Marriage, Family and Child Therapy
State licensure requirements

• Provide Official Transcript verifying your master’s degree with degree title and date of conferral posted. Transcripts must be sent electronically from the educational institution or in an envelope sealed by the educational institution.  
• Register as an Associate and begin accruing hours toward the State-required post-graduate total. Before you complete the associate registration form, be sure to have the following so you are prepared to submit all items in the same package:
• Application form and fee
• Degree Program Certification, Form B in the application

Applicants should review information about the 90 Day Rule which allows applicants who graduated after January 1, 2020 to count supervised experience between the degree award date and issue date of the Associate registration number under the rule if the workplace required the applicant to complete Live Scan fingerprinting.

Clinical Placement:

After registering as an associate (AMFT), pre- and post-graduate clinical experience must be completed under supervision as follows:

• Minimum of 3,000 hours completed during a period of at least 104 weeks with a minimum of 1,750 hours of direct counseling experience of which at least 500 hours must be gained diagnosing and treating couples, families, and children, and 1,250 hours of non-clinical experience which may consist of direct supervisor contact, administering and evaluating psychological tests, writing clinical reports, writing progress or process notes, client centered advocacy, and workshops, seminars, training sessions, or conferences directly related to marriage, family, and child counseling.
• The 104 supervision weeks must contain 1 hour of individual or triadic supervision or 2 hours of group supervision during any week and 52 weeks in which the applicant received at least one hour of individual or triadic supervision.
• Maximum of 1,300 hours gained pre-degree and maximum of 750 hours of counseling and direct supervisor contact
• Maximum 40 hours of experience earned in any week between all settings
• Maximum of 6 hours of individual, triadic or group supervision in any week
• There is no limit on the number of telehealth hours.

Apply for Licensure:

You may apply for licensure after all the above requirements have been met. These requirements include but are not limited to obtaining 3,000 hours of experience, and after required examinations have been passed. All applications have a fee that is to be sent with completed application to the Board office. Applications must be sent electronically or mailed in a sealed envelope.

State Agency Contact Information

California Board of Behavioral Sciences
1625 North Market Blvd., Suite S200
Sacramento, CA 95834

Phone: (916) 574-7830
Toll free: (800) 326-2297

This summary of state licensure requirements is provided as a reference tool for our counseling students and graduates. Every effort is made to ensure this information is accurate and up to date. However, as licensing requirements are subject to change at any time, you are strongly encouraged to regularly check with the state licensing authority (provided above) for licensure requirements.