Counseling License from New Jersey 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 New Jersey 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 New Jersey 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 New Jersey 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 New Jersey 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, New Jersey → Michigan
| New Jersey (current) | Michigan (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing | Licensure by endorsement |
| Application fee | $75 (nonrefundable application fee per the Committee's application form and Application Process Overview; criminal history check fee separate ($18.75 for applicants already fingerprinted for a DCA board, per the paper form rev. 1/2/19); initial LPC license fee not verified on an official page) | $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 Committee publishes no processing timeframe for reciprocity applications | the LARA licensing guide states no processing timeframe for endorsement applications |
| Licensing authority | New Jersey Professional Counselor Examiners Committee (State Board of Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners, Division of Consumer Affairs) (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) | 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 New Jersey counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from New Jersey 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 New Jersey 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 New Jersey 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)
- NJ Professional Counselor Examiners Committee: Application for Licensure (Licensure by Reciprocity option, $75 fee, NCE, background check) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NJ Professional Counselor Examiners Committee: Application Process Overview (LPC via N.J.S.A. 45:1-7.5, $75 fee) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NJ Division of Consumer Affairs: Uniform Enforcement Act compilation (N.J.S.A. 45:1-7.5) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NJ Professional Counselor Examiners Committee home page (Internet Archive capture 2026-09-05) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
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