Do you want to serve the best interests of your profession and the public while ensuring ongoing competence and high standards of practice? ABMP does, and if you do too, help us support licensing efforts in Minnesota!
The legislature introduced Senate File 1131 (SF 1131) and House File 362 (HF 362), both of which would require statewide licensure for massage and Asian bodywork therapists. ABMP supports SF 1131 and HF 362 because these bills propose acceptable licensing requirements, licensure by prior experience (“grandfathering”) opportunities for those currently practicing, and reasonable licensing fees.
Currently, Minnesota has a patchwork of inconsistent regulations across its municipalities. A statewide license would level the playing field for massage and Asian bodywork therapists. Licensure would provide the industry a unified scope of practice, professional standards, and accountability—positive steps toward ensuring safe and quality services, offering consumer and practitioner protection, and elevating the massage and Asian bodywork communities.
Let’s make 2025 the year we celebrate and bring licensure to the state! We encourage you to support SF 1131 and HF 362 by letting the Minnesota legislature know this must be a priority this year. Write a letter to your elected officials sharing why licensure is an important and necessary step to advance the massage and Asian bodywork therapy communities. Find your representatives and senators here. Share with them how a statewide license would benefit Minnesota. You can use our sample advocacy letter and adapt it to reflect your unique experience. Let’s advance the massage and bodywork professions together!
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE BILLS
Definitions: What’s in Scope?
Asian bodywork therapy—therapy based on Chinese medical principles with the intent of promoting, maintaining, and restoring health and well-being by affecting the body and emotions. This therapy uses any of the following techniques: pressing, soothing, kneading, vibration, friction, passive stretching within the client’s physiological range of motion, active assistive and resistive movement, stretching, and manipulation of the soft tissues (including tapping, movement, or exercising).
Massage therapy—the manual manipulation of the soft tissues of the body to promote, maintain, and restore health and well-being. This therapy uses any of the following techniques: stroking, gliding, lifting, kneading, jostling, vibration, percussion, compression, friction, holding, passive stretching within the client’s physiological range of motion, movement or manipulation of the soft tissues, active assistive and resistive movement, and stretching.
If SF 1131 or HF 362 is signed into law, anyone using the terms “licensed massage therapist,” “LMT,” “licensed Asian bodywork therapist,” or “LABT” will need a license to practice. Other complementary and alternative health-care practitioners will not need a massage therapy license under these bills, even if their scope of practice permits some massage work.
Licensure by Prior Experience: How You Could Become Licensed
Those currently practicing in Minnesota could qualify for licensure if they:
- Submit an application
- Have at least two years of prior experience in massage or Asian bodywork therapy during the past five years
- Pass a criminal background check
- Have liability insurance (your ABMP membership provides liability insurance that satisfies legislative requirements)
- Pay applicable fees
The proof of experience would have to be submitted before July 1, 2030. This will give new graduates and those with less than two years of experience time to obtain sufficient experience to qualify for licensure if/when the bill becomes law.
A temporary permit to practice massage or Asian bodywork therapy may be granted to eligible applicants once an application is received.
Licensure Requirements: For New Practitioners Entering the Workforce
If SF 1131 or HF 362 is enacted, new applicants for a massage or Asian bodywork license would have to:
- Submit an application
- Provide proof of completing a massage therapy or Asian bodywork program of at least 625 hours (500 contact education hours and 125 clinical hours)
- Provide proof of liability insurance (your ABMP membership provides liability insurance that satisfies legislative requirements)
- Pass an approved examination
- Pass a criminal background check
- Pay applicable fees
License Renewal and Fees
If SF 1131 or HF 362 become law, practitioners would receive a license valid for two years that must be renewed every two years. Along with applicable renewal forms, licensees would have to complete continuing education. The number of hours will be determined by the board. Below are the initial and biennial license fees:
- Initial application: not to exceed $285
- Biennial renewal: not to exceed $185
- Temporary permit: $50
Municipal Preemption
If SF 1131 or HF 362 is signed into law, local municipalities would be prevented from requiring massage or Asian bodywork therapists to obtain a municipal license. Municipalities could still require local business permits for massage and Asian bodywork therapists, which is something many business owners are required to obtain.