Counseling License from Illinois to Connecticut: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Connecticut Department of Public Health, Practitioner Licensing and Investigations Section, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) ↗
A counseling license transfers from Illinois to Connecticut by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Connecticut Department of Public Health, Practitioner Licensing and Investigations Section, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), verify your Illinois license, and meet Connecticut's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken: Connecticut accepts a passed NCE or NCMHCE (NBCC), and applicants who already passed either do not sit again. There is no Connecticut jurisprudence exam. Under the 4-year universal route (CGS 19a-14d) the Department's page says applicants are not required to complete an examination, although the statute lets the Department require all or part of the licensing exam..
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Neither state gives you a working compact route here: a state that has enacted the Counseling Compact but is not yet operational behaves like a non-member. The route is endorsement through the Connecticut Department of Public Health, Practitioner Licensing and Investigations Section, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC): your Illinois license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under Connecticut's own exam rule, and Connecticut applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which Connecticut tier corresponds to your Illinois license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.
What changes, Illinois → Connecticut
| Illinois (current) | Connecticut (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Licensure by endorsement | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $150 (LCPC application fee (all methods, incl. endorsement) per 68 IAC 1375.205(a)(1) and the IDFPR LPC/LCPC instruction packet; nonrefundable. No separate license-issuance fee listed. Other-state certification fees are charged by those boards. Illinois is not a Counseling Compact state, so there is no privilege fee.) | $200 (Professional Counselor initial application fee per CGS 20-195cc(a) and the Department's Professional Counselor Licensing page. The Department's LPC requirements page also says 'There is no application fee for this license', which conflicts with both the statute and the licensing page, so the statutory $200 is recorded here. Out-of-state license-verification fees are charged separately by the other states.) |
| Processing time | IDFPR publishes no processing timeframe. The instruction packet only says to allow 6 weeks from mailing before asking about status. Applications are valid for 3 years. | 3–4 weeks (DPH general licensing policy: once an application is complete, an eligibility determination is made 'within three to four weeks'. The clock starts only when the application file is complete.) |
| Licensing authority | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation: Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor (LCPC) | Connecticut Department of Public Health, Practitioner Licensing and Investigations Section, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Connecticut sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Connecticut's current requirements on the Connecticut Department of Public Health, Practitioner Licensing and Investigations Section, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Connecticut Department of Public Health, Practitioner Licensing and Investigations Section, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current professional counselor license (or equivalent) in another U.S. state or jurisdiction, with no disciplinary action or unresolved complaints.
- Show the other state's requirements are substantially similar to or higher than Connecticut's (CGS 20-195dd(c)), or have practiced under that license for at least 4 years under CGS 19a-14d.
- Have license verification sent directly from every state licensing authority where a counselor license is or was held.
- Show passage of the NCE or NCMHCE, unless applying through the 4-year route.
- Complete a state and national fingerprint-based criminal history records check (CGS 20-195ii).
- Apply online through eLicense.
- Pay the fees ($200 (Professional Counselor initial application fee per CGS 20-195cc(a) and the Department's Professional Counselor Licensing page. The Department's LPC requirements page also says 'There is no application fee for this license', which conflicts with both the statute and the licensing page, so the statutory $200 is recorded here. Out-of-state license-verification fees are charged separately by the other states.)) and allow 3–4 weeks (DPH general licensing policy: once an application is complete, an eligibility determination is made 'within three to four weeks'. The clock starts only when the application file is complete.).
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Connecticut accept an Illinois counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from Illinois to Connecticut by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Connecticut Department of Public Health, Practitioner Licensing and Investigations Section, Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), verify your Illinois license, and meet Connecticut's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken: Connecticut accepts a passed NCE or NCMHCE (NBCC), and applicants who already passed either do not sit again. There is no Connecticut jurisprudence exam. Under the 4-year universal route (CGS 19a-14d) the Department's page says applicants are not required to complete an examination, although the statute lets the Department require all or part of the licensing exam..
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from Illinois to Connecticut?
National exam is not retaken: Connecticut accepts a passed NCE or NCMHCE (NBCC), and applicants who already passed either do not sit again. There is no Connecticut jurisprudence exam. Under the 4-year universal route (CGS 19a-14d) the Department's page says applicants are not required to complete an examination, although the statute lets the Department require all or part of the licensing exam.
What does the move cost?
$200 (Professional Counselor initial application fee per CGS 20-195cc(a) and the Department's Professional Counselor Licensing page. The Department's LPC requirements page also says 'There is no application fee for this license', which conflicts with both the statute and the licensing page, so the statutory $200 is recorded here. Out-of-state license-verification fees are charged separately by the other states.)
How long will it take?
3–4 weeks (DPH general licensing policy: once an application is complete, an eligibility determination is made 'within three to four weeks'. The clock starts only when the application file is complete.)
Connecticut joined the Counseling Compact. Can I use a privilege there?
Not yet. Connecticut had enacted the compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-09-27, so counseling clients located in Connecticut takes Connecticut's own authorization, normally a Connecticut license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- Connecticut DPH: Professional Counselor License Requirements (NCE/NCMHCE, out-of-state experience substitution, verification) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Connecticut DPH: Professional Counselor Licensing (fees, 4-year route link, Counseling Compact notice) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Connecticut DPH: Applicants Licensed in Another US State for at Least 4 Years ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Connecticut General Statutes Chapter 383c (CGS 20-195cc fees; 20-195dd(c) endorsement, (d) experience substitution) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Connecticut General Statutes Chapter 368a (CGS 19a-14d, license for persons practicing 4+ years in another U.S. jurisdiction) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Connecticut DPH: Practitioner Licensure General Policies and Procedures (3-4 week eligibility determination) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- IDFPR: Professional Counselor (license types, CORE online applications) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- IDFPR: LPC/LCPC application instruction sheet (Examination, Acceptance of Examination, Endorsement; packet updated 8/1/24) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- 68 IAC 1375.160 Licensure by Endorsement as a Clinical Professional Counselor (ILGA JCAR; Internet Archive capture 2025-03-30) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- 68 IAC 1375.205 Fees (ILGA JCAR; Internet Archive capture 2025-03-26) ↗ (accessed 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]