{
  "_schema": {
    "about": "Social work licensing requirements per US jurisdiction, for the FIRST credential an MSW graduate holds in that jurisdiction.",
    "nullRule": "null means we have not read that figure off the board's own page. It never means zero. Do not substitute a default, an average or another state's number.",
    "attribution": "Social Work Test Prep Academy is not affiliated with any state licensing board or with ASWB. We read each board's published pages and record what they say; the board's page is the source of record. Requirements change.",
    "fields": {
      "abbr": "Two-letter USPS code, uppercase.",
      "name": "Jurisdiction name.",
      "url": "Absolute URL of the human-readable page.",
      "json": "Absolute URL of the full record for this jurisdiction.",
      "checked": "true when we have read this board's own pages and published the record. false means no data yet, not \"no requirements\".",
      "firstCredential": "The first credential an MSW graduate holds here (abbreviation, title, and the ASWB exam category needed to hold it, null when none is).",
      "examRequiredFirst": "true when the ASWB exam gates that first credential. false when the jurisdiction licenses or registers you first and the exam comes later (Michigan, California, Florida, Illinois).",
      "knownFeesUsd": "Sum of ONLY the fees the board publishes for that first credential, in US dollars. null when it publishes none.",
      "hours": "Plain-language supervised-hour requirement on the path, or the not-checked sentence.",
      "lastChecked": "ISO date WE last read the board pages behind this record. It is not a board review, approval or sign-off.",
      "ladder": "Every rung of the licensure ladder in order. `exam` is the ASWB category required to HOLD that rung (null = none); `supervised` means practice only under supervision.",
      "fees": "The board's own fee lines for the first credential, each with the page it was read from. amount_usd is null when the board does not publish the amount.",
      "supervision": "The supervised-experience package on the path, each figure with its own source page. A figure the board does not publish is null.",
      "applicationSequence": "The board's published order of operations, in the board's own terms.",
      "sources": "The board and statute pages this record was read from.",
      "records": "The raw rulebook records for this jurisdiction, unmodified."
    }
  },
  "abbr": "PA",
  "name": "Pennsylvania",
  "url": "https://www.socialworktestprepacademy.com/licensing/pa",
  "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "checked": true,
  "lastChecked": "2026-09-06",
  "board": {
    "name": "State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors",
    "url": "https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/social-workers-marriage-family-therapists-professional-counselors"
  },
  "firstCredential": {
    "abbr": "LSW",
    "title": "Licensed Social Worker",
    "rung": "masters",
    "exam": "Masters"
  },
  "examRequiredFirst": true,
  "summary": "The ASWB Masters exam is required before the license.",
  "aswbExam": {
    "level": "Masters",
    "feeUsd": 230
  },
  "knownFeesUsd": 345,
  "unknownFeeCount": 0,
  "fees": [
    {
      "name": "LSW application and original licensure",
      "amount_usd": 75,
      "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
      "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
    },
    {
      "name": "ASWB Masters examination",
      "amount_usd": 230,
      "source_url": "https://www.aswb.org/exam/",
      "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
    },
    {
      "name": "Verification of licensure",
      "amount_usd": 15,
      "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
      "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
    },
    {
      "name": "Certification of license, scores, or hours",
      "amount_usd": 25,
      "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
      "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
    }
  ],
  "supervision": null,
  "hours": "Supervised hours not checked yet",
  "compactMember": false,
  "applicationSequence": [
    "Hold a master's degree in social work from a CSWE-accredited school (or a doctoral degree in social work/social welfare).",
    "Complete at least 3 hours of Board-approved child abuse recognition and reporting training.",
    "Submit an FBI fingerprint-based background check via IdentoGO.",
    "Apply for licensure online through the PALS portal (www.pals.pa.gov) with the application fee.",
    "Receive email notification of eligibility to register for the ASWB Masters examination (eligibility valid 6 months).",
    "Have the school submit an official transcript conferring the MSW degree directly to the Board.",
    "Pass the ASWB Masters examination and complete license issuance."
  ],
  "ladder": [
    {
      "rung": "bachelors",
      "abbr": "LBSW",
      "title": "Licensed Bachelor Social Worker",
      "exam": "Bachelors",
      "supervised": false,
      "source": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.12e.html"
    },
    {
      "rung": "masters",
      "abbr": "LSW",
      "title": "Licensed Social Worker",
      "exam": "Masters",
      "supervised": false,
      "source": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.12a.html"
    },
    {
      "rung": "clinical",
      "abbr": "LCSW",
      "title": "Licensed Clinical Social Worker",
      "exam": "Clinical",
      "supervised": false,
      "source": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.12c.html"
    }
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "label": "State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors · LSW applicant resources",
      "url": "https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/social-workers-marriage-family-therapists-professional-counselors"
    },
    {
      "label": "49 Pa. Code Chapter 47 (State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors)",
      "url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/chap47toc.html"
    },
    {
      "label": "LSW fees · LSW application and original licensure",
      "url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html"
    },
    {
      "label": "LSW fees · ASWB Masters examination",
      "url": "https://www.aswb.org/exam/"
    },
    {
      "label": "Social Work Licensure Compact · member jurisdictions",
      "url": "https://swcompact.org/compact-jurisdictions/"
    }
  ],
  "records": [
    {
      "state": {
        "name": "Pennsylvania",
        "postal_code": "PA"
      },
      "license_target": {
        "track": "masters",
        "title": "Licensed Social Worker",
        "abbreviation": "LSW"
      },
      "board": {
        "name": "State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors",
        "source_url": "https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/social-workers-marriage-family-therapists-professional-counselors"
      },
      "fees": [
        {
          "name": "LSW application and original licensure",
          "amount_usd": 75,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        {
          "name": "ASWB Masters examination",
          "amount_usd": 230,
          "source_url": "https://www.aswb.org/exam/",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        {
          "name": "Verification of licensure",
          "amount_usd": 15,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        {
          "name": "Certification of license, scores, or hours",
          "amount_usd": 25,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        }
      ],
      "application_sequence": [
        "Hold a master's degree in social work from a CSWE-accredited school (or a doctoral degree in social work/social welfare).",
        "Complete at least 3 hours of Board-approved child abuse recognition and reporting training.",
        "Submit an FBI fingerprint-based background check via IdentoGO.",
        "Apply for licensure online through the PALS portal (www.pals.pa.gov) with the application fee.",
        "Receive email notification of eligibility to register for the ASWB Masters examination (eligibility valid 6 months).",
        "Have the school submit an official transcript conferring the MSW degree directly to the Board.",
        "Pass the ASWB Masters examination and complete license issuance."
      ],
      "aswb_exam": {
        "level": "Masters",
        "fee_usd": 230,
        "source_url": "https://www.aswb.org/exam/",
        "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
      },
      "supervision_requirement": null,
      "supervisor_eligibility": null,
      "forms": [
        {
          "name": "Licensed Social Worker (LSW) FAQs",
          "source_url": "https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/social-worker/SWM%20-%20FAQs%20LSW.pdf"
        }
      ],
      "processing_benchmark": {
        "value": "ASWB Masters examination eligibility, once issued, is valid for 6 months from the date of exam approval; a licensure application on file 6 months or longer requires updating any expired documentation for a 6-month extension, and an application on file 1 year or longer requires a new application fee.",
        "source_url": "https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/social-worker/SWM%20-%20FAQs%20LSW.pdf",
        "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
      },
      "endorsement_rules": [
        "Non-path fee (not in known fees): Biennial renewal (all credential types) $95",
        "Non-path fee (not in known fees): Late renewal fee $5"
      ],
      "compact_status": {
        "member": false,
        "multistate_licenses_available": false,
        "source_url": "https://swcompact.org/compact-jurisdictions/",
        "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
      },
      "last_verified": "2026-09-06",
      "sources": [
        {
          "label": "49 Pa. Code Chapter 47 (State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors)",
          "url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/chap47toc.html"
        },
        {
          "label": "PA Dept. of State - Social Workers, MFT, Professional Counselors Board",
          "url": "https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/social-workers-marriage-family-therapists-professional-counselors"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "state": {
        "name": "Pennsylvania",
        "postal_code": "PA"
      },
      "license_target": {
        "track": "clinical",
        "title": "Licensed Clinical Social Worker",
        "abbreviation": "LCSW"
      },
      "board": {
        "name": "State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors",
        "source_url": "https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/social-workers-marriage-family-therapists-professional-counselors"
      },
      "fees": [
        {
          "name": "LCSW application and original licensure",
          "amount_usd": 90,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        {
          "name": "ASWB Clinical examination",
          "amount_usd": 260,
          "source_url": "https://www.aswb.org/exam/",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        {
          "name": "Verification of licensure",
          "amount_usd": 15,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        {
          "name": "Certification of license, scores, or hours",
          "amount_usd": 25,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.4.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        }
      ],
      "application_sequence": [
        "Hold LSW licensure (master's degree in social work from a CSWE-accredited school).",
        "Begin supervised clinical experience under a Board-qualified supervisor (49 Pa. Code Sec. 47.1a / Sec. 47.12d).",
        "Accumulate 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience over no less than 2 and no more than 6 years.",
        "Meet the required supervision-meeting ratio (2 hours per 40 hours of clinical experience).",
        "Submit supervised clinical experience verification forms (completed by the supervisor) through PALS.",
        "Apply for LCSW licensure and pass the ASWB Clinical examination."
      ],
      "aswb_exam": {
        "level": "Clinical",
        "fee_usd": 260,
        "source_url": "https://www.aswb.org/exam/",
        "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
      },
      "supervision_requirement": {
        "experience_hours": {
          "value": 3000,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.12c.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        "client_contact_hours": {
          "value": 1500,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.12c.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        "supervision_hours": {
          "value": null,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.12c.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        "minimum_months": {
          "value": 24,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.12c.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        "maximum_months": {
          "value": 72,
          "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.12c.html",
          "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
        },
        "notes": [
          "Confirmed 2-6 year range (24-72 months) matches Sec. 47.12c(b)(9) exactly.",
          "The regulation's default per-12-month band is 'at least 500 hours and no more than 1,800 hours'; the LCSW FAQ states the Board has WAIVED this sub-cap. This waiver is an administrative FAQ statement, not codified regulatory text - correctly sourced to the FAQ, not the regulation.",
          "A supervisor may supervise no more than 6 supervisees concurrently (Sec. 47.12c(b)(6)), with an exception process for undue hardship.",
          "Supervised clinical experience completed in another state may count toward Pennsylvania's requirement if it meets Pennsylvania requirements.",
          "Current ACSW certification (issued prior to Jan 1, 2001) may be accepted in lieu of the 3,000 hours if requirements are met.",
          "Supervision total: 49 Pa. Code Sec. 47.12c codifies only the RATIO (2 hours of supervision per 40 hours of experience). It states no cumulative supervision-hour total anywhere, so supervision_hours stays null. The commonly quoted 150 is arithmetic, not regulation.",
          "HB554 (Social Work Licensure Compact) status as of 2026-09-06: passed the House 187-15 on 2026-06-04, reported favorably from Senate Consumer Protection and Professional Licensure on 2026-02-04, re-referred to Senate Appropriations 2026-03-16, still pending. Not signed into law, so Pennsylvania is not a compact member.",
          "Non-path fee (not in known fees): Biennial renewal (all credential types) $95"
        ]
      },
      "supervisor_eligibility": [
        "For experience completed on/after January 1, 2006: 1,500 of the 3,000 hours must be supervised by an individual holding a current LCSW license with 5 years of clinical experience within the last 10 years (49 Pa. Code Sec. 47.1a(1)).",
        "The remaining 1,500 hours may be supervised by an individual holding a current license and a master's or doctoral degree in a related field, with 5 years' experience within the last 10 years in that field (Sec. 47.1a(2)).",
        "For experience completed before January 1, 2006, an alternate path allowed supervision by an individual who practiced as a clinical social worker with 5 years of clinical experience and held a current social worker license (Sec. 47.1a(3)) - this was a temporary provision applicable only to pre-2006 experience.",
        "Supervisors must also meet the Standards for Supervisors at 49 Pa. Code Sec. 47.12d (accessibility, ethical review, client notification, quarterly progress evaluations, recordkeeping)."
      ],
      "forms": [
        {
          "name": "Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) FAQs",
          "source_url": "https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/social-worker/SWM%20-%20FAQs%20LCSW.pdf"
        },
        {
          "name": "Request for Verification of Clinical Experience",
          "source_url": "https://www.pa.gov/content/dam/copapwp-pagov/en/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/social-worker/swf%20-%20clinical%20experience%20verification%20request%20(2).pdf"
        }
      ],
      "processing_benchmark": null,
      "endorsement_rules": {
        "value": "49 Pa. Code Sec. 47.16 (Licensure by endorsement) requires: meeting Sec. 47.12 general requirements; a CSWE-accredited MSW or doctoral degree in social work; passing a clinical social work exam acceptable to the Board (out-of-state grades accepted if demonstrably comparable and meeting PA's passing standard); holding a clinical social work license in good standing from another state with documentation of disciplinary history; and completion of a minimum of 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience conforming to requirements in the licensing state. Act 41 also provides a separate statutory endorsement path requiring 2 of the last 5 years of active clinical social work practice in any US state/territory immediately preceding the application.",
        "source_url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/s47.16.html",
        "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
      },
      "compact_status": {
        "member": false,
        "multistate_licenses_available": false,
        "source_url": "https://swcompact.org/compact-jurisdictions/",
        "verified_date": "2026-09-06"
      },
      "last_verified": "2026-09-06",
      "sources": [
        {
          "label": "49 Pa. Code Chapter 47 (State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors)",
          "url": "https://www.pacodeandbulletin.gov/Display/pacode?file=/secure/pacode/data/049/chapter47/chap47toc.html"
        },
        {
          "label": "PA Dept. of State - Social Workers, MFT, Professional Counselors Board",
          "url": "https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/social-workers-marriage-family-therapists-professional-counselors"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}