Psychology License from California to Arkansas: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Arkansas Psychology Board ↗
A psychology license transfers from California to Arkansas by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Arkansas Psychology Board, verify your California license, and meet Arkansas's endorsement requirements. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — Board Rule 10.1 requires the Board to accept examination scores administered elsewhere that meet or exceed the Arkansas cut score, and Rule 5.6.A licenses a qualifying out-of-state psychologist 'without written examination'. The Board's formal interview and oral examination now applies only to applicants who applied before July 3, 2020; Arkansas has no separate written jurisprudence exam.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
This direction has a payoff worth planning around. California is outside PSYPACT, so you have had no compact authorizations to work with — but Arkansas participates. Endorse into Arkansas through the Arkansas Psychology Board, make it your licensed home state, and that license becomes an anchor: from there an ASPPB E.Passport and APIT authorization let you serve clients across every other participating state without another full license. The endorsement itself is still an ordinary application — EPPP score accepted, credentials reviewed, Arkansas's jurisprudence requirement applied — but what it unlocks afterwards is considerably more than a single state.
What changes, California → Arkansas
| California (current) | Arkansas (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| PSYPACT status | Licensure by endorsement | PSYPACT member — multistate license honored |
| Application fee | $236 ($236 psychologist initial application fee (2024 fee schedule, the current schedule published by the Board). Separately + $127 for the CPLEE application and + $231 for initial licensure; out-of-state fingerprint hard card processing is $233) | $200–$400 ($200 application fee buys the application packet (payable in full or as a $50 deposit plus a $150 remainder); a further $200 registration/certification fee plus a pro-rated license fee is due at licensure. Criminal background check costs ($60 LiveScan in state) are paid separately to the Arkansas State Police) |
| Processing time | 4–6 weeks (Board states processing takes approximately 1.5 months (4-6 weeks) for applications, subsequent documents/correspondence and requested deficiency documents. Because the application, the CPLEE request and the request for initial licensure are each processed separately at that pace, total time from filing to a California license is considerably longer) | No board-stated range. Credential reviews are conducted only at regularly scheduled Board meetings, a file must be complete by the 1st of the month to be considered at the next meeting, and a file that fails review waits for the following meeting; the Board publishes no target turnaround |
| Licensing authority | California Board of Psychology (Department of Consumer Affairs) | Arkansas Psychology Board |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Arkansas sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Arkansas's current requirements on the Arkansas Psychology Board website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Arkansas Psychology Board (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Qualify by one of three routes: doctoral-level licensure in a state that entered the ASPPB Agreement of Reciprocity, an ASPPB Certificate of Professional Qualification (CPQ), or National Register certification — the CPQ and National Register routes require at least five years of active licensure in another jurisdiction.
- Pay the application fee first, then request the matching 'Agreement of Reciprocity', 'National Register' or 'CPQ' application packet from the Board's administrative staff.
- Apply to the Identification Bureau of the Arkansas State Police for a state and national criminal background check and sign a release of information to the Board.
- Have a License Verification Form completed and returned by every state board that issued a psychology license, showing issuance and expiration dates.
- Submit a Statement of Intent to Practice as a Psychologist.
- Pay the fees ($200–$400 ($200 application fee buys the application packet (payable in full or as a $50 deposit plus a $150 remainder); a further $200 registration/certification fee plus a pro-rated license fee is due at licensure. Criminal background check costs ($60 LiveScan in state) are paid separately to the Arkansas State Police)) and allow No board-stated range. Credential reviews are conducted only at regularly scheduled Board meetings, a file must be complete by the 1st of the month to be considered at the next meeting, and a file that fails review waits for the following meeting; the Board publishes no target turnaround.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Arkansas accept a California psychology license?
A psychology license transfers from California to Arkansas by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Arkansas Psychology Board, verify your California license, and meet Arkansas's endorsement requirements. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — Board Rule 10.1 requires the Board to accept examination scores administered elsewhere that meet or exceed the Arkansas cut score, and Rule 5.6.A licenses a qualifying out-of-state psychologist 'without written examination'. The Board's formal interview and oral examination now applies only to applicants who applied before July 3, 2020; Arkansas has no separate written jurisprudence exam.
Do I retake the EPPP moving from California to Arkansas?
No — the EPPP is passed once and your score is verified rather than retaken. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — Board Rule 10.1 requires the Board to accept examination scores administered elsewhere that meet or exceed the Arkansas cut score, and Rule 5.6.A licenses a qualifying out-of-state psychologist 'without written examination'. The Board's formal interview and oral examination now applies only to applicants who applied before July 3, 2020; Arkansas has no separate written jurisprudence exam.
What does the move cost?
$200–$400 ($200 application fee buys the application packet (payable in full or as a $50 deposit plus a $150 remainder); a further $200 registration/certification fee plus a pro-rated license fee is due at licensure. Criminal background check costs ($60 LiveScan in state) are paid separately to the Arkansas State Police) ($200 application fee buys the application packet (payable in full or as a $50 deposit plus a $150 remainder); a further $200 registration/certification fee plus a pro-rated license fee is due at licensure. Criminal background check costs ($60 LiveScan in state) are paid separately to the Arkansas State Police).
How long will it take?
No board-stated range. Credential reviews are conducted only at regularly scheduled Board meetings, a file must be complete by the 1st of the month to be considered at the next meeting, and a file that fails review waits for the following meeting; the Board publishes no target turnaround — No board-stated range. Credential reviews are conducted only at regularly scheduled Board meetings, a file must be complete by the 1st of the month to be considered at the next meeting, and a file that fails review waits for the following meeting; the Board publishes no target turnaround.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.
- Arkansas Psychology Board — Applicants (application request, $200 fee schedule, out-of-state license verification, oral exam limited to pre-July 3 2020 applicants) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Arkansas Psychology Board — Rules and Regulations (engrossed 11.2.18): Rule 5.6 Interjurisdictional Practice, Rule 10.1 acceptance of written examination scores, Rule 10.2 reciprocity, Section 13 fees ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- PSYPACT — PSYPACT Map/States (Arkansas participating) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- California Board of Psychology — Out-of-State Application for Licensure as a Psychologist (Categories A/B/C, SPE and credential substitutes, CPLEE, prelicensure coursework, fingerprints) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- California Board of Psychology — Frequently Asked Questions (no licensing reciprocity; EPPP score transfer from ASPPB; 180-day pre-licensure practice for an applicant licensed elsewhere) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- California Board of Psychology — 2024 Fee Schedule ($236 initial application, $127 CPLEE application, $231 initial licensure, $233 out-of-state fingerprint hard card) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- California Board of Psychology — Application Processing Timeframes (approximately 1.5 months / 4-6 weeks per item; updated July 16, 2026) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-08-07
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