and

(4) In the situation of a military member’s spouse, the spouse left employment to accompany the military member to Rhode Island.

(b) The procedure shall include:

(1) Issuing the person a digitally verifiable license, certificate, or permit that can also be recognized by other states, if, in the opinion of the board, the requirements for certification or licensure of such other state are substantially equivalent to that required in this state;

(2) Developing a method to authorize the person to perform professional services regulated by the board in this state by issuing the person a temporary license, certificate, or permit that is digitally verifiable and can be recognized by other states for a limited period of time to allow the person to perform professional services while completing any specific requirements that may be required in this state that were not required in the state in which the person was licensed or certified; and

(3) Establishing that the person is not subject to a disqualification pursuant to the provisions of § 5-88-2.