Membership Information for New Hampshire Optometric Association

On this page, you will find the form to complete a new NHOA membership application, and information about your 2022  dues.  Any questions should be sent to the Executive Director at executivedirector@nheyedoctors.org.

Please email executivedirector@www.nheyedoctors.org or nheyedoctors@comcast.net and we will send you the current membership application.  It is a simple form and should only take you a couple of minutes to complete (pages 1 and 3 only, you can skip page 2).

General Dues Information:

Full annual dues for 2021 (NHOA and AOA) are $1703.  If you are on the ascending dues scale, or if you are in Partial Practice status, your dues are reduced proportionally.  See below for details, or contact the NHOA office if you have questions about these options.  If you are in any special dues classification status, contact the office to find out your dues amount for 2021.

THE TAX REFORM ACT OF 1993:  Contributions or gifts to the American Optometric Association and/or the New Hampshire Optometric Association are not tax deductible as charitable contributions for income tax purposes.  However, they may be tax deductible as ordinary and necessary business expenses subject to restrictions imposed as a result of association lobbying activities.  The American Optometric Association and the New Hampshire Optometric Association estimate that the non-deductible portion of your 2019 dues – the portion that is allocable to lobbying – is 11 %.

The NHOA Board recommends an additional voluntary contribution to the NHOA-PAC, the recommended 2021 amounts are $200 for the NHOA-PAC and  $100 for the AOA-PAC.

AOA requires dues to be collected and forwarded on at least a quarterly basis.  A member whose dues are not received by the NHOA in time to meet the AOA forwarding deadline (two weeks after the end of each quarter) will be dropped by AOA.  You must keep your dues paid at least through the previous quarter.  (The Treasurer is authorized to make individual arrangements with members to modify this timetable when circumstances warrant.)  If your practice pays your dues, it is up to you to give them the bills and make sure they are paid on time!

AOA and NHOA do consider granting dues waivers in case of a member’s “economic misfortune or partial or total disability.”  These are handled on an individual basis by the Treasurer.  Contact the NHOA office for details.

NHOA offers two methods of dues payment:  Credit Card and Check.  We prefer credit card payments because if you pay by credit card you will automatically meet the AOA requirements.  We currently accept Visa, American Express, Discover and MasterCard.  To make this work, it is vital that you keep us informed if you change to a different credit card with a new number, or if you get a card with a new expiration date.  If your card charge is declined, it creates extra work and adds to everyone’s stress level.  If your card is declined twice, there will be a $25 service charge added to your balance due.

If you choose to pay by credit card, we will set up automatic monthly, quarterly or annual charges to the credit card you give us.  The amount will be sufficient to cover both your dues and your voluntary PAC donations unless you tell us you do NOT wish to make the voluntary PAC contributions. 

If you wish to pay your dues by check, you will receive monthly invoices (by email) from the NHOA around the beginning of each month, until the full amount is paid.   Please be on the lookout for these statements – and if you change your email address, please let us know!   If you are going to pay by check, make it out to “New Hampshire Optometric Association” and mail it to:

NHOA

466 Washington Road

Rye NH  03870

Thank you!

(Scroll down for important information about the Ascending Dues scale, partial practice status requirements, and Retired Member status.)

2021 Ascending Dues Scale information:

The year you graduate from optometry school or complete a residency is free

The first year after that, dues (NHOA and AOA) are 10%

The next year after that, dues are 20%

The year after that, dues are 50%

The year after that, dues are 75%

From that point on, dues are 100%

Example:  If you graduated from optometry school or completed a residency in 2018 –

2018 – free

2019 – 10% dues

2020 – 20% dues

2021 – 50% dues

2022 – 75% dues

2023 and beyond – full dues

Partial Practice Status information:

If you work (on average) 16 hours per week (2 days) or less in “compensated optometry-related activities” you are eligible for Partial Practice status with both NHOA and AOA, and your 2018 dues are 60% .  You have the same payment options (credit card or check, annual, quarterly or monthly payments) as those who pay full dues.  You must request Partial Practice  status by checking the box on the Response Page (see the link above), certifying that your compensated optometry-related activities average less than 16 hours per week.  You must re-certify every year.

“Compensated optometry related activities” include not only patient care, but also practice administration, teaching, or any other paid activity related to optometry.  If you are in doubt, call the NHOA office to discuss your status.

2021 Associate, Student, Retired and Post-Graduate Member Status Information:

2021 Student Member dues continue to be free.
2021 Associate Member dues continue to be $75 if you are licensed in NH, $25 if you are not.
2021 Post-Graduate Member dues continue to be free, but you must pay the appropriate AOA dues.
2021 Retired Member dues continue to be $25, plus $100 for AOA if you have elected the “with benefits” category.  If you retire during 2021 (or plan to) please do not wait until after you have retired to contact the NHOA office and let us know!  We need to start processing your status change as soon as possible.

Any questions should be sent to the Executive Director at executivedirector@nheyedoctors.org.