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LicenseReciprocity

Transfer Your Social Work License to New Hampshire: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)

Last verified: 2026-09-27 · source: New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) ↗

A clinical social work license moves to New Hampshire through licensure by endorsement with the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification): license verification, your ASWB score sent by score transfer, and New Hampshire's own checks. Expect $325 (Clinical social worker (including conditional) application fee $325, which includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; renewal $325 (active) or $105 (inactive). Criminal background check fees are paid separately (amount not stated on the pages reviewed).); processing No processing time is published. Under Plc 313.07(c) OPLC may issue an 'Active-Provisional' license to an endorsement-qualified applicant while criminal-record results are pending.. New Hampshire is a Social Work Licensure Compact state on paper only: nothing was being issued as of 2026-09-27, and endorsement through the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) is the route in.

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Verdict

SW Compact enacted — not yet issuing

Being a compact state has not changed how New Hampshire licenses incoming social workers. The Social Work Licensure Compact is law here but was not issuing multistate licenses as of 2026-09-27, so the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) handles every out-of-state applicant through the steps below. If you expect to work across state lines later, a New Hampshire license will be a sensible base once the compact is running; the commission's stated target for its data system is Spring 2027.

New Hampshire's clinical-level license is the LICSW (Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker), listed as 'Clinical Social Worker' on OPLC's reciprocity list, 'Independent Clinical Social Worker' on the Board's application, and 'Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker' on OPLC's HB 594 FAQ; other tiers are the Social Worker, Social Work Associate and School Social Worker. Under HB 594 (2023, effective 2023-08-27), OPLC 'shall issue licenses to professionals who present evidence of an active license in good standing from another jurisdiction' whose requirements are substantially similar; OPLC began accepting those applications for clinical social workers on 2024-05-03. That is still an application with checks, not full reciprocity. New Hampshire has enacted the Social Work Licensure Compact, but it is not yet issuing multistate licenses, so reciprocity is the only route in. oplc.nh.gov blocked automated fetches on 2026-09-27; values come from archived OPLC pages from 2025-06 to 2026-08.

New Hampshire requirements at a glance

Out-of-state social work license transfer requirements for New Hampshire, verified 2026-09-27
ExamOn the HB 594 reciprocity route, applicants from qualifying jurisdictions no longer submit examination results, transcripts, experience or references. On the standard application the ASWB Clinical exam is required (have ASWB send your score if you tested out of state or more than two years ago). No New Hampshire jurisprudence exam is listed.
Additional requirements
  • Submit the OPLC Universal Application for Initial License by mail with the application fee
  • Provide verification of your active license in good standing in a qualifying jurisdiction (a screenshot or printout of the licensing board's portal is accepted under Plc 313.05(a))
  • Complete the FBI/New Hampshire criminal history records check required for clinical social workers
Fees$325 (Clinical social worker (including conditional) application fee $325, which includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; renewal $325 (active) or $105 (inactive). Criminal background check fees are paid separately (amount not stated on the pages reviewed).)
Processing timeNo processing time is published. Under Plc 313.07(c) OPLC may issue an 'Active-Provisional' license to an endorsement-qualified applicant while criminal-record results are pending.

Step by step

  1. Confirm New Hampshire's current requirements on the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) website — rules change.
  2. Submit the endorsement application to the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) (application linked on this page).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
  4. Submit the OPLC Universal Application for Initial License by mail with the application fee.
  5. Provide verification of your active license in good standing in a qualifying jurisdiction (a screenshot or printout of the licensing board's portal is accepted under Plc 313.05(a)).
  6. Complete the FBI/New Hampshire criminal history records check required for clinical social workers.
  7. Pay the fees ($325 (Clinical social worker (including conditional) application fee $325, which includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; renewal $325 (active) or $105 (inactive). Criminal background check fees are paid separately (amount not stated on the pages reviewed).)) and allow No processing time is published. Under Plc 313.07(c) OPLC may issue an 'Active-Provisional' license to an endorsement-qualified applicant while criminal-record results are pending..

Official links

New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) ↗New Hampshire application ↗License verification ↗Social Work Licensure Compact ↗

Coming from a specific state?

Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into New Hampshire:

Alabama → New HampshireAlaska → New HampshireArizona → New HampshireArkansas → New HampshireCalifornia → New HampshireColorado → New HampshireConnecticut → New HampshireDelaware → New HampshireFlorida → New HampshireGeorgia → New HampshireIllinois → New HampshireIowa → New HampshireKansas → New HampshireKentucky → New HampshireLouisiana → New HampshireMaine → New HampshireMaryland → New HampshireMichigan → New HampshireMinnesota → New HampshireMississippi → New Hampshire
All 39 origin states
Missouri → New HampshireNebraska → New HampshireNew Jersey → New HampshireNew York → New HampshireNorth Carolina → New HampshireNorth Dakota → New HampshireOhio → New HampshireOklahoma → New HampshirePennsylvania → New HampshireRhode Island → New HampshireSouth Dakota → New HampshireTennessee → New HampshireTexas → New HampshireUtah → New HampshireVermont → New HampshireVirginia → New HampshireWashington → New HampshireWest Virginia → New HampshireWisconsin → New Hampshire

Nearby states

Social Work license transfer into the states bordering New Hampshire:

New Hampshire for other professions

Frequently asked questions

Does my social work license transfer to New Hampshire?

A clinical social work license moves to New Hampshire through licensure by endorsement with the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification): license verification, your ASWB score sent by score transfer, and New Hampshire's own checks. Expect $325 (Clinical social worker (including conditional) application fee $325, which includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; renewal $325 (active) or $105 (inactive). Criminal background check fees are paid separately (amount not stated on the pages reviewed).); processing No processing time is published. Under Plc 313.07(c) OPLC may issue an 'Active-Provisional' license to an endorsement-qualified applicant while criminal-record results are pending.. New Hampshire is a Social Work Licensure Compact state on paper only: nothing was being issued as of 2026-09-27, and endorsement through the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) is the route in.

Do I have to retake the ASWB exam to get licensed in New Hampshire?

On the HB 594 reciprocity route, applicants from qualifying jurisdictions no longer submit examination results, transcripts, experience or references. On the standard application the ASWB Clinical exam is required (have ASWB send your score if you tested out of state or more than two years ago). No New Hampshire jurisprudence exam is listed. ASWB sends the score for $40 per transfer, requested in ASWBCentral, and delivery takes 7-10 business days.

How much does a New Hampshire clinical social work license cost for an out-of-state applicant?

$325 (Clinical social worker (including conditional) application fee $325, which includes the mandatory $28 Professional Health Program fee; renewal $325 (active) or $105 (inactive). Criminal background check fees are paid separately (amount not stated on the pages reviewed).)

How long does the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) take?

No processing time is published. Under Plc 313.07(c) OPLC may issue an 'Active-Provisional' license to an endorsement-qualified applicant while criminal-record results are pending.

Is New Hampshire in the Social Work Licensure Compact?

New Hampshire has enacted it, but the compact was not issuing multistate licenses anywhere as of 2026-09-27. No one can practice in New Hampshire on a compact license yet; endorsement through the New Hampshire Board of Mental Health Practice (Office of Professional Licensure and Certification) is the route.

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]