Northern Mariana Islands licenses independent clinical counselors as the LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor), through the Commonwealth Health Care Professions Licensing Board. Northern Mariana Islands is not a Counseling Compact member. Below: what Northern Mariana Islands asks of a counselor already licensed in another state, and where those applications slow down.
Northern Mariana Islands LPC License Requirements
The independent clinical license in Northern Mariana Islands is the LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor).
Northern Mariana Islands also issues the LMHC (parallel independent license for mental-health-emphasis graduates; same 3,000-hour experience rule), so confirm which tier your work and your payers require.
Exams named for licensure: NCE, NCMHCE and CRC exam. Any one of the NCE, NCMHCE or CRC exam qualifies; the Board may also accept another board's exam it finds equivalent. A current NBCC or CRCC certification can stand in for the education and exam showing (NMIAC § 185-10-4615).
3,000 hours of post-degree supervised experience for the independent license.
Those hours are completed under the associate credential, the LMHCA (Licensed Mental Health Counselor Associate).
Licensed elsewhere: License without examination for anyone holding a valid, active counselor license elsewhere who substantially meets CNMI requirements, if the other jurisdiction's standards are at least as stringent (§ 185-10-4620). No minimum years licensed.
How Much Does a Northern Mariana Islands LPC License Cost?
We have not published a Northern Mariana Islands figure yet
We have not verified Commonwealth Health Care Professions Licensing Board's current schedule, and board fees change between legislative sessions
We handle the Northern Mariana Islands application end-to-end.
Eligibility screening, document prep, board follow-ups, and tracking — so you don't lose a board meeting cycle to a missing form.
View full pricingWhere Northern Mariana Islands Applications Get Delayed
The 3,000 post-graduate hours include 100 hours of face-to-face clinical supervision and must take no less than 2 and no more than 4 years; at least half the supervision must be individual and half in person, with at least 4 supervision hours a month (§ 185-10-4615(d)).
Applicants must be U.S. citizens or foreign nationals lawfully entitled to remain and work in the Commonwealth.
The rules are now codified at NMIAC Title 185 (Part 4600); the board's application form still cites the older numbering § 140-50.3-004604.
Supervisor attestations and verifications from other boards take the longest. Request them the week you decide to apply, not the week you file.
Renewing Your Northern Mariana Islands LPC License
Renewal Cycle
Every 2 years
CE Requirement
40 CE hours per renewal cycle
The Counseling Compact and Northern Mariana Islands
Northern Mariana Islands is not a Counseling Compact member, so there is no privilege-to-practice route here. Practicing with clients located in Northern Mariana Islands takes a Northern Mariana Islands license, through endorsement where the state offers it or a full application where it does not.
Addiction counselors in Northern Mariana Islands
Northern Mariana Islands credentials addiction counselors as Certified Addiction Counselor (Level I/NCAC I), Certified Addiction Counselor (Level II/NCAC II) and Master Addiction Counselor, through the Commonwealth Health Care Professions Licensing Board. That credential is separate from the LPC, and the Counseling Compact does not cover it. Addiction Professionals regulations (NMIAC Part 4700, posted 2025) require 45 CE hours per renewal.
Keeping it current
Northern Mariana Islands renews the LPC every 2 years, with 40 hours of continuing education per cycle. 40 CE hours (4 CEUs) in the 24 months before expiration; associates need 20. LMHCs must take at least half their hours in listed clinical areas (§§ 185-10-4630, -4635). Renewal fee $100. If you hold licenses in several states, each runs its own calendar and its own CE rules, which is most of what our annual compliance service tracks.
Northern Mariana Islands LPC License FAQ
What is the counselor license called in Northern Mariana Islands?
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Can I use the Counseling Compact for Northern Mariana Islands?
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I'm licensed in another state. How do I get licensed in Northern Mariana Islands?
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Which exam does Northern Mariana Islands accept?
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Where these facts come from
Checked against primary sources. Boards change rules between sessions, so we confirm the current process again before anything is filed.
- NMIAC §§ 185-10-4601 to -4635 (Law Revision Commission, 2020-10-28): titles, exams, hours, endorsement, CE, renewal — checked 2026-10-08
- current application checklist, fees — checked 2026-10-08
- addiction titles and 45 CE hours — checked 2026-10-08
- board name, regulations list — checked 2026-10-08
- not a Compact member — checked 2026-10-08
What Working with Us Costs
Transparent, a la carte service fees. Board, exam and fingerprinting fees are paid directly to those organizations. Our concierge fee is separate and is the only thing you pay us.
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