← All licensure pages · All entries for Pennsylvania → · Rules on the business of practice in Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

State Board of Chiropractic.

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 Pennsylvania, a state. The board calls it the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and so does the act.Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · checked 2026-10-04
Licensing body
published State Board of Chiropractic. The act establishes it within the Department of State. Its pages sit under the Department of State's Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs. The board also certifies qualified licensees to use adjunctive procedures.Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · checked 2026-10-04
Statutory authority
published The act is the Chiropractic Practice Act, Act of Dec. 16, 1986, P.L. 1646, No. 188. The Pennsylvania General Assembly publishes it as an unconsolidated statute, and the board homepage links it as Law - Act 188 of 1986. The General Assembly's PDF text carries amendment notes, including one dated June 28, 2018. The board homepage links its regulations, on the Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin site, as “Regulations”.Source: https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information?sessYr=1986&sessInd=0&actNum=188 · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · http://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter5/chap5toc.html&d= · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic · checked 2026-10-04
Degree requirement
published Under act section 501 you need a high school diploma or its equivalent; two years of college or 60 credit hours; and graduation from an approved college of chiropractic, with not less than the minimum hours of classroom and laboratory instruction the board's regulations require, which minimum shall be at least 4,000 hours. Under section 303 the board shall approve any chiropractic college accredited by a chiropractic accrediting agency recognized by the U.S. Department of Education or the Council on Post-Secondary Accreditation, and shall not approve any chiropractic college that is not so accredited. The board's snapshot page states the requirement as graduation from an approved college that requires at least 4,000 hours of classroom and laboratory instruction.Source: https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · checked 2026-10-04
Student practice before licensure
published Act section 521's license requirement does not apply to a student enrolled in a chiropractic education program at a board-approved chiropractic college, provided both conditions in section 521(2)(i), quoted below, are met. Separately, under section 502(a) the board may, in its discretion, admit a student in good standing in the final semester at an approved college to the standard examination, provided the student meets all the other requirements of the act; the student must have certification of graduation from the college before a license may be granted. Section 505 provides a limited license, for a period not to exceed one year, that may be issued to an out-of-State or foreign chiropractic school or college graduate to teach in an approved graduate chiropractic education program; the requirements section 505(a) lists, quoted below, must be met to secure it. Persons granted a limited license shall not be authorized to practice chiropractic in this Commonwealth other than for the purpose of teaching, which shall not include treatment of patients. Neither the act nor the board's snapshot page names a preceptorship, internship or temporary permit for unlicensed graduates.Not established: any rule on a preceptorship, internship or temporary permit.The board's snapshot page states No experience requirement for licensure.Read on 2026-10-04: the board's homepage; its Chiropractor Licensure Snapshot, Board Resources and Documents, Renewal Information and Announcements pages; the Chiropractic Practice Act (Act 188 of 1986), General Assembly PDF. Not reached on 2026-10-04: 49 Pa. Code Chapter 5, the board's regulations, disallowed by the Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin site's robots.txt.Source: https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · checked 2026-10-04
NBCE parts required
published The board's snapshot page states that you must pass Parts I, II, III and IV of the National Board Examination. Act section 502(e) grants a license to an applicant who meets the requirements of the act and achieves either of two scores, one of which includes a passing score on the written examination administered by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners; see State-specific exam.Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · checked 2026-10-04
State-specific exam
published A standard examination provided for in act section 502, which the act says shall be oral, practical and written (sections 502(a) and 502(b)). The act lists its subjects and says examinations shall be conducted at least twice each year. It says all written, oral and practical examinations required under the section shall be prepared and administered by a qualified and approved professional testing organization in accordance with section 812.1 of The Administrative Code of 1929, except that the oral and practical examinations shall not be subject to section 812.1 until such examinations are available from a testing organization (section 502(d)). Section 502(e) grants a license to an applicant who meets the requirements of the act and achieves either of two scores, quoted below; the second pairs an average score of at least 75% on the oral and practical examination with a passing score on the written examination administered by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners. The board's snapshot page names parts I, II, III and IV of the National Board Examination as its examination requirement and names no separate state-administered examination. Neither the act nor the snapshot page says whether the parts of the National Board Examination the snapshot page names are accepted as the examination section 502 describes, or whether an oral and practical examination is given at present. The board's regulations, which the board homepage links on the Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin site, could not be read on 2026-10-04: that site's robots.txt disallows the page.Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic · checked 2026-10-04
Jurisprudence requirement
not published None published. Neither the board's snapshot page nor the act names a law, rules or jurisprudence examination. The board's snapshot page names parts I, II, III and IV of the National Board Examination as its examination requirement.Read on 2026-10-04: the board's homepage; its Chiropractor Licensure Snapshot, Board Resources and Documents, Renewal Information and Announcements pages; the 2024 Renewal Guide PDF; the Continuing Education Information PDF; the Chiropractic Practice Act (Act 188 of 1986), General Assembly PDF. Not reached on 2026-10-04: 49 Pa. Code Chapter 5, disallowed by the Pennsylvania Code and Bulletin site's robots.txt.Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/resources-and-documents · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/renewal-information · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/announcements · https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/chiropractic/2024-Chiro-Board-Renewal-Guide.pdf · https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/chiropractic/chirosn-ce-requirement-letter%20rev%202025.pdf · checked 2026-10-04
Scope: what is included
published Act section 102 defines chiropractic and states what the term includes. Adjunctive procedures carry a condition: after January 1, 1988, the licensee must be certified in accordance with this act to use adjunctive procedures. Section 102 defines adjunctive procedures as physical measures, listed in the quotation below. Nutritional counseling is included, provided that nothing herein shall be construed to require licensure as a chiropractor in order to engage in nutritional counseling.The board's snapshot page repeats the definition's first sentence and spells the term neuro-musculoskeletal; the act spells it neuro-musculo-skeletal.Source: https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · checked 2026-10-04
Scope: what is excluded
published Act section 102 and section 526(b).Source: https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · checked 2026-10-04
Continuing education
published For biennial renewal you need at least 24 hours of board-approved continuing chiropractic education within the immediately preceding two-year period. Licenses expire September 1 of every even-numbered year. Under act section 507(b) a licensee may receive credit for only those hours of continuing chiropractic education in a program approved by the board and for only those hours directed toward keeping the licensee apprised of advancements and new developments in chiropractic which build upon the basic courses required to practice chiropractic and which are in the following areas, listed in the note below; the section states that no credit shall be given for any course in office management or practice building. New licensees are exempt for their first renewal period only. The board's 2024 renewal guide also lists 2 hours of Act 31 child abuse reporter training from an Act 31 approved provider, to be taken every biennial period. For initial licensure, the board states 3 hours of board-approved continuing education in child abuse recognition and reporting. The board may make exceptions in emergency or hardship cases, on evidence submitted in proof. You must keep certificates of attendance for four years after the biennial expiration date, because the board will conduct a random audit. The renewal guide says to review the regulations at section §5.71.The renewal guide is headed for the September 1, 2024 expiration and marked “REV 04/2021”; the continuing education letter is dated “(6-2025)”. Section 507(b) lists the qualifying subject areas as anatomy, physiology, histology, chemistry, pathology, physics, bacteriology, diagnosis, hygiene and sanitation, symptomatology, chiropractic analysis, X-ray, chiropractic principles, chiropractic technique and adjunctive procedures.Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/renewal-information · https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/chiropractic/chirosn-ce-requirement-letter%20rev%202025.pdf · https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/chiropractic/2024-Chiro-Board-Renewal-Guide.pdf · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · checked 2026-10-04
Endorsement or reciprocity
published The board may grant licensure by reciprocity, without further examination, to individuals from other states and provinces of Canada if all four conditions it lists are met. Under act section 504 the board may grant licenses without further examination on the same four conditions. Separately, the board's snapshot page describes licensure under Act 41, which requires licensing boards to issue a license to an applicant who holds a current license from another state, territory or country whose requirements are substantially equivalent to or exceed Pennsylvania's, and who meets the other criteria set forth under Act 41. The board names these as two routes.The Department of State also publishes a page, Applying for a Professional License from Outside Pennsylvania, that is not specific to chiropractic.Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/resources/professional-licensing-resources/act-41-2019 · checked 2026-10-04
Summary
published Pennsylvania's State Board of Chiropractic, within the Department of State, licenses chiropractors under the Chiropractic Practice Act (Act 188 of 1986) and the regulations the board homepage links. Among the act's requirements, you need a high school diploma or its equivalent, two years of college or 60 credit hours, and graduation from an approved college of chiropractic with not less than the board's regulatory minimum of classroom and laboratory hours, a minimum the act sets at at least 4,000. The board's snapshot page says you must pass parts I, II, III and IV of the National Board Examination; the act provides for a standard examination that shall be oral, practical and written, under section 502 (see State-specific exam), and neither the board's snapshot page nor the act names a jurisprudence exam. As a student enrolled in a chiropractic education program at a board-approved college, the act's license requirement does not apply to you while both conditions in section 521 are met, and the board may, in its discretion, admit you to the standard examination in your final semester if you are in good standing and meet all the other requirements of the act, though you need certification of graduation before a license may be granted. Act section 102 defines what chiropractic includes, with adjunctive procedures requiring certification after January 1, 1988, and what it excludes. For biennial renewal you need at least 24 hours of board-approved continuing education within the immediately preceding two-year period, with new licensees exempt for their first renewal period only; the board may grant licensure by reciprocity when all four of its stated conditions are met, and it separately describes licensure under Act 41.Source: https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic · https://www.palegis.us/statutes/unconsolidated/law-information/view-statute?txtType=PDF&SessYr=1986&ActNum=0188.&SessInd=0 · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/chiropractor-licensure-snapshot · https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/chiropractic/chirosn-ce-requirement-letter%20rev%202025.pdf · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/resources-and-documents · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/renewal-information · https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/chiropractic/announcements · https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/chiropractic/2024-Chiro-Board-Renewal-Guide.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. Pennsylvania licensure. In The Kaleidoscope. ChiroTrack. Last verified 4 October 2026. https://kaleidoscope.thechirotrack.com/licensure-pennsylvania.html. Accessed ________.

Corrections to this entry: none · If this is your institution: how this entry was sourced, and how to correct it