Counseling License from Texas to Mississippi: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) ↗
A counseling license transfers from Texas to Mississippi by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC), verify your Texas license, and meet Mississippi's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken: NCE or NCMHCE scores come with the certified copy of the out-of-state licensure file. Applicants must ALSO submit a certificate of completion of the Mississippi Jurisprudence Exam (Board Rule 4.7(I))..
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Verdict
Licensure 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. The route is endorsement through the Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC): your Texas license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under Mississippi's own exam rule, and Mississippi applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which Mississippi tier corresponds to your Texas license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.
What changes, Texas → Mississippi
| Texas (current) | Mississippi (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Full re-application required | Counseling Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $165 (LPC Associate/LPC/Provisional License Application fee per 22 TAC 885.1(b) as amended in the 2026-03-13 Texas Register ($154 base + $6 Texas.gov + $5 OPP); this is the ordinary LPC application fee, since Texas has no separate endorsement fee. Jurisprudence exam $39; fingerprinting paid to the vendor. Texas has not enacted the Counseling Compact.) | $100 (Board Rule 2.1 'Application for Full Licensure Fee' (effective 2023-01-01); no comity-specific fee is named in Rule 4.7. + $220 Initial LPC License Fee on licensure. Fingerprint card and jurisprudence exam costs are paid separately (amounts not published on the pages read).) |
| Processing time | ~6 weeks (BHEC's out-of-state LPC application guide says 'Please allow at least 6 weeks for processing before contacting BHEC for a status update'; no maximum is stated) | the Board states no processing timeframe for comity applications |
| Licensing authority | Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors | Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Mississippi sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Mississippi's current requirements on the Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a valid LPC or equivalent independent counseling license in good standing in another state, with no substantiated complaints or disciplinary action ever.
- Show at least 5 years of professional counseling work experience since initial licensure, with the license maintained continuously.
- Have the other state send certified copies of your licensure file directly to the Board.
- Submit a curriculum vitae and three work references.
- Pass the Mississippi Jurisprudence Exam.
- Complete a fingerprint-based Mississippi and FBI criminal history records check.
- Pay the fees ($100 (Board Rule 2.1 'Application for Full Licensure Fee' (effective 2023-01-01); no comity-specific fee is named in Rule 4.7. + $220 Initial LPC License Fee on licensure. Fingerprint card and jurisprudence exam costs are paid separately (amounts not published on the pages read).)) and allow the Board states no processing timeframe for comity applications.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Mississippi accept a Texas counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from Texas to Mississippi by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Mississippi State Board of Examiners for Licensed Professional Counselors (Licensed Professional Counselor, LPC), verify your Texas license, and meet Mississippi's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken: NCE or NCMHCE scores come with the certified copy of the out-of-state licensure file. Applicants must ALSO submit a certificate of completion of the Mississippi Jurisprudence Exam (Board Rule 4.7(I))..
Do I retake the NCE or NCMHCE moving from Texas to Mississippi?
National exam is not retaken: NCE or NCMHCE scores come with the certified copy of the out-of-state licensure file. Applicants must ALSO submit a certificate of completion of the Mississippi Jurisprudence Exam (Board Rule 4.7(I)).
What does the move cost?
$100 (Board Rule 2.1 'Application for Full Licensure Fee' (effective 2023-01-01); no comity-specific fee is named in Rule 4.7. + $220 Initial LPC License Fee on licensure. Fingerprint card and jurisprudence exam costs are paid separately (amounts not published on the pages read).)
How long will it take?
the Board states no processing timeframe for comity applications.
Mississippi joined the Counseling Compact. Can I use a privilege there?
Not yet. Mississippi had enacted the compact but was not issuing or accepting privileges as of 2026-09-27, so counseling clients located in Mississippi takes Mississippi's own authorization, normally a Mississippi license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- Mississippi LPC Board Rules and Regulations, Part 2201, effective 2023-01-01 (Rule 2.1 fees; Rule 4.6 reciprocity; Rule 4.7 comity; Rule 4.10 universal licensing) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Mississippi LPC Board: LPC by Comity ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Mississippi LPC Board: LPC by Universal (Miss. Code 73-50-2) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Mississippi LPC Board: Licensure overview (LPC by Comity: 5 years independent practice; Internet Archive capture 2025-05-27) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- BHEC: Applying for an LPC License, Licensed in Another Jurisdiction (no reciprocity, endorsement or temporary licensure) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- BHEC: How to Apply for an LPC License from Out of State (online application guide, 6-week processing note) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Texas Register 2026-03-13: Figure 22 TAC 885.1(b), BHEC fee schedule ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
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