California supervised hours requirements
What California requires for LMFT, LPCC, LCSW and psychologist licensure: hours, supervision and time limits from the rule text, with the sections cited and the date checked.
The short answer
Licensing authority: Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS); Board of Psychology.
- AMFT to LMFT: total supervised experience 3,000 hours; direct clinical 1,750 hours.
- MFT trainee: Supervised experience an MFT trainee logs before the degree, kept on its own ledger with the board's pre-degree limits. It also tracks the face-to-face counseling the qualifying degree requires.
- APCC to LPCC: total supervised experience 3,000 hours; direct clinical 1,750 hours.
- LPCC practicum: The degree that leads to the California LPCC must include a supervised practicum with at least 280 hours of face-to-face counseling of individuals, families or groups. These hours are a degree requirement and never reduce the 3,000 post-degree hours.
- ASW to LCSW: total supervised experience 3,000 hours; face-to-face psychotherapy 750 hours.
- Psychologist: total supervised professional experience 3,000 hours.
Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT)
Post-degree experience · Title while gaining experience: Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (AMFT)
The supervised experience an AMFT logs after the degree toward the California LMFT: 3,000 hours, with supervision every week at every site. Hours logged as an MFT trainee before the degree are kept on a separate ledger.
| Requirement | Figure |
|---|---|
| Total supervised experience | 3,000 hours |
| Direct clinical | 1,750 hours |
| Couples, families and children | 500 hours Part of the 1,750 direct clinical hours. |
| Non-clinical experience (maximum) | 1,250 hours Supervision, notes, reports, testing, advocacy and workshops. |
| Supervised weeks | 104 weeks 52 of them with individual or triadic supervision. |
LMFT hours before the degree (MFT trainee)
Pre-degree experience · Title while gaining experience: MFT trainee
Supervised experience an MFT trainee logs before the degree, kept on its own ledger with the board's pre-degree limits. It also tracks the face-to-face counseling the qualifying degree requires.
| Requirement | Figure |
|---|---|
| Pre-degree experience (maximum) | 1,300 hours |
| Counseling and supervision (maximum) | 750 hours Part of the 1,300 pre-degree hours. |
| Non-clinical work | No separate pre-degree cap It counts within the 1,300 pre-degree hours. |
| Face-to-face counseling for the qualifying degree | 150 hours In person or by video. Phone counts toward licensure but not toward the 150. |
| More counseling or client-centered advocacy for the qualifying degree | 75 hours Face-to-face counseling or client-centered advocacy in any combination, in addition to the 150. Accrue tracks the two together as 225 hours. |
Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC)
Post-degree experience · Title while gaining experience: Associate Professional Clinical Counselor (APCC)
The supervised experience an APCC logs after the degree toward the California LPCC: 3,000 hours, with supervision every week at every site. Practicum hours from the qualifying degree never reduce the 3,000.
| Requirement | Figure |
|---|---|
| Total supervised experience | 3,000 hours |
| Direct clinical | 1,750 hours |
| Non-clinical experience (maximum) | 1,250 hours |
| Supervised weeks | 104 weeks 52 of them with individual or triadic supervision. |
| Experience in any 7 consecutive days (maximum) | 40 hours |
Qualifying degree practicum for the LPCC (LPCC practicum)
Degree requirement
The degree that leads to the California LPCC must include a supervised practicum with at least 280 hours of face-to-face counseling of individuals, families or groups. These hours are a degree requirement and never reduce the 3,000 post-degree hours.
| Requirement | Figure |
|---|---|
| Face-to-face counseling | 280 hours Individuals, families or groups, in person or by video. Phone does not count toward the 280. |
Full LPCC practicum requirements, supervision and time limits
Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW)
Post-degree experience · Title while gaining experience: Associate Clinical Social Worker (ASW)
The supervised experience an ASW logs after the degree toward the California LCSW: 3,000 hours, with supervision every week at every site and part of it under an LCSW.
| Requirement | Figure |
|---|---|
| Total supervised experience | 3,000 hours |
| Clinical diagnosis, assessment and treatment | 2,000 hours Counseling, intake, testing, reports and notes. |
| Face-to-face psychotherapy | 750 hours Part of the 2,000. Counseling in person or by video. |
| Non-clinical experience (maximum) | 1,000 hours Supervision, advocacy and trainings. |
| Supervised weeks | 104 weeks 52 of them with individual or triadic supervision. |
Licensed Psychologist (LP)
Post-degree experience · Title while gaining experience: Registered Psychological Associate, or a trainee in an exempt setting or an APA, APPIC or CAPIC internship
California requires 3,000 hours of supervised professional experience, at least 1,500 of them postdoctoral. This ledger counts the 1,500 postdoctoral hours; predoctoral hours are kept on the internship ledger.
| Requirement | Figure |
|---|---|
| Total supervised professional experience | 3,000 hours One year is 1,500 hours. |
| Postdoctoral experience (minimum) | 1,500 hours The figure this ledger counts. |
| Hours credited per week (maximum) | 44 hours Including supervision. |
| Supervision | 10% of the time worked each week |
| Exams | EPPP Part 1 and the California Psychology Law and Ethics Exam EPPP Part 2 is not required. |
Common questions
- What does California require for therapist licensure hours?
- AMFT to LMFT: total supervised experience 3,000 hours; direct clinical 1,750 hours. APCC to LPCC: total supervised experience 3,000 hours; direct clinical 1,750 hours. ASW to LCSW: total supervised experience 3,000 hours; face-to-face psychotherapy 750 hours. Psychologist: total supervised professional experience 3,000 hours. Each license page lists the supervision rules and time limits.
- Who sets these requirements in California?
- Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS); Board of Psychology. Each figure on these pages cites the rule section it comes from.
- Do these figures mean I am eligible for a license?
- No. Your licensing board reviews your application and your supervisors' verifications and decides. These pages summarize the published rules as Accrue models them, including what Accrue does not check.
Sources
Sources checked
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4980.43
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4980.43.2
- BBS FAQs (revised February 2025)
- BBS FAQs for Supervisors, question 21 (February 2026)
- BBS LMFT weekly log (form)
- BBS LMFT in-state experience verification (form)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4980.43(c)(2)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4980.43(c)(3) to (6)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4980.42(c)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4980.36(d)(1)(B)(ii) and (vi)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4999.46
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4999.46.2
- BBS APCC weekly log (form)
- BBS LPCC in-state experience verification (form)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4999.33(c)(3)(L)
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4996.23
- Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 4996.23.1
- BBS ASW weekly log (form)
- BBS LCSW in-state experience verification (form)
- Cal. Code Regs. tit. 16, § 1387(a), (b)(4), (b)(5), (b)(6)
- Board of Psychology website, psychology.ca.gov
Accrue is a record-keeping aid and is not affiliated with any licensing board, accreditor or school. Rules change; confirm the requirements that apply to you with the authority that sets them before you rely on a figure.