Alaska LMFT Requirements: Hours, Exams & Step-by-Step Guide

Licensure as a Licensed Marital and Family Therapist (LMFT) in Alaska is set out in Alaska Statutes AS 08.63 and the Board of Marital and Family Therapy’s regulations in 12 AAC 19, plus the Board’s official application packets revised in 2025. Together, these spell out exactly what education, supervised hours, and exams you need.

Below is a step‑by‑step guide focused on the Board’s own language and hour requirements, not third‑party summaries.

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1. Understand the Two Licenses in Alaska

Alaska uses a two‑step system:

1. Marital and Family Therapy Associate license – a four‑year license for supervised practice only. You must hold this before you can accrue required supervised hours in Alaska. (commerce.alaska.gov)
2. Marital and Family Therapist license (LMFT) – the full license to independently practice “marital and family therapy.”

The supervised hours that qualify you for LMFT are completed while you are licensed as an associate and under a board‑approved supervisor. (commerce.alaska.gov)

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2. Meet Alaska’s Education and Practicum Requirements

Under AS 08.63.100(a)(3)(B), the Board issues a license only to someone who holds a master’s or doctoral degree in marital and family therapy or an allied mental health field from a regionally accredited institution and who has completed a very specific course of study. (commerce.alaska.gov)

Your degree must include coursework substantially equivalent to:

• Marital and family therapy – 9 semester hours (or 12 quarter hours)
• Marital and family studies – 9 semester / 12 quarter hours
• Human development – 9 semester / 12 quarter hours
• Professional studies or ethics and law – 3 semester / 4 quarter hours
• Research – 3 semester / 4 quarter hours
• Supervised clinical practice in marital and family therapy – 9 semester / 12 quarter hours (this is your graduate practicum/internship). (commerce.alaska.gov)

If your degree is missing some of this coursework or clinical practice, you may substitute post‑degree course work or practice, using the Board’s equivalency worksheet, if the Board approves it. (commerce.alaska.gov)

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3. Apply for the Marital and Family Therapy Associate License

Once your degree (and required practicum) is complete, you apply to become a Marital and Family Therapy Associate:

• Submit the associate application (Form #08‑4378) with fees.
• Provide official transcripts and an education checklist or equivalency worksheet.
• Submit a Plan of Supervision on the Board’s form to satisfy AS 08.63.100(a)(3)(C). (commerce.alaska.gov)

Key points about the associate license:

• It is a four‑year license for supervised practice under AS 08.63.110. (commerce.alaska.gov)
• You may practice only:
  • Under the direct supervision of a supervisor approved by the Board; and
  • In a clinic, social service agency, or other setting approved by the Board. (commerce.alaska.gov)
• Regulations specify that a candidate seeking licensure in Alaska must attain associate licensure status prior to accruing hours in Alaska. No therapy or counseling may begin in Alaska before the applicant is licensed under this section. (commerce.alaska.gov)

The associate license can be extended if needed for you to complete the required supervised experience, but only at the Board’s discretion and based on “reasonable cause or excusable neglect.” (commerce.alaska.gov)

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4. Complete the Required Supervised Clinical Contact Hours

This is where Alaska’s hour requirements and terminology matter most.

4.1. How Many Hours?

AS 08.63.100(a)(3)(C) and the Board’s 2025 LMFT‑by‑Examination application instructions both require that after receiving your qualifying degree, you must have:

• 1,700 hours of clinical contact with couples, individuals, and families, and
• Within those 1,700 hours, at least 200 hours of supervision, broken down as:
  • At least 100 hours of individual supervision approved by the Board, and
  • At least 100 hours of either individual or group supervision, or a combination of those hours, approved by the Board. (commerce.alaska.gov)

The Board’s application instructions summarize this as:

• “Verification of having practiced marital and family therapy, including a total of 1,700 hours of clinical contact with couples, individuals, and families. 200 of these hours must include 100 hours of individual supervision and 100 hours of either individual or group supervision…” (commerce.alaska.gov)

So in Board language:

• Total required post‑degree supervised practice:
  1,700 hours of clinical contact (this figure already includes the 200 hours of supervision).
• Minimum supervision within those 1,700 hours:
  • 100 hours must be individual supervision, and
  • 100 hours must be individual or group supervision, or a combination, all Board‑approved.

In practical terms, that means roughly:

• About 1,500 hours of non‑supervision client contact; plus
• 200 hours of supervision (discussing and reviewing your work) folded into the 1,700‑hour total.

4.2. What Counts as “Clinical Contact” and “Supervision”?

The law speaks in terms of “clinical contact with couples, individuals, and families” and “supervision.” (commerce.alaska.gov)

• “Clinical contact” is not separately defined, but the statutory wording makes clear that it is direct therapeutic work with individuals, couples, and families in the practice of marital and family therapy.
• “Supervision” is defined in AS 08.63.900(6) as synchronous consultation, direction, review, evaluation, and assessment of the practice of the person being supervised, and it explicitly includes direct observation and review of case presentations, audio recordings, and video recordings. (commerce.alaska.gov)

Only hours that are:

1. Post‑degree,
2. Accrued while you are licensed as a Marital and Family Therapy Associate in Alaska, and
3. Supervised by a Board‑approved supervisor

will count toward the 1,700 clinical contact hours and the embedded supervision requirements. (commerce.alaska.gov)

Your supervisor must verify your hours on the Board’s Verification of Approved Clinical Contact Hours form (#08‑4933d). (commerce.alaska.gov)

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5. Complete Required Domestic Violence Training

Both statute and the Board’s LMFT application require specific training related to domestic violence:

• AS 08.63.100(a)(3)(D) requires that you have “received training related to domestic violence.” (commerce.alaska.gov)
• The 2025 LMFT‑by‑Examination application instructions make this more precise: you must verify “at least six contact hours of training related to domestic violence.” (commerce.alaska.gov)

You can document this with a notarized transcript, certificate, or letter from the instructor that shows the six contact hours of domestic‑violence‑related training.

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6. Pass the National MFT Examination and Alaska Jurisprudence

To qualify for the LMFT license, you must satisfy the exam requirements in AS 08.63.100(a)(3)(E) and the Board’s regulations. (commerce.alaska.gov)

This includes:

1. National Marital and Family Therapy Exam (AMFTRB)

   • The Board’s application instructions require verification that you passed the National Marital and Family Therapy Exam, sent directly from the Association of Marital and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards (AMFTRB) to Alaska. (commerce.alaska.gov)
   • As a Marital and Family Therapy Associate, you are eligible to sit for this exam; the Board references Form #08‑4203 for exam approval. (commerce.alaska.gov)

2. Alaska Jurisprudence Questionnaire

   • You must complete and pass a jurisprudence questionnaire prepared by the Board, covering AS 08.63, 12 AAC 19, and the Board’s code of ethics. (commerce.alaska.gov)

If you fail the national exam, the statute requires at least a six‑month wait before retaking it, and a full new application if a year or more has passed since your last attempt. (commerce.alaska.gov)

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7. Apply for the Full LMFT License (License by Examination)

Once you have:

• Completed the qualifying master’s or doctoral degree,
• Accrued and documented 1,700 hours of clinical contact with the required 200 hours of supervision,
• Completed at least six contact hours of domestic‑violence training, and
• Passed both the National MFT Exam and the Alaska jurisprudence questionnaire,

you submit the Marital and Family Therapist License by Examination application (Form #08‑4933). (commerce.alaska.gov)

The application packet, revised September 30, 2025, lists the required items:

• Completed, notarized application;
• Application and license fees (currently listed in the packet);
• Authorization for release of records;
• Official transcripts and coursework checklist (or post‑degree equivalency form);
• Verifications of any licenses held elsewhere;
• Verification of Approved Clinical Contact Hours documenting your 1,700 hours of clinical contact, including the specified supervision;
• Verification of domestic‑violence training (6 contact hours);
• Passed jurisprudence questionnaire; and
• Verification of passing the National Marital and Family Therapy Exam from AMFTRB. (commerce.alaska.gov)

Upon Board approval, you are issued the Licensed Marital and Family Therapist (LMFT) license under AS 08.63.100.

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8. Optional: Eligibility to Provide Teletherapy

If you plan to provide services via teletherapy to clients physically present in Alaska, you must also meet teletherapy‑specific training requirements:

• Under 12 AAC 19.405, to be eligible to practice teletherapy you must:
  • Be licensed in good standing as an LMFT or MFT associate in Alaska, and
  • Complete at least four hours of initial training covering:
    • Appropriateness of teletherapy
    • Teletherapy theory and practice
    • Modes of teletherapy delivery
    • Legal and ethical issues
    • Handling online emergencies
    • Best practices and informed consent (commerce.alaska.gov)

This requirement is separate from the 1,700 clinical contact hours and six hours of domestic‑violence training, but is often completed during the associate period.

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9. Maintain Your LMFT License

Once licensed, you must comply with renewal and continuing education rules:

• Licenses are renewed biennially (every two years). (commerce.alaska.gov)
• Continuing education requirements, including topics like ethics and domestic violence, are detailed in 12 AAC 19.300–19.350 and refined through Board forms and guidance. (commerce.alaska.gov)

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Core Hour Requirements – Quick Summary in Board Terms

Using the Alaska Board’s statutory and application language as of mid‑2025:

• Post‑degree supervised practice required for LMFT
  • “1,700 hours of clinical contact with couples, individuals, and families; the 1,700 hours of clinical contact must include at least 100 hours of individual supervision and 100 hours of either individual or group supervision, or a combination of those hours, approved by the Board.” (commerce.alaska.gov)
• Domestic‑violence training
  • At least six contact hours of training related to domestic violence. (commerce.alaska.gov)
• Supervision definition
  • “Supervision” is synchronous consultation and review of your practice, including direct observation and review of cases and recordings, provided by a Board‑approved supervisor. (commerce.alaska.gov)

These are the controlling requirements for LMFT licensure in Alaska; any older or third‑party descriptions (for example, those that refer to 3,000 total hours) should be checked against the current Alaska Statutes AS 08.63, regulations 12 AAC 19, and the Board’s 2025 application forms, which set the legal standard.