Counseling License from New York to Vermont: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Vermont Office of Professional Regulation, Board of Allied Mental Health Practitioners ↗
A counseling license transfers from New York to Vermont by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Vermont Office of Professional Regulation, Board of Allied Mental Health Practitioners, verify your New York license, and meet Vermont's endorsement requirements. No national exam retake on any of Vermont's three endorsement routes (substantially equivalent, five-year rule, fast track); the application instructions ask only for license verification and, 'if applicable', the Vermont State Jurisprudence exam answer sheet uploaded in the online application. Exam-route applicants must pass both the NCE and the NCMHCE within 5 years of applying..
Verify this exact pair in the checker
Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure 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. The route is endorsement through the Vermont Office of Professional Regulation, Board of Allied Mental Health Practitioners: your New York license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under Vermont's own exam rule, and Vermont applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which Vermont tier corresponds to your New York license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.
What changes, New York → Vermont
| New York (current) | Vermont (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Licensure by endorsement | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $371 (fee for licensure and first registration, paid with Form 1; no fingerprint requirement listed; the separate LMHC diagnostic privilege costs $175 to issue. New York has not enacted the Counseling Compact.) | fee not verified: OPR sets fees in statute (26 V.S.A. chapter 65) and its fee documents on outside.vermont.gov returned 403, while legislature.vermont.gov refused connections on 2026-09-27; the application fee is non-refundable. Vermont is a pending Counseling Compact state, so no privilege fee applies yet. |
| Processing time | NYSED publishes no processing timeframe for LMHC endorsement applications | ~1 weeks (OPR's apply page says 'Please allow a minimum of 5 full business days for processing. Processing times may vary depending on volume'; no maximum is stated. A 90-day provisional license may be issued when license verification is the only outstanding item.) |
| Licensing authority | New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) | Vermont Office of Professional Regulation, Board of Allied Mental Health Practitioners |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Vermont sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Vermont's current requirements on the Vermont Office of Professional Regulation, Board of Allied Mental Health Practitioners website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Vermont Office of Professional Regulation, Board of Allied Mental Health Practitioners (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a license or certification to practice independently as a clinical mental health counselor, in good standing, in another jurisdiction whose standards are substantially equivalent; or have been fully licensed at the independent level for at least 3 years (fast track, 3 V.S.A. 136a); or have 5 years of active practice (Board rule 3.23(c)).
- Have official license verifications sent directly to OPR from the initial and most recent licensing states (fast track verification must show 3 years of continuous good standing).
- Complete and upload the Vermont State Jurisprudence exam answer sheet if applicable.
- Provide a copy of the statutes and rules of the state you are endorsing from (standard endorsement route).
- For the five-year rule, submit a letter showing active practice of more than an average of 20 hours per week for 48 weeks per year over the prior five years.
- Pay the fees (fee not verified: OPR sets fees in statute (26 V.S.A. chapter 65) and its fee documents on outside.vermont.gov returned 403, while legislature.vermont.gov refused connections on 2026-09-27; the application fee is non-refundable. Vermont is a pending Counseling Compact state, so no privilege fee applies yet.) and allow ~1 weeks (OPR's apply page says 'Please allow a minimum of 5 full business days for processing. Processing times may vary depending on volume'; no maximum is stated. A 90-day provisional license may be issued when license verification is the only outstanding item.).
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Vermont accept a New York counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from New York to Vermont by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Vermont Office of Professional Regulation, Board of Allied Mental Health Practitioners, verify your New York license, and meet Vermont's endorsement requirements. No national exam retake on any of Vermont's three endorsement routes (substantially equivalent, five-year rule, fast track); the application instructions ask only for license verification and, 'if applicable', the Vermont State Jurisprudence exam answer sheet uploaded in the online application. Exam-route applicants must pass both the NCE and the NCMHCE within 5 years of applying..
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from New York to Vermont?
No national exam retake on any of Vermont's three endorsement routes (substantially equivalent, five-year rule, fast track); the application instructions ask only for license verification and, 'if applicable', the Vermont State Jurisprudence exam answer sheet uploaded in the online application. Exam-route applicants must pass both the NCE and the NCMHCE within 5 years of applying.
What does the move cost?
fee not verified: OPR sets fees in statute (26 V.S.A. chapter 65) and its fee documents on outside.vermont.gov returned 403, while legislature.vermont.gov refused connections on 2026-09-27; the application fee is non-refundable. Vermont is a pending Counseling Compact state, so no privilege fee applies yet.
How long will it take?
~1 weeks (OPR's apply page says 'Please allow a minimum of 5 full business days for processing. Processing times may vary depending on volume'; no maximum is stated. A 90-day provisional license may be issued when license verification is the only outstanding item.)
Vermont joined the Counseling Compact. Can I use a privilege there?
Not yet. Vermont had enacted the compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-09-27, so counseling clients located in Vermont takes Vermont's own authorization, normally a Vermont license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- Vermont OPR: Allied Mental Health Applications and Renewals (endorsement, fast track, five-year rule, compact status) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Vermont OPR: Fast-Track Endorsement (3 V.S.A. 136a) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Vermont OPR: Application Instructions for Licensure as a Clinical Mental Health Counselor (Internet Archive copy of the official PDF; live file returned 403) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Vermont OPR: Allied Mental Health FAQs ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NYSED Office of the Professions: Mental Health Counseling License Requirements (licensure by endorsement, NCMHCE only, $371 fee) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NYSED: Form 4E Endorsement Applicant Experience Record ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NYSED: Commissioner's Regulations Subpart 79-9 (79-9.7 licensure by endorsement; diagnostic privilege) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]