How can I get an application for licensure?
    You must contact the Board Office in writing to request an official licensure application package, which will include all required forms and complete instructions. There is a $20.00 application fee for this package which must accompany your written request. This must be in the form of a money order or certified (bank) check. No cash, personal checks or credit cards will be accepted.
    The Application Request Form can be downloaded in PDF format from the Document Center.  (Adobe Acrobat Required).  After completing the form, it may be sent directly to the Board with the application fee.

Who must be licensed?
    All therapists in the State who fall under the “scope of practice” definition in the Massage and Bodywork Therapy Practice Act will be required to apply for a license. This is legally defined as: Systems of activity applied to the soft tissues of the human body for therapeutic, educational or relaxation purposes. This includes anyone who is practicing massage and bodywork therapy for compensation -- whether you are working full-time or part-time, self-employed or working for someone else. The only exceptions are practitioners of certain energy-based and movement repatterning techniques whose work meets specific criteria for exemption set forth in the Rules and Regulations. (Refer to the FAQ Sheet for details.)

The Application Process:
     Once you receive the application package, follow the enclosed General Instructions and use the Application Checklist to ensure that you are sending in a complete application. You are required to:

1.     Meet the requirements for licensure (see criteria below);
2.     Complete the Application Form and submit it with all required documentation;
3.     Enclose one original passport-size photo of yourself; and
4.     Enclose the $150.00 Licensure Fee in the form of a certified check or money order.

Processing Time:
    For graduates of Board-Approved schools: Once your application is deemed to be complete, it will take approximately 30 business days for the Board to issue a new license.
    For an applicant who did not graduate from a Board-Approved school: Once the Board staff determines that your application is complete, it will be forwarded to the Board's Licensure Review Committee. This committee makes recommendations to the full Board, where final action on such applications is made at a regularly scheduled Board meeting. On average, it will take 60 business days for the Board to issue a license once the application is complete.

Requirements for a license:

    You are eligible to apply for a license to practice massage and bodywork therapy if you have completed and can document all of the following requirements:

1. A COMPLETED MASSAGE AND BODYWORK THERAPY APPLICATION WITH SUPPORTING DOCUMENTATION
2. National Certification: You have passed either the NCETMB or NCETM and are a certificant in good standing with the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB), OR you have passed the Oriental Bodywork Therapy Comprehensive Written Examination (OBTE) and are a certificant in good standing with the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM).  Certifications MUST be current;
    
   - AND -
    
3. Education: You have successfully completed a course of study in the field of massage and bodywork therapy consisting of a minimum of 500 classroom hours of supervised instruction at a Board-approved school, as demonstrated in one of the three following ways:

a)   You have graduated from a Board-approved school (click for list), and that school sends the Board an official sealed transcript;

- OR -

b)   If you graduated from an out-of-state school which has NOT been approved by the North Carolina Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy, you must submit the following documentation (which you are responsible for obtaining) which may be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and approved at the Board’s discretion:

(1)   A photocopy of the school’s current license to operate;
(2)   A copy of the most recent school catalog;
(3)   A copy of the program curriculum, indicating course descriptions
       and the number of classroom hours of supervised instruction
       in each course;
(4)   An official sealed transcript sent directly to the Board;

- OR -

c)   If you graduated from a school which is no longer in operation, or a school from which records are unavailable, then you may complete an affidavit which attests to your course of study and date of graduation. This affidavit may be reviewed on a case-by-case basis and approved at the Board’s discretion.
 

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