Do my LPC Associate hours transfer if I move to another state?

Not automatically. The new state's board reviews them against its own rule. Most will credit hours that meet their categories and were supervised by someone licensed where you worked, if the supervisor signs the new state's verification form.

Can supervised hours expire?

In some states. California does not credit hours more than six years old at application, Virginia requires part of the hours within the two years before applying, and Pennsylvania requires completion within six years.

Does the Counseling Compact transfer supervised hours?

No. The Compact Commission says transferring supervised hours is a matter for the board where you will apply for an independent license.

Which form does my old supervisor have to sign?

Usually the new state's own verification form, such as Florida's DH-MQA 1181, New York's Form 4 and 4B, or Texas's Supervised Experience Documentation form. Send it early.

Do Your Supervised Hours Transfer to a New State? A Seven-State Comparison

If you are an associate counselor about to move, this is probably the question keeping you up. The honest answer is that your hours do not "transfer" in any automatic sense. You apply to the new state's board, it reads your documentation against its own rule, and it credits what fits. Sometimes that is everything. Sometimes it is most of it. Occasionally it is less than you hoped, because of a supervisor qualification or a category you did not track.

What does not help: the Counseling Compact. Its FAQ is explicit that "transferring supervised hours between states is a matter for the state board where counselors intend to apply for an independent license," and associates cannot use the compact at all. See associates and the compact.

What every board looks at

Across the rules we read, boards test hours from elsewhere on the same handful of points:

Total post-degree hours and whether they were earned after the qualifying degree.
Direct client contact as a share or minimum of the total.
Supervision hours and frequency, including how much may be group supervision.
Calendar span: minimum months or weeks, and sometimes a maximum age for the hours.
Supervisor qualifications: usually, licensed and qualified in the state where supervision occurred.
Documentation: the new state's verification form, signed by the supervisor, often with the supervisor's license verification.

Hours that meet your old state's rule can still fall short on the new state's categories. A log that tracks all six from the start is the single best protection.

Seven states, side by side

Figures are from each state's statute, administrative code or board forms as we read them in October 2026. Boards amend these rules; confirm the current version before you rely on a number. Links to each state's board are on our state pages.

California: APCC to LPCC

Requirement: at least 3,000 post-degree hours over at least 104 weeks, including at least 1,750 hours of direct clinical counseling; no more than 40 hours in any seven days (Bus. & Prof. Code §4999.46).
Out-of-state hours: accepted if substantially equivalent (§4999.61). The supervisor must have held an active license, not on probation, in the state where supervision occurred, for at least 2 of the 5 years before supervising (16 CCR §1821.2).
Documentation: the board's out-of-state experience verification form, signed by the supervisor.
Age limit: hours more than six years old when the application is received are not credited (§4999.46(e)).
If the supervisor is deceased or incapacitated: 16 CCR §1815.8 accepts proof of death or incapacity, previously signed supervision documents, and employer verification or the written oversight agreement.

Florida: Registered MHC Intern to LMHC

Requirement: 1,500 hours of face-to-face psychotherapy with clients over at least 100 weeks, and 100 hours of supervision over at least 100 weeks with at least one hour every two weeks (Rules 64B4-2.001 and 64B4-2.002).
Out-of-state hours: post-master's experience in another state is credited if it meets section 491.005(4)(c), Florida Statutes. A supervisor licensed as a mental health counselor in another state can qualify if they meet Florida's LMHC education and experience standards (Rule 64B4-31.007).
Documentation: Form DH-MQA 1181, Verification of Clinical Experience, completed by the supervisor; supervisors licensed outside Florida must provide license verification.

New York: Limited Permit to LMHC

Requirement: 3,000 clock hours after the degree, at least 1,500 of them direct client contact, with on average one hour a week (or two hours every other week) of face-to-face supervision (8 NYCRR §§79-9.3, 79-9.4).
Out-of-state hours: may be accepted if the setting was authorized in that jurisdiction and the supervisor was qualified as determined by the department.
Documentation: Form 4 plus Form 4B, one per supervisor.
If the supervisor is deceased: Form 4 (rev. 7/26) says to list "a licensed colleague who will attest to your supervised experience and to the qualifications of the deceased supervisor."
Time limit to watch: the limited permit runs up to 24 months with two possible 12-month extensions, so time in New York under a permit is capped.

North Carolina: LCMHCA to LCMHC

Requirement: 3,000 hours of supervised professional practice including 2,000 direct; at least 100 hours of clinical supervision, at least three-quarters of it individual (21 NCAC 53 .0205, .0208).
Out-of-state hours: applicants must meet requirements "substantially similar" to North Carolina's; supervision by an equivalently and actively licensed professional who meets its supervisor standards can qualify (.0209).
Documentation: a supervision contract, periodic reports and a final report from each supervisor.

Pennsylvania: LPC

Requirement: 3,000 hours after 48 graduate credits (2,400 on the doctoral path), at least half direct services, with two hours of supervision per 40 hours of experience. The experience must be completed in no less than two and no more than six years (49 Pa. Code §49.13).
Out-of-state hours: the supervisor definition (§49.3) requires a license and five years of experience within the last ten; it does not state that the license must be from Pennsylvania.
Documentation: the board's verification-of-experience form signed by the supervisor (§49.14).

Texas: LPC Associate to LPC

Requirement: 3,000 clock hours including 1,500 hours of direct client counseling, completed in no fewer than 18 months, with at least four hours of supervision per month and no more than half of supervision in a group (22 TAC §681.92).
Out-of-state hours: for experience physically in another jurisdiction, the supervisor must be licensed or certified there in a profession that provides counseling and qualified to supervise. For experience in Texas, only a Council-approved LPC-S counts.
Documentation: the Supervised Experience Documentation form, used for both Texas associates and applicants licensed elsewhere. Supervisors licensed in another jurisdiction must provide verification of their license.

Virginia: Resident in Counseling to LPC

Requirement: at least 2,000 hours of face-to-face client contact and 200 hours of supervision, over no less than 21 months, under 18VAC115-20-52 as amended effective December 18, 2025.
Out-of-state hours: "The board will accept residency hours approved by the licensing board in another United States jurisdiction that meet the requirements of this section."
Recency: at least 1,000 client-contact hours and 100 supervision hours must fall within the two years immediately before application.

Patterns worth knowing

Supervisors are judged by where supervision happened. California, Florida, New York, North Carolina, Texas (for out-of-state internships) and Virginia all accept a supervisor properly licensed in the state where you were working, without requiring their own supervisor credential for that past work.
Old hours can expire. California's six-year limit, Virginia's two-year recency rule and Pennsylvania's completion window can all bite a counselor who finished hours long ago but never upgraded.
Direct-contact minimums differ. Texas and New York want 1,500 direct hours out of 3,000, California 1,750, North Carolina 2,000. A log without a direct-contact column is a problem waiting to happen.
Each state uses its own form. Your old supervisor will be signing the new state's paperwork, not handing over a copy of what they signed before.

If you are already independently licensed

Much of this stops mattering. Most states have an endorsement or credential route for counselors who already hold an independent license elsewhere, and it often looks at your license and years of practice rather than re-auditing your supervision. California's out-of-state route, for example, lets licensees count licensed practice toward experience. Read the endorsement route first; see transferring an LPC license and how long endorsement takes.

What to do this month if you are moving

Download the destination state's experience verification form now and send it to every supervisor you have had, while they are easy to reach.
Reconcile your log against the destination's categories: total, direct contact, supervision, group share, span.
Ask the destination board in writing whether your supervisor meets its standard for the hours already done.
Find out whether you need the destination's associate credential and an approved plan before further hours count there.
Decide whether to finish where you are first. Our post finish your hours or move now? walks through the arithmetic.

We do this reconciliation as part of the Associate-to-Independent License Upgrade ($299) and Full State License Application services; see pricing. Board fees are separate.