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Counseling License from Kentucky to Tennessee: Does It Transfer? (2026)

Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists ↗

Yes — Tennessee has a reciprocity arrangement covering Kentucky license holders. Apply to the Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists under its reciprocity/endorsement track; typically you skip the national exam and complete state-specific requirements only.

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Verdict

Reciprocity agreement

Tennessee names Kentucky on its published reciprocity list, so the Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists handles your application on that track, provided you meet the agreement's conditions (license tier, and in some agreements a minimum number of years' experience). Confirm the list is current with the board before you file. Tennessee is operational in the Counseling Compact, but Kentucky is not, so there is no home-state license here to anchor a privilege. Once you hold a Tennessee license and live in Tennessee, it can anchor privileges into the other operational states.

What changes, Kentucky → Tennessee

Side-by-side: Kentucky vs Tennessee (Counseling (LPC / LMHC)), verified 2026-09-27
Kentucky (current)Tennessee (destination)
Counseling Compact statusCounseling Compact enacted — not yet issuingCounseling Compact member — compact privilege to practice
Application fee$150 (application fee for licensure as a professional counselor per 201 KAR 36:020 Section 1(1), which 201 KAR 36:072 applies to reciprocity applicants; non-refundable; FBI fingerprinting paid separately to the vendor; annual renewal also $150. Kentucky is not yet issuing Counseling Compact privileges.)$200 (LPC/MHSP application fee per Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0450-01-.06(4)(c) and the application checklist; + $10 state regulatory fee ($210 total at application); background-check vendor fee separate. NOT the Counseling Compact privilege fee (Tennessee's total privilege cost is $210 including the $30 commission fee, and it requires a jurisprudence exam, per the commission's fee table).)
Processing timeno processing timeframe is published; the Board FAQ says complete applications go to the monthly Board meeting's Applications Committeeno timeframe published; files completed at least 30 days before a Board meeting are ordinarily processed at that meeting (0450-01-.05(5)(c)), and the application asks applicants to allow 14 working days for mailed documents to be filed
Licensing authorityKentucky Board of Licensed Professional Counselors (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC)Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists

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

Step by step

  1. Confirm Tennessee's current requirements on the Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists website (linked below) — rules change.
  2. Submit the reciprocity application to the Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists (application linked below).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
  4. Hold the highest-level independent counselor license (LPC/MHSP or equivalent) in another jurisdiction, active for at least 3 of the 5 years before applying and not encumbered (2019 Board policy); under the named KY agreement, 5 years' experience as an LPCC or LPC/MHSP.
  5. Pass the Tennessee Jurisprudence Examination.
  6. Submit verification from every state where ever licensed, sent directly to the Board, plus a copy of the other state's licensing law and rules in effect when licensed.
  7. Submit two letters of recommendation from licensed mental health professionals, a certified birth certificate, a notarized Declaration of Citizenship and a passport-style photo.
  8. Complete a criminal background check through the Board's vendor.
  9. Pay the fees ($200 (LPC/MHSP application fee per Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0450-01-.06(4)(c) and the application checklist; + $10 state regulatory fee ($210 total at application); background-check vendor fee separate. NOT the Counseling Compact privilege fee (Tennessee's total privilege cost is $210 including the $30 commission fee, and it requires a jurisprudence exam, per the commission's fee table).)) and allow no timeframe published; files completed at least 30 days before a Board meeting are ordinarily processed at that meeting (0450-01-.05(5)(c)), and the application asks applicants to allow 14 working days for mailed documents to be filed.

Official links

Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists ↗Tennessee application ↗Counseling Compact ↗

Related guides

Reverse: Tennessee → KentuckyCounseling in KentuckyCounseling in TennesseeAll counseling statesThe Counseling Compact explained

Frequently asked questions

Does Tennessee accept a Kentucky counseling license?

Yes — Tennessee has a reciprocity arrangement covering Kentucky license holders. Apply to the Tennessee Board for Licensed Professional Counselors, Licensed Marital and Family Therapists, and Licensed Clinical Pastoral Therapists under its reciprocity/endorsement track; typically you skip the national exam and complete state-specific requirements only.

Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from Kentucky to Tennessee?

National exams are not retaken on the reciprocity route: the reciprocity rule (0450-01-.04(5)) and the Board's 2019 reciprocity policy require only the Tennessee Jurisprudence Exam, whose results are sent to the Board by NBCC. Exam-route applicants must pass the NCE and NCMHCE.

What does the move cost?

$200 (LPC/MHSP application fee per Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0450-01-.06(4)(c) and the application checklist; + $10 state regulatory fee ($210 total at application); background-check vendor fee separate. NOT the Counseling Compact privilege fee (Tennessee's total privilege cost is $210 including the $30 commission fee, and it requires a jurisprudence exam, per the commission's fee table).)

How long will it take?

no timeframe published; files completed at least 30 days before a Board meeting are ordinarily processed at that meeting (0450-01-.05(5)(c)), and the application asks applicants to allow 14 working days for mailed documents to be filed.

Will a Tennessee license get me into other compact states?

Yes, once Tennessee is your home state. Tennessee is operational, so an active, unencumbered Tennessee license held while you live there can anchor privileges into the other operational states through CompactConnect.

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]