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LicenseReciprocity

Psychology License from South Dakota to Wisconsin: Does It Transfer? (2026)

Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) ↗

A psychology license transfers from South Dakota to Wisconsin by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services), verify your South Dakota license, and meet Wisconsin's endorsement requirements. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — an applicant who sat the EPPP Part 1 in another jurisdiction requests an official ASPPB score transfer report sent directly to DSPS; the Wisconsin Jurisprudence Examination, a computer-based test on Wisconsin statutes and administrative code requiring a score of 80% to pass, is still required of reciprocity applicants.

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Verdict

Licensure by endorsement

South Dakota and Wisconsin both participate in PSYPACT, and it is worth being blunt about what that does and does not buy you, because the compact's name misleads a lot of psychologists. It does not transfer your license. Moving from South Dakota to Wisconsin means applying to the Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) for licensure by endorsement exactly as you would if neither state had ever joined — license verification, doctoral transcript, supervised-experience review, Wisconsin's jurisprudence requirement. What the shared participation genuinely gives you is different and still valuable: while you remain licensed and resident in South Dakota, you can serve Wisconsin clients by telepsychology under an APIT authorization, and work in person in Wisconsin for up to 30 days a year under a TAP. That can cover a transition period — it cannot cover the move.

What changes, South Dakota → Wisconsin

Side-by-side: South Dakota vs Wisconsin (Psychology (licensed psychologist)), verified 2026-08-07
South Dakota (current)Wisconsin (destination)
PSYPACT statusPSYPACT member — multistate license honoredPSYPACT member — multistate license honored
Application fee$300 ($300.00 Application for Licensure fee. A separate initial licensure fee is prorated by the month the license is granted — $200.00 (July-September), $150.00 (October-December), $100.00 (January-March), $50.00 (April-June) — and annual renewal is $300.00. Oral examination fees are included in the application fee; a retake of a failed oral exam is $200.00. EPPP fees are paid directly to the national examination company)DSPS does not publish the initial psychologist credential fee on the profession page or in its Renewal Dates and Fees schedule — the application fee is calculated and paid in the LicensE portal, so no verified amount could be recorded. Verified adjacent figures: biennial renewal $66 (with late fee $91), and an additional $266 fee if the Examining Board requires the applicant to appear before it prior to licensure.
Processing timeThe Board publishes no processing-time estimate. Timing depends on Board review-officer approval of the completed file and, for applicants who do not qualify for the endorsement oral-exam waiver, on scheduling the oral examinationNeither DSPS nor the Psychology Examining Board publishes a stated review timeline for reciprocity applications; applicants monitor progress through the LicensE application status lookup.
Licensing authoritySouth Dakota Board of Examiners of Psychologists (Department of Social Services)Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services)

The destination column is what you must satisfy — Wisconsin sets the rules for this move.

Step by step

  1. Confirm Wisconsin's current requirements on the Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) website (linked below) — rules change.
  2. Submit the endorsement application to the Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) (application linked below).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
  4. Hold an active psychologist license in another state, territory, foreign country or province, and keep it active until the Wisconsin credentialing process is complete.
  5. Have the Psychology Examining Board find the other jurisdiction's standards substantially equivalent to Wisconsin's (Wis. Stat. 455.04(3)).
  6. Have every jurisdiction where you hold or have ever held a mental-health credential send a license verification letter directly to the Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board.
  7. Submit Form #2687 authorizing release of FBI information and complete digital fingerprinting.
  8. Pass the Wisconsin Jurisprudence Examination on state law related to the practice of psychology with a score of at least 80%.
  9. Pay the fees (DSPS does not publish the initial psychologist credential fee on the profession page or in its Renewal Dates and Fees schedule — the application fee is calculated and paid in the LicensE portal, so no verified amount could be recorded. Verified adjacent figures: biennial renewal $66 (with late fee $91), and an additional $266 fee if the Examining Board requires the applicant to appear before it prior to licensure.) and allow Neither DSPS nor the Psychology Examining Board publishes a stated review timeline for reciprocity applications; applicants monitor progress through the LicensE application status lookup..

Official links

Related guides

Frequently asked questions

Does Wisconsin accept a South Dakota psychology license?

A psychology license transfers from South Dakota to Wisconsin by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services), verify your South Dakota license, and meet Wisconsin's endorsement requirements. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — an applicant who sat the EPPP Part 1 in another jurisdiction requests an official ASPPB score transfer report sent directly to DSPS; the Wisconsin Jurisprudence Examination, a computer-based test on Wisconsin statutes and administrative code requiring a score of 80% to pass, is still required of reciprocity applicants.

Do I retake the EPPP moving from South Dakota to Wisconsin?

No — the EPPP is passed once and your score is verified rather than retaken. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — an applicant who sat the EPPP Part 1 in another jurisdiction requests an official ASPPB score transfer report sent directly to DSPS; the Wisconsin Jurisprudence Examination, a computer-based test on Wisconsin statutes and administrative code requiring a score of 80% to pass, is still required of reciprocity applicants.

What does the move cost?

DSPS does not publish the initial psychologist credential fee on the profession page or in its Renewal Dates and Fees schedule — the application fee is calculated and paid in the LicensE portal, so no verified amount could be recorded. Verified adjacent figures: biennial renewal $66 (with late fee $91), and an additional $266 fee if the Examining Board requires the applicant to appear before it prior to licensure. (DSPS does not publish the initial psychologist credential fee on the profession page or in its Renewal Dates and Fees schedule — the application fee is calculated and paid in the LicensE portal, so no verified amount could be recorded. Verified adjacent figures: biennial renewal $66 (with late fee $91), and an additional $266 fee if the Examining Board requires the applicant to appear before it prior to licensure.).

How long will it take?

Neither DSPS nor the Psychology Examining Board publishes a stated review timeline for reciprocity applications; applicants monitor progress through the LicensE application status lookup. — Neither DSPS nor the Psychology Examining Board publishes a stated review timeline for reciprocity applications; applicants monitor progress through the LicensE application status lookup..

South Dakota and Wisconsin are both PSYPACT states — doesn't my license transfer automatically?

No. PSYPACT never transfers a license, including between two participating states. It authorizes telepsychology into Wisconsin (APIT) and in-person practice there for up to 30 days a year (TAP) while your license stays in South Dakota. Relocating to Wisconsin requires licensure by endorsement from the Wisconsin Psychology Examining Board (Department of Safety and Professional Services) like any other applicant.

Can I start seeing Wisconsin clients before my Wisconsin license is issued?

While your South Dakota license remains active and is your home-state license, a PSYPACT authorization can cover Wisconsin clients by telepsychology, and a TAP covers up to 30 days a year of in-person work there. Those are the compact's limits, and they end when South Dakota stops being your licensed home state — they are a bridge during a transition, not a substitute for the Wisconsin license.

Sources

Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.

Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-08-07

How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]