A new state requirement will reshape how massage therapy practices operate in Minnesota beginning in 2028.
Most massage therapy practice owners in Minnesota aren't aware that a significant new regulatory requirement is headed their way. Buried in HF3825, a broad health occupations licensing bill signed into law, is a provision that will require massage therapists and Asian bodywork therapists to register with the state, pay recurring fees, and maintain substantial professional liability insurance—creating new compliance obligations and costs that will affect nearly every practice in the field.
Effective January 1, 2028, anyone using the title "registered massage therapist" or "registered Asian bodywork therapist" must register with the Minnesota Commissioner of Health. This isn't optional: the law protects these titles, meaning unlicensed practitioners cannot legally use them.
Registration comes with several concrete requirements:
Fees: Initial registration costs up to $640.50. Practitioners must renew biennially (every two years) and pay the same fee each cycle. For a solo practice, that's $320.25 per year in recurring state fees alone.
Insurance: Registrants must carry professional liability insurance of at least $2,000,000 per occurrence and $6,000,000 aggregate. This is substantially higher than many current policies and will require practitioners to either upgrade existing coverage or obtain new policies.
Credentialing exam: Practitioners must pass a credentialing examination to register. The law does not specify which exam, but this detail will be clarified in administrative rules over the coming years.
This applies to anyone currently practicing massage therapy or Asian bodywork therapy in Minnesota who wants to use the protected titles. Practitioners who do not register cannot legally call themselves "registered massage therapists" or use similar titles after January 1, 2028.
Existing practitioners have a pathway: those with prior experience can apply for registration by prior experience, but applications must be received before July 1, 2028—a critical deadline for anyone planning to continue using the protected title.
This is a compliance shift, not a prohibition. Practices will need to budget for registration fees, ensure insurance policies meet the new minimums, and plan for the credentialing exam. For multi-therapist practices, these costs multiply across staff.
The effective date of January 1, 2028 gives practices roughly three years to prepare, but the July 1, 2028 deadline for prior experience applications is tighter and should not be missed.
Practice owners should begin reviewing their current professional liability insurance now and start gathering documentation of credentials and experience in preparation for the prior experience application window.
This provision is found in Section 21 [148.6377], Article 3, Page 40, Lines 40.4–40.11 of HF3825. For a detailed, practice-specific guide to compliance timelines and next steps, resources are available through Minnesota health services associations.