Iowa Licensure for Interpreters

The governor of Iowa formed the Board of Interpreter for the Hearing Impaired Examiners with the goal of setting standards for licensure for all interpreters and transliterators working in the state.

On July 1, 2005, any interpreter working in the state must possess a license. Currently there are two licenses available: a permanent license and a temporary license.

A 2 year renewable permanent license is for those interpreters who have already met the standards set forth by the board. The standards are:

NAD	RID	NIC	EIPA
Level III Generalist Level IV Intermediate Level V Master	Certificate of Interpretation (CI) Certificate of Transliteration (CT) Certificate of Interpretation and Certificate of Transliteration (CI and CT) Interpretation Certificate/Transliteration Certificate (IC/TC) Comprehensive Skills Certificate (CSC) Certified Deaf Interpreter (CDI) Oral Transliteration Certificate (OTC)	Level III Level IV Level V	A score of 3.5 or above obtained after December 31, 1999

If you do not currently possess one of those criteria, you would need to apply for a temporary license. A temporary license is only renewable once. This allows interpreters time in order to obtain one of the above criteria for licensure.

Applications may be downloaded here. The cost is currently $120 for two years. During the two years, you must earn 40 continuing education units or 4 CEUs. Persons working without a license after July 1, 2005 are subject to penalties and disciplinary action by the board.

As licensure is new to the state of Iowa, there has been some confusion on what the differences between certification and licensure are.

Certification:

The RID, NAD and NIC tests are considered certification. They were and are administered by national organizations using psychometrically valid testing systems. They require adherence to the Code of Professional Conduct, membership in the RID, continuing education units, etc.

The EIPA is not considered certification. It is a diagnostic tool designed to assess educational interpreters working in the pre-kindergarten to high school level settings. It does not yet have nation wide acceptance.

Licensure:

Licensure is a standard set by the state board to determine who is allowed to work as an interpreter for pay. Currently Iowa is requiring that an interpreter either be CERTIFIED by NAD, RID or NIC or ASSESSED by the EIPA. Licensure does not certify nor assess interpreters through any form of a test. An interpreter may be licensed in the state of Iowa but may not be certified.