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United States Licensing Atlas

Montana Massage Therapy Licensing Requirements

Montana requires a massage therapist license to practice or use protected massage-therapy titles, subject to statutory exemptions.

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

Montana Board of Massage Therapy, Department of Labor and Industry
MT · licensing record1 PX ≈ 1.4 MI
Albers equal-area · 110.0°W · SP 45.1/48.2°N · footprint 273 px · MASS-limitedFull Montana plate on the state guide →

Overview

State massage therapist license required

Last verified 2026-07-29

State licensure does not replace generally applicable local business, land-use, health, or safety requirements.

Regulatory authority

Montana Board of Massage Therapy, Department of Labor and Industry

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
Montana requires a massage therapist license to practice or use protected massage-therapy titles, subject to statutory exemptions.
Minimum education
500 hours
Approved education
Applicants by examination complete at least 500 hours: 200 hours of supervised massage assessment, theory, and application; 150 hours of anatomy, physiology, kinesiology, and pathology; and 150 hours of business, ethics, and related study.
Examination
The Board accepts MBLEx, NCETMB, NESL, NCETM, or a state examination deemed equivalent; the issuing entity sends the score directly.
MBLEx relationship
MBLEx is an accepted Board examination path, not a substitute for the Montana license.
Application
Submit the Board application, fees, official transcript or program evidence, examination score, high-school evidence, and verification from every jurisdiction where a professional credential has been held.
Application fees
The current application is $140 plus a $5 contingent-litigation-fund fee; active renewal is $90, late renewal $180, and inactive renewal $45.
Background check or fingerprinting
Applicants must establish good moral character and disclose professional history; the reviewed current massage checklist does not identify routine fingerprinting or a separate criminal-history report for every applicant.
Reciprocity or endorsement
An out-of-state applicant may qualify by credential when the current license is active, in good standing, and based on substantially equivalent education, examination, and experience; current law also provides a deficiency review.
Additional requirements
No statewide practitioner liability-insurance mandate was identified. Massage businesses must display each working therapist's license or make it available for mobile practice, but the reviewed statute does not create a separate business credential.

Renewal

Renewal and continuing education

Cycle
Massage licenses renew annually during the Board's July 3 through September 1 renewal window.
Continuing education
12 hrs
Renewal fee
Active renewal is $90, late renewal $180, and inactive renewal $45.
Required topics
Qualifying education must relate substantially to massage practice; current rule guidance recognizes varied in-person, online, teaching, publication, and professional activities subject to documentation.

Practice information

Scope, titles, and local requirements

Scope of practice
Montana defines massage therapy as structured touch, pressure, positioning, movement, topical and thermal applications to soft tissues for health and well-being within the statutory limits.
Protected titles
Massage therapist, licensed massage therapist, L.M.T., masseur, and masseuse are protected equivalent titles.
Restrictions
The massage scope excludes diagnosis, high-velocity low-amplitude thrust, specified joint manipulation, exercise prescription, traction for manipulation, injection, laser, diathermy, electrical stimulation, ultrasound, iontophoresis, and phonophoresis.
Municipal or local requirements
Verify generally applicable local business, zoning, public-health, and safety requirements at the practice address.
Establishments and other regulated activities
Massage businesses must display working therapists' licenses and permit specified compliance checks; no separate statewide business license is created by section 37-33-406.
Practitioner notes
Use the Board's license lookup and complaint contacts to verify credentials or report concerns.

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.