Substance Abuse Counselor

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

• To complete the renewal process, you will be asked to complete a survey that is given by the Department of Workforce Development (DWD).

To renew your Wisconsin social worker, professional counselor, marriage and family therapist, prevention specialist, or substance abuse 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.

Important: For social workers, the required ethics and professional boundaries training must be completed in an interactive learning format, such as:

• A live, instructor-led course (in person or online), or

• An approved self-paced course offered by an authorized continuing education provider.

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 social work, counseling, marriage and family therapy, rehabilitation counseling, 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.

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.