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Iowa

Iowa Board of Chiropractic, within the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing.

What the board and the law publish

Each field carries its own source and the date it was checked. A field marked not published means the board's own pages were read and do not address it. Absence in what we checked is not absence at the board. A field marked unverified says what was attempted.

State
published Iowa, a state.Source: https://dial.iowa.gov/about-dial/boards-and-commissions/board-chiropractic · checked 2026-10-04
Licensing body
published Iowa Board of Chiropractic, a board within the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing. The board has its own page, and the department publishes separate chiropractic licensing pages.Source: https://dial.iowa.gov/about-dial/boards-and-commissions/board-chiropractic · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic/how-do-i-apply-chiropractic-license · checked 2026-10-04
Statutory authority
published Act: Iowa Code chapter 151, Chiropractic. The Iowa Legislature's PDF of the chapter carries the line Iowa Code 2026, Chapter 151. Rules: Iowa Administrative Code 481, chapters 841 to 846: chapter 841, Licensure; chapter 842, Colleges; chapter 843, Practice; chapter 844, Continuing Education; chapter 845, Discipline; and chapter 846, Uniform and Model Rules. The board's page also links general professional-licensing law (Iowa Code chapters 17A, 147 and 272C) and 481 IAC chapters 3 to 7, 500 to 503, 506 and 507, which include rule 481—501.1, licensure by verification. The Iowa Legislature publishes all of them, and the board's page links each one.Source: https://dial.iowa.gov/about-dial/boards-and-commissions/board-chiropractic · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.841.pdf · checked 2026-10-04
Degree requirement
published You need preliminary education equal to the requirements for graduation from an accredited high school or other secondary school, and a diploma from a chiropractic college the board approves. To be approved, a college's course of study must cover four academic years. The rules ask for an official transcript showing graduation from a CCE-accredited, board-approved college, a copy of your diploma, and a certificate of 120 hours of physiotherapy, with a practicum component, from a board-approved college. If you are foreign-trained, you provide a credential equivalency evaluation from the International Education Research Foundation, Inc., and the board makes the final determination on your application. Iowa Code chapter 151 and 481 IAC chapter 841 name no undergraduate (pre-chiropractic) coursework or degree beyond the high-school-equivalent education. Absence in what we checked is not absence at the board.The board's how-to-apply page writes Council for Chiropractic Education; rule 481—841.1 defines Council on Chiropractic Education.Source: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.841.pdf · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic/how-do-i-apply-chiropractic-license · checked 2026-10-04
Student practice before licensure
published Iowa Code section 151.2 states that Section 151.1 shall not be construed to include the following classes of persons:, and lists among them Students of chiropractic who have entered upon a regular course of study in a chiropractic college approved by the board, who practice chiropractic under the direction of a licensed chiropractor and in accordance with the rules of the board. Rule 481—842.3 states: A student enrolled in a board-approved chiropractic preceptorship program in the state of Iowa may treat patients without obtaining an Iowa license, provided the requirements of these rules are met. Rule 481—842.1 defines a chiropractic intern and a chiropractic resident; rule 481—842.4 sets the requirements for an approved preceptorship program, rule 481—842.5 the approval and role of the preceptor, including supervision, and rule 481—842.6 the events on which a preceptorship may terminate. Separately, section 151.4 provides that A chiropractor, employed by an approved college of chiropractic and who has been trained to withdraw blood may withdraw blood and instruct, and supervise a student in the withdrawing of blood.Source: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.842.pdf · checked 2026-10-04
NBCE parts required
published If you completed your examinations after January 1, 1996, the board requires NBCE Parts I, II, III, IV and Physiotherapy. The rule and the board's application page also set earlier part requirements according to the date the examination was completed. The application page says results must come to the board directly from the NBCE.Source: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.841.pdf · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic/how-do-i-apply-chiropractic-license · checked 2026-10-04
State-specific exam
not published None published. The statute requires you to pass an examination prescribed by the board; the rules and the board's application page require the NBCE examination. Neither names a separate Iowa-administered practical or clinical examination. The rules name the NBCE's Special Purposes Examination for Chiropractic (SPEC) in the requirements for reactivation where the license has been on inactive status for more than five years: Send verification of passing the SPEC if the applicant does not have a current license and has not had an active license in the United States during three of the past five years. They do not name it for initial licensure. Absence in what we checked is not absence at the board.Read on 2026-10-04: the board's page; the department's chiropractic licensing page; the how-to-apply page; Iowa Code chapter 151; 481 IAC chapters 841, 842, 843 and 844.Source: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.841.pdf · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic/how-do-i-apply-chiropractic-license · https://dial.iowa.gov/about-dial/boards-and-commissions/board-chiropractic · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.842.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.843.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.844.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf · checked 2026-10-04
Jurisprudence requirement
not published The board's pages, Iowa Code chapter 151 and 481 IAC chapters 841 to 844 name no law, rules or jurisprudence examination for licensure. Iowa law and rules appear in the continuing-education requirements: two hours on 481 IAC chapters 841 to 846 and Iowa Code chapter 151 in your first renewal period, and one hour in each later period (see Continuing education). Absence in what we checked is not absence at the board.Read on 2026-10-04: the board's page; the department's chiropractic licensing page; the how-to-apply page; Iowa Code chapter 151; 481 IAC chapters 841, 842, 843 and 844. Searched for the terms jurispru, law exam, examination and exam. Not read: 481 IAC chapters 845 and 846.Source: https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic/how-do-i-apply-chiropractic-license · https://dial.iowa.gov/about-dial/boards-and-commissions/board-chiropractic · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.841.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.842.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.843.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.844.pdf · checked 2026-10-04
  • Two hours of continuing education credit is required in the first biennial renewal period and one hour every biennial renewal period after that in the content areas of the administrative rules related to chiropractic physicians in Iowa, found at 481—Chapters 841 through 846 and the statutory provisions specific to the practice of chiropractic in Iowa Code chapter 151. legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.844.pdf
Scope: what is included
published Iowa Code section 151.1 lists the classes of persons who shall be deemed to be engaged in the practice of chiropractic. Among them are Persons who treat human ailments by the adjustment of the neuromusculoskeletal structures, primarily, by hand or instrument, through spinal care. and persons using the adjunctive procedures listed in section 151.1(3), all of which are subject to and authorized by section 151.8. Under section 151.10, you shall only be required to be tested for, and as a licensee shall only be required to complete continuing education for, the adjunctive procedures in section 151.1(3) that you choose to utilize. Rule 481—843.5 states: A chiropractic physician who engages in the practice of acupuncture will maintain documentation that shows the chiropractic physician has successfully completed a course in acupuncture consisting of at least 100 hours of traditional, in-person classroom instruction with the instructor on site.Source: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.843.pdf · checked 2026-10-04
  • Persons who treat human ailments by the adjustment of the neuromusculoskeletal structures, primarily, by hand or instrument, through spinal care. legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf
  • Persons utilizing differential diagnosis and procedures related thereto, withdrawing or ordering withdrawal of the patient’s blood for diagnostic purposes, performing or utilizing routine laboratory tests, performing physical examinations, rendering nutritional advice, utilizing chiropractic physiotherapy procedures, all of which are subject to and authorized by section 151.8. legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf
  • A person who is an applicant for a license to practice chiropractic shall only be required to be tested for the adjunctive procedures specified in section 151.1, subsection 3, which the person chooses to utilize. legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf
  • A chiropractic physician who engages in the practice of acupuncture will maintain documentation that shows the chiropractic physician has successfully completed a course in acupuncture consisting of at least 100 hours of traditional, in-person classroom instruction with the instructor on site. legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.843.pdf
Scope: what is excluded
published Iowa Code sections 151.5 and 151.11, and rule 481—843.7.Source: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.843.pdf · checked 2026-10-04
  • A license to practice chiropractic shall not authorize the licensee to practice operative surgery or administer or prescribe prescription drugs or controlled substances which can only be prescribed by persons authorized by law. legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf
  • Such rules shall not be inconsistent with the practice of chiropractic and shall not expand the scope of practice of chiropractic or authorize the use of procedures not authorized by this chapter. legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf
  • Physical examination procedures will not include prescription drugs or operative surgery. legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.843.pdf
Continuing education
published You complete a minimum of 40 hours in each two-year period after your first renewal period; the period runs from July 1 of an even-numbered year to June 30 two years later. In your first renewal period you are exempt, except for two hours on Iowa chiropractic law and rules. The rule requires at least 36 hours in clinical case management, at least 20 of them in person; a minimum of two hours per biennium in professional boundaries regarding ethical issues; one hour on Iowa law and rules in each later period; and classes on child and dependent adult abuse. If you are certified in acupuncture, you complete at least 12 acupuncture hours each two-year period. The rule states: Up to 50 percent of continuing education hours can be carried over into the next biennium if there was an amount of continuing education completed during the prior period that exceeded the minimum requirement. The ethics, child and dependent adult abuse, and Iowa law and rules requirements, subparagraphs 844.3(2)“a”(2), “a”(4) and “a”(5), must be completed each biennium and cannot be carried over. The board does not pre-approve providers. The licensing page says to keep certificates for four years.Rule 844.3(2)"a"(4) and rule 841.6(3)"a" both cite subrule 841.8(4). In chapter 841 as published (IAC 9/30/26), rule 841.8 is License reinstatement and has no subrules; the mandatory reporter training text is at subrule 841.6(4).Source: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.844.pdf · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.841.pdf · checked 2026-10-04
Endorsement or reciprocity
published If you are or have been licensed in another state and meet the criteria for licensure in Iowa, you can apply for licensure by endorsement. You file the endorsement application with a license verification that discloses any discipline in the jurisdiction where you were most recently licensed. If you cannot meet the endorsement requirements, you may apply for licensure by verification, if eligible, under rule 481—501.1. Under that rule, A person may seek licensure by verification if the person is licensed in at least one other jurisdiction that has a scope of practice substantially similar to that of Iowa. The same rule states: A person who has had a license revoked, or who has voluntarily surrendered a license, in another jurisdiction is ineligible for licensure by verification. and A person who has a privilege to practice in Iowa by virtue of an interstate licensure compact is ineligible for licensure by verification.Source: https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.841.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/rule/481.501.1.pdf · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic/how-do-i-apply-chiropractic-license · checked 2026-10-04
Summary
published The Iowa Board of Chiropractic, within the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing, licenses under Iowa Code chapter 151 and 481 IAC chapters 841 to 846. You need preliminary education equal to the requirements for graduation from an accredited high school or other secondary school, a diploma from a CCE-accredited, board-approved college with a four-academic-year course of study, and a certificate of 120 physiotherapy hours with a practicum. For examinations completed after January 1, 1996, the board requires NBCE Parts I, II, III, IV and Physiotherapy; no separate state-administered examination and no jurisprudence examination are published. The scope exclusions are set out in Iowa Code sections 151.5 and 151.11 and rule 481—843.7. After your first renewal period, continuing education is a minimum of 40 hours each two-year period, with requirements that include clinical case management, ethics, and Iowa law and rules. If you are or have been licensed in another state and meet Iowa's licensure criteria, you can apply by endorsement; if you cannot meet endorsement, you may apply, if eligible, by verification under rule 481—501.1.Source: https://dial.iowa.gov/about-dial/boards-and-commissions/board-chiropractic · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/code/151.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.841.pdf · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic/how-do-i-apply-chiropractic-license · https://dial.iowa.gov/licenses/health-professions/chiropractic · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.842.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.843.pdf · https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/iac/chapter/481.844.pdf · checked 2026-10-04

Recorded limit. The Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards publishes a record for each board at https://www.fclb.org/. That site returned HTTP 403 to us when checked on 2026-10-04, so its record could not be read.

The board is the authority on everything here. Requirements change. Confirm anything you intend to act on with the board directly.

Cite this entry. Iowa licensure. In The Kaleidoscope. ChiroTrack. Last verified 4 October 2026. https://kaleidoscope.thechirotrack.com/licensure-iowa.html. Accessed ________.

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