Counseling License from Texas to New Mexico: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does New Mexico accept a Texas counseling license?
A counseling license transfers from Texas to New Mexico by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC), verify your Texas license, and meet New Mexico's endorsement requirements. National exam is not retaken at application: expedited licensure by credentials (16.27.24 NMAC) relies on a current license from an approved jurisdiction. New Mexico's own LPCC route requires both the NCE and the NCMHCE (16.27.4 NMAC). An expedited licensee whose home jurisdiction did not require an exam New Mexico requires must pass it before the first renewal (16.27.24.12(B) NMAC). No New Mexico jurisprudence exam is listed.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Neither Texas nor New Mexico is operational in the Counseling Compact, so it plays no part in this move. The route is endorsement through the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC): your Texas license is verified, your NCE or NCMHCE score is credited under New Mexico's own exam rule, and New Mexico applies any jurisprudence and background checks it requires. Check which New Mexico tier corresponds to your Texas license before you file, because the titles do not map one to one.
What's different between Texas and New Mexico
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into New Mexico. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Texas to New Mexico (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
New Mexico to Texas (the reverse move): Full re-application.
The two directions differ: Texas and New Mexico do not give each other's licensees the same route.
- Does coming from Texas matter?
Coming from Texas does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into New Mexico.
- Counseling Compact membership
Neither Texas nor New Mexico is in the Counseling Compact.
- Application fee
New Mexico lists $75 for an out-of-state applicant and Texas lists $165 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Processing time
New Mexico lists up to 5 weeks; Texas lists 6+ weeks for the reverse move.
- Exam rules on record
New Mexico and Texas carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- New Mexico (this move): National exam is not retaken at application: expedited licensure by credentials (16.27.24 NMAC) relies on a current license from an approved jurisdiction. New Mexico's own LPCC route requires both the NCE and the NCMHCE (16.27.4 NMAC). An expedited licensee whose home jurisdiction did not require an exam New Mexico requires must pass it before the first renewal (16.27.24.12(B) NMAC). No New Mexico jurisprudence exam is listed.
- Texas (the reverse move): No endorsement route. The national exam already passed (NCE or NCMHCE) is not retaken: scores are requested from NBCC for direct submission to the Texas portal. Every applicant must also pass the Texas Jurisprudence Examination within six months before applying.
What changes, Texas → New Mexico
| Texas (current) | New Mexico (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Counseling Compact status | Full re-application required | Licensure by endorsement |
| 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.) | $75 (nonrefundable application fee (16.27.17 NMAC); + $220 initial license fee before issuance; military service members and veterans are not charged licensing fees for the first three years of expedited licensure) |
| 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) | up to 5 weeks (16.27.24 NMAC: staff shall issue the expedited license to a qualified applicant within 30 days of receiving a complete application (30 days converted to 4.3 weeks); applications with a potential cause for denial go to the next Board meeting) |
| Licensing authority | Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC), Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors | New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — New Mexico sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm New Mexico's current requirements on the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the New Mexico Counseling and Therapy Practice Board (Regulation and Licensing Department) (Licensed Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor, LPCC) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current, unrestricted license in good standing of an approved type from a jurisdiction listed in 16.27.24.8 NMAC (e.g., Ohio/Minnesota/North Dakota LPCC, Illinois LCPC, Indiana LMHC).
- Have practiced as a licensed professional for at least two consecutive years immediately before applying.
- Hold a master's or doctoral degree in counseling or a counseling-related field from an accredited institution.
- Have no formal disciplinary action by any licensing board within the past two years.
- Apply through the RLD online licensing portal (paper applications not accepted).
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-10-29.
- 16.27.24 NMAC Expedited Licensure (approved LPCC jurisdictions, 2-year practice, 30-day issuance), NM State Records Center and Archives ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- 16.27.4 NMAC Requirements for Licensure as a Professional Clinical Mental Health Counselor (NCE + NCMHCE, 3,000 hours) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- 16.27.17 NMAC Fees ($75 application, $220 initial license) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- NM RLD Counseling and Therapy Practice: Licensing, Registration, and Renewal ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- BHEC: Applying for an LPC License, Licensed in Another Jurisdiction (no reciprocity, endorsement or temporary licensure) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- BHEC: How to Apply for an LPC License from Out of State (online application guide, 6-week processing note) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Texas Register 2026-03-13: Figure 22 TAC 885.1(b), BHEC fee schedule ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-10-29
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