Delaware Radiologic Technologist Licensing Guide

Delaware Radiology License Overview

Delaware licenses radiology as more than a single credential. Alongside the general radiologic technologist license, it also recognizes:

• Base licenses: Radiation Therapist; Nuclear Medicine Technologist
• Add-on authorization: CT Technologist
• Limited-permit tier: Limited-Scope X-ray Operator

A few other modalities are not licensed by the state at all, rather than carrying their own Delaware license. The specialty section below covers each.

A license you hold in another state does not transfer automatically, so you apply to Delaware's licensing board before your first assignment there.

Delaware Radiology License Requirements

The baseline below is the general Delaware radiologic technologist license. The specialty section covers the modalities that differ from it.

• National certification: confirm with the board which ARRT credential Delaware accepts, and whether it must stay current.
• Credential required: ARRT (or equivalent national credential) in radiography, maintained in good standing.
• Scope of the base license: Use of a source of radiation on humans for diagnostic radiography. Delaware law bars anyone other than a Licensed Practitioner or a Certified Radiation Technologist/Technician from using a source of radiation on humans.
• Verification: ARRT or direct board verification.

Delaware Radiology License Fees and Credentials

Delaware issues more than one radiology credential, so fees vary by what you actually do. The table below is one row per state-recognized credential.

There is no state fee line for MRI Technologist, Sonographer / Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound, and Medical Physicist, because Delaware does not license those modalities.

Flat $50 (16 Del. Admin. Code 4466-6.0). The $10 fee is for dental radiography, not this license.

Delaware Radiology License Renewal and CE

• Renewal cycle: every 3 years, based on date of original certification.
• Continuing education: Delaware sets no state CE hours for the general license (from our records; confirm with the board).
• Radiographer / General Diagnostic Radiologic Technologist CE: No state-mandated continuing education. Renewal is contingent on maintaining a valid national credential (ARRT/NMTCB/CCI), and CE is effectively governed by the national certifying body, not Delaware.
• Radiation Therapist CE: No separate state CE; renewal tied to maintaining the ARRT(T) national credential.
• Nuclear Medicine Technologist CE: No separate state CE; renewal tied to maintaining the NMTCB/ARRT(N) national credential.
• Limited-Scope X-ray Operator CE: No state CE; the limited-scope certificate is maintained by renewal rather than ongoing CE.

How to Get a Delaware Radiology License

In outline, applying takes four steps:

1. Confirm the credential Delaware requires for the work you will do (the requirements above and the specialty section below).
2. Complete a board-approved program if the state requires one for your credential.
3. Apply to Delaware Authority on Radiation Protection through the application portal.
4. Arrange the verification the board asks for: ARRT or direct board verification.

Common slip-ups travelers hit here: submitting ARRT verification directly to applicant instead of requesting board-to-board verification, causing rejection for improper credential documentation format.

Delaware Radiology License Processing Time

Board processing time is how long the board takes once it has a complete application. In Delaware: About 3 weeks. Treat this as a planning number rather than a promise.

Recommended lead time before your start date is the total runway, and it runs longer than the board's processing window. Start the application as early as you can, because your ARRT verification has to reach the board before it can act.

If you need more than one credential here, for example a base license plus an add-on authorization, they may process as separate items rather than in one pass. Do not assume you can layer the second credential on at the last minute.

Delaware requires permanent licensure before work begins with no temporary license option. The 3-6 week processing window combined with credential verification delays creates moderate assignment risk; missing the 8-10 week lead time window substantially increases likelihood of start date conflicts.

Delaware Radiology Specialty Rules

Below is one subsection per credential that differs from the general Delaware license, then roll-up lines for everything else.

CT Technologist

Divergence: add-on authorization. Computed tomography. Covered under the radiographer certificate for primary radiographers; a dedicated 'CT only' post-primary certificate exists for nuclear medicine / radiation therapy technologists.

• Credential: Base radiographer certificate covers CT; the separate 'CT only' certificate requires a primary NMTCB/ARRT nuclear-medicine or radiation-therapy credential plus a post-primary CT exam

How it differs from the general license: A primary radiographer does not need a separate CT credential. The only stand-alone CT certificate Delaware defines ('Medical radiologic technologist - CT only') is an add-on for nuclear medicine or radiation therapy technologists who need x-ray/CT scope for hybrid imaging like PET/CT. It is not a separate license for general Rad Techs.

MRI Technologist

Divergence: no state credential. Magnetic resonance imaging uses no ionizing radiation and therefore falls outside the Office of Radiation Control's authority over sources of radiation.

How it differs from the general license: Delaware's certification scheme regulates only the use of sources of radiation on humans. MRI is not defined as a certificate category in 16 Del. Admin. Code 4466 and is not certified by the Office of Radiation Control; employers credential MRI Techs against ARRT (MR) or ARMRIT certification.

Radiation Therapist

Divergence: separate license. Therapeutic use of sources of radiation. 'Radiation therapy / Radiation Therapist' is a defined term and a recognized primary national-credential category in Delaware.

• Fee: $10 application, $50 renewal, every 3 years
• Credential: ARRT in radiation therapy (primary credential), maintained in good standing
• CE: No separate state CE; renewal tied to maintaining the ARRT(T) national credential

How it differs from the general license: Radiation therapy is its own primary credential category, not part of the diagnostic radiographer scope. It is certified on a distinct national credential (ARRT therapy) rather than the radiography credential, though it uses the same R16-N application and fee structure.

Nuclear Medicine Technologist

Divergence: separate license. Use of radiopharmaceuticals / nuclear medicine imaging. 'Nuclear medicine technologist' is a defined term and a recognized primary national-credential category in Delaware.

• Fee: $10 application, $50 renewal, every 3 years
• Credential: NMTCB or ARRT in nuclear medicine (primary credential), maintained in good standing
• CE: No separate state CE; renewal tied to maintaining the NMTCB/ARRT(N) national credential

How it differs from the general license: Nuclear medicine is its own primary credential category certified on the NMTCB (or ARRT nuclear medicine) credential rather than the radiography credential. It is also the base credential from which Delaware's post-primary 'CT only' and 'bone densitometry only' certificates are issued.

Sonographer / Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound

Divergence: no state credential. Diagnostic medical ultrasound uses no ionizing radiation and is not a defined certificate category in Delaware's radiation-control scheme.

How it differs from the general license: Sonography is not certified by the Office of Radiation Control because it does not involve a source of radiation. No sonographer/ultrasound (ARDMS/CCI vascular) certificate category appears in 16 Del. Admin. Code 4466; employers credential sonographers against ARDMS or CCI certification. (CCI is listed among accepted credentialing bodies, but in this scheme that maps to radiation-using cardiovascular roles, not standalone ultrasound certification.)

Limited-Scope X-Ray Operator

Divergence: limited-scope tier. Reduced-scope operation of x-ray equipment in specified anatomic categories (limited scope medical), as established by the state examination, below full radiographer scope.

• Fee: $110 application, $50 renewal, every 3 years
• Credential: Pass the Authority-approved (ARRT-administered) limited-scope state examination; a full national radiography credential is not required
• CE: No state CE; the limited-scope certificate is maintained by renewal rather than ongoing CE

How it differs from the general license: A limited-scope operator is certified as a 'radiation technician' (did not complete a full accredited program) via a state exam rather than holding a full ARRT radiography credential, and is restricted to the limited anatomic/procedure scope tested. The state-exam route also carries a higher initial fee ($110 vs $10).

Medical Physicist

Divergence: no state credential. No Medical Physicist certificate is defined in Delaware's radiation technologist/technician certification scheme.

How it differs from the general license: Delaware does not certify Medical Physicists under 16 Del. Admin. Code 4466; no 'Medical Physicist' or 'qualified Medical Physicist' certificate category is defined. (Individual Medical-Physicist licensure is commonly cited only in TX/FL/HI/NY.) Any physicist oversight in Delaware is handled through facility radiation-machine registration/inspection rather than personal certification.

Specialties That Follow the General Delaware License

These run under the general radiologic technologist license and need no separate state credential: Mammography.

Before You Pay: Confirm Your Modality

States differ on whether a radiology modality needs its own state credential. MRI, nuclear medicine, radiation therapy, sonography, and CT can each be a separate state license in one state, a facility credential checked against your ARRT registration in the next, and nothing extra in a third.

The specialty differences we have on file for Delaware are above. What we cannot see is your specific assignment and the site you land at. Before you submit any application fee for an advanced modality, check whether Delaware issues a state credential for it or whether the facility handles that against your certification. We would rather you ask first than pay for something the role never required.

Delaware Licensing Board and Resources

Delaware Authority on Radiation Protection

Board Website · Application Portal · License Verification

Phone: (302) 744-4546

Email: [email protected]