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Maryland massage licensing record

Maryland licenses massage therapists through a 750-hour standard pathway and a biennial 24-hour CE framework. Enacted 2026 law preserves existing RMP credentials, ends new RMP issuance, and changes transition and out-of-state pathways.

Statewide requirements and local regulation are identified separately. This record is general information, not legal advice.

Maryland State Board of Massage Therapy Examiners

US-MD · VERIFIED 2026-07-25

Overview

State massage therapist license required

Last verified 2026-07-25 · next review 2026-08-25

Local business, zoning, facility, and county requirements were not researched and may apply separately.

Regulatory authority

Maryland State Board of Massage Therapy Examiners

Visit the official authority

Local business, facility, zoning, and professional rules may apply in addition to statewide requirements. Confirm current requirements with the responsible authority before acting.

Entry requirements

Education, examination, and application

Credential
Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT); legacy Registered Massage Practitioner (RMP)
Minimum education
750 hours
Approved education
The standard LMT path requires at least 750 hours in a Board-accepted program with required curriculum and institutional approval, accreditation, or other current statutory conditions.
Examination
Applicants use an examination accepted by the Board with direct score reporting under current guidance and regulations.
MBLEx relationship
Use the Board's current examination page for accepted examination and score-reporting conditions; do not assume a generic FSMTB summary replaces Board authority.
Application
Submit the Board application, qualifying education and exam records, identity and disclosure materials, and current portal fee.
Application fees
COMAR 10.65.07.02 separately establishes a $150 application fee and a $200 license fee. Effective December 31, 2024, the Board no longer accepts checks or money orders; applicants submit through the Board portal and pay by Visa or Mastercard. No separate card-processing charge is asserted.
Background check or fingerprinting
The application and statutory framework govern criminal-history review; a universal fingerprint requirement was not established from the reviewed pages.
Reciprocity or endorsement
Chapter 191 revises out-of-state education and experience paths. Applicants generally document 750 qualifying hours, with statutory supplementation and experienced-practitioner alternatives under current conditions.
Additional requirements
Applicants satisfy current Board education, institutional, examination, identity, disclosure, and documentation requirements.

Renewal

Renewal and continuing education

Cycle
Credentials renew every two years.
Deadline model
The Board's current cycle page lists October 31, 2026 as the 2026 deadline and August 17, 2026 as the opening of that window.
Fees
COMAR 10.65.07.02 establishes a $250 base biennial renewal fee; a separate Maryland Health Care Commission assessment applies at LMT renewal. Current Board payment instructions require online Visa or Mastercard payment.
Continuing education
Complete 24 hours per biennial cycle, subject to current first-renewal timing rules.
Required subjects
Complete 3 hours ethics and jurisprudence, 3 communicable disease including HIV/AIDS, 2 diversity, cultural competency, or implicit bias, and 16 massage therapy or human anatomy. LMT renewal also uses healthcare-provider-level CPR guidance.
Documentation
Retain CE documentation for four years. The Board may audit and may grant waiver or extension under current conditions.
Carryover
No carryover authorization was identified in the reviewed current guidance.
Late renewal
Use current Board reinstatement and reactivation rules; older RMP conversion assumptions must not override Chapter 191.
Inactive license
Reinstatement and reactivation depend on current regulations and Chapter 191 credential-transition provisions.

Practice information

Scope, titles, and local requirements

Scope of practice
Maryland's Health Occupations Article defines massage therapy and regulated practice; current law controls exact LMT and RMP boundaries.
Protected titles
LMT and legacy RMP titles and practice status are regulated under the Board statute; Chapter 191 preserves existing RMP credentials and ends new issuance.
Restrictions
The credential does not authorize diagnosis, prescription, or acts reserved to another licensed health occupation.
Municipal or local requirements
No separate statewide massage-establishment license was established in this bounded Board review; local requirements were not researched.
Practitioner notes
Confirm current fees, payment method, Chapter 191 implementation, and any replacement filing after withdrawal of proposal [25-265-P] directly with the Board.

Authoritative sources

Official record evidence

Change history

Public record revisions

Future verified changes will be listed from this Git-backed record.