Continuing-education / CPD renewal requirements for behavioral and mental health licenses in Wisconsin — hours or CPD model per cycle, mandated topics, live/interactive rules, and home-study limits. Pick a license for the full breakdown.
VerifiedWisconsin
LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker) / CSW / CAPSW / CISW
30hours / 2-year renewal cycle
4 live / interactive hours required
Mandated topics
- Professional Ethics and Boundaries — 4 hMPSW 19.02(2). Social work credential holders must complete these 4 hours in an 'interactive learning format' (MPSW 19.02(2)(b)); interactive learning format is defined (MPSW 19.01(2)) as a live, synchronous presentation with discussion OR an approved asynchronous educational program.
Home study: No general distance-learning cap; the remaining 26 hours may be in any approved format. Only the 4 ethics/boundaries hours carry the interactive-learning-format requirement (social workers only). Separately, no more than 15 of the 30 hours may come from in-house training/development programs not approved by a recognized sponsor (MPSW 19.03(1)(f)).
Board notes: Governed by WI Admin Code MPSW 19 (Marriage & Family Therapy, Professional Counseling, and Social Work Examining Board, DSPS). Renews Feb 28 of odd years; biennium runs 3/1 odd year to 2/28 odd year. The first renewal after initial licensure is exempt from CE (MPSW 19.02(3)). The interactive-format requirement for the ethics hours applies ONLY to social work credential holders, not to counselors or MFTs.
View full LCSW requirements → VerifiedWisconsin
LPC (Licensed Professional Counselor)
30hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
- Professional Ethics and Boundaries — 4 hMPSW 19.02(2). No interactive/live-format requirement for counselors: MPSW 19.02(2)(b) imposes the interactive-learning-format requirement only on social work credential holders, so counselors may complete the ethics hours in any approved format.
Home study: No general self-study/distance-learning limit. No more than 15 of the 30 hours may come from in-house training/development programs not approved by a recognized sponsor (MPSW 19.03(1)(f)).
Board notes: Governed by WI Admin Code MPSW 19 (DSPS). Biennium runs 3/1 odd year to 2/28 odd year; renews 2/28 odd years. No CE required for the first renewal after initial licensure (MPSW 19.02(3)). No mandated suicide-prevention or cultural-competency hours. Unlike social workers, counselors have no interactive-format requirement on the ethics hours.
View full LPC requirements → VerifiedWisconsin
Licensed Psychologist (doctoral)
40hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
- Ethics, risk management, or jurisprudence — 6 hPsy 4: a minimum of 6 of the 40 hours must be in ethics, risk management, or jurisprudence. No live/interactive format is mandated.
Home study: No explicit cap on home-study/online CE; the rule does not distinguish format. Per Psy 4, no more than 8 CE hours may be credited per day. Authorship, teaching, and graduate coursework are each capped at 20 hours toward the 40.
Board notes: Governed by WI Admin Code Psy 4 (Psychology Examining Board, DSPS). Biennium ends Sept 30 of odd years (10/1 odd to 9/30 odd). CE does not apply to the biennium in which the license was first issued (first-renewal exemption). CE completed in the topics of supervision or suicide prevention is credited at 1.5x the actual hours obtained (a credit multiplier, not a separate mandate).
View full Licensed Psychologist requirements → VerifiedWisconsin
LMFT (Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist)
30hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
- Professional Ethics and Boundaries — 4 hMPSW 19.02(2). No interactive/live-format requirement for MFTs: the interactive-learning-format mandate in MPSW 19.02(2)(b) applies only to social work credential holders.
Home study: No general distance-learning cap. No more than 15 of the 30 hours may come from in-house training/development programs not approved by a recognized sponsor (MPSW 19.03(1)(f)).
Board notes: Governed by WI Admin Code MPSW 19 (DSPS). Biennium runs 3/1 odd year to 2/28 odd year; renews 2/28 odd years. CE does not apply to the first renewal after initial licensure (MPSW 19.02(3)). No interactive-format requirement on the ethics hours (that applies to social workers only).
View full LMFT requirements → VerifiedWisconsin
Licensed Behavior Analyst (WI DSPS) / BCBA (BACB)
32hours / 2-year renewal cycle
No live / interactive hours required — all hours may be self-study
Mandated topics
- Ethics — 4 hBACB recertification standard: 4 of the 32 CEUs must be in ethics.
- Supervision — 3 hBACB standard: 3 supervision CEUs required only of certificants who provide supervision.
Home study: No state cap. BACB permits online/recorded (self-instructional) Learning CEUs; no live/interactive requirement for BCBA recertification.
Board notes: Wisconsin licenses behavior analysts through DSPS (statutory licensure enacted 2010). The WI credential requires holding and maintaining current BACB certification and does not impose a separate state CE rule, so the applicable continuing-education standard is the BACB recertification requirement of 32 CEUs per 2-year cycle (4 ethics; 3 supervision if supervising). The Wisconsin behavior analyst credential renews Dec 15 of even-numbered years; the BACB recertification cycle runs 2 years from the certification date and is tracked separately by the BACB.
View full Licensed Behavior Analyst requirements → How many CE hours do behavioral health licenses require in Wisconsin?
In Wisconsin, 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 Wisconsin?
Yes. Social work, counseling, psychology, marriage & family therapy, and behavior-analysis credentials each have their own requirements, mandated topics, and renewal cycles in Wisconsin. This page lists each one separately.
Does Wisconsin require ethics CE?
Wisconsin requires dedicated ethics continuing education for: LCSW, LMFT, LPC, Licensed Behavior Analyst, 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.