Social Work License from Michigan to New Jersey: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does New Jersey accept a Michigan social work license?
A social work license transfers from Michigan to New Jersey by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the New Jersey State Board of Social Work Examiners (Division of Consumer Affairs), verify your Michigan license, and meet New Jersey's endorsement requirements. The exam is not retaken: N.J.A.C. 13:44G-4.5 exempts an out-of-state licensee from the exam if they passed an exam similar to the Board-required one (for the LCSW, the ASWB Clinical exam); submit your exam results (an ASWB score report or the score on your out-of-state license verification). No New Jersey jurisprudence exam is required.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Only New Jersey 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 New Jersey State Board of Social Work Examiners (Division of Consumer Affairs) by endorsement, with your Michigan license verified and your ASWB score transferred.
What's different between Michigan and New Jersey
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into New Jersey. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Michigan to New Jersey (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
New Jersey to Michigan (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Michigan matter?
Coming from Michigan matters here: only 18 of 50 origins (the other 49 states and DC) get this result for a move into New Jersey.
The others get: compact enacted — not yet issuing; until it issues, licensure by endorsement (32).
- SW Compact membership
New Jersey has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact; Michigan has not.
- Application fee
New Jersey lists $75–$150 for an out-of-state applicant and Michigan lists $99 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Exam rules on record
New Jersey and Michigan carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- New Jersey (this move): The exam is not retaken: N.J.A.C. 13:44G-4.5 exempts an out-of-state licensee from the exam if they passed an exam similar to the Board-required one (for the LCSW, the ASWB Clinical exam); submit your exam results (an ASWB score report or the score on your out-of-state license verification). No New Jersey jurisprudence exam is required.
- Michigan (the reverse move): The ASWB exam is not retaken; have ASWB send official score reports directly to LARA. For the master's social work license (LMSW) Michigan accepts the ASWB Advanced Generalist or Clinical exam, and the exam passed goes with the designation you apply for. No Michigan jurisprudence exam is listed; one-time human-trafficking training and 2 hours of implicit-bias training are required instead.
What changes, Michigan → New Jersey
| Michigan (current) | New Jersey (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| SW Compact status | Licensure by endorsement | SW Compact enacted — not yet issuing |
| Application fee | $99 (Application fee plus 3-year license fee for a Master's Social Work License by Exam or Endorsement: $99.00 (Master's Social Work Licensing Guide rev. 10/7/2024). Adding a second designation (specialty) is $16.50. Fingerprint/background-check vendor fee not stated in the guide.) | $75–$150 (N.J.A.C. 13:44G-14.1 (revision date 4/15/2024) lists a $75 application fee and a separate $75 endorsement fee. The endorsement rule (13:44G-4.5(b)(2)) names only the application fee, and whether the $75 endorsement fee is also charged could not be confirmed, hence the $75-$150 range. Initial clinical license fee is $160 (first year of the biennial cycle) or $80 (second year). Criminal history background check $18.75.) |
| Processing time | No processing time is published. All requirements must be completed within 2 years of LARA's receipt of the application (MCL 333.16307(3)), or the application is void | No processing time was found in the materials that could be retrieved |
| Licensing authority | Michigan Board of Social Work (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) | New Jersey State Board of Social Work Examiners (Division of Consumer Affairs) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — New Jersey sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm New Jersey's current requirements on the New Jersey State Board of Social Work Examiners (Division of Consumer Affairs) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the New Jersey State Board of Social Work Examiners (Division of Consumer Affairs) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a license in a U.S. jurisdiction whose education and experience requirements are substantially the same as New Jersey's.
- Document the LCSW education and experience: CSWE MSW, 12 semester hours of clinical coursework, and 3,000 supervised post-MSW clinical hours over 2-4 years.
- Submit the application with exam results and an official license verification for any out-of-state social work credential.
- Sign the consent for a criminal history background check (fingerprinting unless already fingerprinted for a NJ Division of Consumer Affairs board since November 2003).
- 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. New Jersey has enacted it and Michigan has not, and the compact was not issuing multistate licenses anywhere as of 2026-09-27. Endorsement through the New Jersey State Board of Social Work Examiners (Division of Consumer Affairs) is the route.
Will New Jersey accept the supervised hours I completed in Michigan?
Most boards credit supervised experience completed under another state's rules, but some compare it with their own requirement. New Jersey's rule, where the New Jersey State Board of Social Work Examiners (Division of Consumer Affairs) 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.
- N.J.A.C. 13:44G State Board of Social Work Examiners, last revision 4/15/2024 (4.1 LCSW eligibility, 4.5 Endorsement, 14.1 Fees) (Internet Archive copy captured 2025-05-16; njconsumeraffairs.gov is behind an Incapsula bot-block) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NJ Board of Social Work Examiners — Application for Licensure as an LCSW (Internet Archive copy captured 2024-02-03) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NJ Board of Social Work Examiners — home page (license levels) (Internet Archive copy captured 2026-09-05) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- Social Work Licensure Compact — compact jurisdictions ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- LARA — Master's Social Work Licensing Guide rev. 10/7/2024 (Internet Archive copy captured 2026-04-22; michigan.gov returned HTTP 403 to automated fetches) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- LARA — Social Work FAQs rev. 9/19/2024 (accepted ASWB exams) (Internet Archive copy captured 2026-01-09) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- LARA — Social Worker profession page (Internet Archive copy captured 2026-06-11) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-09-27
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