Fortune Tellers: A License Full of Hocus Pocus

Ethan Kelley, Conor Norris

October 31, 2024

It’s a Halloween night in an old New England town. You grow disenchanted with the Candy Corn and Monster Mash at the Halloween party your friends drug you to, so you set off into the night looking for some more authentic fun. A crispness hangs in the air, and with it, the first signs of the approaching winter. Something catches your eye. You duck down behind an old cobblestone wall standing along the street, enveloped by the darkness of the night. You move closer and see a dark figure faintly looming, half-hidden in a doorway. As you slowly approach the figure, you see a woman, wryly smiling, beckoning you to join her. At first, she stands in silence, every rational bone in your body tells you to run but you feel drawn to her, almost mesmerized. She speaks in a soft tone, offering you promises of deeper truths unseen to the human eye.

You attempted to walk away but couldn’t, as you found yourself trapped in a web of your own curiosity. Then, a sudden cold gust of wind pushes you toward her. You pass through the narrow and crooked doorway; the wood swollen and bruised by time. The woman bids you to follow her deeper into the house, towards a dark room. Candles were scattered throughout the room, providing a dim glow. What shadows remained, concealed as much as the light revealed. A worn and tattered tapestry hangs from the wall behind her, while the others are covered with shelves filled with dusty objects.

She gestures for you to join her at the table in the center of the room. As you sit, she takes your hand, studying it for what feels like a lifetime. Suddenly, she drops it and draws from a deck of tarot cards that you swear had not been on the table a moment before. After flipping three cards—a joker, a thief, and an old woman—she pauses and looks at you dead in the eyes. No, not the eyes, it’s as if she is looking through you, beyond you, to somewhere or something deeper. Your mind begins to race. What does she see? What do these cards mean? What terrible truth could she hold?

After appearing to listen to something, or someone, the woman leans in. In almost a whisper, she tells you something more terrifying than you could have imagined.

She is unlicensed!

Fortune Tellers are a Halloween staple. They provide some mystical fun, pulling back the veil of the future and revealing what no one else can see. Some people swear that they are real, while others just like the atmosphere. But how do you tell who’s a legitimate fortune teller and who isn’t?

Who can see into the future is governed by mystery and spiritual connection. And in some places, the government.

That’s right, in some places, even fortune tellers need a license. Only those who are clairvoyant enough to make it through the red tape can offer us a glimpse into the future.

What requirements do cities put in the way of fortune tellers? Are there any required ESP tests administered by highly trained professionals, like Dr. Peter Venkman? In Massachusetts, fortune tellers are licensed by municipalities. Section 185I of the Massachusetts General Laws specifies that fortune tellers are licensed at the local and municipal level. Typically, a licensee must reside in the town for at least a year, have a clean criminal record, and pay a fee. Some places go further, requiring a hearing and limiting where they can practice. There may be no exam on reading tea leaves or interpreting auguries, but these regulations still create genuine barriers.

Fortune teller licensing may seem like a joke, but it can help us shed light on how licensing really works.

Massachusetts’s fortune teller licensing law dates back hundreds of years. It was designed to stop gypsies and traveling carnivals from coming through town and using tricks to defraud unwitting residents. Governments are responsible to protect residents from fraud, especially when the perpetrator would be difficult or impossible to find.

The town of Salem can provide a second insight. Salem is a huge tourist destination, especially around Halloween thanks to the Salem Witch trials. Requiring licenses and limiting them to locals could be an attempt to keep the town from being overwhelmed, especially during Halloween. A barrier to entry, even a relatively minor one, can help accomplish this. Over 300 other professions require a license to work, which covers about 20% of workers in the United States. Occupational licensing laws make it illegal for an individual to offer services within a profession without first meeting specific requirements.

In practice, licensing laws can be complex, with extremely specific requirements. For instance, they typically require applicants to meet education requirements, specifying the type of degree and sometimes regulating the types of courses or subjects included. They can range from a high school diploma or a certificate program, to a formal college education. In addition, applicants need to take an exam and gain experience to qualify for a license.

States implement licensing laws to protect consumers from low-quality professionals whose services could cause harm. Surprisingly, the earliest licensing laws had a similar inspiration as fortune teller laws. Medical licensing laws were designed to professionalize and standardize medicine, but a major component was also outlawing hucksters like snake oil salesmen. The education, experience, and exams that are required for licensure today are designed to improve the quality of services. Unfortunately, in practice they don’t seem to live up to that goal.

Licensing laws create barriers to entry into a profession. Although these requirements are intended to protect consumers, they can discourage aspiring professionals from entering the field. In fact, licensing laws reduce the number of professionals by 25 percent. By limiting competition, licensing often benefits those who obtain a license, allowing them to charge higher prices—a key reason many professionals support these regulations.

Testing a fortune teller’s powers of clairvoyance sounds silly. But licensing exams may not do a good job for other professions. Even the American School Counselor Association admits that licensing exams “may not accurately measure quality of knowledge.”

Consumer protection is important, and often some form of regulation is necessary to accomplish this. Licensing laws can be costly for both aspiring professionals and consumers, but there are other forms of regulation that states can rely on. For instance, certification would allow people without licenses to practice, just not use the professional title. Mandating that professionals have insurance coverage can protect consumers from certain damages, and facility inspections can prevent other types of harms. Licensing is far from the only option.

Licensing laws are well-intentioned, whether for funeral directors, foresters, or even fortune tellers. But they can also stifle competition and create unnecessary barriers. Fortune teller licensing seems like a Halloween trick, but not only is it real, it can teach us a lot about the effects of licensing laws.