Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC)

Supervisor approval requests can now be submitted through your LicensE account. Please note applicants cannot submit this amendment on behalf of their supervisor. Additionally, approval is per profession and not applicant specific unless otherwise indicated.

• After logging in, click on the Supervisors tab in the top blue bar, then select ‘Request Approval to Supervise’. 

• Enter the required information. You will need to select at least one profession you would like permission to supervise and may select multiple. Please note it is recommended to submit separate amendments for each profession request as the supervisor requirements vary by profession.

• Once the information has been entered, select Save & Next.

• Upload a narrative statement explaining how you are knowledgeable in the field you are requesting to Supervise and a copy of your resume and/or other evidence showing your qualifications.

• Once the documents have been uploaded, select Save & Next.

• Finally, enter your name attesting to the statement listed and select Submit.

Amendments are typically reviewed by credentialing staff within 10 days. Your information will be sent to the Board Liaison or Legal for review (if applicable). Processing times for Board Liaison and Legal reviews vary. You will be notified once a decision has been made.

After you fully submit the supervisor approval request, you will be able to view its status by clicking ‘My Supervision Requests’ under the Supervisors tab. If additional information is requested, you will also be able to upload documentation there.

Supervised hours can be submitted through the supervisor’s LicensE account or by uploading the applicable form via the Third Party Upload at license.wi.gov. Instructions for each method are included below.

Important: If you are not already an approved supervisor, you will not be able to submit supervised hours through your account. You will first need to submit a Request Approval to Supervise amendment and become approved to supervise (see the Request Approval to Supervise Amendment section above). Additionally, you will not be able to submit supervised hours until the applicant submits their application for licensure.

To submit supervised hours through your LicensE account:

• After logging in, click on the Supervisors tab in the top blue bar, then select ‘Verify Supervised Hours’. 

• Next, select New and enter the applicant’s application number. Type in their application PAR- number slowly with no spaces and including every number, then select the application number from the drop down. The applicant’s name and license type will auto-populate.

• Answer the required questions including entering your Wisconsin license number if you are in In-State supervisor. Please note when entering your credential number, type in your license number slowly and include a space before and after the ‘-‘. Select your license number from the drop down.

• Click Proceed. Please note if you are not an approved supervisor, an error box will appear and you will not be able to continue.

• Verify the applicant’s information (this should have auto-populated from your initial responses).

• Enter the requested supervision information.

• Finally, attest to the supervision and submit the supervised hours.

• After you start a supervision form, it will appear on the ‘Verify Supervised Hours’ page with the applicant’s name, application number and status. You will be able to view the submitted form or if the verification form was not fully completed, you will be able to continue with your verification.

To submit supervised hours via the Third Party Document Upload:

• Go to license.wi.gov and click on the Third Party Document Upload tab in the top blue bar.

• Important: Do not login to your account. The Third Party Document Upload option will not appear if you are logged into your account.

• Enter the applicant’s application number. Type in their full application PAR- number with no spaces. Click on Search, then Select the applicant’s application.

• Click on the upload arrow under the Action column for the applicable document you are uploading and select Upload Files. Then find the document on your computer and select it to upload. Once the document is uploaded, click Submit. Make sure to click the Submit button as failure to click Submit may lead to delays in processing times.

Renewal Information

For a list of renewal dates please see: Renewal Date Page

To Renew:

You will be able to renew your credential approximately 4 weeks prior to your license expiring. You will receive an email to the email address on file with instructions on how to renew.

1. ​Online Log In: Go to LicensE

2. Select "Renew My License"

3. Complete the application

4. Upload any required documents

5. Submit payment

6. See fees list here: Credential Fees

Applicants who have not completed the supervised hours prior to their Professional Counselor Training License expiration date can request a 2 year renewal. All training license renewals require Section approval which can take additional time for review. Please note the Professional Counselor Training License renewal is not currently available in LicensE. We highly recommend starting your renewal process a few months prior to the expiration date to allow enough time for processing to prevent a lapse in licensure.

Important: If you have completed the 3,000 total hours of supervised Professional Counseling practice that includes 1,000 hours of face-to-face client contact but have not passed the National Exam, you can submit the full Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) application and apply for a temporary license at the same time instead of renewing the Professional Counselor Training License.  The temporary LPC license is issued for 9 months and can be renewed one time.  Your supervisor(s) would need to complete form 2464 and submit it directly to DSPS through the 3rd party document upload.

To start the renewal application process, email the following documents to dspscredjointbd@wisconsin.gov and submit a support ticket at license.wi.gov to notify us of the renewal request:

• Form 2921LPC

• Form 3071 for the $62 application fee

• Form 2456

• A statement to the Professional Counseling Section which includes the reason(s) why you are requesting a renewal of your training license, how many direct and non-direct hours you have obtained and when you plan to take the national exam.

Please note if you graduated in 2018 or earlier, we will also need an official transcript from your school to review your education. All applicants applying for a renewal are required to meet the current education requirement or have a plan in place to take additional courses. Applicants with older education cannot be ‘grandfathered in’ with the previous education requirement.

Per Wisconsin Statute Chapter MPSW 19.04, a credential holder with an active or expired credential is eligible to place his or her credential in Non-Practicing status if:

• He or she is retired and no longer engages in the practice for which the credential was issued or uses the title “marriage and family therapist,” “professional counselor,” “social worker,” “advanced practice social worker,” “independent social worker,” or “clinical social worker.”

If you do not intend to practice and want your license in Non-Practicing status, renew online in LicensE. Follow instructions given during the renewal process.

• If during the biennium, the credential holder needs to change from Non-Practicing to Active status, they must apply for Active status, by submitting CE completion documents for each biennia during which the credential holder was granted an exemption, before returning to the practice authorized under his or her credential by submitting a support ticket to request the change in status.

To renew your Wisconsin professional counselor license, you must complete 30 hours of continuing education (CE) every two years.

Your continuing education must include:

• 30 total CE hours.

• At least 4 hours in ethics and professional boundaries related to your area of practice.

First Renewal

If this is your first license renewal, you do not need to complete continuing education.

Approved Continuing Education

The Department does not pre-approve continuing education courses. It is your responsibility to ensure the courses meet the requirements in Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapter MPSW 19.

Continuing education may be earned through programs offered or approved by:

• National and state counseling, marriage and family therapy, rehabilitation counseling, social work, and addiction counseling organizations.

• Accredited colleges and universities.

• American Medical Association (AMA) or American Osteopathic Association (AOA) continuing medical education programs.

• Public or private employers that provide in-house training.

Note: No more than 15 of the required 30 hours may come from in-house training that is not approved by one of the organizations listed in the administrative code.

Teaching and Publishing Credit

You may also earn continuing education credit by:

• Presenting continuing education programs.

• Developing continuing education materials.

• Teaching college or university courses.

• Authoring approved textbooks, book chapters, journal articles, or educational media.

Credit is awarded according to the requirements in Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapter MPSW 19.

Renewal Period

The two-year reporting period runs from:

March 1 of an odd-numbered year through February 28 (or February 29 in a leap year) of the next odd-numbered year

(example: March 1, 2025 – February 28, 2027).

For complete continuing education requirements and approved activities, see Wisconsin Administrative Code Chapter MPSW 19.

• You can pay all fees associated with your credential by going to LicensE. 

• You will be asked to pay automatically at the end of your application. 

• You can pay with a credit or debit card, or via an automated clearing house or (ACH) payment.  

Please note, using an ACH payment can increase credential processing times by 3-5 business days.

You can view a list of fees for initial credentials and renewing your credential here: 

Credential Fees

The term credential is used universally to mean license, certification, permit, registration, enrollment and authorization.

• Applicants with convictions, who do not already have a credential, may apply for a predetermination. Predetermination is an optional, first step that happens before you would submit an initial credential application while meeting all credentialing requirements (e.g., education, training, examination, etc.)

  • To apply for a predetermination, log into LicensE.

  • If you have not created an account, you will first need to register.

  • After creating your account, log in, and select “Apply for a Pre-Determination.”

  •   Select the type of credential you would like to apply for.

  •   Follow all application instructions and upload all required documents.

• If the Department decides your record would not disqualify you, you can then apply for the actual credential and meet all the typical requirements like education, training, and exams.

• You may skip the predetermination process and submit your initial application for your credential. You must complete all steps to meet the credentialing requirements such as education, training, exams, and disclose your conviction record on your application.  Convictions and pending charges will be reviewed as part of the application process.

• Some applications require review by Department Legal staff.   

• This can be for a number of reasons, including but not limited to disclosure of convictions or pending charges, professional discipline, malpractice, termination, medical condition, supervised experience and application via reciprocity/endorsement.   

• Applications that require legal review will require additional processing time.  

• An application in the status “Legal File Preparation” is with DSPS and under review. 

Support Ticket
Submit a support ticket on LicensE and click "request support." Please provide as much detail as possible regarding your concern so we can work to answer your question with a one touch resolution. 

Call
608-266-2112

Email
dsps@wisconsin.gov

Office Hours
7:45am-4:30pm
Department of Safety and Professional Services
4822 Madison Yards Way
Madison, WI, 53705

Note: The in-person office does not process same day.

• LicensE at (license.wi.gov) is a self-guided online system where you can manage your professional credential from start to finish. 

• You will still need to review the requirements for the credential you are applying to. These can be found on the A-Z profession page. 

• With LicensE you can: 

  • Apply for a credential for the first time, with steps guiding you to upload your application documents, and pay all required fees.  

  • Renew an existing credential when it is time, to keep your credential active.  

  • View or download your credential for your records or verification.  

  • Update your personal information, including your phone number, email, and mailing address 

  • Submit support tickets and receive responses to your email from our staff experts.  

  • Allow third parties to review and upload required documents on your behalf 

  • Check the status of someone's credential using the public LicensE look up. 

• If you have never held a credential, you will need to create an account the first time you are on LicensE. 

  • To create an account, visit LicensE. You will then select “register for an individual” if you are applying for a license held by an individual, or “register for an organization” if you are applying for a license held by an organization.  

  • If you are not sure if the license you are applying for is an individual or organization license, please visit our A-Z professions page and review the profession page for more information.  

• When you create an account, please be sure to use an email you will always have access to.  

• For more information on LicensE, please see link to LicensE "How To" Page.