Licensing directory · all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

Find your state’s acupuncture licensing path.

Choose a state to find the license, herbal-medicine rules, application steps, renewal requirements and the official places to confirm what applies to you.

Pick your state.

Claims link to primary sources where we found them. Gaps and open questions stay labeled so you can tell what has, and has not, been confirmed.

Licensing in

Washington

Start with the Washington State Department of Health. Washington licenses acupuncture and Eastern medicine practitioners through education, national examinations, and Clean Needle Technique requirements, with annual renewal and a separate two-year continuing-education cycle.

State license · health department

At a glance

Start with the responsible authority.

Regulatory authoritySource checked: Washington State Department of HealthLicensing information ↗

Last checked October 10, 2026

Know which credential fits

License types

Acupuncture and Eastern Medicine Practitioner

Independent acupuncture and Eastern medicine practice

AEMP

Recognized titlesSource checked: A licensee may use acupuncturist, licensed acupuncturist, acupuncture and Eastern medicine practitioner, or a combination of those titles.Frequently asked questions ↗
Education and examinationsSource checked: Applicants complete an approved acupuncture and Eastern medicine program and pass the listed national Foundations, Acupuncture with Point Location, and Biomedicine examinations.Licensing requirements ↗
Foreign education pathwayNeeds review: Washington has added application requirements for graduates of foreign schools; applicant-specific equivalency and English-language documentation need review.Licensing requirements ↗Know this? Share an official source

What to confirm

Getting your first license

National examinationsSource checked: Passing scores for Foundations of Oriental Medicine, Acupuncture with Point Location, and Biomedicine must be sent directly to the department.Licensing requirements ↗
Clean Needle TechniqueSource checked: Applicants must verify completion of the Council of Colleges of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (CCAOM) clean needle technique course, per the Department's wording.Licensing requirements ↗
Application feeSource checked: The Department currently lists a $69 application fee, including the required HEAL-WA fee.Licensing information ↗
Background check, portability, and processing timeNeeds review: The application includes personal-data and credential-verification review; applicant-specific background and portability requirements need confirmation.Licensing information ↗Know this? Share an official source

What to confirm

Herbal medicine

Herbal medicine authoritySource checked: The statutory practice definition includes herbal medicine as part of acupuncture and Eastern medicine.RCW Chapter 18.06 ↗
Prescribing, dispensing, and compoundingNeeds review: The broad statutory scope is confirmed, but the exact product, labeling, dispensing, and pharmacy boundaries need a focused rule review.RCW Chapter 18.06 ↗Know this? Share an official source
Separate herbal credential or examination: No separate state herbal credential was confirmed in this first pass.Know this? Share an official source

What to confirm

Keeping the license active

Renewal cycle and feeSource checked: Renew annually by the credential holder's birthday. The Department currently lists a $69 renewal fee, including HEAL-WA.Licensing information ↗
Continuing education reportingSource checked: Continuing-education compliance is attested every two years; current CPR and basic first-aid certification are required, with separate health-equity and suicide-prevention requirements described by the Department.Continuing education ↗
Inactive statusSource checked: An inactive license is renewed every year on the holder's birthday. Returning to active status after three years or less follows WAC 246-12-110; after more than three years the practitioner must provide other-state licensure and three years of active practice, or, without other-state practice, a written request, proof of passing the national exams within the past year and certification of every license held.WAC 246-803-400 ↗
Expired licenseSource checked: A person cannot practice in Washington while the license is expired. Reactivation after one year or less, after one to three years, and after three years or more each has its own requirements; three or more years with no other-state practice requires extended pre-approved coursework or retaking the national examinations.WAC 246-803-410 ↗

What to confirm

Rules after you open

Patient disclosureSource checked: The Department provides a sample patient notification of qualifications and scope of practice for licensees.Licensing information ↗
Consultation planSource checked: The former requirement to submit a written consultation, emergency-transfer, and referral plan was removed in 2015.Frequently asked questions ↗
Patient recordsSource checked: Keep a complete, legible, English-language record of each patient with name, history, dates of treatment, treatment given and progress; retain it six years after the last treatment, or at least six years after a minor patient turns eighteen. Comply with chapter 70.02 RCW and HIPAA.WAC 246-803-305 ↗
AdvertisingSource checked: Licensees may use the listed titles in advertising, may not use "doctor," "Dr." or "Ph.D." unless the nature of the degree is clearly stated, and may not advertise false or misleading claims or services outside the scope of practice.WAC 246-803-020 ↗
Needle safety and sterilizationSource checked: Use sterile instruments and keep accurate records of sterilization cycles and equipment maintenance, following the manufacturer's instructions and the 7th edition of the CCAOM Best Practices for Acupuncture Needle Safety.WAC 246-803-320 ↗
Telehealth and displayNeeds review: No acupuncture-specific telehealth or license-display rule was found in chapter 246-803; Washington's general telemedicine law was not read. This is not a conclusion that none applies.Know this? Share an official source

Go to the source

Official resources

Profession homepageSource checked: Acupuncture and Eastern Medicine PractitionerOpen ↗
Apply and feesSource checked: Licensing informationOpen ↗
Verify a licenseSource checked: Washington provider credential searchOpen ↗
Laws and rulesSource checked: RCW Chapter 18.06Open ↗

Community review

Help improve the Washington page.

Fix an error, fill a research gap, or share a newer official source. Contributions enter a review queue and never change the guide automatically.

Frequently asked

Licensing questions, answered.

Is this legal or licensing advice?

No. It points you to the responsible state authority and the statutes, rules and forms that apply, and says what to confirm. The board’s own decision controls, so confirm your situation with it before you apply or practice.

What do “Source checked,” “Needs review” and “Help wanted” mean?

Source checked means the claim was read against a named official page. Needs review means we found something but could not fully confirm it, or sources disagree. Help wanted means we have not confirmed it from an official source yet and would welcome one. None of these is a statement that a rule does not exist.

Has every state page been independently verified?

Not yet. Every state has a first research pass from official sources, and a separate verification pass is still under way. Each page shows the date its sources were last opened. Fees and deadlines change, so check the linked board page before relying on them.

Why do Oklahoma and South Dakota have so little?

We did not find a licensing act for either state, only bills that were introduced. That is not proof that practice is unregulated or prohibited, so those pages say what we found and stop there.

A fact on my state’s page is wrong or out of date. What do I do?

Use the correction form on that state’s page. Send the official source link if you have one. We review every report against the controlling source before anything changes; nothing updates automatically. Do not include patient or confidential information.

Does it say whether I can prescribe or sell herbs?

Each state has its own herbal section that separates recommending herbs from dispensing, compounding or selling them, because states treat those differently. Where the rules were not found or not clear, the section says so.

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