How to Get a Michigan Massage License

Last updated: August 24, 2026

Michigan does not just count your hours — it counts them subject by subject. The Board of Massage Therapy requires 625 hours for anyone who enrolled on or after August 1, 2017, and the rule spells out exactly how they must break down: 200 hours of assessment theory, 125 on body systems, 40 of pathology, 10 of business and ethics, 85 elective, and 40 hours in a supervised student clinic. On top of the curriculum sit two one-time trainings — implicit bias and human trafficking — and the application fee is $270.10, the steepest in this group.

What Michigan Actually Requires

• 625 hours of an approved supervised curriculum if you enrolled on or after August 1, 2017 — 500 hours if you enrolled before that date — from a school approved by the NCBTMB as an assigned school or accredited by CHEA.
• The breakdown the board checks: 200 hours of massage and bodywork assessment theory and application; 125 hours on body systems (anatomy, physiology, kinesiology); 40 hours of pathology; 10 hours of business, professional practice and ethics, with a minimum of 6 hours in ethics; and 85 hours in a related field determined by the school.
• 40 hours in a student clinic performing massage therapy services under the supervision of a licensed massage therapist.
• The MBLEx ($265, registered through the FSMTB). The NCBTMB’s NCETMB is accepted only if taken before November 1, 2014.
• Implicit bias training: 2 hours, completed within the 5 years immediately preceding issuance — required since June 1, 2022.
• Human trafficking training: a one-time training meeting Administrative Rule 338.732, required for initial licensure since March 14, 2022.
• Criminal background check after the application is submitted, plus good moral character disclosures.

What It Costs

Item	Cost	Notes
Therapist application	$270.10	By exam or endorsement; card payment only (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Discover)
MBLEx exam	$265	Paid to FSMTB
Criminal background check	Varies	Initiated after the application is submitted
Massage school (625 hrs)	Tuition varies widely	The dominant cost; the subject breakdown limits which programs qualify
Implicit bias training	2 hours	Within 5 years before issuance
License verification	$15	Per address, requested through MiPLUS
Hard copy of license	$10	The state no longer mails certificates automatically
Michigan LLC	$50	Articles of organization, LARA
Local business registration / permits	Varies by city or township	No statewide massage establishment license. Zoning, building and fire code and any general business registration are still local — state preemption covers your therapist license only

Before You Open a Practice: Premises, Background Checks and Out-of-State Licenses

Does Michigan license massage establishments?

No — and no Michigan city can license you as a therapist either. Part 179A of the Public Health Code, which LARA administers, licenses individual massage therapists. There is no statewide massage establishment, facility or business license to go with it.

Michigan reached that position deliberately. Before 2008 many municipalities regulated massage practice through their own ordinances; 2008 Public Act 471 replaced that patchwork with a single statewide licensing system and added MCL 333.17967, which reads: “Beginning 1 year after the certification of administrative rules to implement and administer this part, a local unit of government shall not establish or maintain licensing requirements for a massage therapist licensed under this part.” It was amended by 2010 Public Act 88 and remains in force.

Note precisely what that protects: you, not your premises. The section speaks to licensing requirements for a massage therapist. It does not mention zoning, building and fire code, or a general city or township business registration, and it should not be read as an exemption from any of them. So the realistic checklist before you sign a lease is: confirm the address is zoned for the use, ask the clerk whether a general business registration applies, and expect the ordinary building and fire inspections any commercial space attracts. If a local official asks you for a separate municipal massage therapist license on top of your LARA license, MCL 333.17967 is the citation.

When exactly do you get fingerprinted?

After you apply, not before — Michigan will tell you when. Once the application is completed and submitted, LARA emails an Application Confirmation letter containing the instructions for completing the criminal background check, and you are fingerprinted by a Michigan-approved vendor. Directions for the fingerprint requirement are sent to you by the Department on receipt of the application, so there is nothing useful to do in advance.

One exemption worth knowing: applicants seeking relicensure are not required to complete the background check if the license expired within the last three years. Alongside the check you answer the good moral character questions, and a “yes” is not fatal — you are asked to document that you can serve the public in a fair, honest and open manner, that you are rehabilitated, or that the former offense is not reasonably related to the profession.

Can you transfer an out-of-state massage license to Michigan?

Yes — Michigan licenses by endorsement, and it costs the same as applying by examination. Both the MT by Exam and MT by Endorsement applications carry the same fee, so there is no financial penalty for arriving with a license from elsewhere. Relicensure is the more expensive route of the three.

The verification requirement is broader than most people expect. If you hold a current massage therapist license or have ever held one, verification must be submitted directly to LARA by the licensing agency of every state in which you hold or ever held a license — not forwarded by you. It goes to bpldata@michigan.gov, or by mail to the Bureau of Professional Licensing, PO Box 30670, Lansing, MI 48909. A license you let lapse a decade ago in another state still has to be verified.

Endorsement does not exempt you from the rest: the criminal background check, the one-time human trafficking training required for initial licensure since March 14, 2022, and two hours of implicit bias training completed within the five years immediately preceding issuance all still apply. If your program was taught in a language other than English you also submit a certified TOEFL-iBT score. LARA does not publish a processing time, and the slowest moving parts are usually the out-of-state verifications, which you cannot chase directly — request them the day you file.

The Curriculum Breakdown Decides Which Schools Count

Most states publish an hour total and leave the rest to the school. Michigan publishes the subject-by-subject split in rule, and the school has to certify it on a Certification of Completion of Massage Therapy Supervised Curriculum form. That makes the shape of your program a licensing question, not just an education one.

Where this bites: an out-of-state program, or an older one, can total 625 hours and still miss a line — short on pathology, or light on the 6 required ethics hours, or without the 40-hour supervised student clinic. Before you enroll, ask the school to show you its hours against the rule, not just its total. If you are moving to Michigan with a license from elsewhere, the same check applies to the transcript you are bringing with you.

One more Michigan quirk worth knowing: massage schools are licensed by a different agency — the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity — not by LARA. Verifying a school and verifying a therapist happen in two different places.

How to Get Licensed, In Order

1. Pick a program that matches the rule — 625 hours with the 200/125/40/10/85 split and a 40-hour supervised student clinic.
2. Have the school complete the Certification of Completion of Massage Therapy Supervised Curriculum form.
3. Pass the MBLEx ($265 through FSMTB).
4. Complete the two one-time trainings — 2 hours of implicit bias within the last 5 years, and human trafficking identification training.
5. Apply online through MiPLUS with the $270.10 fee and clear the criminal background check.
6. Opening a practice? Register the entity, check your city and township requirements for the premises, and bind liability insurance before the first client.

Staying Licensed

Michigan renewal requires 18 continuing education contact hours approved by the board during the three years preceding renewal, and two of those hours are pinned: a minimum of 1 hour in pain and symptom management and a minimum of 2 hours in professional ethics and boundaries. Licensees also certify to the human trafficking training on renewal. Renewals are filed online through MiPLUS and can be submitted no sooner than 90 days before the expiration date. Continuing education can be tracked through CE Broker.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a Michigan massage license cost?

$270.10 for the massage therapist application by examination or endorsement, paid to LARA by credit or debit card — the application fee itself is the highest of the large massage states. Add $265 for the MBLEx and massage school tuition. Certified license verification costs $15 per address and a hard copy of the license is $10.

How many hours does Michigan require for a massage license?

625 hours if you enrolled in school on or after August 1, 2017 (500 hours if you enrolled before that date), and Michigan publishes the breakdown: 200 hours of massage and bodywork assessment theory and application, 125 hours on body systems including anatomy, physiology and kinesiology, 40 hours of pathology, 10 hours of business, professional practice and ethics with at least 6 in ethics, 85 hours in a related area chosen by the school, and 40 hours performing massage in a student clinic supervised by a licensed massage therapist.

What exam does Michigan require for a massage license?

The MBLEx, administered by the Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards. Michigan also accepts the NCBTMB’s NCETMB, but only if it was taken prior to November 1, 2014.

What training does Michigan require besides massage school?

Two one-time trainings on top of the curriculum. Implicit bias training — 2 hours, completed within the 5 years immediately preceding issuance — has been required since June 1, 2022. Human trafficking identification training has been required for initial licensure since March 14, 2022 and is a one-time requirement, though licensees must certify to it on renewal.

Do you need a separate license to open a massage business in Michigan?

Not a massage-specific state one. Part 179A of the Public Health Code licenses individual massage therapists, and Michigan has no statewide massage establishment license. MCL 333.17967, added by 2008 Public Act 471, also bars a local unit of government from establishing or maintaining licensing requirements for a massage therapist licensed under that part. That preemption covers your therapist license only, so zoning, building and fire code and any general city or township business registration still apply to the premises.

Can you transfer an out-of-state massage license to Michigan?

Yes, through the MT by Endorsement application, which carries the same fee as applying by examination. Verification of licensure must be sent directly to LARA by the licensing agency of every state in which you hold or have ever held a massage therapist license, to bpldata@michigan.gov or the Bureau of Professional Licensing in Lansing. Endorsement applicants still complete the criminal background check, the one-time human trafficking training and the two hours of implicit bias training.

Forming the company, taxes, insurance, and hiring are covered in our full guide to starting a business in Michigan.

Sources

Source	What It Covers
Michigan LARA — Massage Therapy Licensing Guide and FAQs	625/500 hours and the full subject breakdown, $270.10 application fee, MBLEx, implicit bias and human trafficking training, 18 CE hours, $15 and $10 service fees (revision date 1/26/2026)
Michigan LARA — Board of Massage Therapy	The board, the Massage Therapy General Rules, MCL 333.17959, CE Broker, and the Supervised Curriculum Form
FSMTB — MBLEx	MBLEx registration and $265 exam fee
MCL 333.17967 — Licensing requirements; administrative rules	The bar on local units of government licensing massage therapists, added by 2008 PA 471 and amended by 2010 PA 88
Michigan LARA — Massage Therapy Licensing Guide	Application routes, the background check sequence and relicensure exemption, and the out-of-state verification requirement
Michigan Public Health Code — Part 179A, Massage Therapy	The statutory scope of Michigan massage licensure: individual therapists, no establishment license

Comparing states? See our massage license guides for every state we cover.