Social Work License from Michigan to North Carolina: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does North Carolina accept a Michigan social work license?
A social work license transfers from Michigan to North Carolina by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the North Carolina Social Work Certification and Licensure Board (NCSWCLB), verify your Michigan license, and meet North Carolina's endorsement requirements. The ASWB exam is not retaken; provide certified proof of passing the ASWB exam required for your level (the ASWB Clinical exam for the LCSW), sent directly by the jurisdiction's regulatory board or ASWB. Applicants licensed elsewhere by exam exemption must pass the ASWB exam before licensure. No North Carolina jurisprudence exam; applicants affirm they have reviewed G.S. 90B and 21 NCAC 63.
Verify this exact pair in the checker
Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Only North Carolina 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 North Carolina Social Work Certification and Licensure Board (NCSWCLB) by endorsement, with your Michigan license verified and your ASWB score transferred.
What's different between Michigan and North Carolina
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into North Carolina. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Michigan to North Carolina (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
North Carolina 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 North Carolina.
The others get: compact enacted — not yet issuing; until it issues, licensure by endorsement (32).
- SW Compact membership
North Carolina has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact; Michigan has not.
- Application fee
North Carolina lists $145 for an out-of-state applicant and Michigan lists $99 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Processing time
North Carolina lists 4+ weeks; Michigan has no verified processing-time figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Exam rules on record
North Carolina and Michigan carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- North Carolina (this move): The ASWB exam is not retaken; provide certified proof of passing the ASWB exam required for your level (the ASWB Clinical exam for the LCSW), sent directly by the jurisdiction's regulatory board or ASWB. Applicants licensed elsewhere by exam exemption must pass the ASWB exam before licensure. No North Carolina jurisprudence exam; applicants affirm they have reviewed G.S. 90B and 21 NCAC 63.
- 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 → North Carolina
| Michigan (current) | North Carolina (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.) | $145 ($145 nonrefundable application fee per credential level, by certified check, money order or cashier's check (no personal checks). LCSW biennial renewal is $150. The Board may run a criminal or disciplinary history check; no separate fee is stated.) |
| 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 | 4+ weeks (The Board says review and processing generally take at least 30 days once the application is complete and may be extended; no upper bound is published.) |
| Licensing authority | Michigan Board of Social Work (Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Professional Licensing) | North Carolina Social Work Certification and Licensure Board (NCSWCLB) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — North Carolina sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm North Carolina's current requirements on the North Carolina Social Work Certification and Licensure Board (NCSWCLB) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the North Carolina Social Work Certification and Licensure Board (NCSWCLB) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Apply by substantial equivalency with the standard notarized Application for Certification/Licensure packet.
- Provide your state's law showing the qualifications in force when you were first licensed, or have your board complete a License Verification documenting them.
- Provide verification of your current active credential and certified proof of passing the ASWB Clinical exam.
- Submit three Professional Reference forms in sealed envelopes and an official sealed or electronic transcript.
- Complete and submit Form SSA-89 for Social Security number verification.
- 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. North Carolina has enacted it and Michigan has not, and the compact was not issuing multistate licenses anywhere as of 2026-09-27. Endorsement through the North Carolina Social Work Certification and Licensure Board (NCSWCLB) is the route.
Will North Carolina 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. North Carolina's rule, where the North Carolina Social Work Certification and Licensure Board (NCSWCLB) 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.
- NCSWCLB — Application for Certification/Licensure packet (v2026-05-26), incl. Certification/Licensure by Substantial Equivalency (Comity) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NCSWCLB — Levels and Eligibility Requirements (LCSW exam, experience, fees) ↗ (accessed 2026-09-27)
- NCSWCLB — Application FAQs (processing time) ↗ (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
How we verify · All sources · Corrections log · spot an error? hello@licensereciprocity.com