North Carolina Administrative Code

SECTION .1400 - SCOPE OF PRACTICE 21 NCAC 52 .1401 SOFT TISSUE PROCEDURES Simple soft tissue procedures pursuant to G.S. 90-202.2(b) are procedures involving structures proximal to a line parallel with the dome of the talus that may be performed by a podiatrist in an office setti…

CHAPTER 53 - BOARD OF LICENSED clinical mental health COUNSELORS SECTION .0100 - GENERAL INFORMATION 21 NCAC 53 .0101 ORGANIZATION History Note: Filed as a Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Authority G.S. 90-328; Eff. July…

21 NCAC 53 .0102 PROFESSIONAL ETHICS (a) The Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors has adopted the American Counseling Association (ACA) Code of Ethics that are hereby incorporated by reference, including subsequent amendments and editions. A free copy may be obtain…

21 NCAC 53 .0103 PURPOSE OF ORGANIZATION History Note: Filed as a Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Authority G.S. 90-334; 1993 S.L. c. 514, s. 5; Eff. July 1, 1984; Repealed Eff. July 1, 1994.

21 NCAC 53 .0104 ORGANIZATION OF THE BOARD History Note: Filed as a Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Authority G.S. 90-334(b); 1993 S.L. c. 514, s.5; Eff. July 1, 1984; Repealed Eff. July 1, 1994.

21 NCAC 53 .0105 MEETINGS History Note: Filed as a Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Authority G.S. 90-334; 1993 S.L. c. 514, s. 5; Eff. July 1, 1984; Repealed Eff. July 1, 1994.

SECTION .0200 - DEFINITIONS AND CLARIFICATION OF TERMS 21 NCAC 53 .0201 SUPERVISION History Note: Filed as a Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Authority G.S. 90-334; 90-336(b)(3); 1993 S.L. c. 514, s. 5; Eff. July 1, 1984;…

21 NCAC 53 .0202 PRIVILEGED COMMUNICATION Privileged Communication shall mean any communication between client and counselor, given in confidence and not intended to be disclosed to third persons other than those to whom disclosure is made in the furtherance of the rendition of p…

21 NCAC 53 .0203 STATEMENT OF PROFESSIONAL INTENT History Note: Filed as a Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Authority G.S. 90-334; 90-336; 1993 S.L. c. 514, s. 5; Eff. July 1, 1984; Amended Eff. April 1, 1989; Repealed Ef…

21 NCAC 53 .0204 PROFESSIONAL DISCLOSURE STATEMENT REQUIREMENTS FOR LCMHCA AND Lcmhc A Professional Disclosure Statement is a printed document that includes the following information: (1) name of licensee or applicant; (2) the licensee's or applicant's highest relevant degree, ye…

21 NCAC 53 .0205 COUNSELING EXPERIENCE and out of state applicants (a) The counseling experience required by G.S. 90-336(c)(2) shall include 2000 hours of direct counseling experience. "Direct Counseling Experience" shall consist of live contact with individuals, groups, or famil…

21 NCAC 53 .0206 GRADUATE COUNSELING EXPERIENCE (a) Applicants who apply prior to July 1, 2022, shall complete a graduate counseling experience, which shall consist of the following separate courses: (1) one or more courses in practicum totaling at least three semester hours or f…

21 NCAC 53 .0207 PROFESSIONAL SETTING History Note: Authority G.S. 90-334(i); 90-336(b)(2); Eff. July 1, 1995; Expired Eff. May 1, 2019 pursuant to G.S. 150B-21.3A.

21 NCAC 53 .0208 SUPERVISED PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE "Supervised professional practice" means counseling experience under the supervision of a qualified clinical supervisor, as defined in Rule .0209 of this Section, and includes a minimum of one hour of individual or two hours of gr…

21 NCAC 53 .0209 QUALIFIED CLINICAL SUPERVISOR (a) A "qualified clinical supervisor" is: (1) A licensed clinical mental health counselor with the following: (A) a master's degree as defined in G.S. 90-336(b)(1); (B) an independent license that is not under supervision; (C) the eq…

21 NCAC 53 .0210 INDIVIDUAL CLINICAL SUPERVISION "Individual clinical supervision" means face-to-face supervision, as defined in Rule .0212 of this Section, of one or two supervisees and a qualified clinical supervisor, as defined in Rule .0209 of this Section, for a period not l…

21 NCAC 53 .0211 GROUP CLINICAL SUPERVISION "Group clinical supervision" means face-to-face supervision, as defined in Rule .0212 of this Section between groups of supervisees, not to exceed 12 supervisees per group, and a qualified clinical supervisor, for a period not less than…

21 NCAC 53 .0212 FACE TO FACE SUPERVISON DEFINED "Face-to-face" clinical supervision means supervision that is live, interactive, and visual. Video supervision is permitted as long as the session is synchronous and involves verbal and visual interaction during the supervision. Al…

21 NCAC 53 .0213 mental health professional A mental health professional includes the following individuals: (1) Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors (LCMHC); (2) Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists (LMFT); (3) Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW) with a master's deg…

SECTION .0300 – HOW TO OBTAIN LICENSURE 21 NCAC 53 .0301 APPLICATIONS Applications shall be submitted only on forms obtained from the Board's office at the address set forth in Rule .0204 of this Chapter or website, www.ncblcmhc.org. Applications may be submitted electronically o…

21 NCAC 53 .0302 TRANSCRIPTS The applicant shall have official transcripts sent either electronically or in paper format, from institutions where graduate credit was earned. If the transcript course titles are ambiguous or do not convey the pertinent content of the courses, the B…

21 NCAC 53 .0303 WORK EXPERIENCES History Note: Filed as a Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Authority G.S. 90-334; 90-336; 1993 S.L. c. 514, s. 5; Eff. July 1, 1984; Amended Eff. April 1, 1989; Repealed Eff. July 1, 1994.

21 NCAC 53 .0304 APPLICANTS LICENSED IN OTHER STATES If an applicant is licensed to practice counseling by a Board in another state, the applicant shall apply for licensure with the North Carolina Board and shall meet the following requirements: (1) shall have a minimum of five y…

21 NCAC 53 .0305 EXAMINATION (a) One of the following national exams shall be taken to complete the examination requirement for licensure as a licensed clinical mental health counselor associate and licensed clinical mental health counselor: (1) the National Counselor Examination…

21 NCAC 53 .0306 REPORTING OF SCORES History Note: Authority G.S. 90-334(g); 90-336(b)(3); Eff. July 1, 1995; Repealed Eff. January 1, 2010.

21 NCAC 53 .0307 RETAKING OF EXAMINATION Applicants who do not pass one of the examinations as set forth in Rule .0305 of this Section may retake it at the next regularly scheduled examination date upon registering with and paying the required examination fee to the National Boar…

21 NCAC 53 .0308 RECEIPT OF APPLICATION (a) All requirements for applications shall be satisfied in accordance with Article 24 of G.S. 90 and the rules of this Chapter within two years from the date of receipt of the application or the application shall be void. Application shall…

21 NCAC 53 .0309 AGREEMENT TO ABIDE BY NCBLCMHC ETHICAL STANDARDS Upon application for any license covered by G.S. 90, Article 24 and upon application for each succeeding renewal of such license, if granted, each applicant shall sign a statement agreeing to abide by the ethical s…

21 NCAC 53 .0310 Foreign Degree Applicants (a) Applicants applying for licensure on the basis of a foreign degree shall provide documentation, in addition to all other documents required for licensure, that establishes the following: (1) the existence of the degree granting insti…

21 NCAC 53 .0311 REQUIREMENTS FOR CANDIDATE FOR LICENSURE PENDING STATUS (a) Applicants for licensure may be designated as a "Candidate for Licensure Pending" (CFL-P) if the application is missing one or more of the following requirements: (1) official exam score from the examini…

SECTION .0400 - DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES 21 NCAC 53 .0401 RULE OF PROCEDURE History Note: Authority G.S. 90-331; 90-334; 90-341; Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Eff. July 1, 1984; Amended Eff. July 1, 2006; July 1, 1994; …

21 NCAC 53 .0402 GROUnds for denial, suspension, or revocation of license History Note: Authority G.S. 90-334; Eff. July 1, 1994; Repealed Eff. September 1, 2006.

21 NCAC 53 .0403 ALLEGED VIOLATIONS All complaints of alleged violations shall be submitted electronically or in paper format on forms available on the Board's website, www.ncblcmhc.org and shall be signed by the complainant(s), unless submitted anonymously. Complaints of violati…

21 NCAC 53 .0404 FORMAL COMPLAINTS History Note: Authority G.S. 90-334; Eff. July 1, 1995; Repealed Eff. January 1, 2010.

21 NCAC 53 .0405 DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS History Note: Authority G.S. 90-334; Eff. July 1, 1995; Repealed Eff. January 1, 2010.

SECTION .0500 - FEES 21 NCAC 53 .0501 APPLICATION FEE The initial application fees are as follows: (1) licensed clinical mental health counselor associate application two hundred dollars ($200.00); (2) licensed clinical mental health counselor application two hundred dollars ($20…

21 NCAC 53 .0502 EXAMINATION FEE History Note: Authority G.S. 90-334; Temporary Rule Eff. February 21, 1984, for a Period of 120 Days to Expire on June 19, 1984; Eff. July 1, 1984; Amended Eff. July 1, 2006; July 1, 1994; Repealed Eff. January 1, 2010.

21 NCAC 53 .0503 RENEWAL AND OTHER FEES (a) The biennial renewal fee of two hundred dollars ($200.00) is due and payable by June 20 of the renewal year. Checks shall be made payable to the North Carolina Board of Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors. Failure to pay the bien…

21 NCAC 53 .0504 Fund SUSPENSION In the event the Board's authority to expend funds is suspended pursuant to G.S. 93B-2, the Board shall continue to issue and re-new licenses and all fees tendered shall be placed in an escrow account maintained by the Board for this purpose. Once…

SECTION .0600 – RENEWAL OF LICENSE 21 NCAC 53 .0601 RENEWAL PERIOD Newly issued licenses shall be effective upon the date of issuance by the Board and shall expire on the second June 30 thereafter. At least 45 days prior to expiration of each license, the Board shall mail by regu…

21 NCAC 53 .0602 RENEWAL FOR LICENSURE FORM; ADDRESS CHANGE; NAME CHANGE (a) License renewal information shall be on the Renewal for Licensure forms available on the Board's website www.ncblcmhc.org and submitted either electronically or mailed in paper format to the Board's offi…

21 NCAC 53 .0603 CONTINUING EDUCATION (a) Continuing education is required for the renewal of licenses to ensure that licensed clinical mental health counselor associates, licensed clinical mental health counselors, and licensed clinical mental health counselor supervisors mainta…

21 NCAC 53 .0604 FAILURE TO SECURE SUFFICIENT CONTINUING EDUCATION/RENEWAL OF LICENSE Licensed clinical mental health counselor associates, licensed clinical mental health counselors, and licensed clinical mental health counselor supervisors who fail to document sufficient contin…

section .0700 – licensed clinical mental health counselor associate 21 NCAC 53 .0701 LICENSED clinical mental health COUNSELOR ASSOCIATE The Board shall grant a license as a licensed clinical mental health counselor associate to persons preparing for the practice of counseling wh…

21 ncac 53 .0702 Supervised Practice for Licensed clinical mental health Counselor Associate A licensed clinical mental health counselor associate shall not practice unless the following requirements have been met: (1) The licensed clinical mental health counselor associate shall…

SECTION .0800 – LICENSED clinical mental health COUNSELOR SUPERVISOR 21 NCAC 53 .0801 LICENSED clinical mental health COUNSELOR SUPERVISOR (a) The credential of licensed clinical mental health counselor supervisor shall be granted by the Board to a licensed clinical mental health…

SECTION .0900 – REGISTRATION FOR A PROFESSIONAL ENTITY 21 NCAC 53 .0901 CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION FOR A PROFESSIONAL ENTITY (a) The information required for an applicant to obtain a Certificate of Registration for a professional corporation or professional limited liability com…

21 NCAC 53 .0902 RENEWAL OF CERTIFICATE OF REGISTRATION FOR A PROFESSIONAL ENTITY A notification for renewal of professional corporation or professional limited liability company shall be sent by either U.S. mail or email to each registered entity a minimum of 60 days prior to th…

SECTION .1000—IMPAIRED PROFESSIONALS PROGRAMS 21 NCAC 53 .1001 DEFINITIONS (a) The following definitions apply to this Section: (1) "Applicant" means a person who has submitted an application to the Board, paid the application fee, and received confirmation of receipt of the appl…

21 NCAC 53 .1002 BOARD AGREEMENTS WITH PROGRAMS (a) The Board may enter into agreements with Programs pursuant to G.S. 90-334(l). (b) To meet the Board's requirements to enter into an agreement, a Program shall have staff, volunteers, policies, procedures, and other resources to …