Continuing Education

Texas CE Requirements by License

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

Texas requirements at a glance

License	Profession	CE / CPD	Ethics	Live / interactive
LCSW	Social Work	30 h / 2yr	6 h	—
LPC	Counseling	24 h / 2yr	6 h	—
Licensed Psychologist	Psychology	40 h / 2yr	6 h	—
LMFT	Marriage & Family Therapy	30 h / 2yr	6 h	—
BCBA	Behavior Analysis	32 h / 2yr	4 h	—

Requirements by license

Verified

Texas

LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker)

30hours / 2-year renewal cycle

No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study

Mandated topics

Ethics — 6 h
Cultural Competency / Distinct Population Competency — 3 hdesigned to ensure competency when providing services to a distinct population
Supervision — 6 honly required to maintain board-approved supervisor status; counts toward the 30 total
Human Trafficking Prevention — 1 hHHSC-approved course required as a renewal condition under Occ. Code Ch. 116 (HB 2059) for licensees providing direct patient care; typically counts as ~1 CE hour. Not itemized on the BHEC CE page.

Home study: No explicit cap on home/self-study, but effective Jan 1, 2024 at least half (15 of 30 hours) must be obtained from a provider listed in 22 TAC 781.501 (listed providers may deliver online/async, so this is a provider-type rule, not a live-hours rule).

Board notes: Applies to LBSW, LMSW and LCSW (same 30-hour rule). Renews biennially by last day of birth month; self-report with attestation, retain proof for the audit period. Administered by the Texas Behavioral Health Executive Council (BHEC) / Texas State Board of Social Worker Examiners. CE requirements in 22 TAC 781.216; approved-provider list in 22 TAC 781.501.

bhec.texas.gov ↗law.cornell.edu ↗statutes.capitol.texas.gov ↗

View full LCSW requirements →

Verified

Texas

LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor)

24hours / 2-year renewal cycle

No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study

Mandated topics

Ethics — 6 hpassing the required jurisprudence exam each renewal may be claimed as 1 hour of ethics credit
Cultural Diversity / Distinct Populations Competency — 3 h
Supervision — 6 honly required for an LPC Supervisor to maintain supervisor status; counts toward the 24 total
Human Trafficking Prevention — 1 hHHSC-approved course required as a renewal condition under Occ. Code Ch. 116 (HB 2059) for licensees providing direct patient care; typically counts as ~1 CE hour. Not itemized on the BHEC CE page.

Home study: No cap on formal online/asynchronous CE - qualifying providers may deliver in any format. Two limits apply: (1) effective Jan 1, 2024 at least half (12 of 24 hours) must be obtained from a provider listed in 22 TAC 681.140(f); and (2) the rule's separate 'self-study' activity category (informal study with no CE provider/certificate) is capped at 1 hour per renewal period.

Board notes: Renews biennially under BHEC / Texas State Board of Examiners of Professional Counselors. Must pass the jurisprudence exam each renewal period (claimable as 1 ethics hour). At least half of the 24 hours must come from a board-listed provider type. CE rule: 22 TAC 681.140. 22 TAC 681.140 also caps several special activities at 5 hours each (presenting, publishing an article, teaching or taking a graduate course) and caps self-study at 1 hour; up to 10 unused hours may be carried forward to the next renewal period. Records must be retained at least 3 years after the renewal period. Rule effective March 7, 2023, with the listed-provider requirement effective January 1, 2024.

bhec.texas.gov ↗law.cornell.edu ↗statutes.capitol.texas.gov ↗

View full LPC requirements →

Verified

Texas

Licensed Psychologist

40hours / 2-year renewal cycle

No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study

Mandated topics

Ethics — 6 h
Cultural Diversity / Competency — 6 h
Human Trafficking Prevention — 1 hApproved human-trafficking prevention training required each renewal (Occ. Code Ch. 116); a maximum of 1 hour of professional-development credit may be claimed toward the 40.

Home study: No cap on formal home-study/asynchronous CE from qualifying provider categories, and at least 50% of the 40 hours must come from those defined provider categories. Informal 'self-study' (activities with no CE provider - per BHEC, 'If you get a certificate at the completion of the endeavor, it's NOT self-study') IS countable but is capped at 1 hour per renewal period under 22 TAC 463.35.

Board notes: Administered by BHEC / Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists. The Council no longer pre-approves courses or providers; at least 50% of the 40 hours must come from defined provider categories (associations, accredited institutions, government entities, hospitals, etc.). Up to 10 unused hours may carry forward to the next renewal period. Retain documentation 3 years. Rule: 22 TAC 463.35. Beyond the 1-hour self-study cap, 463.35 allows up to 5 hours each for presenting at a professional event, publishing an article or book, and teaching or taking a graduate course; 1 hour for passing the jurisprudence exam (ethics); 1 hour for the required human-trafficking prevention training; and up to 20 hours for supervising rural mental-health providers.

bhec.texas.gov ↗law.cornell.edu ↗statutes.capitol.texas.gov ↗

View full Licensed Psychologist requirements →

Verified

Texas

LMFT (Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist)

30hours / 2-year renewal cycle

No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study

Mandated topics

Ethics — 6 h
Cultural Competency / Distinct Population — 3 h
Technology-Assisted Services / Telehealth — 2 hrequired only if providing technology-assisted (telehealth) services; counts toward the 30 total
Supervision — 6 honly required to maintain supervisor status; 1 hour of ethics CE may count toward it; counts toward the 30 total
Human Trafficking Prevention — 1 hHHSC-approved course required as a renewal condition under Occ. Code Ch. 116 (HB 2059) for licensees providing direct patient care; typically counts as ~1 CE hour. Not itemized on the BHEC CE page.

Home study: No cap on formal online/asynchronous CE - listed providers may deliver in any format. Two limits apply: (1) effective Jan 1, 2024 at least half (15 of 30 hours) must come from a provider listed in 22 TAC 801.261(f); and (2) the rule's separate 'self-study' activity category (informal study with no CE provider/certificate) is capped at 1 hour per renewal period.

Board notes: Renews biennially under BHEC / Texas State Board of Examiners of Marriage and Family Therapists. Supervisors must pass the jurisprudence exam each renewal period. At least 15 of the 30 hours must come from a board-listed provider type. CE rule: 22 TAC 801.261. 22 TAC 801.261 also caps presenting, publishing an article, and teaching or taking a graduate course at 5 hours each and self-study at 1 hour; up to 10 unused hours may be carried forward to the next renewal period; records must be retained at least 3 years after the renewal period. Supervisors may claim 1 ethics hour for passing the jurisprudence exam. Associate (LMFT-A) licenses expire after 60 months, cannot be renewed, and carry no CE requirement.

bhec.texas.gov ↗law.cornell.edu ↗statutes.capitol.texas.gov ↗

View full LMFT requirements →

Verified

Texas

BCBA (national) / Texas Licensed Behavior Analyst (LBA)

32hours / 2-year renewal cycle

No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study

Mandated topics

Ethics — 4 hBACB standard
Supervision — 3 hBACB standard; required only for certificants who supervise trainees or provide supervision

Home study: No state cap. BACB allows recorded/online ACE CEUs broadly; no live/interactive minimum.

Board notes: Texas licenses behavior analysts (LBA) and assistant behavior analysts through the Texas Dept. of Licensing & Regulation (TDLR). TDLR sets NO independent CE hour rule and fully defers to the certifying board: its CE page states 'License holders must meet the continuing education requirements for the certification they hold before their license may be renewed', pointing BACB certificants to the BACB CE page and QABA credential holders to QABA. TDLR verifies current certification status directly with the issuing board as proof of CE rather than collecting certificates, though licensees must retain course records and produce them on request. The operative standard is therefore the BACB baseline: 32 CEUs per 2-year cycle, including 4 ethics CEUs and (for supervisors) 3 supervision CEUs. Behavior analysts are health professions under Occ. Code Title 3 (Ch. 506), so those providing direct patient care may also be subject to the Occ. Code Ch. 116 human-trafficking training; TDLR's CE page does not list any human-trafficking training among its renewal CE requirements.

tdlr.texas.gov ↗bacb.com ↗statutes.capitol.texas.gov ↗

View full BCBA requirements →

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Frequently asked questions

How many CE hours do behavioral health licenses require in Texas?

In Texas, hour-based licenses require 24 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 Texas?

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

Does Texas require ethics CE?

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

CE requirements in other states

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.