How to Look Up a Therapist’s License Before Starting Mental Health Treatment
Key takeaways:
A mental health therapist, a psychologist, or a counselor must be licensed by their state board to practice without supervision.
You can see if your therapist is licensed by looking them up on your state board’s website.
You may not be able to find common complaints about a counselor, but state boards post serious complaints that have led to disciplinary actions.
Before you start therapy, you may want to check your provider’s license. A license shows that your therapist has passed a series of standards and tests required by a state board. Every state board also has specific requirements for education and supervised experience.
Knowing where to find this information can help you feel confident about your mental health professional. Below, you’ll learn how to find a therapist license online, the most common counselor credentials, and how to look up a formal complaint.
How to check a therapist license online
You can check a therapist’s license on your state’s licensing board website. To start your search, visit Open Counseling’s state-by-state guide for finding a therapist’s license. From there you can scroll down to your state and use the search tools.
Search and compare options
Often, state boards are divided by type of license. For example, your state may have one board for licensed professional counselors (LPC), another for licensed clinical social workers (LCSW), and a third for psychologists (PhD, PsyD, EdD). Therapists should specify their licensure type so you know which board governs their license. Look for it after their name on websites, business cards, and directories.
Each board has a search tool, and each search tool has different required fields. Some ask for the provider’s first and last name plus the city where they practice. Others ask for the type of counselor you’re looking for and provide a list of all licensed providers of that type in the state.
Are therapists required to be licensed?
To practice independently without the supervision of another licensed provider, a therapist must meet their state’s licensing standards. This typically includes:
Earning a master’s degree or higher in counseling or a related field
Completing the state’s required hours of clinically supervised experience
Passing the state’s required exams
To maintain their license, therapists must also complete continuing education courses annually.
Keep in mind that a license is different from a certification. Therapists may get certified by an independent organization to expand their knowledge. For instance, they may get special training in trauma therapy or eating disorders. This is a professional certificate and doesn’t fall under state licensure.
What credentials should I look for?
There are many types of therapists and therapists in training. They all provide mental health help, but their credentials and approaches vary. And depending on your state, they may work with only specific types of people, such as individuals, couples, or families.
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Here are the most common mental health licenses for therapists:
You may also see therapists who are in training or completing their internship hours to get their license. A licensed clinician needs to supervise these therapists. Therapists who have finished their graduate degree but haven’t completed their licensing requirements may be listed as “intern” or “associate” therapists.
Why it matters
Figuring out if a potential therapist is qualified to help you with your specific issues can be confusing. One way to ensure your therapist has met the requirements to see clients is to check if they have a license in good standing. A state-issued license ensures that your counselor meets the minimum standard to offer you mental health therapy.
How to find out if a therapist has complaints
You can usually determine if a therapist has a disciplinary record when you look them up using your state’s licensing board. Under their profile, look for any information under headings like “disciplinary actions.” To check if a therapist has a disciplinary record, you can also contact the state board or google terms like “counselor disciplinary record” and your state.
You won’t be able to see complaints for things like rudeness, tardiness, or unhelpfulness, but you will find disciplinary records. These records show if the state board disciplined a counselor for a serious matter, such as getting arrested or engaging in a sexual relationship with a client.
The bottom line
Therapists who practice without supervision must be licensed in the state where they see clients. Licensing means they’ve met standards set forth by a state board, such as earning a master’s degree or higher, being clinically supervised for a set number of hours, and passing an exam. To look up a therapist’s license, visit your state’s licensing board website to search for your provider. There, you can see if their license is current and if they have a disciplinary record.
Why trust our experts?
References
American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. (n.d.). About marriage and family therapists
American Counseling Association. (n.d.). Licensure requirements.
American Counseling Association. (2011). Who are licensed professional counselors.
American Psychological Association. (2019). What do practicing psychologists do?
Health Resources & Services Administration. (2023). Licensure for behavioral health.
National Association of Social Workers. (n.d.). Clinical social work.
Open Counseling. (n.d.). Look up a therapist’s license – a state-by-state guide.
For additional resources or to connect with mental health services in your area, call SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357. For immediate assistance, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988, or text HOME to 741-741 to reach the Crisis Text Line.
