Social Work License from California to Arkansas: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Arkansas accept a California social work license?
A social work license transfers from California to Arkansas by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board (Arkansas Department of Health), verify your California license, and meet Arkansas's endorsement requirements. The ASWB exam is not retaken. Arkansas waives its exam for applicants currently licensed elsewhere who passed a social work exam approved by the licensing state (Rule V). Submit an official ASWB score report or transfer; the LCSW tier corresponds to the ASWB Clinical exam. No Arkansas jurisprudence exam is required.
Verify this exact pair in the checker
Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
The compact question does not arise here. Arkansas has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact and California has not, but nothing is being issued in either, so the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board (Arkansas Department of Health)'s endorsement process below is the whole route.
What's different between California and Arkansas
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Arkansas. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
California to Arkansas (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Arkansas to California (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from California matter?
Coming from California matters here: only 18 of 50 origins (the other 49 states and DC) get this result for a move into Arkansas.
The others get: compact enacted — not yet issuing; until it issues, licensure by endorsement (32).
- SW Compact membership
Arkansas has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact; California has not.
- Application fee
Arkansas lists $100 for an out-of-state applicant and California lists $250 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Exam rules on record
Arkansas and California carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Arkansas (this move): The ASWB exam is not retaken. Arkansas waives its exam for applicants currently licensed elsewhere who passed a social work exam approved by the licensing state (Rule V). Submit an official ASWB score report or transfer; the LCSW tier corresponds to the ASWB Clinical exam. No Arkansas jurisprudence exam is required.
- California (the reverse move): The national clinical exam is waived for applicants who qualify under Bus. & Prof. Code 4996.17.1, so the ASWB Clinical exam is not retaken. California requires its own board-administered California Law and Ethics Examination on top of that ($150 statutory exam fee), and the applicant must pass it before licensure.
What changes, California → Arkansas
| California (current) | Arkansas (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| SW Compact status | Licensure by endorsement | SW Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $250 (Statutory LCSW application fee under Bus. & Prof. Code 4996.3(a)(3) ($250; the Board may raise it by regulation up to $500). Also: $150 California Law and Ethics exam fee, $200 initial license fee, and fingerprint processing fees. The BBS website refused connections on 2026-09-27, so the current regulatory fee schedule could not be confirmed there.) | $100 (Arkansas Rule VII sets the application filing fee at $100. Under Act 114 of 2023 the Department of Health cut it to $5 for 1 July 2025 to 30 June 2026 only; its 2025-05-16 letter says the cut 'may or may not apply in future years'. When checked on 2026-09-27 the Board had posted no reduction for the year starting 1 July 2026, so the rule's $100 applies. The application form (rev. 01/2024, posted January 2026) still prints the old $5, so confirm the amount with the Board before paying. Background check fees are extra.) |
| Processing time | Not verified. The Board of Behavioral Sciences website (bbs.ca.gov) refused connections throughout 2026-09-27, so its published processing times could not be read | No processing time is published. Background check results must arrive before the Board reviews the application, and applications stay valid for six months |
| Licensing authority | California Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) | Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board (Arkansas Department of Health) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Arkansas sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Arkansas's current requirements on the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board (Arkansas Department of Health) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board (Arkansas Department of Health) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold a current social work license in another state whose standards the Board finds substantially equivalent (A.C.A. 17-103-302).
- Have your CSWE-accredited MSW program send an official transcript directly to the Board.
- Document 24 months of supervision and 4,000 hours in a master's-level position supervised by an LCSW (waivable after 3 years of independent clinical practice).
- Send the Board's Verification of Licensure form to every state where you hold or have held a license.
- Complete Arkansas State Police state and FBI criminal background checks using the Board's forms.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does the Social Work Licensure Compact help with this move?
No. Arkansas has enacted it and California has not, and the compact was not issuing multistate licenses anywhere as of 2026-09-27. Endorsement through the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board (Arkansas Department of Health) is the route.
Will Arkansas accept the supervised hours I completed in California?
Most boards credit supervised experience completed under another state's rules, but some compare it with their own requirement. Arkansas's rule, where the Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board (Arkansas Department of Health) publishes one, is in the requirements on this page; confirm with the board if your hours were logged under a different structure.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-09-27.
- Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board — Rules (Rule V Endorsement, Rule VII Fees; 2022 revision) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board — Application for licensure (rev. 01/2024) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Arkansas Department of Health — Social Work Licensing Board FY26 fee reduction letter (2025-05-16) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board — Licensing Information & FAQs ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Arkansas Social Work Licensing Board — Board page ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Social Work Licensure Compact — compact jurisdictions ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- California Business and Professions Code 4996.17.1 — Licensure of out-of-state clinical social workers (California Legislative Information) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- California Business and Professions Code 4996.17.2 — Out-of-state education or experience (California Legislative Information) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- California Business and Professions Code 4996.3 — LCSW fees (California Legislative Information) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- ASWB — Look up a license (board license-search directory) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
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