Skip to content
LicenseReciprocity

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

Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) ↗

New York has not enacted the Counseling Compact, so no privilege reaches it and an incoming counselor applies to the New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) for a license by endorsement. How New York treats your NCE or NCMHCE score is in the exam question below. 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.). Processing: NYSED publishes no processing timeframe for LMHC endorsement applications.

Moving to New York from a specific state?

Pick your current state — the checker returns your exact pathway.

Run the Reciprocity Checker →

Verdict

Licensure by endorsement

New York 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 York until New York authorizes you, which for most counselors means a license from the New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) (check the notes below for any telehealth-only registration). Start the application before you need the income.

New York's counselor license is the Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC; Education Law Article 163, section 8402). Pre-license practice is under a limited permit, not an associate license. Endorsement is under 8 NYCRR 79-9.7 and requires 5 years of licensed experience within the preceding 10 years. If the initial licensing jurisdiction's requirements are not significantly comparable to New York's, full initial-licensure documentation is required. Applicants with less than 5 years apply as initial applicants: a 60-semester-hour degree, 3,000 supervised post-master's hours and the NCMHCE. Diagnosis is a separate step: an LMHC may diagnose only with the diagnostic privilege under Education Law 8401-a, which has its own application and $175 fee. New York has NOT enacted the Counseling Compact. compact_member and compact_status are assembler-provided.

New York requirements at a glance

Out-of-state counseling license transfer requirements for New York, verified 2026-09-27
ExamNCMHCE only: the endorsement applicant has NBCC send passing NCMHCE scores directly to NYSED; the NCE is not acceptable. An exam passed elsewhere under non-standard conditions may have to be retaken. No New York jurisprudence exam.
Additional requirements
  • Show at least 5 years of licensed mental health counseling practice within the 10 years before applying, attested on Forms 4E/4F
  • Have NBCC send passing NCMHCE scores directly to the Office of the Professions
  • Have every jurisdiction where you are or were licensed submit Form 3 license verification directly to NYSED
  • Have your graduate school submit Form 2 (Certification of Professional Education)
  • Complete NYSED-approved coursework or training in identifying and reporting child abuse (or document an exemption)
Fees$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.)
Processing timeNYSED publishes no processing timeframe for LMHC endorsement applications

Step by step

  1. Confirm New York's current requirements on the New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) website — rules change.
  2. Submit the endorsement application to the New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) (application linked on this page).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
  4. Show at least 5 years of licensed mental health counseling practice within the 10 years before applying, attested on Forms 4E/4F.
  5. Have NBCC send passing NCMHCE scores directly to the Office of the Professions.
  6. Have every jurisdiction where you are or were licensed submit Form 3 license verification directly to NYSED.
  7. Have your graduate school submit Form 2 (Certification of Professional Education).
  8. Complete NYSED-approved coursework or training in identifying and reporting child abuse (or document an exemption).
  9. Pay the fees ($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.)) and allow NYSED publishes no processing timeframe for LMHC endorsement applications.

Official links

New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) ↗New York application ↗

Coming from a specific state?

Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into New York:

Alabama → New YorkAlaska → New YorkArizona → New YorkArkansas → New YorkCalifornia → New YorkColorado → New YorkConnecticut → New YorkDelaware → New YorkDistrict of Columbia → New YorkFlorida → New YorkGeorgia → New YorkHawaii → New YorkIdaho → New YorkIllinois → New YorkIndiana → New YorkIowa → New YorkKansas → New YorkKentucky → New YorkLouisiana → New YorkMaine → New York
All 50 origin states
Maryland → New YorkMassachusetts → New YorkMichigan → New YorkMinnesota → New YorkMississippi → New YorkMissouri → New YorkMontana → New YorkNebraska → New YorkNevada → New YorkNew Hampshire → New YorkNew Jersey → New YorkNew Mexico → New YorkNorth Carolina → New YorkNorth Dakota → New YorkOhio → New YorkOklahoma → New YorkOregon → New YorkPennsylvania → New YorkRhode Island → New YorkSouth Carolina → New YorkSouth Dakota → New YorkTennessee → New YorkTexas → New YorkUtah → New YorkVermont → New YorkVirginia → New YorkWashington → New YorkWest Virginia → New YorkWisconsin → New YorkWyoming → New York

Nearby states

Counseling license transfer into the states bordering New York:

New York for other professions

Frequently asked questions

Does my counseling license transfer to New York?

New York has not enacted the Counseling Compact, so no privilege reaches it and an incoming counselor applies to the New York State Education Department, Office of the Professions (State Board for Mental Health Practitioners) (Licensed Mental Health Counselor, LMHC) for a license by endorsement. How New York treats your NCE or NCMHCE score is in the exam question below. 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.). Processing: NYSED publishes no processing timeframe for LMHC endorsement applications.

Do I have to retake the NCE or NCMHCE to get licensed in New York?

NCMHCE only: the endorsement applicant has NBCC send passing NCMHCE scores directly to NYSED; the NCE is not acceptable. An exam passed elsewhere under non-standard conditions may have to be retaken. No New York jurisprudence exam.

How much does a New York counseling license cost by endorsement?

$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.)

How long does New York take to process the application?

NYSED publishes no processing timeframe for LMHC endorsement applications.

Is New York in the Counseling Compact?

No. New York had not enacted the compact as of 2026-09-27. No privilege reaches New York, including for telehealth, so a New York license is required to counsel clients located there.

Sources

Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 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]