Social Work License from Illinois to Indiana: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Indiana accept an Illinois social work license?
A social work license transfers from Illinois to Indiana by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Board (Professional Licensing Agency), verify your Illinois license, and meet Indiana's endorsement requirements. The ASWB exam is not retaken: reciprocity applicants have ASWB send an official score report showing a pass on the ASWB Clinical exam directly to the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency (only the Clinical exam qualifies for the LCSW; 839 IAC 1-2-1(c)). If your out-of-state license was not based on an ASWB exam at the same or a higher level, you must apply by examination instead. The Board's reciprocity instructions (archived February 2024) also require LSW and LCSW reciprocity applicants to pass a 30-question Indiana jurisprudence exam (statutes and rules, 75% to pass) emailed after Board approval; the current online LCSW reciprocity checklist (archived July 2026) does not list it, so confirm with the Board.
Verify this exact pair in the checker
Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Neither Illinois nor Indiana has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact, and it is not issuing licenses anywhere in any case, so this is a plain endorsement move. The Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Board (Professional Licensing Agency) verifies your Illinois license, accepts your ASWB score by transfer, and adds its own requirements.
What's different between Illinois and Indiana
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Indiana. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Illinois to Indiana (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Indiana to Illinois (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Illinois matter?
Coming from Illinois does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Indiana.
- SW Compact membership
Neither Illinois nor Indiana has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact.
- Application fee
Indiana lists $50 for an out-of-state applicant and Illinois lists $200 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Exam rules on record
Indiana and Illinois carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Indiana (this move): The ASWB exam is not retaken: reciprocity applicants have ASWB send an official score report showing a pass on the ASWB Clinical exam directly to the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency (only the Clinical exam qualifies for the LCSW; 839 IAC 1-2-1(c)). If your out-of-state license was not based on an ASWB exam at the same or a higher level, you must apply by examination instead. The Board's reciprocity instructions (archived February 2024) also require LSW and LCSW reciprocity applicants to pass a 30-question Indiana jurisprudence exam (statutes and rules, 75% to pass) emailed after Board approval; the current online LCSW reciprocity checklist (archived July 2026) does not list it, so confirm with the Board.
- Illinois (the reverse move): The ASWB Clinical exam is not retaken; applicants who passed it in another state have ASWB send an official score transfer to IDFPR. Illinois also allows an 'Exam Alternative' (3,000 additional supervised professional hours after an ASWB Clinical attempt made after 2019-01-01). No Illinois jurisprudence exam is required.
What changes, Illinois → Indiana
| Illinois (current) | Indiana (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| SW Compact status | Licensure by endorsement | Licensure by endorsement |
| Application fee | $200 (Endorsement licensure application fee per IDFPR's Social Worker/LCSW instructions; non-refundable. The Acceptance of Examination and Examination methods cost $50 but apply only to people not currently licensed elsewhere.) | $50 ($50 nonrefundable application/issuance fee for a clinical social worker license (839 IAC 1-2-5(b), readopted 2024; the Board's July 2026 LCSW reciprocity checklist also lists $50). Fingerprint background-check vendor fees are extra and not stated by the Board. Renewal is $50 every two years; licenses expire April 1 of even years.) |
| Processing time | IDFPR states no processing time. Its instructions ask applicants to allow 6 weeks from mailing before inquiring about status, and an application stays active for three years | No processing time is published for LCSW reciprocity. The Board says only that it takes 7-10 business days to process exam results once received. Applications are abandoned if not completed within one year |
| Licensing authority | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — Social Work Examining and Disciplinary Board | Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Board (Professional Licensing Agency) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Indiana sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Indiana's current requirements on the Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Board (Professional Licensing Agency) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Board (Professional Licensing Agency) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold an active clinical social work license of equal level in another state with no pending disciplinary proceeding (IC 25-23.6-5-10.5, as cited by the Board).
- Have ASWB send an official score report showing you passed the Clinical exam directly to the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency.
- Have each state that licenses you send verification of your license (copies of license cards are not accepted).
- Complete a national fingerprint-based criminal background check at your cost, after you submit the application.
- Apply online and pay the $50 application fee.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Will Indiana accept the supervised hours I completed in Illinois?
Most boards credit supervised experience completed under another state's rules, but some compare it with their own requirement. Indiana's rule, where the Indiana Behavioral Health and Human Services Licensing Board (Professional Licensing Agency) 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.
- Indiana PLA — Behavioral Health and Human Services licensing information: LCSW reciprocity checklist (Internet Archive copy of the official page, captured 2026-07-08) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Indiana PLA — LBSW, LSW and LCSW application for licensure by reciprocity: information and instructions (Internet Archive copy of the official PDF, captured 2024-02-18) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- 839 IAC 1-2-5 — Fees (official rule text via Cornell LII; readopted 2024-06-24) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- 839 IAC 1-2-1 — Application by examination; clinical social workers take the ASWB clinical exam (official rule text via Cornell LII) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Social Work Licensure Compact — compact jurisdictions ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- IDFPR — Qualifications for Licensure, Licensed Clinical Social Worker (149), effective 05/2025 ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- IDFPR — Instructions, Licensed Social Worker or Licensed Clinical Social Worker application ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- IDFPR — Social Work profession page ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
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