Yes, Pennsylvania joined the Counseling Compact on July 12, 2026, as its 40th member state. No, Pennsylvania is not active yet, so counselors cannot use the Compact to practice across state lines from or into Pennsylvania. Privileges will become available only after implementation is complete and Pennsylvania joins CompactConnect.
Is Pennsylvania in the Counseling Compact?
Yes. Governor Josh Shapiro approved Senate Bill 604 on July 12, 2026, and it became Act 23 of 2026. The Counseling Compact Commission identifies Pennsylvania as the 40th state to enact the interstate agreement for licensed professional counselors.
The Counseling Compact allows eligible counselors whose home states are active members to request privileges to practice in other active states. Pennsylvania’s enactment establishes membership, but it does not immediately create practice privileges.
The “40th state” description is a membership count. It should not be confused with the smaller number of states that have finished implementation and are actively issuing privileges.
Can Pennsylvania Counselors Use the Compact Yet?
No. Pennsylvania counselors cannot currently apply for Compact privileges, and counselors from active states cannot yet use a Compact privilege to serve clients located in Pennsylvania.
The Counseling Compact Commission explains that enactment is only the first step. Before Pennsylvania becomes active, the Commonwealth must complete regulatory, technical, data-sharing, background-check, staffing, and system-testing work. Pennsylvania must also be connected to CompactConnect, the shared application and verification system.
No Pennsylvania activation date has been announced as of July 30, 2026. Counselors should not advertise Compact authority in Pennsylvania or begin interstate practice based only on the new law.
When Will the Pennsylvania Counseling Compact Take Effect?
Pennsylvania’s Counseling Compact Act is scheduled to take effect on September 10, 2026, which is 60 days after its July 12 enactment. However, the law’s effective date is not the same as the date Pennsylvania becomes active for privileges. The Pennsylvania General Assembly lists Act 23 of 2026 as effective 60 days after enactment.
“Effective” means the enacted law has taken legal effect. “Active” means Pennsylvania has completed implementation and can issue and receive privileges through CompactConnect. That second date remains unannounced.
What Are the Three Stages: Enacted, Effective, and Active?
Pennsylvania must pass through three distinct stages before counselors can use the Compact.
| Stage | Pennsylvania status | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Enacted | Completed July 12, 2026 | The Compact was signed into law as Act 23 of 2026. The Commission counts Pennsylvania as the 40th state to enact the Compact; full member status follows the effective date. |
| Effective | Scheduled for September 10, 2026 | The law takes effect, but privileges are still unavailable unless implementation is complete |
| Active | Not scheduled | Pennsylvania begins issuing and receiving privileges through CompactConnect |
This sequence is the clearest way to understand Pennsylvania’s current position. The state has joined, but it is not yet usable for interstate practice.
Who Will Qualify for the Compact in Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania’s independently licensed Professional Counselor, or LPC, will be the relevant home-state credential once Pennsylvania becomes active. Compact applicants must hold a qualifying, unencumbered license that permits independent professional counseling practice.
A Compact applicant must:
- Hold the education required for qualifying professional counselor licensure and have passed a nationally recognized examination approved by the Compact Commission.
- Hold an unencumbered license, meaning the license allows full and unrestricted professional counseling practice.
- Complete the required criminal background check process, including the FBI fingerprint-based criminal history check.
- Satisfy any jurisprudence requirement imposed by the remote state where the counselor is seeking a privilege to practice.
- Hold an independent professional counseling license rather than practicing under a supervised, provisional, or associate-level credential.
According to the Counseling Compact Commission, only counselors who hold an unencumbered license allowing them to independently assess, diagnose, treat, and practice at their state’s highest professional counseling level are eligible to apply for a privilege.
Counselors with a history of disciplinary action should not assume that they are eligible. Because eligibility depends on whether the license meets the Compact’s requirements and whether an encumbrance is present, counselors with past disciplinary matters should confirm their status with the appropriate licensing board before applying.
Pennsylvania must also be both the counselor’s licensing state and primary state of residence to serve as the counselor’s Compact home state. A counselor who holds a Pennsylvania LPC but primarily resides in another state cannot use Pennsylvania as the home state for Compact participation. Instead, the counselor would need an eligible qualifying license from the member state that is their primary state of residence.
The Pennsylvania Board also regulates the Licensed Associate Professional Counselor, or LAPC. An LAPC will not qualify because associate-level counselors practice under supervision, and the Compact excludes student, assistant, provisional, and other supervised credentials.
Other credentials require separate clarification:
- An LMFT does not qualify through the Counseling Compact because marriage and family therapy is a separate licensed profession.
- An LCSW does not qualify through the Counseling Compact because social work has its own licensing system.
- A Pennsylvania school counselor certificate alone does not qualify. A school counselor who also holds an eligible Pennsylvania LPC may eventually qualify through that LPC.
The Compact Commission states that LMFTs and LCSWs are generally not eligible and that participation is limited to independently licensed professional counselors. Pennsylvania separately treats school counseling as an educational specialist certification.
Eligibility will not be usable until Pennsylvania becomes active.
Which States Will Pennsylvania Counselors Be Able to Practice In?
Once Pennsylvania is active, eligible Pennsylvania LPCs who live in Pennsylvania will be able to apply for privileges in other states that are operationally live at that time.
As of July 30, 2026, the seven active states are Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, Minnesota, and Ohio. The list can change as more jurisdictions complete implementation. Seven jurisdictions are live. Verify the current list at counselingcompact.gov before relying on it.
The Compact covers the qualifying license that permits independent professional counseling practice, even when states use different credential titles. Indiana uses the Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) title, while Minnesota and Ohio use Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC). The other currently active states use the Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC) title.
These title differences do not automatically prevent Compact participation. A Pennsylvania LPC is not disqualified simply because another active state uses LMHC or LPCC, and an eligible counselor holding an LMHC or LPCC in an active state would not be disqualified from requesting a future Pennsylvania privilege solely because the credential has a different name. What matters is whether the license meets the Compact’s eligibility requirements for independent professional counseling practice.
Membership does not create practice authority. Several states bordering Pennsylvania are Compact members but have not completed implementation, check the active-state list above rather than assuming a neighboring state is usable. Both Pennsylvania and the state where the client is located must be active, and the counselor must receive that state’s privilege before practicing.
How Will Pennsylvania Counselors Apply Once the Compact Is Active?
Pennsylvania LPCs will apply through CompactConnect after Pennsylvania is officially activated. The expected process is:
- Maintain an active, unencumbered Pennsylvania LPC.
- Use Pennsylvania as the home state, meaning the counselor’s primary state of residence.
- Select each active state where a privilege is requested.
- Complete any jurisprudence requirement imposed by the remote state.
- Pay the Compact administrative fee and that state’s privilege fee.
- Wait until the privilege number appears in CompactConnect before practicing.
All privilege applications are processed through CompactConnect, and each remote state requires a separate privilege and fee. Pennsylvania’s privilege fee has not yet been established, so counselors should not assume that current fees in other states will apply to Pennsylvania. For illustration only, an Ohio privilege currently costs $55 total. Pennsylvania’s actual fee may be different and should be confirmed once the state becomes operational.
Counselors should also know their home-state license renewal and expiration dates before applying for a privilege. A Compact privilege is tied to the home-state license expiration date in effect when the privilege is issued. After the home state reports the renewed license and new expiration date to the Compact system, the counselor must separately renew the privilege through CompactConnect. Renewing the Pennsylvania LPC does not, by itself, automatically renew each Compact privilege.
A privilege is not a separate full license, and it is not the same as licensure by endorsement or reciprocity.
Exact Pennsylvania fees and final procedures should be confirmed when the state announces activation.
What Should Pennsylvania Counselors Do Now?
Pennsylvania counselors should maintain their licenses and monitor official updates, but there is no Compact application to complete yet.
Useful steps include:
- Keep the Pennsylvania LPC active and in good standing.
- Keep contact and residence information current with the Pennsylvania Board.
- Monitor the Board and Counseling Compact Commission for an activation announcement.
- Review the laws of states where future practice may be planned.
- Avoid services claiming they can obtain a Pennsylvania Compact privilege before the state is active.
LAPCs should continue completing Pennsylvania’s supervision and independent-licensure requirements. Compact enactment does not shorten that process.
Who Should Pennsylvania Counselors Contact?
For Pennsylvania license questions, counselors should contact the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors through the Bureau of Professional and Occupational Affairs. The Board handles LPC and LAPC licensing, status, renewal, and state regulatory questions. Licensing requests and records are managed through PALS, and the Bureau’s public phone number is 1-833-DOS-BPOA.
For Compact status, implementation, and future privilege questions, counselors should use the Counseling Compact Commission’s official resources. These agencies serve different roles: the Pennsylvania Board manages the underlying license, while the Commission manages the interstate privilege system.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Joining made Pennsylvania a member, but privileges will not be available until the state completes implementation and becomes active in CompactConnect. Until then, Pennsylvania counselors must use existing state licensure pathways for interstate practice.
No. A Compact privilege is authority granted by a remote active state through the Compact. Endorsement or reciprocity usually involves applying directly to a state board for that state’s full license.
CompactConnect is the Counseling Compact’s shared application, data, and verification system. Once Pennsylvania becomes active, eligible counselors will use it to request privileges, and organizations will be able to verify those privileges.
No. Pennsylvania must first become active and begin receiving privilege applications. A counselor licensed in any active state cannot use the Compact for Pennsylvania clients until a Pennsylvania privilege is available and granted.
Yes, a valid privilege can authorize both in-person and telehealth counseling in the remote state. The counselor must hold authority in the state where the client is physically located and follow that state’s laws and scope-of-practice rules.
Disclaimer:
Informational only; not legal advice. Compact status and state requirements change frequently. Confirm your own eligibility with the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors and with the Counseling Compact Commission before making practice decisions.
Sources
- Counseling Compact Commission. Pennsylvania Becomes the 40th Member. https://counselingcompact.gov/pennsylvania-becomes-the-40th-member/
- Counseling Compact Commission. Compact Fees and Jurisprudence Exam. https://counselingcompact.gov/compact-fees-and-jurisprudence-exam/
- Counseling Compact Commission. Frequently Asked Questions. https://counselingcompact.gov/faq-2/
- Pennsylvania General Assembly. Senate Bill 604 (Act 23 of 2026). https://www.legis.state.pa.us/
- Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapists and Professional Counselors. https://www.pa.gov/agencies/dos/department-and-offices/bpoa/boards-commissions/social-workers-marriage-family-therapists-professional-counselors
- Pennsylvania Department of Education. School Counselor PK-12 Certification. https://www.pa.gov/agencies/education/programs-and-services/educators/certification.html