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Counseling License from Georgia to New Mexico: Does It Transfer? (2026)

Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) ↗

A counseling license transfers from Georgia to New Mexico by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC), verify your Georgia license, and meet New Mexico's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken at application: expedited licensure by credentials (16.27.24 NMAC) relies on a current license from an approved jurisdiction. New Mexico's own LPCC route requires both the NCE and the NCMHCE (16.27.4 NMAC). An expedited licensee whose home jurisdiction did not require an exam New Mexico requires must pass it before the first renewal (16.27.24.12(B) NMAC). No New Mexico jurisprudence exam is listed..

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Verdict

Licensure by endorsement

New Mexico has not enacted the Counseling Compact, so no privilege anchored to your Georgia license reaches it. The route is endorsement through the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC): your Georgia license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under New Mexico's own exam rule, and New Mexico applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which New Mexico tier corresponds to your Georgia license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.

What changes, Georgia → New Mexico

Side-by-side: Georgia vs New Mexico (Counseling (LPC / LMHC)), verified 2026-09-27
Georgia (current)New Mexico (destination)
Counseling Compact statusCounseling Compact member — compact privilege to practiceLicensure by endorsement
Application fee$100 ($100 non-refundable LPC endorsement application fee; the 05/02/2023 paper form lists $110, which includes a $10 mail-in processing fee. The current online GOALS fee schedule (goals.sos.ga.gov) returned HTTP 403 and could not be checked. Fingerprint background check paid separately to the vendor; NBCC score-report fee separate. NOT the Counseling Compact privilege fee (Georgia charges $100 + $30 commission admin fee = $130 for a privilege; no jurisprudence exam).)$75 (nonrefundable application fee (16.27.17 NMAC); + $220 initial license fee before issuance; military service members and veterans are not charged licensing fees for the first three years of expedited licensure)
Processing time~5 weeks (the endorsement application form says to allow up to 25 business days (about 5 weeks) to process a complete application. The Board may also take up the file at a meeting, and an application must be complete 15 days before a meeting to be placed on its agenda. Incomplete applications are withdrawn after 60 days.)~4.3 weeks (16.27.24 NMAC: staff shall issue the expedited license to a qualified applicant within 30 days of receiving a complete application (30 days converted to 4.3 weeks); applications with a potential cause for denial go to the next Board meeting)
Licensing authorityGeorgia Composite Board of Professional Counselors, Social Workers and Marriage & Family Therapists (Secretary of State), Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC)New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC)

The destination column is what you must satisfy — New Mexico sets the rules for this move.

Step by step

  1. Confirm New Mexico's current requirements on the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) website (linked below) — rules change.
  2. Submit the endorsement application to the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) (application linked below).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
  4. Hold a current, unrestricted license in good standing of an approved type from a jurisdiction listed in 16.27.24.8 NMAC (e.g., Ohio/Minnesota/North Dakota LPCC, Illinois LCPC, Indiana LMHC).
  5. Have practiced as a licensed professional for at least two consecutive years immediately before applying.
  6. Hold a master's or doctoral degree in counseling or a counseling-related field from an accredited institution.
  7. Have no formal disciplinary action by any licensing board within the past two years.
  8. Apply through the RLD online licensing portal (paper applications not accepted).
  9. Pay the fees ($75 (nonrefundable application fee (16.27.17 NMAC); + $220 initial license fee before issuance; military service members and veterans are not charged licensing fees for the first three years of expedited licensure)) and allow ~4.3 weeks (16.27.24 NMAC: staff shall issue the expedited license to a qualified applicant within 30 days of receiving a complete application (30 days converted to 4.3 weeks); applications with a potential cause for denial go to the next Board meeting).

Official links

New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) ↗New Mexico application ↗

Related guides

Reverse: New Mexico → GeorgiaCounseling in GeorgiaCounseling in New MexicoAll counseling statesThe Counseling Compact explained

Frequently asked questions

Does New Mexico accept a Georgia counseling license?

A counseling license transfers from Georgia to New Mexico by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC), verify your Georgia license, and meet New Mexico's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken at application: expedited licensure by credentials (16.27.24 NMAC) relies on a current license from an approved jurisdiction. New Mexico's own LPCC route requires both the NCE and the NCMHCE (16.27.4 NMAC). An expedited licensee whose home jurisdiction did not require an exam New Mexico requires must pass it before the first renewal (16.27.24.12(B) NMAC). No New Mexico jurisprudence exam is listed..

Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from Georgia to New Mexico?

National exam is not retaken at application: expedited licensure by credentials (16.27.24 NMAC) relies on a current license from an approved jurisdiction. New Mexico's own LPCC route requires both the NCE and the NCMHCE (16.27.4 NMAC). An expedited licensee whose home jurisdiction did not require an exam New Mexico requires must pass it before the first renewal (16.27.24.12(B) NMAC). No New Mexico jurisprudence exam is listed.

What does the move cost?

$75 (nonrefundable application fee (16.27.17 NMAC); + $220 initial license fee before issuance; military service members and veterans are not charged licensing fees for the first three years of expedited licensure)

How long will it take?

~4.3 weeks (16.27.24 NMAC: staff shall issue the expedited license to a qualified applicant within 30 days of receiving a complete application (30 days converted to 4.3 weeks); applications with a potential cause for denial go to the next Board meeting)

Sources

Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.

Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27

How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]