Counseling License from Indiana to Florida: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Florida accept an Indiana counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from Indiana to Florida by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling (Florida Department of Health), Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), verify your Indiana license, and meet Florida's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken: the Board's LMHC page names the NCMHCE (NBCC) as the accepted exam, and an out-of-state applicant has NBCC send an official score report directly to the Board. Section 456.0145 accepts 'a passing score on a national licensure examination or ... a national certification recognized by the board'; the Board does not state whether an NCE-only licensee qualifies. No separate jurisprudence exam, but an 8-hour Florida Laws and Rules course is required before licensure.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
A counseling license moves from Indiana to Florida by endorsement. Florida has enacted the Counseling Compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-10-29, so your Indiana license cannot reach it through the compact yet. You apply to the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling (Florida Department of Health), Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC), which verifies your Indiana license and standing, matches it to Florida's independent tier, and applies its own rule on crediting your national exam score, plus any Florida jurisprudence and background requirements.
What's different between Indiana and Florida
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Florida. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Indiana to Florida (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Florida to Indiana (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Indiana matter?
Coming from Indiana does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Florida.
- Counseling Compact membership
Indiana is a Counseling Compact member state; Florida has enacted the Counseling Compact but is not issuing under it yet.
Because they are not both active members, the Counseling Compact does not cover this move.
- Application fee
Florida lists $100 for an out-of-state applicant and Indiana lists $50 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Exam rules on record
Florida and Indiana carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Florida (this move): National exam is not retaken: the Board's LMHC page names the NCMHCE (NBCC) as the accepted exam, and an out-of-state applicant has NBCC send an official score report directly to the Board. Section 456.0145 accepts 'a passing score on a national licensure examination or ... a national certification recognized by the board'; the Board does not state whether an NCE-only licensee qualifies. No separate jurisprudence exam, but an 8-hour Florida Laws and Rules course is required before licensure.
- Indiana (the reverse move): National exam is not retaken if the applicant passed the NCMHCE or an equivalent state-constructed exam at the same or higher level for the other-state license. NBCC sends the official NCMHCE score report to the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency. The NCE is NOT equivalent to the NCMHCE, so NCE-only licensees must take the NCMHCE in Indiana. Other exams are reviewed for equivalency by the Board. The Board's current LMHC reciprocity checklist lists no jurisprudence exam.
What changes, Indiana → Florida
| Indiana (current) | Florida (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Licensure by endorsement · Counseling Compact privilege (not a license) | Licensure by endorsement · Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $50 (LMHC reciprocity application fee, paid by card online; nonrefundable. Criminal background check paid separately to the vendor; other-state verification fees may apply; NBCC score-report fee separate. NOT the Counseling Compact privilege fee (Indiana charges a $50 state fee + $30 commission administrative fee = $80 for a privilege; no jurisprudence exam required for the privilege).) | $100 ($100 non-refundable application fee; the endorsement application also collects a $75 initial licensure fee + $5 unlicensed activity fee at submission ($180 total, $80 refundable if denied or withdrawn), per the Board's LMHC page and form DH-MQA 5048. Livescan fingerprinting paid separately to the vendor; NBCC score-report fee separate. Florida is not an operational compact state, so no privilege fee applies.) |
| Processing time | the Board publishes no processing timeframe for LMHC reciprocity applications | the Board's MOBILE Endorsement section asks applicants to 'allow up to 30 business days for initial review of new applications' and says the license issues within 7 days once all requirements are met (s. 456.0145(2)(e)); no end-to-end processing range is published |
| Licensing authority | Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Board (Indiana Professional Licensing Agency): Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) | Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling (Florida Department of Health), Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Florida sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Florida's current requirements on the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling (Florida Department of Health), Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling (Florida Department of Health), Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold an active, unencumbered mental health counseling license (similar scope of practice) in another state, DC or US territory.
- Have actively practiced for at least 2 of the 4 years immediately before applying, with no disciplinary action in the past 5 years and no pending disciplinary proceeding. A National Practitioner Data Bank report makes you ineligible unless it was removed on appeal; if the reported conduct would not violate Florida law, the Board decides case by case (approve, approve with restrictions or probation, or deny).
- Have NBCC send an official passing national exam score (NCMHCE) directly to the Board.
- Complete a Board-approved 8-hour Florida Laws and Rules course and a 3-hour HIV/AIDS course (or file the HIV/AIDS affidavit).
- Complete a Board-approved 2-hour domestic violence course within six months after licensure.
- Submit electronic Livescan fingerprints through an FDLE-approved vendor for background screening.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Florida joined the Counseling Compact. Can I use a privilege there?
Not yet. Florida had enacted the compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-10-29, so counseling clients located in Florida takes Florida's own authorization, normally a Florida license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-10-29.
- Florida 491 Board: Licensed Mental Health Counselor (License by MOBILE Endorsement requirements, courses, fees, processing) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Florida 491 Board: Application for Licensure by Endorsement, DH-MQA 5048 (rev. 2/2024; fee breakdown, course and score-report instructions) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Florida Statutes s. 491.006 Licensure or certification by endorsement (2026 Florida Statutes, Online Sunshine) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Florida Statutes s. 456.0145 MOBILE Act licensure by endorsement (2026 Florida Statutes, Online Sunshine) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Fla. Admin. Code 64B4-3.0035 Continuing Education Courses Required Prior to Licensure (8-hour laws and rules course; HIV/AIDS education), Florida Administrative Register ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Counseling Compact: state privilege fees and jurisprudence requirements ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Indiana PLA: Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Information (LMHC Reciprocity checklist, exam policy, Counseling Compact); Internet Archive capture 2026-10-10 ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-10-29
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