Florida licenses clinical social workers (LCSW) and certifies master social workers for administrative work (CMSW). It has no general Masters-level or Bachelors-level license, so a new Florida MSW registers as an intern and takes the ASWB Clinical exam later. Everything below comes from the board's own pages and rules, checked October 18, 2026. Fees and rules change, so confirm on the linked pages before you pay.
Check with your board. Social Work Ticket is a study aid. Not affiliated with, endorsed by or connected to the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB), the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) or any state social work board; ASWB is their mark, used here only to name the exam. Laws on confidentiality, reporting and licensing differ by state; follow your state's law, your agency and your supervisor.
Florida at a glance
License
ASWB exam
What it takes
Registered Clinical Social Worker Intern
None to register
A CSWE-accredited MSW (at least 15 of the 24 clinical semester hours done), a field placement with direct clinical services, a board-approved qualified supervisor. $150 fee.
LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker)
Clinical
Two years of post-master's supervised experience with 1,500 hours of face-to-face psychotherapy, the Clinical exam, three required Florida courses. $180 in fees.
CMSW (Certified Master Social Worker)
Advanced Generalist
An administrative credential, not for clinical services: an MSW, set graduate coursework, three years of social work experience (two post-master's and supervised). $205 in fees.
Florida does not license at the Bachelors or Masters level, so a passing Masters score is not a Florida license. It still transfers if you later move to a state that uses it.
Florida, step by step
Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy, and Mental Health Counseling
Degree: a master's in social work from a CSWE-accredited school, with 24 semester hours (32 quarter hours) of clinically oriented coursework in human behavior theory and practice methods, including at least one psychopathology course. Policy, administration and community courses do not count toward the 24. You also need a letter from your school confirming a field placement where you gave clinical services directly to clients.
Register as an intern: before your post-master's hours count, register as a Registered Clinical Social Worker Intern and have a board-approved qualified supervisor send the board a signed letter agreeing to supervise you. You can register with 15 semester hours of the clinical coursework done and finish the rest before exam approval. The intern fee is $150, non-refundable. Florida requires electronic fingerprints (Livescan) for this profession.
Supervised experience: two years of post-master's experience under a qualified supervisor, made up of at least 100 hours of supervision over no fewer than 100 weeks, 1,500 hours of face-to-face psychotherapy with clients, and at least one hour of supervision every two weeks. Hours go on the board's Verification of Clinical Experience Form or they do not count. Interns stay under supervision until fully licensed.
The exam: the ASWB Clinical exam. Since January 1, 2023, you become eligible after finishing all graduate coursework and 18 months of documented post-master's clinical experience, and you must get exam approval from the board (email [email protected]) before you contact ASWB. The $260 exam fee goes to ASWB; passing scores reach the board in 2 to 4 weeks.
Florida courses: an 8-hour Florida laws and rules course and a 3-hour HIV/AIDS course (or the HIV/AIDS affidavit) from board-approved providers on CE Broker, plus a 2-hour domestic violence course within six months of licensure. Florida has no separate jurisprudence exam.
Apply for the LCSW: the fees are a $100 application fee (non-refundable), a $75 initial license fee and a $5 unlicensed activity fee, $180 in all. The board reviews the application within 30 days and sends an approval or a deficiency letter; an incomplete application expires after one year.
CMSW instead? The Certified Master Social Worker credential is for administrative, non-clinical work. It needs an MSW, graduate coursework the board lists (such as agency administration, program planning, research and community organization), three years of social work experience with two post-master's years supervised by a CMSW or LCSW, and the ASWB Advanced Generalist exam. Fees are $50 + $150 + $5 = $205; request the application from the board by email.
The steps that hold nearly everywhere: a CSWE-accredited degree, your board's approval (or ASWB's, in a few states), the ASWB exam at the level your license needs, then the license. Every ASWB level has 122 questions (110 scored) in 4 hours; Bachelors and Masters cost $230, Advanced Generalist and Clinical $260, and you wait at least 90 days to retake (ASWB Examination Guidebook, August 2026). A passing score counts in every state for the same exam level. The full walk-through: How to get your social work license.