Transfer Your Counseling License to New Mexico: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)

New Mexico has not enacted the Counseling Compact, so the planning is simple, if slower. There is no compact privilege to fall back on, including for telehealth: you cannot lawfully counsel a client located in New Mexico until New Mexico authorizes you, which for most counselors means a license from the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) (check the notes below for any telehealth-only registration). Start the application before you need the income.

New Mexico's independent counselor license is the Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor (LPCC); the Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) is the associate-level tier. The out-of-state route is expedited licensure by credentials (NMSA 61-9A-22 with the Uniform Licensing Act, NMSA 61-1-31.1; rule 16.27.24 NMAC). It requires a current license from an approved jurisdiction and license type, 2 consecutive years of licensed practice, and no discipline in the past 2 years. reciprocity_partners is the Board's own named list of approved jurisdictions and license types for expedited LPCC licensure (16.27.24.8 NMAC). It is an ELIGIBILITY list, not automatic reciprocity. Other states, including Arizona, California, Florida, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Texas and Washington, are not approved for expedited LPCC. Their counselors apply by examination: 48 graduate semester hours, 3,000 client-contact hours with 100 supervision hours, and the NCE + NCMHCE. New Mexico has NOT enacted the Counseling Compact. compact_member and compact_status are assembler-provided. Statute text (NMSA 61-9A-22, 61-1-31.1) was not read on an official site; conditions are from the implementing rule. Board-published eligibility list (13 jurisdictions: alaska, arkansas, idaho, illinois, indiana, kansas, maine, minnesota, mississippi, north-dakota, ohio, south-dakota, vermont) — an endorsement-eligibility list, not a bilateral reciprocity agreement, so it is recorded here rather than as reciprocity partners (same rule as the physical-therapy gold row).