Counseling License from New York to Washington: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Washington State Department of Health, Licensed Mental Health Counselor program ↗
A counseling license transfers from New York to Washington by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Washington State Department of Health, Licensed Mental Health Counselor program, verify your New York license, and meet Washington's endorsement requirements. Applicants from a substantially equivalent state obtain the license 'without repeating education or exams already completed in another state' (DOH out-of-state page); the specific national exam Washington accepts was not stated on the pages read. No Washington jurisprudence exam is listed for out-of-state applicants..
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 Washington State Department of Health, Licensed Mental Health Counselor program: your New York license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under Washington's own exam rule, and Washington applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which Washington tier corresponds to your New York license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.
What changes, New York → Washington
| New York (current) | Washington (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.) | $95 (LMHC application fee per WAC 246-809-990; initial license fee $80 and UW HEAL-WA online access fee $16 are charged separately. Applicants on the reciprocity/probationary route also pay the probationary 'application and initial license' fee of $175. Washington is a pending Counseling Compact state, so no privilege fee applies yet.) |
| Processing time | NYSED publishes no processing timeframe for LMHC endorsement applications | DOH publishes no processing timeframe for out-of-state LMHC applications on the pages read |
| Licensing authority | New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) | Washington State Department of Health, Licensed Mental Health Counselor program |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Washington sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Washington's current requirements on the Washington State Department of Health, Licensed Mental Health Counselor program website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Washington State Department of Health, Licensed Mental Health Counselor program (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current license in a state DOH considers substantially equivalent, held for at least two years, with no history of disciplinary action (RCW 18.130.077).
- Have been first licensed in a substantially equivalent state; a later license from a universal-licensure state does not cure a non-equivalent original license (SHB 1724).
- From a state whose scope DOH found not substantially equivalent (Arkansas, Iowa, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, South Carolina, Wisconsin), apply for both the probationary license and the full LMHC and close the gap within the probationary period.
- Use the DOH state credential search tool to confirm which out-of-state pathway applies.
- Pay the fees ($95 (LMHC application fee per WAC 246-809-990; initial license fee $80 and UW HEAL-WA online access fee $16 are charged separately. Applicants on the reciprocity/probationary route also pay the probationary 'application and initial license' fee of $175. Washington is a pending Counseling Compact state, so no privilege fee applies yet.)) and allow DOH publishes no processing timeframe for out-of-state LMHC applications on the pages read.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Washington accept a New York counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from New York to Washington by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Washington State Department of Health, Licensed Mental Health Counselor program, verify your New York license, and meet Washington's endorsement requirements. Applicants from a substantially equivalent state obtain the license 'without repeating education or exams already completed in another state' (DOH out-of-state page); the specific national exam Washington accepts was not stated on the pages read. No Washington jurisprudence exam is listed for out-of-state applicants..
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from New York to Washington?
Applicants from a substantially equivalent state obtain the license 'without repeating education or exams already completed in another state' (DOH out-of-state page); the specific national exam Washington accepts was not stated on the pages read. No Washington jurisprudence exam is listed for out-of-state applicants.
What does the move cost?
$95 (LMHC application fee per WAC 246-809-990; initial license fee $80 and UW HEAL-WA online access fee $16 are charged separately. Applicants on the reciprocity/probationary route also pay the probationary 'application and initial license' fee of $175. Washington is a pending Counseling Compact state, so no privilege fee applies yet.)
How long will it take?
DOH publishes no processing timeframe for out-of-state LMHC applications on the pages read.
Washington joined the Counseling Compact. Can I use a privilege there?
Not yet. Washington had enacted the compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-09-27, so counseling clients located in Washington takes Washington's own authorization, normally a Washington license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- Washington DOH: Mental Health Counselor, Out-of-State Applicants (probationary license, substantial equivalency, universal licensure) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- WAC 246-809-990, mental health counselor fees ↗ (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]