Licensing
for Sign Language Interpreters in Oregon
Welcome!
On this page you can see:
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The new Licensure Questions ChatBot,
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Updates at ORID Membership Meetings
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Information about each license type,
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Tips on the application process, and
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Answers to Frequently Asked Questions.
(Click the link to jump to each section)
We are interpreters just like you, not particular experts! 👍 If you find errors here or have suggestions for improving this page, please email us at: Legislative@orid.org.
Have Questions??
Check out our new
Oregon SLI Licensure chatbot!
The bot is always learning. If you receive an answer that doesn't seem right, please email us at: legislative@orid.org
Updates from Recent ORID Meetings
To receive email updates from HLO directly to your inbox, please subscribe to their email list -- Fill out your contact information on the first page, and on the second page, click the box for the:
Sign Language Interpreter License Board: Updates.
Check out all Licensure Board and RAC meeting recordings on the HLO youtube playlist:
9/27/25 Overview of Law Making Process &
Update on Int. Licensure Law
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Laws vs. Rules
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Licensure Board vs. Rules Advisory Committee
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How laws can be changed & updated
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Updates on Interpreter Licensure Law
For full meeting, see: Fall 2025
Passcode: ORID-Fall2025
2/1/26 Recommended Rules for Interpreter License Board to Consider
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Update on Board Vacancies
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Temporary Rules vs. Permanent Rules
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Overview of Rule-Making Process
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Recommended Rules
For full meeting, see: Winter 2026
Passcode: ORID-Winter2026
License Types & Requirements
This page seeks to share the most relevant information about Oregon licensure using plain English. To read the full licensure law, please see ORS 676.750-789.
Requirements for all SLI Licenses in Oregon:
- Be at least 18 years old
- Renew every 3 years.
- Meet requirements of OAR Chapter 331, Division 30
- Attest to complying with the NAD-RID Code of Professional Conduct
(Reminder: The CPC Tenet 2 Guiding Principle states that interpreters accept assignments using discretion with regard to skill and consumer needs. If a licensed interpreter regularly accepts assignments for which they do not possess the professional skills and knowledge, complaints may be filed with HLO and reviewed by the Board of Sign Language Interpreter Licensing.)
Additional requirements depend on the license type:
Training, Provisional, General, or Supervisory.
See below for details.
Spring Update:
At the April 20th, 2026 Licensure Board meeting, the recommended rules from the RAC were adopted with an amendment that grants a $100 reduction in the application/renewal fees for one year ($25 reduction for the Training license).
The Board's decisions are being processed through HLO and the other state agencies required. Once it is all approved, HLO will restart issuing licenses and the application links below will go live.
To receive email updates from HLO directly to your inbox, please subscribe to their email list -- fill out your contact information on the first page, and on the second page, click the box for the Sign Language Interpreter License Board: Updates.
Required Credentials
- Satisfy the requirements listed above for all licenses.
- 40 hours of interpreter training/education
- Proof of English proficiency (see application for details)
- Proof of ASL proficiency
(see application for details)
Renew annually with 10 hours of Ethical training and 10 hours of Professional Interpreting Studies each year.
Restrictions
- May not provide interpreting services alone, but only under the direct, on-site supervision of a fully licensed interpreter.
- Quality of services are the responsibility of the fully licensed interpreter, and any complaints to HLO will be about the supervising professional.
Cost
- Application fee: $50
- License fee (paid annually):
$25 until 2027, then $50
Required Credentials
- Satisfy the requirements listed above for all licenses.
Also:
ONE of the following:
- A degree from an interpreting program
- CASLI Knowledge Exam: passed
- EIPA: 3.5 or above (in 2030 this will raise to 3.9)
- TBEI: Basic
- TBEI: Level 2 or above
or
- 80 hours of interpreter training AND proof of ASL and English proficiency (see application for details)
Restrictions
- May work solo in appropriate assignments: does not need on-site, direct supervision.
- Must have a supervising interpreter-of-record to support in discretion accepting assignments, and growing toward full licensure
- Limited to two renewals
Cost
- Application fee: $75
- License fee (every 3 years):
$200 until 2027, then $300
General
License
Required Credentials
- Satisfy the requirements listed above for all licenses.
Also:
ONE of the following:
- RID: CDI, NIC, CI, CT, MCS, IC, IT
- NAD: Level 3
- EIPA: Level 4 or above
- TBEI (see application at link below for details)
Restrictions
- None
- May provide on-site, direct supervision to holders of a Training License
- May be supervising interpreter of record for holders of Provisional Licenses until July 1, 2030.
Cost
Application Fee: $100
License Fee (every 3 years):
$500 until 2027, then $600
Required Credentials
- Satisfy the requirements listed above for all licenses.
Also:
ONE of the following for at least three years:
- RID: CDI, NIC, CI, CT, MCS, IC, IT
- NAD: Level 3
- EIPA: Level 4 or above
- TBEI (see application at link below for details)
Restrictions
- None
Cost
Application fee: $150
License Fee (every 3 years):
$500 until 2027, then $600
***The Licensing Office is not currently issuing licenses. On April 20th, the Board approved temporary rules -- once those have been processed through the state government, HLO will be able to restart issuing new and renewed licenses.
Applying for a License
The application process can feel a bit daunting.
We hope this slide deck might help navigate the process a bit.
Feel free to email us with suggestions to improve it: legislative@orid.org.
To receive email updates from HLO directly to your inbox, please subscribe to their email list -- fill out your contact information on the first page, and on the second page, click the box for the Sign Language Interpreter License Board: Updates.
Frequently
Asked
Questions
We have done our best to answer these questions accurately. If you find errors here or have suggestions for improving this page, please email us at: Legislative@orid.org.
1. Why are the fees for licensure so expensive?
2. Do I need a score on the ASLPI or SLIP to get a license?
3. Do I need the OHA certification to work in medical settings?
4. What does the "waiver" mean?
5. Now that the Educational Specialty License has sunset, are interpreters working in K-12 settings waived from the licensure requirement?
6. I have an Educational, Medical, or Legal Specialty License from the old license structure. What happens to those licenses now?
7. If I did not have a specialty license before January 2026, what happens?
8. What if we need specialty licenses in the future?
9. Do interpreters working in K-12 settings need to get a certain number of CEUs or professional development hours for licensure?
10. What is the difference between a Training License and a Provisional License?
To add a question, please email: legislative@orid.org
On October 1st, HLO published their FAQs about the specialty licenses.
Note: These licenses have been removed from the law (determined by hearing legislators).
If the Board (made up of Deaf people and interpreters) determines that specialty licenses are needed, they can be created by rule.
FAQs about the Ed Spec. Lic.
FAQs about the Med. Spec. Lic.
FAQs about the Legal Spec. Lic.
For other official answers from HLO, we recommend emailing Samie Patnode at:
Samie.Patnode@oha.oregon.gov.
1. Why are the fees for licensure so expensive?
The Oregon state legislature gave authority to the SLI Board to set the fees.
According to the law, they must do so in consideration of the funding requirements related the office's duties to administer the licenses, and in consideration of national averages for similar fees.
The law states that the fees may not exceed the cost of administering our licenses. At this time, HLO and the Board are not concerned about that restriction, since the HLO budget for the SLI Board is significantly in the red.
In October, HLO staff presented about the cost they incurred in administering SLI licenses over the last couple of years, as well as numbers about average fees for licensure nationwide. They recommended fee amounts, and the RAC and Board have adopted HLO's suggestions with a discount for the first year.
The presentation about budget concerns and national averages can be viewed on HLO's YouTube channel here:
At the next RAC meeting, a public comment contested the numbers presented by HLO and urged the RAC and Board to set the fees significantly lower than HLO requested:
SLI RAC Meeting 10/16/25 Public Comment
(Written comment: Licensure Fee Public Comment)
On April 20th, the Board deliberated at length, and finally decided to adopt HLO's recommendations, along with a discount for the first year of license administration.
2. Do I need a score on the ASLPI or SLIP to get a license?
No. If you want your Health Care Interpreting Certification from OHA -- to be on their particular registry, then you will need a certain score on an ASL fluency assessment, but you are not required to have this for most licenses.
If you are using a pathway that requires proof of ASL proficiency, this is one way of documenting that proof.
3. Do I need the OHA Certification to work in medical settings?
No. Medical providers (clinics, hospitals, etc.) must first seek interpreters on the OHA registry. If none are available, they can work with any licensed interpreter.
You do not need an ASLPI/SLIP score to be licensed.
4. What does the "waiver" mean?
The law (ORS 676.750-789) says that anyone providing sign language interpreting services in Oregon needs to be licensed. (There are only a few exceptions.)
HLO is the government agency in charge of licenses for sign language interpreters in Oregon.
HLO recognized that they need more time to establish all the rules (details) of the law, and stakeholders need time to implement these into their business models. (See their announcement here: HLO News.)
In recognition of this transition period, HLO used the strongest tool under their authority to provide the needed time: a "waiver of enforcement."
The waiver means that HLO will not apply punishment to interpreters or those hiring/contracting with interpreters for working without a license. It is actually illegal, but the agency with authority to enforce that law will not enforced it until July 1, 2026.
Keep in mind, this waiver of enforcement only applies to being licensed or not. If a licensed interpreter is violating terms of that license (for example, violations of the CPC), HLO may investigate those complaints and enforce consequences if warranted.
5. Now that the Educational Specialty License has sunset, are interpreters working in K-12 settings waived from the licensure requirement?
No. Interpreters working in K-12 settings in Oregon have to be licensed just like all sign language interpreters in the state.
6. I have a Specialty Setting License from the old license structure. What happens to those licenses now?
Any specialty licenses obtained before January 1, 2026 under ORS 676.762 (Ed), 676.765 (Med), and 676.768 (Leg) will remain valid until January 1, 2029. (See Section 11 on page 5 here: Updates to SLI Licensure.)
That means anyone holding an Educational License issued before January 1, 2026 can continue working in Educational settings under that license until January 1, 2029.
(If they want to work in other settings, they need to get a different license.)
As of January 1, 2026, these specialty licenses are no longer required.
7. If I did not get a specialty license before January 1, 2026, what happens?
Interpreters can work in these settings with any active license (Training, Provisional, General, or Supervisory) — using profession discretion in accordance with the CPC Tenet 2.
The Board of Sign Language Interpreters has the authority to establish specialty licenses. They may do that in the future, but right now, you only need one license to practice in the state.
8. What if we need specialty licenses in the future?
The Board has the authority to create specialty licenses as needed through the rule-making process.
If you feel that there is a specialty setting that interpreters could qualify for through a test or assessment of some kind, and that you think should require an additional license, please reach out to the licensing board with that input.
9. If I have an Educational Specialty License, do I need to get a certain number of CEUs every year to keep it?
Not for your specialty-setting license.
In the past, ODE has required interpreters working under their employment to take a certain number of hours of professional development every year. That requirement has changed in the past and can change again. Please contact ODE about their requirements. (And note that if ODE does not require it, your school district or other level of authority may require them.)
10. What is the difference between a Training License and a Provisional License?
Interpreters who hold a Training License are not allowed to interpret alone. They must have a fully licensed (Gen or Sup) interpreter with them, on-site, making sure that the interpreting services are providing access and ready to jump in if needed. (This license is great for interns or people in rural settings and Deaf interpreters being mentored into the field.)
Interpreters who hold a Provisional License are allowed to work solo in settings that are appropriate for their knowledge and skill level. They must have a supervising interpreter-of-record who helps them identify which jobs they are ready for, might help them prepare, debrief afterwards, and mentor as needed to work towards full licensure.
The term "Supervision" comes from other professions like therapists and doctors. Therapists often have a "supervising therapist" and doctors in their residency have a "supervising physician." The supervising practitioner is not with them throughout the day, but they are available to discuss cases and get guidance for next steps.