Authority, credentials, and scope
Regulator, governing authority, credential names, regulated titles, scope boundaries, exemptions, and prohibited activities.
Clinical social work regulator and credentials
Published research · ConfirmedThe Board of Behavioral Sciences regulates Associate Clinical Social Workers and Licensed Clinical Social Workers.
- Applies to
- Use for ASW, LCSW research in CA.
- Known exclusions
- A payer, facility, employer, local government, or another professional board may impose additional requirements.
- Effective date
- No separate future date recorded
- Fact checked
- 2026-08-11
Application and practice status
Application, education, examination, background check, fees, temporary authority, endorsement, and supervised versus independent practice.
ASW work requires registration and supervision
Published research · ConfirmedAn ASW must maintain current registration and comply with California supervisor, employer, setting, disclosure, examination, and experience-documentation rules.
- Applies to
- Use for ASW, LCSW research in CA.
- Known exclusions
- A payer, facility, employer, local government, or another professional board may impose additional requirements.
- Effective date
- No separate future date recorded
- Fact checked
- 2026-08-11
Supervision and workforce evidence
Supervisor qualifications, written agreements, settings, hours, reporting, license verification, and hiring or credentialing evidence.
LCSW is the independent clinical license
Published research · ConfirmedAn ASW registration is not the LCSW license and should not be represented as independent clinical-social-work authority.
- Applies to
- Use for ASW, LCSW research in CA.
- Known exclusions
- A payer, facility, employer, local government, or another professional board may impose additional requirements.
- Effective date
- No separate future date recorded
- Fact checked
- 2026-08-11
Cross-border and practice structure
Telehealth location rules, registration, compact privileges, ownership, entity naming, fee sharing, and multidisciplinary practice.
A California client generally requires California authority
Published research · ConfirmedClinical social work provided to a client located in California generally requires a California LCSW license or California ASW practice under compliant supervision and setting rules.
- Applies to
- Use for ASW, LCSW research in CA.
- Known exclusions
- A payer, facility, employer, local government, or another professional board may impose additional requirements.
- Effective date
- No separate future date recorded
- Fact checked
- 2026-08-11
Client-facing operations and records
Disclosure, consent, telehealth, emergencies, advertising, confidentiality, access, retention, minors, subpoenas, closure, fees, billing, and termination.
Existing-client temporary practice is limited
Published research · ConfirmedA qualifying out-of-state clinical social worker may seek the Board-approved 30-consecutive-day allowance for an existing client, but it is not a general cross-border license.
- Applies to
- Use for ASW, LCSW research in CA.
- Known exclusions
- A payer, facility, employer, local government, or another professional board may impose additional requirements.
- Effective date
- No separate future date recorded
- Fact checked
- 2026-08-11
Maintenance, complaints, and monitoring
Renewal, continuing education, audits, inactive status, reinstatement, complaints, discipline, effective dates, exclusions, and unresolved interpretations.
California has not enacted the Social Work Compact
Published research · ConfirmedAssembly Bill 427 did not become law in the 2025-2026 session, so California has no Social Work Compact multistate-license route.
- Applies to
- Use for ASW, LCSW research in CA.
- Known exclusions
- A payer, facility, employer, local government, or another professional board may impose additional requirements.
- Effective date
- No separate future date recorded
- Fact checked
- 2026-08-11