Application for Licensure

PURPOSE: This rule outlines the requirements for licensure as a massage therapist including the grandfathering provisions and temporary two- (2-) year license. (1) A person who seeks licensure as a massage therapist and has completed either six hundred twenty-five (625) clock hours of massage therapy training in an apprenticeship with a certified mentor and has successfully passed an examination approved by the board or massage therapy studies consisting of at least six hundred twenty-five (625) clock hours of supervised instruction from a Coordinating Board of Higher Education (CBHE) certified school, Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) approved vocational program or school, or school, college, university, or other institution of higher learning in the United States accredited by a regional accrediting commission recognized by the United States Department of Education or an equivalent approving body for out-of-state applicants shall be at least eighteen (18) years of age and shall submit the following: (A) A completed notarized application and application fee; (B) Two (2) sets of fingerprints for the purpose of conducting a criminal background check by the Missouri State Highway Patrol and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Any fees due for a fingerprint background check shall be paid by the applicant directly to the Missouri State Highway Patrol or its approved vendor(s); (C) Official evidence of completing six hundred twentyfive (625) clock hours of massage therapy training in an apprenticeship with a certified mentor or an official final transcript showing successful completion of a massage therapy program to be submitted directly to the board office from the certified mentor or massage therapy program which includes— 1. The applicant’s name; 2. Date of enrollment; 3. Date of completion; and 4. Documentation that the massage therapy program consisted of at least six hundred twenty-five (625) clock hours of supervised instruction which consisted of— A. At least three hundred (300) clock hours dedicated to massage theory and practice techniques provided directly by the certified mentor or an instructor within a massage therapy program. An instructor for massage theory and practice techniques or certified mentor shall document at least two (2) years of massage therapy practice and either be licensed as a massage therapist in this state or be licensure eligible, based upon board review of the instructor’s credentials. (I) An instructor of kinesiology or pathology within the massage therapy program shall submit verification of education and/or experience in kinesiology or pathology instruction and licensure as a massage therapist or licensure eligibility is not required; B. At least one hundred (100) clock hours dedicated to the study of anatomy and physiology provided by one (1) of the following: (I) The certified mentor who must hold an associate, bachelor, or advanced degree in a science-related field from a college, university, or other institution of higher learning in the United States accredited by a regional accrediting commission recognized by the U.S. Department of Education that includes a course of study in anatomy and physiology. Such degrees include but are not limited to physical therapy, chiropractic, osteopathy, medicine, nursing, chemistry, or biology; (II) A school, college, university, or other institution of higher learning in the United States accredited by a regional accrediting commission recognized by the U.S. Department of Education, a massage therapy program approved by the Missouri CBHE, or an out-of-state school approved by an agency equivalent to the Missouri CBHE; (III) The certified mentor who must have earned at least fifteen (15) semester hours or twenty-five (25) quarter hours in science or science-related courses from a college, university, or other institution of higher learning in the United States accredited by a regional accrediting commission recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. All course work must have a passing grade and at least eight (8) semester hours or fifteen (15) quarter hours of the course of study shall be in anatomy and physiology. For the purpose of this regulation a semester hour is equivalent to fifteen (15) clock hours and a quarter hour is equivalent to ten (10) clock hours; (IV) An instructor within a massage therapy program who must hold an associate, bachelor, or advanced degree in a science-related field that includes a course of study in anatomy and physiology. Such degrees include but are not limited to physical therapy, chiropractic, osteopathy, medicine, nursing, chemistry, or biology from a college, university, or other institution of higher learning in the United States accredited by a regional accrediting commission recognized by the U.S. Department of Education; or (V) An instructor within a massage therapy program who must have earned at least fifteen (15) semester hours or twenty-five (25) quarter hours in science or science-related courses from a college, university, or other institution of higher learning in the United States accredited by a regional accrediting commission recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. All course work must have a passing grade and at least eight (8) semester hours or fifteen (15) quarter hours of the course of study shall be in anatomy and physiology. For the purpose of this regulation a semester hour is equivalent to fifteen (15) clock hours and a quarter hour is equivalent to ten (10) clock hours; C. At least fifty (50) clock hours dedicated to business practice, professional ethics, hygiene, and massage law in the state of Missouri provided by a certified mentor or an instructor within a massage therapy program with documented experience/education in a related field; D. At least fifty (50) clock hours dedicated to ancillary therapies provided by a certified mentor or an instructor(s) within a massage therapy program with documented experience/education in a related field. The fifty (50) clock hours shall include at a minimum cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and first aid provided by an instructor who holds the respective instructor certification; and E. Applicants for licensure shall have completed no less than six hundred twenty-five (625) clock hours. Hours may be completed in any combination identified in subsection (1) (C) as long as the minimum number of hours are met in each category; (D) Evidence of passing one (1) of the following: 1. National Certification Examination for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCETBM) as administered by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and AND INSURANCE Bodywork or its successor organization; 2. National Certification Examination for Therapeutic Massage (NCETM) as administered by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork or its successor organization; 3. Asian Bodywork Therapy (ABT) Examination as administered by the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM); 4. The American Medical Massage Association National Board Certification Examination (AMMA NBCE) administered as of 2006; 5. Massage and Bodywork Licensing Examination (MBLEx) as administered by the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards or its successor organization; or 6. An examination deemed appropriate by the board; (E) An applicant completing a massage therapy program consisting of less than six hundred twenty-five (625) clock hours of supervised instruction from a Missouri Coordinating Board of Higher Education (CBHE) approved school, Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) approved vocational program or school, college, university, or other institution of higher learning in the United States accredited by a regional accrediting commission recognized by the United States Department of Education or an equivalent approving agency for out-of-state schools, or who has completed a massage therapy program deficient in clock hours according to 20 CSR 2197-2.010(1)(C)4.A.–E. may complete deficiencies at either a Missouri CBHE approved school, DESE approved vocational program, mentorship approved by the board, or school, college, university, or other institution of higher learning in the United States accredited by a regional accrediting commission recognized by the United States Department of Education, or an out-of-state school approved by an agency equivalent to CBHE; and (F) For the purpose of 20 CSR 2197-2.010, a clock hour is defined as fifty (50) minutes of instruction and the course of instruction meeting the educational requirements for licensure shall not be provided via correspondence course, audiotape, videotape, or other electronic means unless approved by the board. (2) A person applying for licensure based upon licensure in another state, territory, or the District of Columbia shall submit the following: (A) A completed notarized application and application fee; (B) Two (2) sets of fingerprints for the purpose of conducting a criminal background check by the Missouri State Highway Patrol and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Any fees due for a fingerprint background check shall be paid by the applicant directly to the Missouri State Highway Patrol or its approved vendor(s); and (C) Verification of licensure, to be submitted to the board office from the state, territory, or the District of Columbia’s license authority that includes— 1. License issue and expiration date; and 2. Complaints, prior or pending investigations, or disciplinary action on the license. (3) If the board determines a state, territory, or the District of Columbia licensure requirements are not substantially the same, the applicant may qualify for licensure by meeting the requirements of section 324.265, RSMo, and this rule. (4) The board may review a person’s educational credentials prior to application for licensure upon receiving a written request to the board. The person requesting the education review shall be responsible for providing official transcripts and paying the required fee. AUTHORITY: sections 324.240, 324.243, 324.245, 324.267, and 324.270, RSMo 2016, and section 324.265, RSMo Supp. 2024.* This rule originally filed as 4 CSR 197-2.010. Original rule filed Feb. 25, 2000, effective Sept. 30, 2000. Amended: Filed Nov. 26, 2003, effective June 30, 2004. Moved to 20 CSR 2197-2.010, effective Aug. 28, 2007. Amended: Filed Aug. 21, 2007, effective March 30, 2008. Amended: Filed July 9, 2008, effective Jan. 30, 2009. Amended: Filed Aug. 21, 2019, effective Feb. 29, 2020. Emergency amendment filed May 24, 2024, effective July 1, 2024, expired Feb. 27, 2025. Amended: Filed May 24, 2024, effective Dec. 30, 2024. *Original authority: 324.240, RSMo 1998, amended 1999, 2008; 324.243, RSMo 1998, amended 1999, 2001, 2008; 324.245, RSMo 1998, amended 1999, 2003, 2006; 324.265, RSMo 1998, amended 1999, 2006, 2008, 2020; 324.267, RSMo 1998, amended 1999; and 324.270, RSMo 1998, amended 2006.