What Is the Counseling Compact — and Why Does It Matter for Hiring?
The Counseling Compact is a multi-state licensure agreement that allows Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs) who hold a valid license in their home state to practice in other member states without obtaining a separate license in each one. For behavioral health clinics — especially telehealth platforms serving patients across state lines — this is a significant operational development.
Before the compact, hiring a remote therapist who could legally see patients in three different states meant verifying three separate licenses, managing three renewal cycles, and navigating three different state boards. The compact collapses much of that friction for LPCs. But it does not apply equally to all licensure types, which is where most hiring mistakes happen.
Current Map of Active Counseling Compact States
As of 2026, the Counseling Compact has been enacted in over 30 states, with more actively moving through legislation. Active member states include:
- Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia
- Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland
- Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada
- New Hampshire, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma
- Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wyoming
Always verify the current list at counselingcompact.org — legislation passes regularly and this list changes.
The Operational Hurdle: LCSW, LPC, and LMFT Portability Are Not the Same
This is the point that trips up most practices when they try to hire across state lines.
LPCs are the primary beneficiaries of the Counseling Compact. A licensed LPC in a member state can apply for a privilege to practice in other member states with minimal additional steps.
LCSWs are governed by the Social Work Licensure Compact, a separate agreement that is newer and has fewer active member states than the Counseling Compact. Many clinics assume LCSW portability works the same way — it doesn't. An LCSW hired to see patients in a non-member state will need a separate state license, which can take 60–90 days to process.
LMFTs currently have the most limited interstate portability. There is no national compact for marriage and family therapists as of 2026. Multi-state LMFT hiring requires individual licensure in each target state, and some states have additional reciprocity requirements on top of that.
If your platform needs to expand quickly into a new state, this distinction has real operational consequences. A misunderstanding at the hiring stage can delay a clinician's ability to bill for services by months — which brings us to vetting.
How to Screen Out-of-State Candidates for Compliance
Before extending an offer to any remote therapist who will see patients across state lines, verify the following:
- Home state license: Confirm the license is active, unrestricted, and in good standing with the state board — not just self-reported.
- Compact privilege status: For LPCs, confirm they have applied for (or are eligible to apply for) compact privilege in the target states. Eligibility is not the same as active privilege.
- Malpractice insurance: Confirm coverage explicitly applies to telehealth delivery and the specific states where the clinician will practice. Many standard policies default to the clinician's home state only.
- CAQH profile: For practices that bill insurance, verify the clinician has an active CAQH profile. Credentialing timelines begin from this point — earlier is always better.
- NPI number: Confirm it's active and matches the current licensure information.
How Saltlanding Helps: Our Cross-Border Vetting Process
At Saltlanding, every telehealth therapist staffing and therapist recruiting search includes pre-screening for multi-state licensure compliance. Before any candidate reaches your desk, we verify home-state licensure status, confirm compact eligibility or privilege-to-practice where applicable, and flag any LCSW or LMFT candidates who will need state-specific licensing before they can bill in your target markets.
This step removes a significant legal and operational bottleneck from your hiring process — and it's included in every Saltlanding engagement at no additional cost. Contact us to discuss a current telehealth search.