Home/CE Requirements/District of Columbia
Continuing Education

District of Columbia CE Requirements by License

Continuing-education / CPD renewal requirements for behavioral and mental health licenses in District of Columbia — hours or CPD model per cycle, mandated topics, live/interactive rules, and home-study limits. Pick a license for the full breakdown.

District of Columbia requirements at a glance
LicenseProfessionCE / CPDEthicsLive / interactive
LICSWSocial Work40 h / 2yr6 h28 h
LPCCounseling40 h / 2yr6 h—
Licensed PsychologistPsychology30 h / 2yr3 h15 h
LMFTMarriage & Family Therapy30 h / 2yr6 h15 h
BCBABehavior Analysis32 h / 2yr4 h—
Requirements by license
Verified

District of Columbia

LICSW (Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker)
40hours / 2-year renewal cycle
28 live / interactive hours required
Mandated topics
  • Ethics — 6 hMust be completed face-to-face; no online courses accepted for the ethics hours.
  • Cultural Competency - LGBTQ — 2 hMay be completed online (D.C. Law 21-95).
  • Public Health Priorities — 4 h4 hours = 10% of the 40-hour total. 10% of the total CE requirement. Per the DC Health Director's Public Health Priorities notice (published 2/13/2025, effective Oct 1, 2025) the five designated domains are: Sexual and Reproductive Health; Chronic Disease Management; One Health; Healthcare Professional Retention and Capacity Building; and Community and Patient Safety.

Home study: Only 12 of the 40 hours may be completed online/home study; at least 28 hours must be in-person or live interactive instruction.

Board notes: Renews biennially (historically July 31 of odd-numbered years); licenses transitioned to expire the last day of the licensee's birth month. During the transition, licensees granted less than two years complete 50% of CEUs but LGBTQ and public-health-priority content remain fully required. First renewal after initial licensure is CE-exempt. Administered by the DC Health Board of Social Work.

dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗netce.com ↗ce4less.com ↗
View full LICSW requirements →
Verified

District of Columbia

LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor)
40hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
  • Ethics — 6 h
  • Trauma Counseling — 4 h
  • LGBTQ Cultural Competence — 2 hMust be completed in addition to (not counted within) the public health priority hours (D.C. Law 21-95).
  • Public Health Priorities — 4 h4 hours = 10% of the 40-hour total. 10% of the total CE requirement. Per the DC Health Director's Public Health Priorities notice (published 2/13/2025, effective Oct 1, 2025) the five designated domains are: Sexual and Reproductive Health; Chronic Disease Management; One Health; Healthcare Professional Retention and Capacity Building; and Community and Patient Safety. May be embedded within qualifying courses.

Home study: No live/in-person minimum and no home-study cap: the Board of Professional Counseling's official renewal notice lists only 40 CEs incl. 6 ethics, 4 trauma, 2 LGBTQ and 10% (4 hrs) public health priorities, with no face-to-face restriction for LPCs (unlike the Board's MFT requirement, which does impose a 15-hour face-to-face minimum). Online CE is acceptable.

Board notes: 40 hours per 2-year cycle; LPC licensees are exempt from CE for their first renewal. The 2-hour LGBTQ requirement is separate from and additional to the 4-hour public health priorities requirement. Renewal moving to birth-month expiration. Administered by the DC Health Board of Professional Counseling.

dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗netce.com ↗
View full LPC requirements →
Verified

District of Columbia

Licensed Psychologist
30hours / 2-year renewal cycle
15 live / interactive hours required
Mandated topics
  • Ethics — 3 h
  • LGBTQ Cultural Competency — 2 hCultural competency training focusing on LGBTQ patients (D.C. Law 21-95).
  • DC Public Health Priorities — 3 h3 hours = 10% of the 30-hour total. 10% of the total CE requirement. Per the DC Health Director's Public Health Priorities notice (published 2/13/2025, effective Oct 1, 2025) the five designated domains are: Sexual and Reproductive Health; Chronic Disease Management; One Health; Healthcare Professional Retention and Capacity Building; and Community and Patient Safety.

Home study: At least 15 of 30 hours must be in a live program (direct real-time interaction: lectures, live webinars/teleconferences, workshops); a maximum of 15 hours may be non-live/distance learning.

Board notes: Biennial cycle tied to birth month (transitioned from Dec 31 of odd years). First-time renewal applicants are exempt from CE. Licensees holding the license less than two years complete 50% of the total (15 hrs) but all mandatory content areas in full. All hours must be APA-approved. Administered by the DC Health Board of Psychology.

dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗netce.com ↗
View full Licensed Psychologist requirements →
Verified

District of Columbia

LMFT (Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist)
30hours / 2-year renewal cycle
15 live / interactive hours required
Mandated topics
  • Ethics — 6 h
  • LGBTQ Cultural Competency — 2 hCultural competency focusing on patients who identify as LGBTQ (D.C. Law 21-95).
  • Public Health Priority — 3 h3 hours = 10% of the 30-hour total. 10% of the total CE requirement. Per the DC Health Director's Public Health Priorities notice (published 2/13/2025, effective Oct 1, 2025) the five designated domains are: Sexual and Reproductive Health; Chronic Disease Management; One Health; Healthcare Professional Retention and Capacity Building; and Community and Patient Safety.

Home study: DCMR 17-7707.4(a): a minimum of 15 of the 30 hours must be completed in a live, face-to-face setting providing direct real-time interaction between presenter(s) and participants; the remaining 15 hours may be distance learning/home study. (The Board granted a temporary online allowance for the 2024 renewal.)

Board notes: 30 hours per 2-year cycle. Renewal transitioned to birth-month expiration (previously Dec 31 of even years). Board accepts courses from APA- and/or NBCC-approved providers. The LGBTQ cultural competency requirement stems from D.C. Law 21-95. Administered by the DC Health Board of Marriage and Family Therapy.

dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗code.dccouncil.gov ↗ce4less.com ↗
View full LMFT requirements →
Confirm with board

District of Columbia

BCBA (national BACB certification) / DC Licensed Behavior Analyst (framework under DC Code Title 3, Ch. 12)
32hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
  • Ethics — 4 hBACB requirement: minimum 4 ethics CEUs per 2-year cycle.
  • Supervision — 3 hBACB requirement: minimum 3 supervision CEUs per cycle, only for certificants who supervise or serve as fieldwork supervisors. This minimum rises to 4 supervision CEUs under the BACB 2027 requirements effective January 1, 2027.

Home study: No live/in-person minimum; BACB permits recorded/online ACE-approved CEUs (Learning and Type 2). No separate DC state cap has been promulgated.

Board notes: DC regulates the practice of behavior analysis through the existing Board of Psychology, not a stand-alone board: D.C. Code sec. 3-1202.11 (as amended effective July 19, 2024) expands the Board of Psychology's jurisdiction to 'the practice of behavior analysis,' adds a sixth seat for a licensed behavior analyst, and directs the Mayor to issue rules within one year covering licensure, ethics, training, competency examination AND continuing education. Qualifications sit in D.C. Code Title 3, Ch. 12, Subchapter VII-G. As of this review no DCMR continuing-education chapter for behavior analysts could be confirmed as final, so the national BACB standard (32 CEUs/2 yrs incl. 4 ethics, plus 3 supervision CEUs for supervisors) is the working default pending DC rulemaking. BACB 2027 requirements (effective January 1, 2027) keep the total at 32 CEUs per 2-year cycle with 4 ethics CEUs, but RAISE the supervision CEU minimum from 3 to 4 for certificants who supervise; as of March 2025 the ethics CEU definition was expanded to include events on cultural/contextual responsiveness. Verify current status with DC Health before relying on a state-specific rule.

code.dccouncil.gov ↗code.dccouncil.gov ↗dchealth.dc.gov ↗bacb.com ↗bacb.com ↗bacb.com ↗appliedbehavioranalysisedu.org ↗
View full BCBA requirements →

Complete your District of Columbia CE with Triad

AATBS and CE4Less offer board-approved continuing education across social work, counseling, psychology, MFT, and behavior analysis.

Browse CE coursesAll jurisdictions
Frequently asked questions
How many CE hours do behavioral health licenses require in District of Columbia?

In District of Columbia, hour-based licenses require 30 to 40 continuing-education hours per renewal cycle depending on the license type; some credentials follow a CPD model instead. See the table above for each credential.

Do CE requirements differ by license type in District of Columbia?

Yes. Social work, counseling, psychology, marriage & family therapy, and behavior-analysis credentials each have their own requirements, mandated topics, and renewal cycles in District of Columbia. This page lists each one separately.

Does District of Columbia require ethics CE?

District of Columbia requires dedicated ethics continuing education for: BCBA, LICSW, LMFT, LPC, Licensed Psychologist. Exact hour counts are on each license's page.

CE requirements in other states
AlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasKentuckyLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyoming
Updated August 2026 from official licensing-board, regulatory-college, and government sources. CE / CPD requirements change often — always confirm current rules directly with your licensing board or regulator before you renew. Informational only, not legal advice.