Psychology License from West Virginia to Illinois: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation — Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board ↗
A psychology license transfers from West Virginia to Illinois by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation — Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board, verify your West Virginia license, and meet Illinois's endorsement requirements. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — an ENDORSEMENT applicant must have ASPPB send an official original EPPP score report directly to the Department. Illinois has no separate state jurisprudence examination for clinical psychologists..
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Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
West Virginia and Illinois 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 West Virginia to Illinois means applying to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation — Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board for licensure by endorsement exactly as you would if neither state had ever joined — license verification, doctoral transcript, supervised-experience review, Illinois's jurisprudence requirement. What the shared participation genuinely gives you is different and still valuable: while you remain licensed and resident in West Virginia, you can serve Illinois clients by telepsychology under an APIT authorization, and work in person in Illinois for up to 30 days a year under a TAP. That can cover a transition period — it cannot cover the move.
What changes, West Virginia → Illinois
| West Virginia (current) | Illinois (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| PSYPACT status | PSYPACT member — multistate license honored | PSYPACT member — multistate license honored |
| Application fee | $120–$525 (17CSR1 §2.1 application fee $120; the oral examination required of every reciprocity applicant is a further $405 (§2.6.1), so a typical reciprocity applicant pays about $525. Not included: $25 application-packet mailing/handling, $90 temporary permit, $180 continued oral examination. All Board fees are nonrefundable.) | $100 (ENDORSEMENT licensure-method application fee for profession code 071, per the IDFPR Licensed Clinical Psychologist application packet; the SENIOR PSYCHOLOGIST method is also $100, while EXAMINATION and ACCEPTANCE OF EXAMINATION are $50. Application fees are nonrefundable.) |
| Processing time | The Board publishes no stated review timeline. Timing is driven by the oral examination, which is scheduled at a Board meeting and requires all oral-exam materials at least 15 days in advance; a 90-day temporary permit is available to bridge the wait. | ~6 weeks (The IDFPR application packet instructs applicants to 'allow 6 weeks from mailing your application before making an inquiry concerning its status.' That is the Department's stated floor for a status inquiry, not a promised decision date, and no upper bound is published — hence the open-ended range.) |
| Licensing authority | West Virginia Board of Examiners of Psychologists | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation — Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Illinois sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Illinois's current requirements on the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation — Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation — Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Be actively licensed as a Clinical Psychologist (or equivalent) in another state or U.S. jurisdiction whose requirements were substantially equivalent to Illinois' when the license was issued.
- Arrange for ASPPB to send an official EPPP score report directly to the Department.
- Have Certification of Licensure (CT form) sent directly from your first state of psychologist licensure and from the state where you have most recently practiced.
- Document at least two years of satisfactory supervised experience on VE-PSY forms — one year internship and one year postdoctoral — unless substituting current National Register HSP credentialing plus five years of independent doctoral-level practice.
- Submit the ED form and official transcripts from every institution where graduate psychology coursework was completed (APA-accredited program evidence may replace course syllabi).
- Pay the fees ($100 (ENDORSEMENT licensure-method application fee for profession code 071, per the IDFPR Licensed Clinical Psychologist application packet; the SENIOR PSYCHOLOGIST method is also $100, while EXAMINATION and ACCEPTANCE OF EXAMINATION are $50. Application fees are nonrefundable.)) and allow ~6 weeks (The IDFPR application packet instructs applicants to 'allow 6 weeks from mailing your application before making an inquiry concerning its status.' That is the Department's stated floor for a status inquiry, not a promised decision date, and no upper bound is published — hence the open-ended range.).
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Illinois accept a West Virginia psychology license?
A psychology license transfers from West Virginia to Illinois by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation — Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board, verify your West Virginia license, and meet Illinois's endorsement requirements. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — an ENDORSEMENT applicant must have ASPPB send an official original EPPP score report directly to the Department. Illinois has no separate state jurisprudence examination for clinical psychologists..
Do I retake the EPPP moving from West Virginia to Illinois?
No — the EPPP is passed once and your score is verified rather than retaken. EPPP passing score transfers (not retaken) — an ENDORSEMENT applicant must have ASPPB send an official original EPPP score report directly to the Department. Illinois has no separate state jurisprudence examination for clinical psychologists..
What does the move cost?
$100 (ENDORSEMENT licensure-method application fee for profession code 071, per the IDFPR Licensed Clinical Psychologist application packet; the SENIOR PSYCHOLOGIST method is also $100, while EXAMINATION and ACCEPTANCE OF EXAMINATION are $50. Application fees are nonrefundable.) (ENDORSEMENT licensure-method application fee for profession code 071, per the IDFPR Licensed Clinical Psychologist application packet; the SENIOR PSYCHOLOGIST method is also $100, while EXAMINATION and ACCEPTANCE OF EXAMINATION are $50. Application fees are nonrefundable.).
How long will it take?
~6 weeks (The IDFPR application packet instructs applicants to 'allow 6 weeks from mailing your application before making an inquiry concerning its status.' That is the Department's stated floor for a status inquiry, not a promised decision date, and no upper bound is published — hence the open-ended range.) — The IDFPR application packet instructs applicants to 'allow 6 weeks from mailing your application before making an inquiry concerning its status.' That is the Department's stated floor for a status inquiry, not a promised decision date, and no upper bound is published — hence the open-ended range..
West Virginia and Illinois 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 Illinois (APIT) and in-person practice there for up to 30 days a year (TAP) while your license stays in West Virginia. Relocating to Illinois requires licensure by endorsement from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation — Clinical Psychologists Licensing and Disciplinary Board like any other applicant.
Can I start seeing Illinois clients before my Illinois license is issued?
While your West Virginia license remains active and is your home-state license, a PSYPACT authorization can cover Illinois 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 West Virginia stops being your licensed home state — they are a bridge during a transition, not a substitute for the Illinois license.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.
- IDFPR — Licensed Clinical Psychologist application packet (licensure methods, endorsement requirements, $100 endorsement fee, supporting documents, 6-week inquiry window) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- IDFPR — Clinical Psychology profession page (Act 225 ILCS 15/, Rules 68 IAC Part 1400, CORE online application) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- WV Board of Examiners of Psychologists — Reciprocity Applicants / Oral Examination / Temporary License ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- WV Legislative Rule 17CSR3 §12.2 and §14.4 — reciprocity provision, CPQ/National Register portability waiver, oral examination ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- WV Legislative Rule 17CSR1 — Board of Psychologists fee schedule (application $120, oral exam $405, temporary permit $90) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- WV Board of Examiners of Psychologists — License Information (application pathways) ↗ (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]