Counseling License from New Mexico to Texas: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors ↗
No — Texas has no reciprocity or endorsement path for New Mexico counseling license holders. You must apply to the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors as a new applicant and meet Texas's full licensing requirements, including any exams it requires that you have not already passed.
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Verdict
Full re-application
Texas has no endorsement path for counselors licensed in New Mexico or anywhere else, so plan for a full application to the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors. Your New Mexico license does not stand in for Texas's requirements: expect the board to review your graduate degree, national exam, and post-degree supervised experience against its own standard, as it would for a first-time applicant. Neither New Mexico nor Texas is operational in the Counseling Compact, so it plays no part in this move.
What changes, New Mexico → Texas
| New Mexico (current) | Texas (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Licensure by endorsement | Full re-application required |
| Application fee | $75 (nonrefundable application fee (16.27.17 NMAC); + $220 initial license fee before issuance; military service members and veterans are not charged licensing fees for the first three years of expedited licensure) | $165 (LPC Associate/LPC/Provisional License Application fee per 22 TAC 885.1(b) as amended in the 2026-03-13 Texas Register ($154 base + $6 Texas.gov + $5 OPP); this is the ordinary LPC application fee, since Texas has no separate endorsement fee. Jurisprudence exam $39; fingerprinting paid to the vendor. Texas has not enacted the Counseling Compact.) |
| Processing time | ~4.3 weeks (16.27.24 NMAC: staff shall issue the expedited license to a qualified applicant within 30 days of receiving a complete application (30 days converted to 4.3 weeks); applications with a potential cause for denial go to the next Board meeting) | ~6 weeks (BHEC's out-of-state LPC application guide says 'Please allow at least 6 weeks for processing before contacting BHEC for a status update'; no maximum is stated) |
| Licensing authority | New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) | Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Texas sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Review Texas's initial-licensure requirements on the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors website (linked below).
- Expect to meet Texas's education/experience requirements and pass any required exams you have not already passed — a national exam you passed often still counts, as can prior out-of-state licensure toward experience.
- Submit the standard (new applicant) application with fees ($165 (LPC Associate/LPC/Provisional License Application fee per 22 TAC 885.1(b) as amended in the 2026-03-13 Texas Register ($154 base + $6 Texas.gov + $5 OPP); this is the ordinary LPC application fee, since Texas has no separate endorsement fee. Jurisprudence exam $39; fingerprinting paid to the vendor. Texas has not enacted the Counseling Compact.)).
- Allow ~6 weeks (BHEC's out-of-state LPC application guide says 'Please allow at least 6 weeks for processing before contacting BHEC for a status update'; no maximum is stated).
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Texas accept a New Mexico counseling license?
No — Texas has no reciprocity or endorsement path for New Mexico counseling license holders. You must apply to the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors as a new applicant and meet Texas's full licensing requirements, including any exams it requires that you have not already passed.
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from New Mexico to Texas?
No endorsement route. The national exam already passed (NCE or NCMHCE) is not retaken: scores are requested from NBCC for direct submission to the Texas portal. Every applicant must also pass the Texas Jurisprudence Examination within six months before applying.
What does the move cost?
Application fee: $165 (LPC Associate/LPC/Provisional License Application fee per 22 TAC 885.1(b) as amended in the 2026-03-13 Texas Register ($154 base + $6 Texas.gov + $5 OPP); this is the ordinary LPC application fee, since Texas has no separate endorsement fee. Jurisprudence exam $39; fingerprinting paid to the vendor. Texas has not enacted the Counseling Compact.) Add the cost of documenting Texas's full requirements, such as transcripts and supervised-hour verification.
How long will it take?
~6 weeks (BHEC's out-of-state LPC application guide says 'Please allow at least 6 weeks for processing before contacting BHEC for a status update'; no maximum is stated)
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- BHEC: Applying for an LPC License, Licensed in Another Jurisdiction (no reciprocity, endorsement or temporary licensure) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- BHEC: How to Apply for an LPC License from Out of State (online application guide, 6-week processing note) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Texas Register 2026-03-13: Figure 22 TAC 885.1(b), BHEC fee schedule ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- 16.27.24 NMAC Expedited Licensure (approved LPCC jurisdictions, 2-year practice, 30-day issuance), NM State Records Center and Archives ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- 16.27.4 NMAC Requirements for Licensure as a Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor (NCE + NCMHCE, 3,000 hours) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- 16.27.17 NMAC Fees ($75 application, $220 initial license) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NM RLD Counseling and Therapy Practice: Licensing, Registration, and Renewal ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
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