MDMassageData
Reading environment
United States Licensing Atlas

Florida Massage Therapy Licensing Requirements

Florida licenses massage therapists and covered massage establishments under Chapter 480. The standard individual path requires the applicant to be at least 18 or hold a high school diploma or equivalent, complete a 500-hour approved program, pass an accepted examination, complete Florida law training, submit fingerprints, and file the state application.

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

Florida Department of Health, Board of Massage Therapy
FL · licensing record1 MI ≈ 1.0 PX
Albers equal-area · 83.8°W · SP 25.6/29.9°N · footprint 246 px · FIT-limitedFull Florida plate on the state guide →

Overview

State massage therapist license required

Last verified 2026-10-06

Municipality-specific requirements were not researched in this record. State practitioner and establishment licensing remain separate requirements.

Before you act

Details worth confirming

Requirements can change, and some official materials differ on narrow details. Use the current official instructions when applying or renewing.

CE carryover not established

No carryover authorization was identified in the reviewed current Board guidance.

Establishments are separately regulated

Covered massage establishments have location-license, manager, screening, inspection, and insurance requirements separate from the individual therapist license.

Regulatory authority

Florida Department of Health, Board of Massage Therapy

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
Credential requirement
A Florida license is generally required to practice massage therapy unless a statutory exemption applies. This record does not determine which municipality-specific requirements apply to a particular address.
Minimum education
500 hours
Approved education
Applicants must complete at least 500 hours in a Board-approved massage school program.
Examination
Florida accepts the MBLEx and qualifying Board-accepted retired NCBTMB examinations passed before retirement.
MBLEx relationship
MBLEx is the current examination path identified by the Board, with limited recognition of qualifying retired NCBTMB examinations.
Application
Submit the Board application, approved-school evidence, accepted examination result, 10-hour Florida law course evidence, electronic fingerprints, fees, and required disclosures.
Application fees
The current initial total is $155: $50 application, $100 initial license, and $5 unlicensed-activity fee.
Background check or fingerprinting
Electronic fingerprinting and criminal-history review are required.
Reciprocity or endorsement
Florida distinguishes ordinary endorsement from MOBILE endorsement. An applicant with an active out-of-state massage license based on at least 500 education hours will likely use ordinary endorsement; MOBILE endorsement applies separate license, scope, examination or certification, recent-practice, and disciplinary conditions.
Additional requirements
Applicants must be at least 18 or hold a high school diploma or equivalent, complete the required Florida law course, and satisfy identity and legal disclosures.

Renewal

Renewal and continuing education

Cycle
Florida massage therapist licenses renew biennially; current licenses expire at midnight Eastern Time on August 31, 2027.
Continuing education
24 hrs
Renewal fee
Renewing an active license before expiration costs $105 ($205 to move from inactive to active). After expiration it costs $205, and $310 once the license is 120-day notified delinquent. A $43.25 fingerprint-retention fee is added when retention expires during the cycle.

Practice information

Scope, titles, and local requirements

Scope of practice
Chapter 480 defines massage therapy as manipulation of human soft tissues using specified body parts, with or without listed aids or preparations. A modality name does not displace the statutory definition.
Protected titles
Chapter 480 prohibits holding oneself out as a massage therapist or practicing massage therapy without a license unless an exemption applies.
Restrictions
Practicing or offering to practice beyond the scope permitted by law is grounds for discipline under Chapter 480.
Municipal or local requirements
Counties and municipalities may regulate licensed massage therapists and establishments within their jurisdictions, but not beyond the State's powers or inconsistently with Chapter 480 (§ 480.052). This record does not identify any locality's rules.
Establishments and other regulated activities
Every massage establishment needs its own Department license, a passing inspection and proof of property damage and bodily injury liability insurance for the location (Rule 64B7-26.002), with owner background screening, a designated establishment manager and human-trafficking awareness requirements under § 480.043.
Practitioner notes
Confirm current Board pages and Chapter 480 before applying, renewing, invoking an exemption, or opening an establishment; research the intended locality separately.

Authoritative sources

Official record evidence

Change history

Public record revisions

No revision to this record has been published yet. Its current review dates are in the overview above, and its official sources are listed below.