Surgical Assistants are licensed by the Texas Medical Board to provide aid under direct supervision in exposure, hemostasis, and other intraoperative technical functions that assist a physician in performing a safe operation with optimal results for the patient, including the delegated authority to provide local infiltration or the topical application of a local anesthetic at the operation site.
A Surgical Assistant license is not required to practice as a Surgical Assistant in Texas so long as you are supervised by a physician. Many entities require that a Surgical Assistant working for them be licensed in Texas. This is not required by the State of Texas but instead may be the result of billing or institutional policies.
Individuals considering applying for licensure as a Surgical Assistant should review the documents below for more information about eligibility, the application, and the required documentation and fees before submitting their applications. An application fee may be refunded under certain circumstances, however, other surcharges and fees assessed at the time of application are non-refundable.
Helpful Documents
Surgical Assistant applications cannot be submitted online and must be submitted by mail with an application fee to the Board. The application fee must be submitted in the form of a personal check, cashier’s check, or money order payable to the Texas Medical Board.
Texas has a two-stage application process – Pre-Licensure/Screening and Licensing.
Stage 1 - Pre-Licensure/Screening
- You will be emailed within three business days after you receiving your application and fee with a list of documents required for your application. These items are generated based on your application.
- Submit the documents listed in the email. Supporting documents can be mailed, emailed, or faxed to the Board from the applicant and third-parties. We recommend using one of the private overnight delivery services that allow tracking to submit all required items. These services require delivery to a physical address and a phone number. Delivery by a private overnight service to our physical address usually allows you to obtain immediate online confirmation of delivery from the carrier.
| Delivery Physical Address | Mailing Address |
Texas Medical Board 1801 Congress Avenue, Suite 9.200 Austin, TX 78701 | Texas Medical Board P.O. Box 2029 Austin, TX 78768 |
- Items mailed through the US Postal Service (regular, certified, express, or overnight), must be addressed to our mailing address, or they will be returned to the sender. A vendor signs for and delivers these items to our agency. Even if a tracking mechanism is used, the signature confirming receipt of items delivered to the mailing address will be that of a vendor employee, making confirmation of delivery more difficult.
- Check your email frequently to track receipt of the items and submit questions. Applicants who both call and email questions when they don’t get an immediate response, delay staff response time and increase application processing time. Email correspondence received by the Board will be answered by staff in the order received. Please allow 3-5 business days for a response.
During Pre-licensure/Screening, the documentation requested is based on the standard requirements for licensure and information provided with the application. Documents are not reviewed for content during the pre-licensure stage and additional information may be required once an application has been moved to Licensing. Completing Stage 1 (Pre-Licensure/Screening) does not mean you are eligible for licensure. Only after you complete Stage 2 (Licensing) are you determined to be ready for licensure.
Stage 2 – Licensing
- You’ve submitted all of the documents required for your application in Pre-Licensure/Screening.
- Your application has been assigned to a licensing analyst.
- Keep checking your email. Your licensing analyst will email you requests for additional items.
Individual application processing time will vary based on the complexity of the application. Factors that increase the processing time may include, but are not limited to, answering “yes” to any of the Professionalism questions on the application or failing to follow instructions when submitting documentation. However, failing to answer application questions truthfully may be considered falsification of your application, will increase the processing time of your application, and could result in punitive action by the Board.
Application Complete
- Congratulations! You are ready to be licensed.
- A temporary license can be issued if you submitted a Temporary License Affidavit and paid the $50 fee. The Temporary License allows you to practice between the time Board staff approves your application and the licensing date you will be scheduled to receive your permanent license.
- Licenses are issued five times per year at the Texas Medical Board meetings.
- Register your license. You will receive a letter and an email within 2 weeks of being licensed, with registration instructions.
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Certificates are issued five times per year at the Texas Medical Board meetings.
Application Fee: The fee for surgical assistant licensure in Texas is $315.00. Additional non-refundable surcharges related to the National Practitioner Data Bank/Health Integrity Data Bank and the Texas Physician Health Program may be assessed with the application fee. The entire fee must be submitted before your application can be assigned and processed.
Temporary License Fee: The fee to issue a temporary license is $50.00. If requested, a temporary license can be issued once you have met all the requirements for permanent licensure to enable you to practice until the issuance of your permanent license on the next scheduled licensing date. Permanent licenses are issued once a month.
Application-Related Fees: Fees are typically required from other entities that provide documents or services. IdentoGo by IDEMIA does charge a fee for processing the criminal history check.
The waiver of application fees for any military service member, military spouse or military veteran is allowed, however, other surcharges and fees assessed at the time of application cannot be waived. There is no current reduced registration fee.
This number is assigned to you at the time you submitted your application for licensure. For physicians, it can be found online through LIST (Licensure Inquiry System of Texas). For all other applicants, it can be found in the email correspondence you received from the Board indicating the status of your application (be sure to check the subject line as well as the text of the email). If you are still unable to located your 6-digit Board issued ID number, please contact the Texas Medical Board Customer Service Department at (512) 305-7030 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CST or email Screen-CIC@tmb.state.tx.us for assistance.
Call (512) 305-7030 to reach a member of the TMB Call Center between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CST.
You must provide us with a statement that gives an explanation of your request and a copy of the legal document(s) that granted your name change, i.e. marriage license, divorce decree etc.
The social security number of an applicant for or holder of a license, certificate of registration, or other legal authorization issued by a licensing agency to practice in a specific occupation or profession that is provided to the licensing agency is confidential and is not subject to disclosure under the open records law.
Texas requires licensees to professionally use the name under which they are licensed by the Texas Medical Board. Using any other name may confuse or mislead the public and could be considered by the Board to be unprofessional conduct. A licensee who wishes to change his or her professional name must use the Application for Name Change.
No. Changes in mailing or practice addresses can be updated through My TMB.
An application fee may be refunded under certain limited circumstances, however, other surcharges and fees assessed at the time of application are non-refundable.
No. The Board Rules specify that you have to have worked for a licensed physician in the US who has an unrestricted license. This means an MD or DO only.
No. Our Board Rules at this time specify that you have to have graduated from a CAAHEP accredited Surgical Assistant program.
No. The Texas Occupations Code concerning Surgical Assistants does not require that you have a license to practice as a Surgical Assistant so long as you are supervised by a physician. Please review the Occupations Code Section 206.002 for full details on applicability. We are aware that many entities require that a Surgical Assistant working for them be licensed in Texas. This is not required by the State of Texas but instead may be the result of billing or institutional policies.
If you are unable to obtain a certified copy of your transcript directly from the school you will have to prove that you have made "exhaustive attempts" to obtain it. Your file will have to be reviewed by our Executive Review Group before a determination of acceptability can be made. Please consult your licensing analyst AFTER you submit your application for details on proving "exhaustive attempts." Your licensing analyst may request a copy of your transcript.
No, but you can use any experience working as a surgical assistant within the last three years towards the requirement for 2000 hours.