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LicenseReciprocity

Social Work License from Georgia to Massachusetts: Does It Transfer? (2026)

Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers ↗

A social work license transfers from Georgia to Massachusetts by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers, verify your Georgia license, and meet Massachusetts's endorsement requirements. No new exam if you were licensed in an ASWB member jurisdiction by passing the ASWB exam required for the level sought (258 CMR 9.07); for the LICSW that is the ASWB Clinical exam. If your state did not require an ASWB exam, the Board's Policy 06-07 requires you to take and pass the appropriate ASWB exam as a condition of reciprocity. No Massachusetts jurisprudence exam is required..

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Verdict

Licensure by endorsement

The compact question does not arise here. Georgia has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact and Massachusetts has not, but nothing is being issued in either, so the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers's endorsement process below is the whole route.

In Massachusetts the clinical license is the LICSW. Apply for it under that name, whatever your Georgia license is called; boards match by scope, meaning independent diagnosis and treatment, not by initials.

What changes, Georgia → Massachusetts

Side-by-side: Georgia vs Massachusetts (Social Work (LCSW / LICSW)), verified 2026-09-27
Georgia (current)Massachusetts (destination)
SW Compact statusSW Compact enacted — not yet issuingLicensure by endorsement
Application fee$100 (The Board's fee schedule (04/18/2023) lists a $100 application fee for CSW applications, plus a $10 processing fee on mail-in applications. The Board no longer accepts paper applications, and GOALS shows the current fee schedule. The schedule's separate $350 licensure-by-endorsement fee is marked 'NOT APPLICABLE TO SOCIAL WORKERS'.)$162 (LICSW reciprocity application fee $162, per the Board's fee table (archived June 2026). The same table adds a $105 vendor fee (ASWB's Application Processing Unit) and an $82 LICSW license fee, a $349 subtotal. A payment processing fee may also apply. LICSW renewal is $82 every two years.)
Processing time~4 weeks (The Board says applications are generally processed within 20 business days of receipt (about 4 weeks). The count restarts after a deficiency letter. Complete applications then go to the next Board meeting and must arrive at least 15 days before it.)No processing time is published on the pages reviewed.
Licensing authorityGeorgia Composite Board of Professional Counselors, Social Workers, and Marriage & Family TherapistsMassachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers

The destination column is what you must satisfy — Massachusetts sets the rules for this move.

Step by step

  1. Confirm Massachusetts's current requirements on the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers website (linked below) — rules change.
  2. Submit the endorsement application to the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers (application linked below).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
  4. Apply for reciprocity through the Health Professions Licensing Portal (ASWB's Application Processing Unit handles Board applications).
  5. Show your license's education and experience requirements are substantially equivalent to the LICSW (MSW; 3,500 hours of clinical social work over at least two years post-LCSW; 100 hours of individual clinical supervision).
  6. Show your license's scope of practice is substantially equivalent to the LICSW's.
  7. Hold a license in good standing that has never been revoked, suspended, surrendered, denied or restricted by discipline.
  8. Apply to MassHealth as a fully participating or non-billing provider (required of all LICSWs to be licensed or renew).
  9. Pay the fees ($162 (LICSW reciprocity application fee $162, per the Board's fee table (archived June 2026). The same table adds a $105 vendor fee (ASWB's Application Processing Unit) and an $82 LICSW license fee, a $349 subtotal. A payment processing fee may also apply. LICSW renewal is $82 every two years.)) and allow No processing time is published on the pages reviewed..

Official links

Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers ↗Massachusetts application ↗

Related guides

Reverse: Massachusetts → GeorgiaSocial Work in GeorgiaSocial Work in MassachusettsAll social work statesThe SW Compact explained

Frequently asked questions

Does Massachusetts accept a Georgia social work license?

A social work license transfers from Georgia to Massachusetts by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers, verify your Georgia license, and meet Massachusetts's endorsement requirements. No new exam if you were licensed in an ASWB member jurisdiction by passing the ASWB exam required for the level sought (258 CMR 9.07); for the LICSW that is the ASWB Clinical exam. If your state did not require an ASWB exam, the Board's Policy 06-07 requires you to take and pass the appropriate ASWB exam as a condition of reciprocity. No Massachusetts jurisprudence exam is required..

Do I retake the ASWB exam moving from Georgia to Massachusetts?

No new exam if you were licensed in an ASWB member jurisdiction by passing the ASWB exam required for the level sought (258 CMR 9.07); for the LICSW that is the ASWB Clinical exam. If your state did not require an ASWB exam, the Board's Policy 06-07 requires you to take and pass the appropriate ASWB exam as a condition of reciprocity. No Massachusetts jurisprudence exam is required. ASWB sends the score for $40 per transfer, requested in ASWBCentral, and delivery takes 7-10 business days.

What does the Georgia-to-Massachusetts move cost and how long does it take?

$162 (LICSW reciprocity application fee $162, per the Board's fee table (archived June 2026). The same table adds a $105 vendor fee (ASWB's Application Processing Unit) and an $82 LICSW license fee, a $349 subtotal. A payment processing fee may also apply. LICSW renewal is $82 every two years.) Processing: No processing time is published on the pages reviewed.

Does the Social Work Licensure Compact help with this move?

No. Georgia has enacted it and Massachusetts has not, and the compact was not issuing multistate licenses anywhere as of 2026-09-27. Endorsement through the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers is the route.

Will Massachusetts accept the supervised hours I completed in Georgia?

Most boards credit supervised experience completed under another state's rules, but some compare it with their own requirement. Massachusetts's rule, where the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Social Workers 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.

Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27

How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]