Florida LCSW Requirements & Hours Tracker

Becoming a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in Florida

Florida licenses clinical social workers through the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage & Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling (under the Department of Health). The standard route for an LCSW is License by Examination, which assumes you have completed graduate education, supervised post‑master’s clinical experience, and the national exam.

Below is a step‑by‑step outline using the Board’s own categories and hour requirements.

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1. Understand the main pathways

For clinical social work, the Board describes several licensure types:

• Licensed Clinical Social Worker – License by Examination
  This is the typical path for someone educated and trained in or for Florida. It is for applicants “who have completed two years and 1,500 hours of supervised clinical experience, the national examination, [and] all education requirements.” (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

• Registered Clinical Social Worker Intern
  This is the status you hold while you complete your two years of supervised post‑master’s experience. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

• License by MOBILE Endorsement
  For already‑licensed clinicians coming from another state with substantially similar requirements and at least two years of active practice in the last four years. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

• Provisional and Limited Licensure
  Special cases (e.g., nearing retirement and volunteering; or already meeting experience but needing additional FL‑specific requirements). (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

What follows focuses on the standard sequence:

MSW → Registered Clinical Social Worker Intern → Required supervised hours → ASWB Clinical exam → LCSW.

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2. Graduate education requirements

2.1 Degree

The Board requires:

• A master’s degree in social work from a Council on Social Work Education (CSWE)–accredited school, shown on an official transcript. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

Foreign‑educated applicants must show equivalency to CSWE standards and obtain a board‑approved course‑by‑course evaluation. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

2.2 Required clinical coursework

For both registered intern status and full LCSW licensure, Florida specifies coursework by credit hours and content area:

• 24 semester hours (or 32 quarter hours) in “theory of human behavior and practice methods as courses in clinically oriented services, including a minimum of one course in psychopathology.”
• The Board explicitly notes that courses in policy, administration, organization, and communities are not considered clinically oriented. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

You may apply as a registered intern with at least 15 semester or 22 quarter hours of this required coursework completed; the remaining courses must be finished before exam approval and full licensure. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

2.3 Practicum / field placement

Your MSW must include a supervised field placement (practicum/internship/field experience) in which you provided clinical services directly to clients. For both intern registration and full licensure, the Board requires a letter from your school (e.g., Dean or Department Chair) verifying that this supervised clinical placement was completed. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

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3. Step 1: Become a Registered Clinical Social Worker Intern

Florida strongly structures the supervised experience through the Registered Clinical Social Worker Intern license.

3.1 Basic requirements for intern registration

To become a registered CSW intern, you must have: (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

1. Official MSW transcript from a CSWE‑accredited school, sent directly to the Board.
2. Required clinical coursework (24 semester / 32 quarter hours; or at least 15 semester / 22 quarter to start the internship).
3. Practicum letter documenting a supervised field placement where you provided clinical services directly to clients.
4. Qualified Supervisor letter:
   • A letter from a Board‑approved Qualified Supervisor indicating they agree to supervise you as a registered intern.
   • It must originate from the supervisor, include their license number, your name as on your application, and state that they will provide supervision while you are a registered intern.

3.2 When your hours start counting

The Board states that supervised experience will not count toward licensure until:

• Your registered intern number has been issued, and
• The Board has approved your Qualified Supervisor. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

This timing is critical: work done before intern registration and supervisor approval typically does not apply to the required supervised hours.

3.3 Who qualifies as a “Qualified Supervisor”

For clinical social work interns, a Qualified Supervisor must meet Board‑defined criteria, including: (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

• Four years of clinical social work experience, of which up to two years may be during a post‑master’s internship, with the remaining two years post‑licensure; and
• Supervisor‑specific training (e.g., graduate‑level supervision course, approved CE in supervision, post‑graduate clinical social work field instructor training, or designation as an approved supervisor by AAMFT).

If the supervisor is not an LCSW, they must also document specific social work coursework in CSWE‑accredited programs.

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4. Step 2: Complete Florida’s required supervised clinical experience

4.1 Overall requirement (time and structure)

For both registered interns and full licensure, Florida uses the same core standard:

• Two (2) years of post‑master’s supervised experience under a Board‑approved Qualified Supervisor. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

On the LCSW licensing page, the Board further specifies that this must be “two (2) years of post‑master’s supervised experience under the supervision of a licensed clinical social worker,” documented on the Board’s Verification of Clinical Experience Form. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

4.2 Exact hour requirements and Board language

The Board defines the supervised experience using three numerical elements that must all be met. The supervised experience must consist of: (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

1. At least 100 hours of supervision in no less than 100 weeks
   • This implies an average of about one hour of supervision per week over at least 100 weeks (just under two years).
2. 1,500 hours of face‑to‑face psychotherapy with clients
   • These are the direct clinical service hours. Only face‑to‑face psychotherapy counts toward this 1,500‑hour requirement.
3. One (1) hour of supervision every two (2) weeks
   • This is a minimum frequency requirement: you must receive at least one hour of supervision for every two weeks in which you are earning supervised experience.

In other words, Florida does not require “1,500 hours of direct experience and 1,500 hours of supervised experience” as separate totals. Instead, it requires:

• 1,500 hours of face‑to‑face psychotherapy,
• Embedded within a two‑year period of supervised post‑master’s work,
• With a minimum of 100 supervision hours and supervision at least once every two weeks.

Supervision may be delivered in individual or group formats and may include certain electronic methods, but must follow the specifications in Rule 64B4‑2.002, F.A.C. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

4.3 Documentation of hours

All post‑master’s clinical hours must be documented on the Board’s Verification of Clinical Experience Form, completed and signed by each Qualified Supervisor. The Board repeatedly emphasizes that if hours are not documented on this form, they will not count toward licensure. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

Registered interns must remain under supervision until fully licensed, per Rule 64B4‑3.008, F.A.C. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

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5. Step 3: National examination (ASWB Clinical)

5.1 Required exam

Florida requires LCSW applicants to pass the national clinical‑level examination developed by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB). (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

5.2 When you may sit for the exam (18‑month rule)

The Board has set a timing condition for exam approval:

• Beginning January 1, 2023, exam approvals are granted only to applicants who have completed a minimum of 18 months of post‑master’s clinical experience.
• These 18 months do not include practicum or other experience obtained as part of your graduate program. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

You must request exam approval from the Board before registering with ASWB; once approved, you pay the exam fee directly to ASWB and schedule the Clinical level exam. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

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6. Step 4: Florida‑specific courses and background screening

Before the Board issues your LCSW license, it requires several additional items:

6.1 Mandatory pre‑licensure courses

For LCSW applicants, the Board requires: (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

1. 8‑hour Florida laws and rules course – from a Board‑approved provider.
2. 3‑hour HIV/AIDS course – from a Board‑approved provider or via the Board’s affidavit process.
3. 2‑hour domestic violence course – from a Board‑approved provider, completed within six months of licensure (you keep the certificate; it is not submitted with the application).

All courses must appear in the Board’s CE tracking system (CEBroker).

6.2 Fingerprinting and background screening

Following House Bill 975, passed after the 2024 legislative session, the Board notes that clinical social worker applicants and registered interns must complete electronic fingerprinting, and that applications cannot be approved until this background screening requirement and all other criteria are met. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

If you have health, disciplinary, or criminal history, the Board requires additional documentation (letters from treating providers, self‑explanations, court records, etc.) before granting or denying a license or registration. (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

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7. Step 5: Submit the LCSW “License by Examination” application

Once you have:

• Completed your MSW and required clinical coursework,
• Finished at least two years of supervised post‑master’s experience meeting the 100‑week / 100‑hour supervision / 1,500‑hour psychotherapy standard,
• Passed the ASWB Clinical exam, and
• Completed the FL laws & rules, HIV/AIDS, and domestic violence courses,

you submit the Licensed Clinical Social Worker – License by Examination application and pay the fees (currently: $100 application fee, $75 initial licensure fee, $5 unlicensed activity fee; total $180). (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

The Board reviews your file, and if no deficiencies remain, issues the LCSW license.

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8. Summary of Florida LCSW hour requirements (by the Board’s language)

From the Board pages for Registered Clinical Social Worker Interns and Licensed Clinical Social Workers, the core supervised experience requirement is: (floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov)

• Duration:

  • Two (2) years of post‑master’s supervised experience.

• Supervisor:

  • Under a Board‑approved Qualified Supervisor (for interns) or under a licensed clinical social worker (for LCSW applicants), who meets the Qualified Supervisor criteria.

• Hours and structure:

  • At least 100 hours of supervision in no less than 100 weeks;
  • 1,500 hours of face‑to‑face psychotherapy with clients;
  • One hour of supervision every two weeks.

All of these elements must be met and documented on the Board’s Verification of Clinical Experience Form for the Florida Board to approve you for LCSW licensure.