California · AMFT, APCC and ASW
How BBS hours count toward your license
You need 3,000 supervised hours for an LMFT, LPCC or LCSW in California, but not every hour you work ends up counting. This guide walks through how the Board of Behavioral Sciences counts them: weeks, supervision units, weekly caps and the minimums inside the total. It is our summary of the Board's handbooks as we read them on September 17, 2026.
A reference, not legal or licensing advice. Confirm is not affiliated with the California Board of Behavioral Sciences and does not speak for it. We summarize the Board's published requirements as a convenience and they can change or be read differently, so this page may be incomplete or out of date. The Board has the final say: always confirm your requirements with the Board and your supervisor. Use this page at your own risk. See the Terms.
The numbers for each license
| LMFT (AMFT) | LPCC (APCC) | LCSW (ASW) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total supervised hours | 3,000 | 3,000 | 3,000 |
| Supervised weeks | 104 | 104 | 104 |
| Clinical minimum | 1,750 direct counseling | 1,750 direct counseling | 2,000 clinical psychosocial diagnosis, assessment and treatment |
| Minimum inside the clinical hours | 500 with couples, families and children | None | 750 face-to-face individual or group psychotherapy |
| Non-clinical maximum | 1,250 | 1,250 | 1,000 |
| Hours before your degree | Up to 1,300 as a trainee | None | None |
All hours must be earned within the six years before you apply.
Weeks matter as much as hours
The Board asks for 3,000 hours over at least 104 supervised weeks. A week only counts as supervised when it includes at least one unit of supervision.
- One unit of supervisionOne hour of individual or triadic supervision, or two hours of group supervision.
- Every week you want to count needs at least one unitHours worked in a week with no supervision do not count toward the 3,000.
- More than 10 client hours in a week needs a second unitFor associates, a week with more than 10 hours of face-to-face clinical work in a setting needs two units. Trainees have a different ratio: one unit for every five hours of client contact.
- 52 weeks need individual or triadic supervisionAt least 52 of your 104 weeks must include a full hour of individual or triadic supervision. Triadic means one supervisor with two supervisees, and it is supervision, not a client session.
- Group supervision has no minimum and no maximumA supervision group can have up to 8 people.
Weekly caps
- 40 hours a weekNo more than 40 hours are credited in any one week, across all your sites. Work 46 and 40 count.
- 6 hours of supervision a weekSupervision beyond 6 hours in a week is not credited.
Clinical and non-clinical hours
Your 3,000 hours split into two buckets. The clinical bucket has a minimum. The non-clinical bucket has a maximum.
- Clinical hoursDirect counseling with clients. LMFT and LPCC need at least 1,750. LCSW needs at least 2,000 hours of clinical psychosocial diagnosis, assessment and treatment.
- Non-clinical hoursSupervision itself, writing notes and reports, client-centered advocacy, workshops and trainings. At most 1,250 count for LMFT and LPCC, and 1,000 for LCSW.
- Supervision counts inside the non-clinical bucketYour hours with your supervisor are credited, but they use up part of the non-clinical maximum.
The minimums inside your clinical hours
- LMFT: 500 hours with couples, families and childrenThese are part of the 1,750, not on top of it.
- LCSW: 750 hours of face-to-face psychotherapyIndividual or group psychotherapy, as part of the 2,000 clinical hours. The Board also requires at least 1,700 of an ASW's hours to be supervised by an LCSW.
- LPCC: no sub-minimumThe 1,750 direct counseling hours have no required split.
Hours before your degree
Only the LMFT path credits hours earned as a trainee, before your degree is awarded: up to 1,300 hours, and of those no more than 750 can be counseling and supervision combined. LPCC and LCSW hours start after the degree, once you are registered as an associate.
Three example weeks
- 12 client hours, 3 hours of notes, 1 hour of individual supervisionOne unit covers the first 10 client hours. The other 2 client hours need a second unit, such as two hours of group supervision that week.
- 9 client hours, 2 hours of notes, no supervisionNothing counts for that week until at least one unit of supervision is in it.
- 38 client and non-clinical hours, 7 hours of supervisionOnly 6 of the supervision hours are credited, and the week tops out at 40.
How Confirm keeps this straight
Confirm applies these rules each week as you log. It shows two numbers: what you have logged and what the Board is likely to credit.
- Weeks run Sunday through Saturday in ConfirmEvery screen and every export uses the same week.
- Hours waiting on supervision show as "pending supervision"They are added to your total as soon as that week's supervision is logged, so you can see what a missing hour is holding up.
- The weekly caps and the non-clinical cap are applied for youFor trainee weeks, Confirm applies the trainee ratio of one unit for every five client hours.
- The sub-minimums are tracked per sessionCouples, families and children for AMFTs. Psychotherapy for ASWs.
- Hours you already have come with youUpload your old Board forms and Confirm reads them. See moving your hours to Confirm.
- When it is time to applyConfirm fills the Board's weekly logs and Experience Verification forms from your log, and your supervisor reviews and signs them.
Sources
- BBS handbook for future LMFTs
- BBS handbook for future LPCCs
- BBS handbook for future LCSWs and the LCSW experience chart
- California Board of Behavioral Sciences
Read on September 17, 2026. This summary may be incomplete or out of date. The Board's own statutes, regulations and handbooks are the only authority; confirm your requirements with the Board before you apply.