Psychology License from Texas to Montana: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Montana Board of Psychologists (Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division) ↗
A psychology license transfers from Texas to Montana by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Montana Board of Psychologists (Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division), verify your Texas license, and meet Montana's endorsement requirements. Montana requires a passing EPPP score plus completion of the Board's jurisdictional course; the EPPP is a national exam, so an existing passing score is verified rather than retaken. The separate 'Psychologist Licensed by Experience' route — 20 or more years licensed in a U.S. or Canadian jurisdiction with at least 10 years of clinical experience — requires only the Board's jurisdictional course and no EPPP.
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Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Leaving Texas for Montana takes you outside the compact's reach: Montana has enacted PSYPACT but was not participating as of 2026-08-07, so no APIT or TAP authorization covers Montana clients, and there is no telehealth or temporary-practice bridge to work across while your application is pending. You apply to the Montana Board of Psychologists (Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division) for licensure by endorsement — your existing EPPP score is accepted rather than retaken, and Montana applies its own credential review, jurisprudence requirement, and background check. Any authorizations you hold for other participating states remain valid only while your Texas license does.
What changes, Texas → Montana
| Texas (current) | Montana (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| PSYPACT status | PSYPACT member — multistate license honored | PSYPACT enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $425 (22 TAC 885.1: 'LP Application (including reciprocity applications)' totals $425 ($410 base + $10 Texas.gov + $5 Office of Patient Protection). The psychologist Jurisprudence Exam fee is $39 and the fingerprint criminal history check is billed separately by the vendor. All fees are nonrefundable and nontransferable.) | $175 (Application fee stated on the Board's license-information page for both Psychologist and Psychologist Licensed by Experience. A postdoctoral supervision application is a separate $25 where applicable; renewal is $600 active / $1,200 late. Background-check costs are not published here.) |
| Processing time | 4–6 weeks (Council states most applications take an average of 30-40 days to fully process and asks applicants not to inquire until six weeks have elapsed. Its published FY2025 figures for psychologist applications were 1 day minimum, 310 days maximum, 43-day median, 46-day average.) | Neither the Board's license-information page nor its statutes page states a processing-time range for psychologist applications. |
| Licensing authority | Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists (Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council) | Montana Board of Psychologists (Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Montana sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Montana's current requirements on the Montana Board of Psychologists (Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Montana Board of Psychologists (Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold an active out-of-state license in good standing whose qualifications the Board finds substantially equivalent to Montana's (MCA 37-1-304).
- Hold a doctoral degree in clinical psychology from an APA-approved program, or an APA-approved retraining program, or a course of study meeting the Board's rules.
- Document at least 2 years of supervised experience in the practice of psychology, at least 1 year of it postdoctoral.
- Pass the EPPP and complete the Montana Board jurisdictional course.
- Apply through the state's eBiz professional licensing portal.
- Pay the fees ($175 (Application fee stated on the Board's license-information page for both Psychologist and Psychologist Licensed by Experience. A postdoctoral supervision application is a separate $25 where applicable; renewal is $600 active / $1,200 late. Background-check costs are not published here.)) and allow Neither the Board's license-information page nor its statutes page states a processing-time range for psychologist applications..
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Montana accept a Texas psychology license?
A psychology license transfers from Texas to Montana by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Montana Board of Psychologists (Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division), verify your Texas license, and meet Montana's endorsement requirements. Montana requires a passing EPPP score plus completion of the Board's jurisdictional course; the EPPP is a national exam, so an existing passing score is verified rather than retaken. The separate 'Psychologist Licensed by Experience' route — 20 or more years licensed in a U.S. or Canadian jurisdiction with at least 10 years of clinical experience — requires only the Board's jurisdictional course and no EPPP.
Do I retake the EPPP moving from Texas to Montana?
No — the EPPP is passed once and your score is verified rather than retaken. Montana requires a passing EPPP score plus completion of the Board's jurisdictional course; the EPPP is a national exam, so an existing passing score is verified rather than retaken. The separate 'Psychologist Licensed by Experience' route — 20 or more years licensed in a U.S. or Canadian jurisdiction with at least 10 years of clinical experience — requires only the Board's jurisdictional course and no EPPP.
What does the move cost?
$175 (Application fee stated on the Board's license-information page for both Psychologist and Psychologist Licensed by Experience. A postdoctoral supervision application is a separate $25 where applicable; renewal is $600 active / $1,200 late. Background-check costs are not published here.) (Application fee stated on the Board's license-information page for both Psychologist and Psychologist Licensed by Experience. A postdoctoral supervision application is a separate $25 where applicable; renewal is $600 active / $1,200 late. Background-check costs are not published here.).
How long will it take?
Neither the Board's license-information page nor its statutes page states a processing-time range for psychologist applications. — Neither the Board's license-information page nor its statutes page states a processing-time range for psychologist applications..
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.
- Montana Board of Psychologists — Psychologist and Psychologist by Experience license information (requirements, exams, $175 application fee) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Montana Board of Psychologists — board home (license types, apply/renew, PSYPACT) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Montana Code Annotated 37-1-304 — Licensure by endorsement (substantially equivalent out-of-state license; reciprocity agreements may not lower Montana standards) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Montana Code Annotated 37-17-302 — Qualifications for licensure as a psychologist ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council — Applying for a Psychology License (application types, including the Oklahoma reciprocity application) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- TBHEC Consolidated Rulebook for Psychology (22 TAC 463.2, 463.10, 463.13, 463.30, 463.31 and 885.1 fee schedule) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- TBHEC — Licensed Psychologist Checklist & Licensure Process (NPDB, fingerprints, transferred EPPP score, CPQ/ABPP) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- TBHEC — Current Application Processing Timelines (30-40 day average; FY2025 psychologist statistics) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- TBHEC — Psychology Forms and Publications (Oklahoma Licensed Psychologist Reciprocity Application and documentation checklist) ↗ (accessed 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]