Psychology License from New York to Kentucky: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology (Department of Professional Licensing) ↗
A psychology license transfers from New York to Kentucky by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology (Department of Professional Licensing), verify your New York license, and meet Kentucky's endorsement requirements. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — 201 KAR 26:185 requires a verified EPPP scaled score of 500 or greater and directs the Board to accept the applicant's previous national EPPP results if the original scores met the doctoral licensure criterion at the time, and 201 KAR 26:160 Section 3 waives the EPPP fee for a candidate who already passed elsewhere. Kentucky still requires two of its own examinations: a jurisprudence examination on Kentucky mental health law (80% to pass) and a competency examination on ethical principles and professional practice (100% to pass)..
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
This direction has a payoff worth planning around. New York is outside PSYPACT, so you have had no compact authorizations to work with — but Kentucky participates. Endorse into Kentucky through the Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology (Department of Professional Licensing), 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, Kentucky's jurisprudence requirement applied — but what it unlocks afterwards is considerably more than a single state.
What changes, New York → Kentucky
| New York (current) | Kentucky (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| PSYPACT status | Licensure by endorsement | PSYPACT member — multistate license honored |
| Application fee | $294 (Fee for licensure and the first registration, submitted with Form 1. A limited permit (Form 5B for out-of-state licensees) is an additional $70, nonrefundable. Fees are set in Education Law and are subject to change; the fee due is the one in law when the application is received.) | $100 ($100 application review fee under 201 KAR 26:160 Section 1(1)(a); an Application for Licensure as a Psychologist by Reciprocity is likewise $100 (Section 6). Separate from this application fee: $100 for the jurisprudence and competency examinations, $50 per retake of either, and a $250 initial licensure fee for the first three-year period once the process is complete. The EPPP fee is waived for a candidate who already passed the EPPP in another state. All fees are nonrefundable.) |
| Processing time | NYSED Office of the Professions publishes no stated review timeframe for psychology licensure or endorsement. | No processing-time estimate is published in KRS 319, in 201 KAR 26, or by the Board; applications pass through the online system's primary source verification and then a final board review. Null rather than a guess. |
| Licensing authority | New York State Board for Psychology (NYSED Office of the Professions) | Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology (Department of Professional Licensing) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Kentucky sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Kentucky's current requirements on the Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology (Department of Professional Licensing) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology (Department of Professional Licensing) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current, valid license in good standing to practice psychology from a state, DC, a U.S. territory, or a Canadian province whose board is an ASPPB constituent member.
- Document a minimum of five years of full-time practice of psychology (or the board-determined equivalent) with no discipline by any psychology licensure board.
- Pass the Kentucky jurisprudence examination (80%) and the competency examination (100%).
- Submit three letters of reference — at least two from persons holding a doctorate in psychology — plus official sealed transcripts and a curriculum vitae demonstrating the five years of practice.
- Pay the fees ($100 ($100 application review fee under 201 KAR 26:160 Section 1(1)(a); an Application for Licensure as a Psychologist by Reciprocity is likewise $100 (Section 6). Separate from this application fee: $100 for the jurisprudence and competency examinations, $50 per retake of either, and a $250 initial licensure fee for the first three-year period once the process is complete. The EPPP fee is waived for a candidate who already passed the EPPP in another state. All fees are nonrefundable.)) and allow No processing-time estimate is published in KRS 319, in 201 KAR 26, or by the Board; applications pass through the online system's primary source verification and then a final board review. Null rather than a guess..
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Kentucky accept a New York psychology license?
A psychology license transfers from New York to Kentucky by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology (Department of Professional Licensing), verify your New York license, and meet Kentucky's endorsement requirements. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — 201 KAR 26:185 requires a verified EPPP scaled score of 500 or greater and directs the Board to accept the applicant's previous national EPPP results if the original scores met the doctoral licensure criterion at the time, and 201 KAR 26:160 Section 3 waives the EPPP fee for a candidate who already passed elsewhere. Kentucky still requires two of its own examinations: a jurisprudence examination on Kentucky mental health law (80% to pass) and a competency examination on ethical principles and professional practice (100% to pass)..
Do I retake the EPPP moving from New York to Kentucky?
No — the EPPP is passed once and your score is verified rather than retaken. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — 201 KAR 26:185 requires a verified EPPP scaled score of 500 or greater and directs the Board to accept the applicant's previous national EPPP results if the original scores met the doctoral licensure criterion at the time, and 201 KAR 26:160 Section 3 waives the EPPP fee for a candidate who already passed elsewhere. Kentucky still requires two of its own examinations: a jurisprudence examination on Kentucky mental health law (80% to pass) and a competency examination on ethical principles and professional practice (100% to pass)..
What does the move cost?
$100 ($100 application review fee under 201 KAR 26:160 Section 1(1)(a); an Application for Licensure as a Psychologist by Reciprocity is likewise $100 (Section 6). Separate from this application fee: $100 for the jurisprudence and competency examinations, $50 per retake of either, and a $250 initial licensure fee for the first three-year period once the process is complete. The EPPP fee is waived for a candidate who already passed the EPPP in another state. All fees are nonrefundable.) ($100 application review fee under 201 KAR 26:160 Section 1(1)(a); an Application for Licensure as a Psychologist by Reciprocity is likewise $100 (Section 6). Separate from this application fee: $100 for the jurisprudence and competency examinations, $50 per retake of either, and a $250 initial licensure fee for the first three-year period once the process is complete. The EPPP fee is waived for a candidate who already passed the EPPP in another state. All fees are nonrefundable.).
How long will it take?
No processing-time estimate is published in KRS 319, in 201 KAR 26, or by the Board; applications pass through the online system's primary source verification and then a final board review. Null rather than a guess. — No processing-time estimate is published in KRS 319, in 201 KAR 26, or by the Board; applications pass through the online system's primary source verification and then a final board review. Null rather than a guess..
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.
- Kentucky Board of Examiners of Psychology — Licensing page (online applications, including Licensure as a Psychologist Licensed in Another State and Licensure of a Psychologist by Reciprocity) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- 201 KAR 26:185 — Requirements for granting licensure as a psychologist to an applicant licensed in another state ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- 201 KAR 26:180 — Requirements for granting licensure as a psychologist by reciprocity (CPQ / National Register / ABPP fast-track) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- 201 KAR 26:160 — Fee schedule ($100 application review, $100 jurisprudence and competency examinations, $250 initial licensure, $100 reciprocity application, EPPP fee waiver) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- 201 KAR 26:230 — Examinations and applications (EPPP; Kentucky jurisprudence exam 80%, competency exam 100%) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- 201 KAR 26:185 — Internet Archive snapshot of the official regulation actually read on 2026-08-07 (apps.legislature.ky.gov was unreachable from the research network; 26:160, 26:180 and 26:230 were read the same way) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- NYSED Office of the Professions — Psychology License Requirements (fees, education, experience, examination, Applicants Licensed in Another Jurisdiction, Licensure by Endorsement, limited permits) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- NYSED Office of the Professions — How to Apply for Licensure as a Psychologist (forms, sequence, Form 3 for out-of-state licensees) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- NYSED Office of the Professions — Psychology profession landing page ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-08-07
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