Social Work License from California to Oklahoma: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW) ↗
A social work license transfers from California to Oklahoma by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW), verify your California license, and meet Oklahoma's endorsement requirements. The ASWB exam is not retaken: 59 O.S. 1261.4 requires a passing score on the designated licensure exam, and the Board's forms page tells transfer applicants to request an ASWB score transfer to the Board. OAC 675:10-1-10 lists the ASWB exams the Board accepts (Bachelors, Masters, Advanced Generalist, Clinical) but does not say which category the LCSW needs. No Oklahoma jurisprudence exam was found..
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Only Oklahoma has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact, and since the compact is not issuing multistate licenses anywhere, that difference does not affect this move. You apply to the Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW) by endorsement, with your California license verified and your ASWB score transferred.
What changes, California → Oklahoma
| California (current) | Oklahoma (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.) | $150 ('Application processing fee' on the Board's current fee schedule (xlsx). The criminal background check is billed separately 'at cost' and paid apart from the application fee (OAC 675:10-1-9(b)). Renewal is $100 and licenses renew every calendar year.) |
| 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. | The Board only says it 'strives to process an application for licensure within a reasonable amount of time'; no figure is published. |
| Licensing authority | California Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) | Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Oklahoma sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Oklahoma's current requirements on the Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Complete the online application and the Affidavit of Legal Status (U.S. citizenship or qualified alien status).
- Complete the Board's state and national criminal history background check.
- Have every state where you hold or held a license verify it (Board form, or upload that state's online verification).
- Request an ASWB score transfer to the Oklahoma Board.
- Show that you met Oklahoma's education and supervised-experience requirements when you were first licensed (59 O.S. 1261.4(C)).
- Pay the fees ($150 ('Application processing fee' on the Board's current fee schedule (xlsx). The criminal background check is billed separately 'at cost' and paid apart from the application fee (OAC 675:10-1-9(b)). Renewal is $100 and licenses renew every calendar year.)) and allow The Board only says it 'strives to process an application for licensure within a reasonable amount of time'; no figure is published..
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Oklahoma accept a California social work license?
A social work license transfers from California to Oklahoma by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW), verify your California license, and meet Oklahoma's endorsement requirements. The ASWB exam is not retaken: 59 O.S. 1261.4 requires a passing score on the designated licensure exam, and the Board's forms page tells transfer applicants to request an ASWB score transfer to the Board. OAC 675:10-1-10 lists the ASWB exams the Board accepts (Bachelors, Masters, Advanced Generalist, Clinical) but does not say which category the LCSW needs. No Oklahoma jurisprudence exam was found..
Do I retake the ASWB exam moving from California to Oklahoma?
The ASWB exam is not retaken: 59 O.S. 1261.4 requires a passing score on the designated licensure exam, and the Board's forms page tells transfer applicants to request an ASWB score transfer to the Board. OAC 675:10-1-10 lists the ASWB exams the Board accepts (Bachelors, Masters, Advanced Generalist, Clinical) but does not say which category the LCSW needs. No Oklahoma jurisprudence exam was found. ASWB sends the score for $40 per transfer, requested in ASWBCentral, and delivery takes 7-10 business days.
What does the California-to-Oklahoma move cost and how long does it take?
$150 ('Application processing fee' on the Board's current fee schedule (xlsx). The criminal background check is billed separately 'at cost' and paid apart from the application fee (OAC 675:10-1-9(b)). Renewal is $100 and licenses renew every calendar year.) Processing: The Board only says it 'strives to process an application for licensure within a reasonable amount of time'; no figure is published.
Does the Social Work Licensure Compact help with this move?
No. Oklahoma has enacted it and California has not, and the compact was not issuing multistate licenses anywhere as of 2026-09-27. Endorsement through the Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW) is the route.
Will Oklahoma 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. Oklahoma's rule, where the Oklahoma State Board of Licensed Social Workers (OSBLSW) 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.
- OSBLSW — Agency Forms (licensure transfer from another state) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- OSBLSW — Social Work Practice Act, Title 59 (board PDF, rev. 10/23/2025), 59 O.S. 1261.4 Reciprocity ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- OSBLSW — Agency Rules revised 2026 (OAC 675:10-1-9, -10, -15) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- OSBLSW — Fee schedule ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- OSBLSW — Home page (registry, contact) ↗ (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 Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]