Counseling License from Pennsylvania to Colorado: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Colorado accept a Pennsylvania counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from Pennsylvania to Colorado by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Colorado State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners, Division of Professions and Occupations (DORA), Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC), verify your Pennsylvania license, and meet Colorado's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken or score-verified: an endorsement applicant attests to having passed an examination that tested competence to practice professional counseling, including psychotherapy (Rule 1.12). The NCE is the named exam only for Colorado's by-examination route. Every applicant must also pass the Colorado Mental Health Professions Jurisprudence Examination (online via Prometric), and results are valid for only one year before application.
Verify this exact pair in the checker
Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Both states have enacted the Counseling Compact, but neither was issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-10-29. When both go operational, cross-border work between them could run on a privilege; a relocation would still need a Colorado license. The route is endorsement through the Colorado State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners, Division of Professions and Occupations (DORA), Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC): your Pennsylvania license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under Colorado's own exam rule, and Colorado applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which Colorado tier corresponds to your Pennsylvania license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.
What's different between Pennsylvania and Colorado
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Colorado. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Pennsylvania to Colorado (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Colorado to Pennsylvania (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Pennsylvania matter?
Coming from Pennsylvania does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Colorado.
- Counseling Compact membership
Pennsylvania has enacted the Counseling Compact but is not issuing under it yet; Colorado has enacted the Counseling Compact but is not issuing under it yet.
Because they are not both active members, the Counseling Compact does not cover this move.
- Application fee
Pennsylvania lists $100 for the reverse move; Colorado has no verified fee figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Exam rules on record
Colorado and Pennsylvania carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Colorado (this move): National exam is not retaken or score-verified: an endorsement applicant attests to having passed an examination that tested competence to practice professional counseling, including psychotherapy (Rule 1.12). The NCE is the named exam only for Colorado's by-examination route. Every applicant must also pass the Colorado Mental Health Professions Jurisprudence Examination (online via Prometric), and results are valid for only one year before application.
- Pennsylvania (the reverse move): No exam retake on the endorsement route: 49 Pa. Code 49.18 issues the license 'without examination'. Under the separate reciprocity rule (49.16) the Board accepts exam grades from another jurisdiction (e.g., the NCE) if the exam is similar and the passing grade at least equals Pennsylvania's, but only where that state grants reciprocity to Pennsylvania licensees. No state jurisprudence exam is required.
What changes, Pennsylvania → Colorado
| Pennsylvania (current) | Colorado (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Licensure by endorsement · Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing | Licensure by endorsement · Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $100 (application fee for licensure and original license issuance as an LPC per 49 Pa. Code 47.4(6); no separate endorsement fee is listed. Pennsylvania is a pending Counseling Compact state, so no privilege fee applies yet.) | the DPO does not publish the LPC endorsement application fee on its public pages; fees are shown only at checkout in DPO Online Services. Jurisprudence exam fee is paid to Prometric; fingerprinting fee (if required) is paid to the IdentoGO / American BioIdentity vendor |
| Processing time | the Board publishes no processing timeframe for endorsement applications; an Act 41 applicant may be granted a provisional license at the Board's discretion | the DPO states applications are reviewed 'on a case by case basis' and publishes no timeframe; status is tracked in DPO Online Services |
| Licensing authority | Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors | Colorado State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners, Division of Professions and Occupations (DORA), Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Colorado sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Colorado's current requirements on the Colorado State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners, Division of Professions and Occupations (DORA), Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Colorado State Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners, Division of Professions and Occupations (DORA), Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current, unrestricted license in good standing to practice professional counseling in another U.S. state or territory.
- Either show a master's or doctoral degree in professional counseling (or equivalent) plus a passed competency exam and 2 years post-master's supervised practice or 2 years active practice, OR show at least 1 year of licensure in a jurisdiction with a substantially similar scope of practice.
- Pass the Colorado Mental Health Professions Jurisprudence Examination within 12 months before applying.
- Submit license verification from every jurisdiction ever licensed, showing original issue date, expiration and disciplinary history.
- Be at least 21 years old and disclose any discipline, malpractice claims, injunctions and convictions.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Colorado joined the Counseling Compact. Can I use a privilege there?
Not yet. Colorado had enacted the compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-10-29, so counseling clients located in Colorado takes Colorado's own authorization, normally a Colorado license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-10-29.
- Colorado DPO: Professional Counselor Applications and Forms (LPC by Examination, Endorsement or Telehealth) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Colorado DPO: LPC Initial Application Preview (endorsement questions) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- 4 CCR 737-1, Board of Licensed Professional Counselor Examiners Rules, Rule 1.12 Occupational Credential Portability Program (version eff. 2025-09-14) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Colorado DPO: Mental Health FAQ (no reciprocity; endorsement; processing) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Colorado DPO: Professional Counselor homepage (Counseling Compact notice) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Pennsylvania Code 49 Pa. Code 49.18, Licensure by endorsement ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Pennsylvania Code 49 Pa. Code 49.16, Application for licensure by reciprocity ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Pennsylvania Code 49 Pa. Code 49.12, General qualifications (child abuse training, recommendations) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Pennsylvania Code 49 Pa. Code 47.4, Licensure fees ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- PA Department of State: Professional Counselor Licensure Snapshot (endorsement and Act 41) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- PA State Board: LPC application FAQs (Act 41 provisional license) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-10-29
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