Continuing-education / CPD renewal requirements for behavioral and mental health licenses in West Virginia — hours or CPD model per cycle, mandated topics, live/interactive rules, and home-study limits. Pick a license for the full breakdown.
VerifiedWest Virginia
LICSW (Licensed Independent Clinical Social Worker)
30hours / 2-year renewal cycle
10 live / interactive hours required
Mandated topics
- Ethics (social work ethics) — 1 hMinimum 1 hour; for regular/independent licensees it may be completed as independent study.
- Mental health conditions specific to veterans and family members of veterans — 2 hMust be part of the 20 Category I hours; not required of provisional licensees.
Home study: Regular licensees: 30 hrs/2-yr period. Minimum 20 hrs Category I (approved-provider training), of which at least 10 must be synchronous/real-time (in-person or live virtual) and up to 10 may be asynchronous online. Maximum 10 hrs Category II (independent study, non-approved-provider workshops, professional reading, presentation prep, excess async).
Board notes: Administered by the WV Board of Social Work (Title 25 CSR); 30-hr biennial standard applies to all regular licensees (LSW, LGSW, LCSW, LICSW). Provisional licensees need only 20 hrs with no veteran requirement and essentially no independent study (except CSWE-accredited online classes). Service-worker registrants: 20 hrs including 2 ethics + 2 veteran. Emeritus/temporary-permit holders: no CE. The 10-hour synchronous minimum is the key live/interactive mandate.
View full LICSW requirements → VerifiedWest Virginia
LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor)
35hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
- Ethics — 3 hMust follow the ACA Code of Ethics. On a licensee's FIRST renewal cycle these 3 hours must be a formal program (synchronous/in-person or live virtual with a presenter); in later cycles they may be ACA home study/online or any modality.
- Mental health conditions specific to veterans and family members of veterans — 2 hIncludes screening for PTSD, readjustment, suicide risk/prevention, military sexual assault, depression/grief.
- Clinical counseling supervision — 3 hOnly for licensees holding approved professional supervisor (ALPS) status.
Home study: Maximum 20 of 35 hrs per biennium may be home study (only NBCC/ACA/AMHCA pre-approved self-study qualifies), so at least 15 hrs must be non-home-study. No mandatory live/synchronous minimum for established licensees; formal programs, academic courses, publications and presentations all count. First-cycle licensees must take their 3 ethics hours as a live formal program.
Board notes: WV Board of Examiners in Counseling; rule 27CSR3 (Renewal & CE), current version effective 4/14/2026. 35 hrs every biennium (2-yr reporting period); renewed annually by June 30. At least 50% of hours must come from offerings not taught/produced by the licensee. Excess hours may NOT be carried over (no rollover). NBCC/ACA/AMHCA-approved and pre-approved out-of-state programs are automatically accepted. NOTE: some third-party sites (NetCE) list a '15 hours live instruction' minimum for WV - this is NOT in the official rule; the '15' figures in the rule refer to academic-credit conversion and the agency-personnel presenter cap, not a live mandate.
View full LPC requirements → VerifiedWest Virginia
Licensed Psychologist (doctoral)
20hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
- Ethics — 3 h
- Mental health conditions common to veterans and their family members — 2 h
Home study: No cap on distance learning/online/home study - all 20 hrs may be completed online. At least 10 of the 20 hrs must be from APA- or NASP-approved providers (these may be online). No live/in-person minimum.
Board notes: WV Board of Examiners of Psychologists; per the Board's CE Guidelines, licensed psychologists need 20 hrs per 2-yr renewal with 3 ethics and 2 veteran-mental-health hours; at least 50% (10 hrs) from APA/NASP-approved providers. Dually licensed psychologists must obtain 3 additional CE hours in the secondary practice area. (Licensed School Psychologists, a separate credential, follow 30 hrs per 3-yr cycle with 3 ethics and 15 APA/NASP hours; NCSP holders may auto-renew.)
View full Licensed Psychologist requirements → VerifiedWest Virginia
LMFT (Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist)
35hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
- MFT Ethics — 3 hMust follow the AAMFT Code of Ethics. On a licensee's FIRST renewal cycle these 3 hours must be a formal program (synchronous/in-person or live virtual with a presenter); later cycles may use AAMFT home study/online or a formal program.
- Mental health conditions specific to veterans and family members of veterans — 2 h
- Marriage and family therapy clinical supervision — 3 hOnly for licensees holding approved MFT supervisor status.
Home study: Maximum 20 of 35 hrs per biennium may be home study (only AAMFT pre-approved self-study qualifies). At least 20 hrs must come from offerings not taught/produced by the licensee. No mandatory live/synchronous minimum for established licensees; first-cycle licensees must take their 3 ethics hours as a live formal program.
Board notes: WV Board of Examiners in Counseling; rule 27CSR10 (MFT Renewal & CE), current version effective 7/1/2017. 35 hrs every biennium (2-yr); renewed annually. Excess hours may NOT be carried over (no rollover). AAMFT-approved and pre-approved out-of-state programs are automatically accepted. As with LPCs, third-party '15 hours live' claims are not in the rule; live_interactive_required_hours is 0.
View full LMFT requirements → VerifiedWest Virginia
BCBA (national BACB certification; no separate WV state license)
32hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
- Ethics — 4 h
- Supervision — 3 hOnly for certificants who supervise others or trainees.
Home study: No state cap. BACB allows Learning, Teaching, and other CEU types; recorded/online BACB ACE CEUs are broadly accepted with no live/in-person minimum.
Board notes: West Virginia does NOT license or otherwise regulate behavior analysts as of July 2026 (WV is absent from the BACB U.S. licensure list). Continuing education is therefore governed solely by the national BACB recertification standard: 32 CEUs per 2-year cycle, including 4 ethics CEUs and, for those who supervise, 3 supervision CEUs. These are national requirements, not a WV state rule.
View full BCBA requirements → How many CE hours do behavioral health licenses require in West Virginia?
In West Virginia, hour-based licenses require 20 to 35 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 West Virginia?
Yes. Social work, counseling, psychology, marriage & family therapy, and behavior-analysis credentials each have their own requirements, mandated topics, and renewal cycles in West Virginia. This page lists each one separately.
Does West Virginia require ethics CE?
West Virginia requires dedicated ethics continuing education for: BCBA, LICSW, LMFT, LPC, Licensed Psychologist. Exact hour counts are on each license's page.
Updated July 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.