Minnesota LISW Requirements & Hours Tracker

Licensure as a Licensed Independent Social Worker (LISW) in Minnesota is governed by the Minnesota Board of Social Work under Minnesota Statutes Chapter 148E. As of November 23, 2025, there are two main pathways to an LISW:

• Standard LISW by examination
• Provisional LISW (no exam), then conversion to a standard LISW

Both pathways share the same core supervised-practice requirement: substantial post‑master’s, nonclinical supervised social work practice.

Below is a step‑by‑step guide with a focus on the exact hour requirements and how the Board defines them.

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1. What the LISW is in Minnesota

The Board describes the Licensed Independent Social Worker (LISW) as a master’s license type plus nonclinical supervised practice. (mn.gov)

It is an “independent” license for nonclinical social work. An LISW may also engage in some clinical social work under supervision, but long‑term clinical practice and independent psychotherapy require moving on to the LICSW (clinical) license, subject to additional clinical hour requirements and caps on how long an LISW can practice clinically under supervision. (law.justia.com)

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2. Core eligibility to become an LISW (Standard License by Exam)

Minnesota Statutes §148E.055, subdivision 4, and the Board’s “Standard LISW by Exam” page set out the baseline qualifications. (revisor.mn.gov)

To qualify for a standard LISW by examination, an applicant must:

1. Education (graduate social work degree)

   • A master’s degree in social work from a program accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE) or Canadian Association of Schools of Social Work (or equivalent body designated by the Board), or
   • A doctorate in social work from an accredited university. (revisor.mn.gov)

2. Supervised social work practice (nonclinical, post‑graduate) – details in Section 3 below

   • Must have practiced social work as defined in statute and met the supervised practice requirements in Minn. Stat. §§148E.100–148E.125. (revisor.mn.gov)
   • In practice, for LISW this means completing the nonclinical supervised practice requirements while licensed as an LGSW.

3. Licensing examination

   • Must pass the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Advanced Generalist examination (or an equivalent examination designated by the Board). (mn.gov)

4. Criminal background check (CBC)

   • Must complete a fingerprint‑based criminal background check under Minn. Stat. §214.075, unless already holding a current standard or temporary Minnesota social work license. (mn.gov)

5. Ethical/disciplinary screening & fees

   • Must not have engaged in conduct violating the Board’s standards of practice. (mn.gov)
   • Must submit the Board’s application, pay application and CBC fees, and then pay the initial license fee when approved. (mn.gov)

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3. The key requirement: Nonclinical supervised practice for LISW

3.1. Total practice hours and supervision hours

The central requirement for LISW is nonclinical supervised practice completed after your graduate degree, normally while licensed as a Licensed Graduate Social Worker (LGSW) in nonclinical practice.

The Board’s LISW application page and its Standard License Nonclinical Supervision guidance specify: (mn.gov)

• 4,000 hours of nonclinical social work practice, and
• Within those 4,000 hours, 100 hours of licensing supervision,
• Obtained at a rate of 4 hours of supervision for every 160 hours of practice.

Put another way:

• Practice hours requirement:

  • 4,000 hours of post‑graduate, nonclinical social work practice that is authorized by law and performed while you hold a standard social work license (typically an LGSW). (codes.findlaw.com)

• Supervision requirement:

  • 100 hours of supervision integrated into that practice.
  • Supervision must occur at a minimum of 4 hours for every 160 hours of practice (i.e., about one hour of supervision per 40 hours of practice). (mn.gov)

The Board’s nonclinical supervision page summarizes this one‑time requirement in these terms:

• “4 hours of supervision for every 160 hours of practice,”
• for “100 hours of supervision over 4,000 hours of practice.” (mn.gov)

These 4,000 practice hours and 100 supervision hours are counted separately:

• 4,000 hours = actual paid/volunteer social work practice.
• 100 hours = time spent in designated supervision meetings; these are not counted inside the 4,000.

For a full‑time schedule, the Board notes that 160 hours of practice is about a month, and 4,000 hours of practice is about two years of full‑time work. (mn.gov)

3.2. What “nonclinical social work practice” means

For standard license nonclinical supervision, the Board describes nonclinical social work practice as including both:

1. Direct services to clients, such as (mn.gov)

   • assessment
   • case management
   • client‑centered advocacy
   • client education
   • consultation
   • counseling
   • crisis intervention
   • referral

2. Indirect or systems‑level services for the benefit of clients, including (mn.gov)

   • advocating for policies, programs, or services that improve client well‑being
   • conducting research related to social work services
   • developing and administering programs delivering social work services
   • community organization to address social problems
   • supervising individuals who provide social work services
   • teaching professional social work knowledge, skills, and values to students

This is the type of practice that makes up the 4,000 nonclinical practice hours for LISW.

3.3. How the 100 supervision hours must be structured

The Board further specifies how the 100 hours of supervision for nonclinical practice must be delivered: (mn.gov)

• Minimum 100 hours total over the 4,000 practice hours.
• 4 hours of supervision per 160 hours of practice (minimum).
• At least 50 of the 100 hours must be one‑on‑one supervision.
• The remaining hours (up to 50) may be a mix of:
  • additional one‑on‑one supervision, or
  • group supervision (no more than 6 supervisees), which may be in person, by phone, or via eye‑to‑eye electronic media.
• Supervision sessions themselves may be in person or via live video (“eye‑to‑eye electronic media”) as long as visual contact is maintained.

3.4. Who can supervise your LISW nonclinical hours?

For LGSWs in nonclinical practice completing hours toward LISW, the Board allows supervision by: (mn.gov)

• An LGSW who has already completed their own supervised practice requirement and 30 hours of supervisor training,
• An LISW, or
• An LICSW,
  all of whom must have completed 30 hours of training in supervision.

In limited circumstances, up to 25% of supervision hours may be provided by an alternate licensing supervisor such as a licensed psychologist, psychiatrist, licensed marriage and family therapist, licensed professional clinical counselor, or certain psychiatric nurses, if they meet the statutory criteria and supervision qualifications. In rural or special settings, up to 100% of supervision may be from an alternate supervisor when specific conditions are met (e.g., five or fewer licensed social workers in the county). (mn.gov)

3.5. Statutory framing of the hour requirement

Minnesota Statutes back up the Board’s guidance. For graduate‑level nonclinical practice, Minn. Stat. §148E.105 requires a licensed graduate social worker to obtain at least 100 hours of supervision during the first 4,000 hours of postgraduate social work practice, with at least four hours of supervision for every 160 hours of practice. (codes.findlaw.com)

Minn. Stat. §148E.110 (LISWs; supervised practice) ties LISW licensure directly to having completed this supervised postgraduate practice under §148E.105 before the LISW license is granted. (law.justia.com)

Practically, this means:

• To be eligible for LISW, you must have:
  • 4,000 hours of authorized, postgraduate, nonclinical social work practice, and
  • 100 hours of supervision,
    meeting the structure described above.

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4. Putting it together as a step‑by‑step pathway (Standard LISW by Exam)

While some details (like becoming LGSW) are on other Board pages, in practice the standard LISW by exam path usually proceeds as:

1. Earn an MSW (or DSW) from a CSWE‑accredited program. (mn.gov)
2. Obtain an LGSW license (for master’s level practice) and begin nonclinical social work practice in Minnesota.
3. Complete nonclinical supervised practice as an LGSW:
   • 4,000 hours of authorized, nonclinical practice,
   • 100 hours of licensure supervision,
   • 4 supervision hours per 160 practice hours, with at least 50 one‑on‑one. (mn.gov)
4. Document supervised practice using the Board’s supervision plan and supervision verification forms, submitted through Online Services or by mail. (mn.gov)
5. Apply for Standard LISW by Examination with the Minnesota Board of Social Work, submitting:
   • Application and fee
   • Official transcript
   • Supervision verification documenting the 4,000 practice hours and 100 supervision hours
   • Any required supporting documents. (mn.gov)
6. Receive exam approval, then pass the ASWB Advanced Generalist exam. (mn.gov)
7. Complete the criminal background check (if not already done for another standard/temporary license). (mn.gov)
8. Pay the initial LISW license fee once the Board approves your application; the license becomes effective when that fee is received. (mn.gov)

At that point you hold a standard LISW and have met the nonclinical supervised practice requirements.

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5. Alternative pathway: Provisional LISW (No Exam) and its hours

Because of statutory changes effective October 1, 2024, Minnesota now offers a Provisional LISW – No Exam route under Minn. Stat. §148E. (mn.gov)

For LISW specifically, the Board’s Provisional LISW page sets out two distinct layers of supervised practice:

1. Prerequisite nonclinical supervised practice (before Provisional LISW)
   To qualify for Provisional LISW (no exam), you must already document: (mn.gov)

   • 4,000 hours of nonclinical social work practice under a standard LGSW, and
   • 100 hours of supervision over those 4,000 hours (again, 4 hours per 160 practice hours).

   This is the same nonclinical supervision requirement described in Section 3; you simply choose to move into the provisional pathway instead of taking the exam immediately.

2. Additional provisional supervised practice (after you receive Provisional LISW)
   All provisional licensees—LSW, LGSW, LISW, LICSW—then complete an additional block of supervised practice under the provisional license: (mn.gov)

   • 2,000 hours of social work practice (clinical or nonclinical),
   • with 37.5 hours of supervision,
   • at a rate of 3 hours of supervision for every 160 hours of practice.

   At least half of these 37.5 supervision hours must be one‑on‑one, and the rest may be group supervision under Board rules. (mn.gov)

After completing the 2,000 provisional practice hours and 37.5 supervision hours, you apply to convert from Provisional LISW to a standard LISW without taking the ASWB exam, provided all other statutory conditions are met. (mn.gov)

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6. Summary of hour requirements specific to LISW in Minnesota

Focusing only on the hours directly tied to LISW (independent nonclinical license), Minnesota’s requirements are:

For LISW eligibility (both standard and provisional pathways):

• 4,000 hours of nonclinical, postgraduate social work practice, usually while licensed as an LGSW in nonclinical practice.
• 100 hours of licensure supervision, delivered at 4 hours per 160 hours of practice, with at least 50 hours one‑on‑one, and the remainder allowable as group or additional individual supervision. (mn.gov)

Additionally, if using the Provisional LISW pathway:

• After you are granted Provisional LISW, you must complete:
  • 2,000 hours of additional practice (clinical or nonclinical), and
  • 37.5 hours of supervision at 3 hours per 160 practice hours, with at least half one‑on‑one. (mn.gov)

Hours not required for LISW but relevant later:

• There is no specific requirement for “direct clinical client contact hours” to obtain an LISW. Those numbers (e.g., 4,000–8,000 hours of clinical practice including at least 1,800 hours of direct clinical client contact and 200 hours of supervision) apply only when an LISW later pursues the LICSW clinical license. (law.justia.com)

In other words, to become an LISW in Minnesota you are primarily meeting a large block of nonclinical practice hours (4,000) plus a defined amount of licensure supervision (100 hours), structured over time according to the Board’s ratio and supervision format requirements.