Counseling License from North Carolina to Minnesota: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy (BBHT) (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC) ↗
A counseling license transfers from North Carolina to Minnesota by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy (BBHT) (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC), verify your North Carolina license, and meet Minnesota's endorsement requirements. No exam is retaken for reciprocity. Minn. Stat. 148B.56 sets no exam condition: the Board rules on substantial similarity (licensed under 5 years) or 5+ years of active practice, then decides whether to grant the LPC or the LPCC. Minnesota-route LPCC applicants must pass the NCMHCE (148B.5301). The reciprocity application asks for license verification, transcripts and the other state's laws and rules, not a separate score transfer. No Minnesota jurisprudence exam..
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
A counseling license moves from North Carolina to Minnesota by endorsement. Minnesota is operational in the Counseling Compact, but North Carolina is not, so there is no home-state license here to anchor a privilege. Once you hold a Minnesota license and live in Minnesota, it can anchor privileges into the other operational states. You apply to the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy (BBHT) (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC), which verifies your North Carolina license and standing, matches it to Minnesota's independent tier, and applies its own rule on crediting your national exam score, plus any Minnesota jurisprudence and background requirements.
What changes, North Carolina → Minnesota
| North Carolina (current) | Minnesota (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing | Counseling Compact member — compact privilege to practice |
| Application fee | $238 (Board-stated endorsement/reciprocity application fee of $238, which includes the $38 criminal background check fee; nonrefundable; jurisprudence exam provider fee not verified) | $150 (non-refundable LPCC application fee (Minn. Stat. 148B.53 subd. 3); the reciprocity application also requires the $250 initial license fee and a $32 criminal background check fee, paid together as $432 ($400 if exempt from the check). NOT the Counseling Compact privilege fee: Minnesota charges $50 + $30 commission fee = $80, no jurisprudence exam.) |
| Processing time | 4–6 weeks (Board-stated 'Application Processing Timeframe (provided there are no legal/special considerations) 4-6 weeks from completed application submission') | the Board's reciprocity application (updated 2025-02-27) states no processing timeframe |
| Licensing authority | North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors (NCBLCMHC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC) | Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy (BBHT) (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Minnesota sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Minnesota's current requirements on the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy (BBHT) (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy (BBHT) (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current license in good standing at the highest counselor level in your jurisdiction (e.g. LPCC, LCPC, LMHC).
- Licensed under 5 years: requirements must be substantially similar to Minn. Stat. 148B.50-148B.593; 5+ years of active practice: the Board decides between LPC and LPCC (Minn. Stat. 148B.56).
- Submit copies of your jurisdiction's current licensure laws and rules for the license used.
- Have all graduate transcripts and license verification from every licensing board sent directly to the Board.
- Complete a fingerprint-based criminal background check unless exempt under Minn. Stat. 214.075.
- Pay the fees ($150 (non-refundable LPCC application fee (Minn. Stat. 148B.53 subd. 3); the reciprocity application also requires the $250 initial license fee and a $32 criminal background check fee, paid together as $432 ($400 if exempt from the check). NOT the Counseling Compact privilege fee: Minnesota charges $50 + $30 commission fee = $80, no jurisprudence exam.)) and allow the Board's reciprocity application (updated 2025-02-27) states no processing timeframe.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Minnesota accept a North Carolina counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from North Carolina to Minnesota by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Minnesota Board of Behavioral Health and Therapy (BBHT) (Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor, LPCC), verify your North Carolina license, and meet Minnesota's endorsement requirements. No exam is retaken for reciprocity. Minn. Stat. 148B.56 sets no exam condition: the Board rules on substantial similarity (licensed under 5 years) or 5+ years of active practice, then decides whether to grant the LPC or the LPCC. Minnesota-route LPCC applicants must pass the NCMHCE (148B.5301). The reciprocity application asks for license verification, transcripts and the other state's laws and rules, not a separate score transfer. No Minnesota jurisprudence exam..
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from North Carolina to Minnesota?
No exam is retaken for reciprocity. Minn. Stat. 148B.56 sets no exam condition: the Board rules on substantial similarity (licensed under 5 years) or 5+ years of active practice, then decides whether to grant the LPC or the LPCC. Minnesota-route LPCC applicants must pass the NCMHCE (148B.5301). The reciprocity application asks for license verification, transcripts and the other state's laws and rules, not a separate score transfer. No Minnesota jurisprudence exam.
What does the move cost?
$150 (non-refundable LPCC application fee (Minn. Stat. 148B.53 subd. 3); the reciprocity application also requires the $250 initial license fee and a $32 criminal background check fee, paid together as $432 ($400 if exempt from the check). NOT the Counseling Compact privilege fee: Minnesota charges $50 + $30 commission fee = $80, no jurisprudence exam.)
How long will it take?
the Board's reciprocity application (updated 2025-02-27) states no processing timeframe.
Will a Minnesota license get me into other compact states?
Yes, once Minnesota is your home state. Minnesota is operational, so an active, unencumbered Minnesota license held while you live there can anchor privileges into the other operational states through CompactConnect.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- Minnesota BBHT: LPC/LPCC Reciprocity Application, updated 2025-02-27 (instructions, $432 fees) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Minn. Stat. 148B.56 Reciprocity (Revisor of Statutes, 2025 chapter 148B) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Minn. Stat. 148B.53 subd. 3 Fees (Revisor of Statutes) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Minnesota BBHT: Reciprocity Licenses by State (updated 2024-03-15) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Minnesota BBHT: LPC and LPCC Reciprocity page (Internet Archive capture 2026-04-21) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Counseling Compact: state privilege fees and jurisprudence requirements (Minnesota $80 total) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NCBLCMHC: Licensure by Endorsement (requirements, $238 fee, 4-6 week processing) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NCBLCMHC: LCMHC License by Reciprocity (South Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NC OAH: 21 NCAC 53 .0304 Applicants Licensed in Other States ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NC OAH: 21 NCAC 53 .0305 Examination (NCE/NCMHCE/CRC; jurisprudence exam) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
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