Counseling License from North Carolina to New Hampshire: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, OPLC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC) ↗
A counseling license transfers from North Carolina to New Hampshire by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, OPLC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC), verify your North Carolina license, and meet New Hampshire's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken. The OPLC endorsement route (RSA 310:17 / Plc 313) accepts a license from a qualifying jurisdiction whose pathway required the NCMHCE or an equivalent nationally recognized exam (Plc 313.37(a)(2)); license verification, not a separate NBCC score transfer, is required. No New Hampshire jurisprudence exam is listed for mental health practice endorsement..
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Both states have enacted the Counseling Compact, but neither was issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-09-27. When both go operational, cross-border work between them could run on a privilege; a relocation would still need a New Hampshire license. The route is endorsement through the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, OPLC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC): your North Carolina license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under New Hampshire's own exam rule, and New Hampshire applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which New Hampshire tier corresponds to your North Carolina license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.
What changes, North Carolina → New Hampshire
| North Carolina (current) | New Hampshire (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| 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) | $325 (Clinical Mental Health Counselor application fee from the OPLC Mental Health Practice fee page; includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; same fee as in-state applicants. Criminal records check fee paid separately to NH Department of Safety (amount not verified).) |
| Processing time | 4–6 weeks (Board-stated 'Application Processing Timeframe (provided there are no legal/special considerations) 4-6 weeks from completed application submission') | OPLC publishes no processing timeframe; under Plc 313.06(c) a qualified endorsement applicant whose criminal records check is pending receives a provisional license and may practice meanwhile |
| Licensing authority | North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors (NCBLCMHC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC) | New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, OPLC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — New Hampshire sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm New Hampshire's current requirements on the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, OPLC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, OPLC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold an active, unencumbered, non-temporary clinical mental health counselor license in good standing in an OPLC-listed qualifying jurisdiction.
- Submit the OPLC Universal Application for Initial License with the Clinical Mental Health Counselor application fee.
- Provide primary-source license verification (board-portal printout or screen capture showing good standing) per Plc 313.05(a).
- Complete a state and FBI criminal history records check through the NH Department of Safety, with results sent to OPLC.
- Pay the fees ($325 (Clinical Mental Health Counselor application fee from the OPLC Mental Health Practice fee page; includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; same fee as in-state applicants. Criminal records check fee paid separately to NH Department of Safety (amount not verified).)) and allow OPLC publishes no processing timeframe; under Plc 313.06(c) a qualified endorsement applicant whose criminal records check is pending receives a provisional license and may practice meanwhile.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does New Hampshire accept a North Carolina counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from North Carolina to New Hampshire by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification, OPLC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC), verify your North Carolina license, and meet New Hampshire's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken. The OPLC endorsement route (RSA 310:17 / Plc 313) accepts a license from a qualifying jurisdiction whose pathway required the NCMHCE or an equivalent nationally recognized exam (Plc 313.37(a)(2)); license verification, not a separate NBCC score transfer, is required. No New Hampshire jurisprudence exam is listed for mental health practice endorsement..
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from North Carolina to New Hampshire?
National exam is not retaken. The OPLC endorsement route (RSA 310:17 / Plc 313) accepts a license from a qualifying jurisdiction whose pathway required the NCMHCE or an equivalent nationally recognized exam (Plc 313.37(a)(2)); license verification, not a separate NBCC score transfer, is required. No New Hampshire jurisprudence exam is listed for mental health practice endorsement.
What does the move cost?
$325 (Clinical Mental Health Counselor application fee from the OPLC Mental Health Practice fee page; includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; same fee as in-state applicants. Criminal records check fee paid separately to NH Department of Safety (amount not verified).)
How long will it take?
OPLC publishes no processing timeframe; under Plc 313.06(c) a qualified endorsement applicant whose criminal records check is pending receives a provisional license and may practice meanwhile.
New Hampshire joined the Counseling Compact. Can I use a privilege there?
Not yet. New Hampshire had enacted the compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-09-27, so counseling clients located in New Hampshire takes New Hampshire's own authorization, normally a New Hampshire license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- NH OPLC: New Changes for Reciprocity in New Hampshire (HB 594 endorsement; Plc 313.37 qualifying jurisdictions for Clinical Mental Health Counselor; Internet Archive capture 2026-08-21) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NH OPLC: Board of Mental Health Practice License Fees ($325 CMHC application incl. $28 PHP; Internet Archive capture 2026-04-29) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NH Admin. Rules Plc 300 (Plc 313 licensure by endorsement; Plc 313.37 mental health practice; Internet Archive capture 2026-09-09) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NH RSA 310:17 License Reciprocity (Internet Archive capture 2026-02-07) ↗ (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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