Counseling License from North Carolina to Oregon: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists (OBLPCT) ↗
A counseling license transfers from North Carolina to Oregon by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists (OBLPCT), verify your North Carolina license, and meet Oregon's endorsement requirements. Competency exam (NCE, NCMHCE or CRC) is not retaken if passed within 10 years of applying; reciprocity applicants whose exam is 10+ years old must retake it or document CE meeting Division 80 in the prior 24 months, and applicants who have held a comparable license for at least two years may substitute that CE for exam verification (OAR 833-020-0081). All applicants must also pass the Oregon Law and Rules exam..
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
A counseling license moves from North Carolina to Oregon 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. You apply to the Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists (OBLPCT), which verifies your North Carolina license and standing, matches it to Oregon's independent tier, and applies its own rule on crediting your national exam score, plus any Oregon jurisprudence and background requirements.
What changes, North Carolina → Oregon
| North Carolina (current) | Oregon (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing | Licensure by endorsement |
| 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) | $175 (application fee per OAR 833-070-0011(1) and the Board's Apply page; + $45 fingerprint-based background check (Board page: $220 total at application); initial license fee $115 after approval; exam fees paid to exam providers. Oregon has not enacted the Counseling Compact.) |
| 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 publishes no processing timeframe for reciprocity applications |
| Licensing authority | North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors (NCBLCMHC) (Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LCMHC) | Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists (OBLPCT) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Oregon sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Oregon's current requirements on the Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists (OBLPCT) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists (OBLPCT) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current, active license to practice professional counseling issued by another state (OAR 833-020-0051(2)).
- Submit official verification of every healthcare license, registration or certification ever held.
- Document education and supervised clinical experience equivalent to Oregon's; three or more years of active out-of-state licensure is presumed to meet the experience requirement and may substitute for the degree-content requirements (OAR 833-030-0021(4)(b), 833-030-0011).
- Submit competency exam verification (or the CE substitute) and pass the Oregon Law and Rules exam.
- Complete a fingerprint-based criminal background check within 90 days before applying.
- Pay the fees ($175 (application fee per OAR 833-070-0011(1) and the Board's Apply page; + $45 fingerprint-based background check (Board page: $220 total at application); initial license fee $115 after approval; exam fees paid to exam providers. Oregon has not enacted the Counseling Compact.)) and allow the Board publishes no processing timeframe for reciprocity applications.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Oregon accept a North Carolina counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from North Carolina to Oregon by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Oregon Board of Licensed Professional Counselors and Therapists (OBLPCT), verify your North Carolina license, and meet Oregon's endorsement requirements. Competency exam (NCE, NCMHCE or CRC) is not retaken if passed within 10 years of applying; reciprocity applicants whose exam is 10+ years old must retake it or document CE meeting Division 80 in the prior 24 months, and applicants who have held a comparable license for at least two years may substitute that CE for exam verification (OAR 833-020-0081). All applicants must also pass the Oregon Law and Rules exam..
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from North Carolina to Oregon?
Competency exam (NCE, NCMHCE or CRC) is not retaken if passed within 10 years of applying; reciprocity applicants whose exam is 10+ years old must retake it or document CE meeting Division 80 in the prior 24 months, and applicants who have held a comparable license for at least two years may substitute that CE for exam verification (OAR 833-020-0081). All applicants must also pass the Oregon Law and Rules exam.
What does the move cost?
$175 (application fee per OAR 833-070-0011(1) and the Board's Apply page; + $45 fingerprint-based background check (Board page: $220 total at application); initial license fee $115 after approval; exam fees paid to exam providers. Oregon has not enacted the Counseling Compact.)
How long will it take?
the Board publishes no processing timeframe for reciprocity applications.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- OBLPCT: Apply for a License (reciprocity method, required materials, $175 + $45 fees) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- OBLPCT: ORS 675 (2025) and OAR 833 compilation, revised 2/26 (ORS 675.735; OAR 833-020-0051, 833-020-0081, 833-030-0011, 833-030-0021, 833-030-0041, 833-070-0011) ↗ (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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