Acupuncturists are licensed by the Texas State Board of Acupuncture Examiners (TSBAE) to practice acupuncture, which is defined as the insertion of an acupuncture needle and the application of moxibustion to specific areas of the human body as a primary mode of therapy to treat and mitigate a human condition, including the evaluation and assessment of the condition; and the administration of thermal or electrical treatments or the recommendation of dietary guidelines, energy flow exercise, or dietary or herbal supplements in conjunction with the treatment.

Before You Apply

Individuals considering applying for an acupuncturist license should use the links to the left to for more information about eligibility, the application process, and the required documentation and fees before submitting their applications. The TSBAE meets and grants permanent licenses three times per year.  A temporary license may be issued, if requested by the applicant, to allow the applicant to practice after the application has been approved by Board staff and until their permanent license is granted at the next Board meeting. Temporary licenses are issued at the discretion of the Executive Director and are valid for 100 days and may be extended for 30 days, if necessary.

Apply

Apply online using the link to the left. Depending on your answers, some of the questions on the application will require you to download a supplemental form and submit it.  Some of the forms must be sent to a third party, such as your acupuncture school.  Applicants must also take and pass the Jurisprudence Exam. More information can be found using the links under Apply at the left.

Your application will not be processed until all supplemental information is received.

Individual application processing time will vary based on the complexity of the application. Factors that increase the processing time are answering “yes” to any of the Professionalism questions on the application. 

Communication with the Board

Applications are submitted online, but additional information and supplemental forms may be submitted using the US Postal Service or a private overnight delivery service.  Board staff will communicate with applicants by e-mail, if an address is provided, or by letter using the US Postal Service.  For more information on submitting documentation see General Information link to the left.  

Senate Bill 807 (2015) allows for the waiver of application fees for any military service member, military spouse or military veteran. Please note that Texas Occupations Code Sec. 55.009 is subject only to the application fee. Waivers or refunds cannot be granted outside of the application fee, and other surcharges and fees assessed at the time of application are non-refundable. Please note some fees are mandated by statute. Texas Occupations Code Sec. 55.009 additionally does not apply to the initial registration and subsequent renewals of issued licenses.

Current Board rule and Statute include the following definitions:

Military service member - A person who is currently serving as a full-time military service member in the armed forces of the United States; or a person who is currently serving as a member of the Texas military forces or similar military service of another state performing state active duty service, federally funded state active duty service, or federal active duty service (but not including service performed exclusively for training, such as basic combat training, advanced individual training, annual training, inactive duty training, or special training periodically made available to service members). 

Military spouse - A person who is married to a military service member who is currently on active duty (as defined above).

Military veteran - A person who served on active duty in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard of the United States, or in an auxiliary service of one of those branches of the armed forces and who was discharged or released from active duty under conditions other than dishonorable.

The Military Fee Waiver review is separate from the application process, and does not detract nor add to the processing time for an application as those lacking items are considered separately. 

To apply for this waiver of application fees, please complete the Military Service Member Fee Waiver Request Form and submit it along with the requested additional documentation.

• Copy of passport, or birth certificate , which is acceptable as required birth documentation after submission of an application for licensure with our agency; or
• Copy of State Issued Driver's License, which can ONLY be used as proof of identity for Military Fee Waiver determination  

And

• DD2-14; or
• Copy of current original orders, including signature page(s)

Physicians (MDs & DOs), PAs, ACs, SAs, and ADs should e-mail their MFW paperwork as PDF or TIF attachments to Screen-CIC@tmb.state.tx.us.

PITs (MDs & DOs) should e-mail their MFW paperwork as PDF or TIF attachments to PIT.application@tmb.state.tx.us.

MPs, MRTs, PFs, RCPs, NCTs should e-mail their MFW paperwork as PDF or TIF attachments to TMBScreening@tmb.state.tx.us.

Please note that email attachments will not be opened unless they are received as PDF or TIF attachments, as all other types of email attachments are prohibited by our IT Department. Further, TMB cannot sign up with Google docs or any other documentation service to receive documents, nor should documentation be clipped and pasted into the body of the email.

Upon receipt of your request with the required documentation, the Licensure Department will evaluate the documentation and provide written confirmation of approval or an explanation as to why the waiver request is being denied. Upon receipt of the approval confirmation you will be able to apply online without submitting the application fee.

Military Fee Waiver of PIT Permit Application fee:

• If you are active duty military, a military spouse or a military veteran you can apply for a waiver of the application fee.  
• If you are beginning a postgraduate training program in Texas or a rotation in Texas, your program coordinator or GME representative may have initiated a request for the waiver on your behalf. Please consult with your program coordinator or GME representative to determine if the request has been submitted. If they have not initiated the request, please ask them to contact our office at pit.application@tmb.state.tx.us for further instructions.
• If you have applied and paid the application fee you can submit a request for a refund of the application fee. You will need to complete the Military Service Member Fee Waiver Request Form and return it with the required documentation (as outlined above) to initiate the request for a refund.

Please allow at least 14 business days for initial processing of all military fee waiver requests. We can only make a determination for qualification of the Military Fee Waiver (MFW) after all required information is received. It is up to each applicant to decide whether they would prefer to wait for the MFW determination prior to submitting their online application with no fee if they qualify for the MFW, or submit their online application first and, if they qualify for the MFW, request a refund after the MFW determination has been made.