Florida's Dry Needling Certification for Chiropractors

A Florida chiropractic physician may not dry needle until the Board of Chiropractic Medicine issues a letter certifying that the doctor has met the requirements of section 460.4085, Florida Statutes. The law, created by chapter 2024-269, Laws of Florida, requires 40 hours of in-person continuing education on dry needling (24 hours for a DC already certified in chiropractic acupuncture), a passed written and practical examination, and at least 10 supervised patient sessions. The board's implementing rule, Fla. Admin. Code R. 64B2-17.004, took effect December 29, 2024, and the application is Form DH-MQA 5099.

What follows is the paperwork side of that certification: what the board wants to see, the common reasons a file comes back, and how it fits with a Florida license application if you are moving to the state. It says nothing about technique or clinical indications; those belong to your training and the board's rules, not to a licensing service.

What does section 460.4085 require?

The statute tells the board to set minimum standards and lists the floor those standards must include. Read from the text on the Florida Senate's statutes site, the requirements are:

• Hours. 40 hours of in-person continuing education on dry needling, or 24 hours for a chiropractic physician already certified in chiropractic acupuncture. The statute says in so many words that online or distance-based courses do not qualify.
• Course approval. The course content must be approved, before you take it, by one of seven entities: an entity accredited under section 460.408, the board itself, the American Chiropractic Association, the International Chiropractic Association, Providers of Approved Continuing Education (FCLB's PACE program), the American Medical Association, or the American Osteopathic Association.
• Instructor. The instructor must be a licensed chiropractic physician, MD or DO, or a physical therapist with a Doctor of Physical Therapy degree, who has practiced dry needling for at least five years.
• Curriculum. Instruction must cover theory, selection and safe handling of needles and equipment (including biohazardous waste), indications and contraindications, psychomotor skills, and post-intervention care, including adverse event recordkeeping and reporting.
• Examination. Passage of a written and practical examination.
• Supervised sessions. At least 10 patient sessions of dry needling performed under the supervision of a licensed DC, MD, DO or DPT who has actively performed dry needling for at least one year, with documentation the board finds satisfactory.

The statute also sets two practice conditions that affect how you run the clinic: dry needling requires documented patient consent and education on risks as part of the plan of care, and it may not be delegated to anyone other than a chiropractic physician who is authorized under chapter 460. Rule 64B2-17.004 repeats the delegation point and names certified chiropractic physician's assistants specifically.

How does the board rule break down the 40 hours?

Rule 64B2-17.004, as published by Cornell's Legal Information Institute, allocates the instruction by topic: 3 hours of theory, 2 hours of needle selection and safe handling, 4 hours of indications and contraindications, 10 hours of psychomotor skills, and 4 hours of post-intervention care. The rule also says that the written and practical examination requirement can never be waived. That matters because the statute otherwise gives the board some flexibility, discussed below.

When you choose a course, ask the provider for a syllabus that shows hours by topic and confirm in writing that the course is in person, which approving entity approved it and when, and the instructor's credential and years of dry needling practice. Those three items are where we see the most back-and-forth with the board office, because a certificate of completion rarely states them on its face.

What can the board waive or credit?

Subsection (2) of the statute lets the board, at a licensee's request, review coursework completed before July 1, 2024 for approval, waive some or all of the hours or requirements in subsection (1) if the licensee proves adequate prior training, and decide whether a licensee has received adequate training to be eligible. The rule's line on the exam limits that: whatever else is credited, the written and practical examination stays.

A waiver request is a judgment call by the board, made on the documents you submit. It is not something any outside service can promise, and we do not. What we can do is assemble the older course records, syllabi and instructor information so the request is complete when the board reviews it.

What goes in the application file?

The application is Form DH-MQA 5099, Application for Chiropractic Dry Needling Certification, filed with the Florida Department of Health for the Board of Chiropractic Medicine. The board's website lists it under Helpful Forms and Links together with a separate form documenting supervision and competency of dry needling practice. In practice, a complete file has:

• The application and the board's current fee (check the board's fee tab on the day you file).
• Certificates of completion for each in-person course, with hours, dates and the approving entity.
• Course content showing the required topics, where the certificate does not.
• Proof that the written and practical examination was passed.
• The supervision and competency documentation for at least 10 supervised patient sessions, signed by the supervising practitioner, with that practitioner's license type and dry needling experience.
• For the 24-hour track, proof of your Florida chiropractic acupuncture certification.

When the board is satisfied, section 460.4085(3) says it must issue a letter certifying that you are authorized to practice dry needling under chapter 460. Keep the letter with your license records; it is the document that shows the certification exists.

Who qualifies for the 24-hour track?

Only a chiropractic physician already certified in chiropractic acupuncture by the Florida board. That is a separate certification under section 460.403 and rule 64B2-11.012: a course of at least 100 hours in acupuncture from an institution recognized by an accrediting agency approved by the U.S. Department of Education, and passage of an examination. The board's acupuncture certification page says it adopts the passing score set by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners, and lists a $205 total fee. Acupuncture certification earned in another state does not, by the statute's wording, put you on the Florida 24-hour track. Our post on acupuncture certification for chiropractors covers the Florida route and others.

Where do Florida dry needling files stall?

• Online hours. Hybrid courses with a recorded lecture component are common. Only the in-person hours count toward the 40 or 24.
• Approval timing. The statute requires course content to be approved before you take the course. A course approved after your attendance date is a problem to raise before filing, not after.
• Instructor credentials. A highly experienced instructor who is, for example, a licensed acupuncturist rather than a DC, MD, DO or DPT does not meet the statute's instructor requirement.
• Supervisor experience. The supervising practitioner for the 10 sessions needs at least one year of actively performing dry needling. Get that in the signed documentation.
• Exam proof. Many courses build the exam into the final day. Make sure the certificate or a separate letter says the written and practical exam was passed, not only that the course was attended.

Does a Florida dry needling certification carry to another state?

No. A Florida certification letter authorizes dry needling under Florida's chapter 460 and nowhere else. Each state decides for itself whether it addresses dry needling by chiropractors at all and what it requires. Maryland, for example, registers chiropractors with physical therapy privileges after 80 hours of training under COMAR 10.43.16.05; Oklahoma's rule asks for 24 face-to-face hours, or 12 for a DC with acupuncture certification. Our state-by-state dry needling post lists what we have verified. The reverse is also true: a DC certified in another state still files the Florida application, although the board may review prior coursework under subsection (2).

How does this fit with getting a Florida license?

Certification comes after licensure. A DC licensed in another state may qualify by endorsement under Florida's MOBILE Act (section 456.0145, Florida Statutes, implemented for chiropractors by rule 64B2-11.002), which asks for an active, unencumbered license with a similar scope, a passed national licensure exam, active practice in at least 2 of the 4 years before applying, no discipline in the prior 5 years and fingerprints; otherwise the route is the National Board exams and Florida's laws and rules exam under section 460.406. If you are moving to Florida and want to dry needle on day one, plan both tracks together: the license application with the state board, and in-person dry needling coursework scheduled so the certificates and supervised sessions are ready to file the day your license issues. Our Florida chiropractic license page has the license requirements and citations.

Our Scope Add-On Registration service is $249 per registration and covers assembling the dry needling file, checking each course against the statute before you submit, and following up with the board office. Board fees are extra, and the board decides every application. If you are still choosing a course, send us the syllabus first; it is easier to fix the course than the file.