Counseling License from Maine to Michigan: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Michigan Board of Counseling (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) ↗
A counseling license transfers from Maine to Michigan by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Michigan Board of Counseling (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC), verify your Maine license, and meet Michigan's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken. Michigan accepts one passing score from the NCE, the CRCC exam or the NCMHCE (R 338.1773). Applicants fully licensed in another state for 5+ years are presumed to meet the degree and exam requirements (R 338.1775(2)) and submit only a Professional Disclosure Statement beyond the common items. Applicants licensed under 5 years must have exam scores sent directly by the testing agency. No Michigan jurisprudence exam..
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
A counseling license moves from Maine to Michigan 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. You apply to the Michigan Board of Counseling (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC), which verifies your Maine license and standing, matches it to Michigan's independent tier, and applies its own rule on crediting your national exam score, plus any Michigan jurisprudence and background requirements.
What changes, Maine → Michigan
| Maine (current) | Michigan (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing | Licensure by endorsement |
| Application fee | $200 (license fee listed on the Board's Licensing and Forms page; + $21 criminal history record check fee; non-refundable; biennial renewal $200. Maine is not yet issuing Counseling Compact privileges.) | $259.05 ('Professional Counselor By Endorsement - $259.05' per the LARA licensing guide (rev. 4/17/25). This is a combined application fee plus 3-year license fee, paid by card. Fingerprint fees are paid separately under the instructions LARA sends after the application. Michigan has not enacted the Counseling Compact.) |
| Processing time | the Board publishes no processing timeframe; endorsement applications are decided at public Board meetings | the LARA licensing guide states no processing timeframe for endorsement applications |
| Licensing authority | Maine Board of Counseling Professionals Licensure, Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor, LCPC) | Michigan Board of Counseling (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Michigan sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Michigan's current requirements on the Michigan Board of Counseling (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Michigan Board of Counseling (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a full professional counselor license in another U.S. state (5+ years creates a presumption that degree and exam requirements are met).
- If licensed under 5 years, send official master's or doctoral counseling transcripts and exam scores; non-CACREP programs need a CCE or NACES equivalency evaluation.
- Have license verification sent by every jurisdiction where you hold or held a license, showing no pending discipline or sanctions.
- Submit a Professional Disclosure Statement.
- Complete the criminal background check (fingerprints) after the application is submitted.
- Complete one-time human trafficking identification training (R 338.1771) and 2 hours of implicit bias training within 5 years before licensure.
- Pay the fees ($259.05 ('Professional Counselor By Endorsement - $259.05' per the LARA licensing guide (rev. 4/17/25). This is a combined application fee plus 3-year license fee, paid by card. Fingerprint fees are paid separately under the instructions LARA sends after the application. Michigan has not enacted the Counseling Compact.)) and allow the LARA licensing guide states no processing timeframe for endorsement applications.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Michigan accept a Maine counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from Maine to Michigan by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Michigan Board of Counseling (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC), verify your Maine license, and meet Michigan's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken. Michigan accepts one passing score from the NCE, the CRCC exam or the NCMHCE (R 338.1773). Applicants fully licensed in another state for 5+ years are presumed to meet the degree and exam requirements (R 338.1775(2)) and submit only a Professional Disclosure Statement beyond the common items. Applicants licensed under 5 years must have exam scores sent directly by the testing agency. No Michigan jurisprudence exam..
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from Maine to Michigan?
National exam is not retaken. Michigan accepts one passing score from the NCE, the CRCC exam or the NCMHCE (R 338.1773). Applicants fully licensed in another state for 5+ years are presumed to meet the degree and exam requirements (R 338.1775(2)) and submit only a Professional Disclosure Statement beyond the common items. Applicants licensed under 5 years must have exam scores sent directly by the testing agency. No Michigan jurisprudence exam.
What does the move cost?
$259.05 ('Professional Counselor By Endorsement - $259.05' per the LARA licensing guide (rev. 4/17/25). This is a combined application fee plus 3-year license fee, paid by card. Fingerprint fees are paid separately under the instructions LARA sends after the application. Michigan has not enacted the Counseling Compact.)
How long will it take?
the LARA licensing guide states no processing timeframe for endorsement applications.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- LARA: Michigan Professional Counselor Licensing Guide, rev. 4/17/25 (endorsement requirements, $259.05 fee; Internet Archive capture 2026-03-29) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Michigan Admin. Code R 338.1751-R 338.1781, Counseling General Rules (R 338.1773 exams; R 338.1775 licensure by endorsement; Internet Archive capture 2026-02-11 of the official ARS compilation) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- LARA: Counseling licensing page (Internet Archive capture 2026-01-16) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Maine Board of Counseling Professionals Licensure: Licensing and Forms (LCPC description, exams, fees, endorsement per Rule 6-A) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Board Rules Chapter 6-A: Licensure by Endorsement (effective 2023-04-01) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- 32 M.R.S. §13857: Nonresidents; applicants licensed in another jurisdiction; licensure by endorsement ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Board minutes 2026-03-23 (LCPC endorsement comparable-jurisdiction vote) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
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