Social Work License Reciprocity: LCSW Transfers by State and the Social Work Licensure Compact
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · every fact cites the official board or compact commission
49 of 51 US jurisdictions license an out-of-state clinical social worker by endorsement (Georgia, Hawaii do not): the destination board verifies your license, accepts your ASWB exam score without a retake, and usually adds a background check. The Social Work Licensure Compact has been enacted in 33 states but is not issuing multistate licenses anywhere as of 2026-09-27, so endorsement is the working route for every move.
Check your exact transfer pathway
Pathway, requirements, fees, and board links for your specific state pair.
Social work has an interstate compact on the statute books and none in operation. The Social Work Licensure Compact cleared its activation threshold in 2024 and its commission has been meeting since, but it has not issued a single multistate license, and there is no application to file. When a clinical social worker moves today, the only thing that matters is the destination board's licensure-by-endorsement process, which boards also call reciprocity or licensure by credentials. The pages here describe that process state by state, and flag which states have enacted the compact so you know where it will matter once it launches.
The good news is how much of your record travels. Every state licenses social workers against the ASWB exams, so no board makes you sit the exam again; ASWB sends your score to the new board through its score transfer service. Most boards also credit the supervised experience you completed under your old state's rules. What does not travel is the license itself: expect license verification, a criminal background check, and in some states a law or ethics requirement of the state's own.
Two details catch people. The clinical license goes by different initials depending on the state: LCSW in most, LICSW in Massachusetts, Minnesota, Washington and the District of Columbia, LISW in Ohio. Boards match your license by what it authorizes, independent diagnosis and treatment, not by its name. And ASWB's Social Work Registry, which many social workers used to forward transcripts and supervision records, stopped taking new applications in March 2026 and shuts down in March 2027, so plan to send documents the way each board asks.
The four transfer pathways (and where the SW Compact fits)
Licensure by endorsement (how every move works today)
You apply to the destination board as someone already licensed. It verifies your current license is active and in good standing, confirms your MSW and your ASWB score, and usually runs a criminal background check; some boards add a law or ethics exam or course. The labels differ from board to board (endorsement, reciprocity, licensure by credentials), but the substance is the same review, and none of them issues a license just because another state did.
Your ASWB score: sent, never retaken
The ASWB exam is the common currency. No board asks a licensed social worker to sit it again; instead you request a score transfer in ASWBCentral, pay ASWB $40, and the score reaches the new board in 7-10 business days. The catch is the category. Some boards license the clinical tier only on the ASWB Clinical exam, while others also accept the Advanced Generalist, so check the destination's rule before you assume your score qualifies.
Supervised experience and the clinical tier
Clinical licensure rests on post-MSW supervised practice, and states count it differently. Most boards credit hours you completed under your former state's rules; a minority set them against their own figure, often around 3,000 hours across two or more years. Apply for the tier that matches what you do. If your license authorizes independent diagnosis and treatment, you want the destination's clinical license, whether it is called an LCSW, LICSW or LISW.
The Social Work Licensure Compact (enacted, not issuing)
The compact will eventually let a social worker hold one multistate license, issued by the home state where they live, and practice in every member state. It is not there yet. There is no application, no fee schedule and no data system, and the commission's own estimate for that system is Spring 2027. Until it launches, membership changes nothing about your application in any state.
Definitions in depth: how social work transfer works · the SW Compact explained · compact membership map· full reciprocity overview
Every state, one table
Sorted A-Z. Each state links to its full transfer guide with requirements, fees, steps, and board links. For how social work (lcsw / licsw) compares with every other licensed profession — median transfer fees, the share of moves that are automatic, and the hardest states to enter — see the license reciprocity statistics.
Frequently asked questions
Does my social work license transfer to another state?
49 of 51 US jurisdictions license an out-of-state clinical social worker by endorsement (Georgia, Hawaii do not): the destination board verifies your license, accepts your ASWB exam score without a retake, and usually adds a background check. The Social Work Licensure Compact has been enacted in 33 states but is not issuing multistate licenses anywhere as of 2026-09-27, so endorsement is the working route for every move.
Is the Social Work Licensure Compact active yet?
Not in any practical sense. The compact reached its seven-state activation threshold on April 12, 2024 and its commission first met in September 2024, but as of 2026-09-27 no multistate license can be applied for or issued. The commission's July 2026 update estimated its data system for Spring 2027; that is the commission's target, not a launch date.
Which states have enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact?
33 states as of 2026-09-27: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin. New Mexico, South Carolina passed versions with material changes and are not on the commission's member list. Enactment does not mean a state is issuing anything; none is yet.
Do I have to retake the ASWB exam in a new state?
No. The exam is national and your passing score stays valid; ASWB sends it to the new board through score transfer, which costs $40 and takes 7-10 business days once you request it in ASWBCentral. Check which category the destination wants for the clinical license, because some boards accept only the Clinical exam while others also take the Advanced Generalist.
My license is an LCSW. What if the new state uses a different title?
Apply for the license that authorizes independent clinical practice, whatever that state calls it. Ohio's clinical license is the LISW; the District of Columbia's is the LICSW, and DC's own LISW is a separate non-clinical license, so applying for it by mistake puts you in the wrong tier.
Will my supervised hours count in the new state?
Usually. Most boards credit supervised experience completed under another state's rules, but a few compare your hours against their own requirement, which commonly runs to about 3,000 hours over two or more years. The state pages record each board's rule where it publishes one.
Can I use the ASWB Social Work Registry to send my records?
Not as a new user. ASWB stopped accepting new Registry applications and renewals on March 16, 2026, and the Registry shuts down on March 31, 2027. Send transcripts and supervision verification the way the destination board instructs; your exam records remain available through ASWBCentral.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- Social Work Licensure Compact (official commission site, CSG) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Social Work Licensure Compact — alphabetical listing of compact jurisdictions ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Social Work Licensure Compact — compact map (status per state) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Social Work Licensure Compact — 'Social Work Compact Enacted in 35 States' (2026-07-07) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Social Work Licensure Compact — FAQs, Development and Next Steps (May 2026) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- ASWB — Getting licensed in another state or province ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- ASWB — Sending your exam results to another state or province (score transfer) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- ASWB — Social Work Registry to end operations in 2027 ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Per-state sources are listed on each state's page — this hub cites the national bodies; the full source registry is at /sources/.
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]