THE INTERNATIONAL PHOTOTHERAPY ASSOCIATION
An international association for light therapy and photobiomodulation

ARTICLES OF ASSOCIATION & BYELAWS---------------------------------- 1: ASSOCIATION DETAILS ----------------------------------1.a) Name and Address

The name of The Association is the International Phototherapy Association (IPTA) hereafterreferred to as “The Association.” The contact address of The Association is the address of thecurrent Secretary-General1.b) Terminology

The term ‘phototherapy’ in this document means the clinical application of light energy inwhatever field (from the Greek phos photos, ‘light’ + therapeia, ‘treatment’). The term
‘photobiomodulation’ covers basic and clinical research into the action of low incident power
densities of light energy on subcellular units, cells and tissue either in vitro or in vivo.
1.c) Aims of The Association

The Association aims to promote the applications of phototherapy and photobiomodulation in the
medical field both clinically and scientifically; to promote the development of associatedtechnology; to further research and education; to encourage international friendship and co-operation between physicians, clinicians, healthcare professionals and scientists; and to provide aforum for the dissemination of phototherapy-related information.

---------------------------------------- 2: MEMBERSHIP ----------------------------------------2.a) Definition of ‘Member’ and ‘Member in Good Standing’A ‘Member’ is anyone who has successfully joined The Association as a Charter Member,Member, Life Member or been invited to be an Honorary Member of The Association.
A ‘Member in Good Standing’ is a Member of the Association who has paid his or her dues forthe current Financial Year.
There are four categories of membership of The Association.
i): Charter Membership (Charter Member)ii): Regular Membership (Member)iii): Life Membership (Life Member)iv): Honorary Membership (Honorary Member)
Membership of The Association is open to any physician, dental surgeon, scientist, veterinarian,nurse specialist, nurse, physiotherapist, or any other recognised medical or paramedical personnel
involved with, or interested in, any aspect of phototherapy or photobiomodulation.
2.b) Definition of Membership Categoriesi) ‘Charter Membership’ is granted to anyone who is eligible and applies for Regular
Membership under the terms of any current Charter Membership offer.
ii) ‘Regular Membership’ is open to anyone who satisfy the criteria in Article 2(a) above, and
who agrees with the Aims of The Association. Members in Good Standing, including
Charter Members, may attend any Association General Assembly and also have the right tovote at the General Assemblies or any other meetings.
iii) ‘Life Membership’ is awarded to anyone who satisfies the criteria in Article 2(a) above, andwho has paid the Life Membership Fee. A Life Member will remain as a Member of The
Association until resignation or death, without paying any further dues. A Life Member has
full voting rights at all Association General Assemblies, or any other meetings at which
voting is required, during the entire term of his or her Membership.

IPTA Bylaws

Page 1 of 6iv) ‘Honorary Membership’ is offered by The Association to those who have made anoutstanding contribution towards furthering the Aims of The Association. Honorary
Members can attend any General Assembly but do not have the right to vote unless they are
already Members, or successfully apply to become Members.
2.c) Admission of Members and Withdrawal of Membership.

i) Anyone who wants to join The Association must fill out an application form and submit itwith the appropriate fee to the Honorary Treasurer. Depending on the fees paid and thetiming of the application, applicants will be considered for Charter Membership, RegularMembership or Life Membership.
ii) Upon election, each Member will get a Certificate of Membership to The Association and acurrent Membership Identity Card. The Identity Card will be renewed each year on paymentof the fees by Charter Members or Members, and is permanently valid for Life Members.
iii) Any Member in Good Standing may propose a candidate for Honorary Membership to theExecutive Committee. If the Committee is satisfied that the candidate appears to meet thecriteria for Honorary Membership, the proposal will be put to all Members of theAssociation usually by postal ballot. If at least two-thirds of the members balloted approve,
Honorary Membership will be offered to the candidate. In addition, any ExecutiveCommittee Member who has served a full term of 6 consecutive years on the Committee,
and the retiring Association President, will automatically be offered Honorary Membership,
without prejudice to any other form of Membership held by the Member.
iv) Upon an affirmative vote by a majority of the Executive Committee, Membership may bewithdrawn from any Member, or a Member may be suspended from Membership. At thistime, the Certificate of Membership and Membership ID Card must be returned to theSecretary-General. Such action may be taken if, in the opinion of the Executive Committee:
iv.a A Member has behaved in a manner incompatible with the Aims of The Association.
iv.b The Member is seriously in arrears with payment of membership subscriptions withoutsatisfactory reasons.
2.d) Resignation

A Member may resign from The Association at any time in writing to the Secretary-General. TheMember shall at the same time return his or her Certificate of Membership and Membership ID
Card to the Secretary-General. The retiring Member is not eligible to receive repayment of any
remaining Membership fees.
2.e) Change of Address

Members must inform the Membership Secretary in writing of any changes in address. Any noticeposted to the recorded address of a Member will be considered delivered.

--------------------------------------- 3: ORGANIZATION ---------------------------------------3.a) The Executive Committeei) The Executive Committee will be made up of (5) Office Bearers: all members of theExecutive Committee shall be Members in Good Standing of the Association (see Article
2(a) above) and must take the necessary steps to remain so during the duration of their terms.
The Executive Committee consists of the following with the duration of their term of office shownin brackets:♦ Association President (2 years)♦ Secretary-General (6 years)♦ Honorary Treasurer (6 years)♦ President-Elect (2 years)♦ Immediate Past President (2 years)ii) All the Executive Committee Members will be nominated, elected and approved by thePage 2 of 6

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General Assembly of The Association, for a period of two (2) years, with the exception ofthe Honorary Treasurer and Secretary-General who will serve for six (6) years.
iii) With the exception of President. President Elect, and Immediate Past President,
nominations for any of the positions in the Executive Committee, will be accepted and voted
upon at a General Assembly. If there is more than one nomination for these posts, thesuccessful nominee will be decided by postal ballot of the Membership, and the decision
ratified by a majority vote of the next General Assembly.
iv) The purpose of the Executive Committee is to ensure the holding of Congresses according
to the Articles of Association and Bylaws, to report to the General Assembly every second
year, and, in general, to represent The Association between Congresses.
3.b) Congress Organizing Committee

Members of the Congress Organizing Committee for any Congress will be appointed by thePresident-Elect of that Congress. The Congress Organizing Committee will be responsible for all
aspects of The Congress (Section 4 below), and will report at regular intervals to the Executive
Committee through the Association President-Elect.
3.c) The General Assemblyi) The General Assembly will take place at all Congresses, and may be attended bt active
Members in Good Standing, under the Chairmanship of the outgoing President. The
Secretary-General of The Association will also be the Congress Secretary of the General
Assembly.
ii) The Agenda of every General Assembly of The Association will start with the following
items:ii.a) Acceptance of the Minutes of the previous General Assembly.
ii.b) Receipt of the President’s Annual Report.
ii.c) Receipt of the Statement of Accounts from the Honorary Treasurer.
ii.d) Election of the new Executive Committee and, where appropriate, Subcommittees.
Proposals for Executive Committee Office Bearers or Councilors (with the exception ofthe President-Elect) shall be made and seconded in writing by members in Good
Standing and shall reach the Secretary-General of the Association at least two (2)months prior to the General Assembly (Article 4.a.iv). No proposal for any post on theExecutive Committee shall be accepted from the floor.
iii) The General Assembly may on occasion be asked to ratify acceptance or accept applications
from those who apply for Membership of The Association as presented by the Membership
Secretary.
iv) The General Assembly shall approve the Membership dues as set by the ExecutiveCommittee.
v) The decision regarding the location of the Congress to be held in the fourth year following
any General Assembly will be voted on at the General Assembly, in addition to the post ofPresident of that Congress, who shall then become President Elect of The Associationfollowing the subsequent Congress.
vi) The outgoing Executive Committee will then hand over the Association to the newly elected
Committee, and Chairmanship of the General Assembly will be assumed by the newAssociation President before any other business is conducted. Where appropriate theoutgoing Secretary-General and Honorary Treasurer shall hand over all relevant papers tothe incoming Secretary-General and Honorary Treasurer. The incoming Secretary-Generalshall thereupon assume the task of Secretary of the General Assembly.
3.d) Meetings.

i) At all General and Executive Committee meetings, the Chairman will always have an extra
casting vote in the event of a tied vote.
ii) Voting at all meetings will be by show of hands, (with the exception of secret ballots when
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voting in the election of Association Officers), each Member in Good Standing present
being entitled to one vote. Occasionally postal ballot lists may be sent to Members for postal
voting.
Members in Good Standing may however vote by proxy at any General Assembly or
Extraordinary General Assembly, provided that their proxy is assigned in writing to the proxyholder, who must themselves be a Member in Good Standing of the Association.

--------------------------------------- 4: THE CONGRESS ---------------------------------------4.a) TimingThe Congress of The Association shall be held every two (2) years. The organization, costs,
disbursements and scientific programme of the Congress will be the responsibility of the hostcountry Association, which will also appoint the President of the Congress, Congress
subcommittees, and so on.
4.b) Preparation

Before announcing the Congress, the host Association will submit a general draught of theCongress programme to the Executive Committee. This programme shall allocate time for theExecutive Committee meetings, and for The Association General Assembly.
4.c) Invitations

The host Association will send invitations to all The Association Members to participate in theCongress, and at least one year in advance will send preliminary information on the Congress toeach Member of The Association.
4.d) Congress Members

All those who have paid the registration fee, including but not limited to Association Memberspresent at the Congress, and whose membership is in good standing, will be Congress Members.
Others entitled to attend Congresses are: (a) bona fide trainees of nationally-approved medical andlaser training programmes; (b) Family members of attendees; (c) guests invited by TheAssociation to attend the Congress by virtue of their contribution to the scientific programme; and(d), members of registered Congress commercial exhibitors. No member of any of the abovegroups (a) - (d) shall be able to participate in, or vote at, the General Assembly, unless they are
already registered Members in Good Standing.
4.e) Congress Language

The official language of the Congress will always be English. The Organizing Committee may, attheir initiative and Congress Organizing Committee expense, offer translation services.

------------------------------------------ 5: FINANCES ------------------------------------------5.a) Financial YearThe ‘Financial Year’ runs from January 1st to December 31st of each year.
5.b) Funds

The funds of The Association will be the responsibility the Honorary Treasurer, and kept in anagreed bank or banks. Funds may be withdrawn by the Honorary Treasurer for any use approvedby the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee may make investments in the name of theAssociation, with the President and Honorary Treasurer in charge of any such transactions
5.c) Dissolution of The Association

If The Association is for any reason whatsoever, the property of The Association will be sold orauctioned off, and the proceeds from any such sale or auction shall be donated, together with any
outstanding surplus Association funds, to a deserving and recognised charity chosen by theoutgoing Executive Committee.
5.f) Non-Profit Status

The Association will maintain itself as a nonprofit organization, no personal gain accruing to The
Association from its meetings’ proceeds or membership dues.
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IPTA Bylaws

------------------------------------ 6: OFFICIAL JOURNAL ------------------------------------The official Journal of The Association shall be ‘Laser Therapy’, published by IMLIS, Tokyo,Japan.

---------------------------- 7: VOTING AND CHANGES TO RULES ----------------------------8.a) Voting

General Assembly and in the Executive Committee voting will be by the Majority. In the event ofa tied vote, the decision will rest with the Chairman of the Congress or Committee meeting.

IPTA Bylaws

Page 5 of 68.b) Amendments.

i) The Articles of Association and Bylaws of The Association may be added to, altered oramended only at the General Assembly, or at a Special General Meeting called for that
purpose (see Article 8.b.ii below).
ii) Notice of a suggested change to any of the Articles of Association and Bylaws can be madein writing to the Secretary-General at least three months before the Executive Committeeor General Assembly meetings. A report of all proposed changes in the Articles ofAssociation and Bylaws shall be made to the General Assembly, and changes may then be
made with the approval of a two-thirds majority vote of the Assembly. No changes may be
proposed from the floor of any General Assembly,
Respectfully submitted for ratification at the first IPTA General Assembly, Suwa City,
Nagano Prefecture, Japan.
Yoshimi Asagai MD,President, IPTA

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IPTA Bylaws