Counseling License from New Hampshire to Pennsylvania: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Pennsylvania accept a New Hampshire counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from New Hampshire to Pennsylvania by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors, verify your New Hampshire license, and meet Pennsylvania's endorsement requirements. No exam retake on the endorsement route: 49 Pa. Code 49.18 issues the license 'without examination'. Under the separate reciprocity rule (49.16) the Board accepts exam grades from another jurisdiction (e.g., the NCE) if the exam is similar and the passing grade at least equals Pennsylvania's, but only where that state grants reciprocity to Pennsylvania licensees. No state jurisprudence exam is required.
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Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Both states have enacted the Counseling Compact, but neither was issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-10-29. When both go operational, cross-border work between them could run on a privilege; a relocation would still need a Pennsylvania license. The route is endorsement through the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors: your New Hampshire license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under Pennsylvania's own exam rule, and Pennsylvania applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which Pennsylvania tier corresponds to your New Hampshire license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.
What's different between New Hampshire and Pennsylvania
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Pennsylvania. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
New Hampshire to Pennsylvania (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Pennsylvania to New Hampshire (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from New Hampshire matter?
Coming from New Hampshire does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Pennsylvania.
- Counseling Compact membership
New Hampshire has enacted the Counseling Compact but is not issuing under it yet; Pennsylvania 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
Pennsylvania lists $100 for an out-of-state applicant and New Hampshire lists $325 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Exam rules on record
Pennsylvania and New Hampshire carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Pennsylvania (this move): No exam retake on the endorsement route: 49 Pa. Code 49.18 issues the license 'without examination'. Under the separate reciprocity rule (49.16) the Board accepts exam grades from another jurisdiction (e.g., the NCE) if the exam is similar and the passing grade at least equals Pennsylvania's, but only where that state grants reciprocity to Pennsylvania licensees. No state jurisprudence exam is required.
- New Hampshire (the reverse move): National exam is not retaken. The OPLC endorsement route (RSA 310:17 / Plc 313) accepts a license from a qualifying jurisdiction whose pathway required the NCMHCE or an equivalent nationally recognized exam (Plc 313.37(a)(2)); license verification, not a separate NBCC score transfer, is required. No New Hampshire jurisprudence exam is listed for mental health practice endorsement.
What changes, New Hampshire → Pennsylvania
| New Hampshire (current) | Pennsylvania (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Licensure by endorsement · Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing | Licensure by endorsement · Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $325 (Clinical Mental Health Counselor application fee from the OPLC Mental Health Practice fee page; includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; same fee as in-state applicants. Criminal records check fee paid separately to NH Department of Safety (amount not verified).) | $100 (application fee for licensure and original license issuance as an LPC per 49 Pa. Code 47.4(6); no separate endorsement fee is listed. Pennsylvania is a pending Counseling Compact state, so no privilege fee applies yet.) |
| Processing time | OPLC publishes no processing timeframe; under Plc 313.06(c) a qualified endorsement applicant whose criminal records check is pending receives a provisional license and may practice meanwhile | the Board publishes no processing timeframe for endorsement applications; an Act 41 applicant may be granted a provisional license at the Board's discretion |
| Licensing authority | New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, OPLC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC) | Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Pennsylvania sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Pennsylvania's current requirements on the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a professional counselor license in good standing in another state, with a letter from that state certifying licensure and reporting any disciplinary history.
- Meet Pennsylvania's educational requirement (63 P.S. 1907(f)(2) and 49 Pa. Code 49.13(a)(3), a 60-semester-hour counseling graduate degree).
- Demonstrate at least 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience that conformed to the licensing state's rules.
- Demonstrate active practice of professional counseling for 5 of the last 7 years before applying (49 Pa. Code 49.18(5)).
- Complete 3 hours of Board-approved child abuse recognition and reporting training and submit two certificates of recommendation (49 Pa. Code 49.12).
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Pennsylvania joined the Counseling Compact. Can I use a privilege there?
Not yet. Pennsylvania had enacted the compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-10-29, so counseling clients located in Pennsylvania takes Pennsylvania's own authorization, normally a Pennsylvania license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified New Hampshire 2026-09-27, Pennsylvania 2026-10-29.
- Pennsylvania Code 49 Pa. Code 49.18, Licensure by endorsement ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Pennsylvania Code 49 Pa. Code 49.16, Application for licensure by reciprocity ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Pennsylvania Code 49 Pa. Code 49.12, General qualifications (child abuse training, recommendations) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Pennsylvania Code 49 Pa. Code 47.4, Licensure fees ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- PA Department of State: Professional Counselor Licensure Snapshot (endorsement and Act 41) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- PA State Board: LPC application FAQs (Act 41 provisional license) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- NH OPLC: New Changes for Reciprocity in New Hampshire (HB 594 endorsement; Plc 313.37 qualifying jurisdictions for Clinical Mental Health Counselor; Internet Archive capture 2026-08-21) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NH OPLC: Board of Mental Health Practice License Fees ($325 CMHC application incl. $28 PHP; Internet Archive capture 2026-04-29) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NH Admin. Rules Plc 300 (Plc 313 licensure by endorsement; Plc 313.37 mental health practice; Internet Archive capture 2026-09-09) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NH RSA 310:17 License Reciprocity (Internet Archive capture 2026-02-07) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources New Hampshire 2026-09-27, Pennsylvania 2026-10-29
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