California Board of Behavioral Sciences
Guides for every step of your BBS hours.
The forms, the requirements, and the rules that decide which hours count. Written in plain language for AMFTs (Associate Marriage and Family Therapists), APCCs (Associate Professional Clinical Counselors), and ASWs (Associate Clinical Social Workers).
All guides
BBS License and Associate Registration Renewal Guide
Renew a California BBS license or associate registration. Find deadlines, fees, continuing education, late renewal, and renewal limits for AMFTs, ASWs, and APCCs.
Updated · 7 min read
How does the California Law and Ethics Exam work for associates?
Apply in BreEZe, pay $75 and wait 90 days between attempts. See when associates must take the California Law and Ethics Exam and what changes January 1, 2027.
Updated · 5 min read
How do you renew your associate registration in California?
Renew your AMFT, APCC or ASW registration yearly in BreEZe or by mail for $75, with 3 hours of law and ethics CE. See what else changes on January 1, 2027.
Updated · 6 min read
How long does the BBS take to process an application?
BBS processing averaged 15 days for AMFT, 25 for APCC and 10 for ASW in April-June 2026. Compare licensure times, delays and ways to check your application.
Updated · 7 min read
How do you register as an ASW in California?
Register as an ASW in California. See eligibility, the $75 application fee, transcripts, fingerprinting and the 90-day rule for supervised hours.
Updated · 10 min read
How do you register as an APCC in California?
Register as an APCC in California: mail Form 37A-647, transcript, Live Scan and the $75 fee. Send within 90 days of your degree date to count post-degree hours.
Updated · 9 min read
How do you register as an AMFT in California?
Register as an AMFT in California: mail Form 37A-590, transcript, Live Scan and the $75 fee. The BBS must receive it within 90 days of your degree date.
Updated · 9 min read
How do you complete the BBS Supervision Agreement (Form 37M-300)?
How to complete BBS Supervision Agreement (Form 37M-300): who does what, the 60-day deadline & what replaced the Responsibility Statement and Supervisory Plan.
Updated · 5 min read
What do you need to supervise an associate in California?
What a California licensee needs to supervise AMFTs, APCCs and ASWs: the two-of-five-years rule, the 15-hour training, the Self-Assessment Report, six hours of CPD each renewal, and the caseload cap.
Updated · 5 min read
Does video supervision count toward your BBS hours?
Yes, in every setting. AB 1758 allowed two-way video supervision from August 29, 2022, SB 775 made it permanent, and a 60-day assessment is the one condition. Telephone does not count.
Updated · 4 min read
Who can supervise an associate in California?
The licenses the BBS accepts for supervision, the two-of-five-years rule, the ASW 1,700-hour LCSW rule, the 1,200-hour LEP limit, and who can’t supervise you.
Updated · 4 min read
What happens to your hours when you change supervisors?
What happens to your hours when your supervisor leaves, won’t sign, or when a substitute covers more than 30 days. Every hour counts if the paperwork follows.
Updated · 4 min read
How much supervision do you need for your BBS hours in California?
How much supervision California associates need: one unit per setting each week, two above 10 direct hours, a 6-hour weekly cap and 52 individual weeks.
Updated · 6 min read
AB 1598: What's Changing for California Associates
AB 1598 gives California associates more time for supervised hours and flexibility on the Law & Ethics exam. See what changes on Jan. 1, 2027 and how to prepare now.
Updated · 2 min read
What counts as direct client contact.
What lands in your clinical hours on each track and what does not, the smaller minimum nested inside, and why the ASW bucket has a different name and a shorter list.
Updated · 9 min read
Pre-degree and post-degree hours in California.
AMFTs can count up to 1,300 hours earned before the degree. APCCs and ASWs count none at all. What your graduation date changes on each of the three tracks.
Updated · 8 min read
How California counts your MFT hours.
The minimums and maximums inside the 3,000, the 40-hour weekly cap and how it is counted across settings, when a week owes you a unit of supervision, and where hours stop counting.
Updated · 8 min read
The BBS 90-Day Rule, explained.
The four conditions that let post-degree hours count before your associate registration is issued, when those hours actually start, and the Live Scan step people miss.
Updated · 8 min read
- Forms 37A-525 and 37A-638
The BBS Weekly Log of Experience Hours, explained.
Which form your license needs, what belongs in every column, and which hours you should never add twice. Includes official downloads for all three versions.
Updated · 7 min read
Requirements by license
What your 3,000 hours have to include, how much supervision you need, and the caps that decide what counts.
AMFT → LMFT
Hour requirements for Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) licensure, the 500-hour couples, families, and children minimum, and the weekly log you keep.
APCC → LPCC
Hour requirements for Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC) licensure, the 1,750-hour direct counseling minimum, and the weekly log you keep.
ASW → LCSW
Hour requirements for Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) licensure, the 750-hour psychotherapy minimum, and the LCSW supervisor rule.
Reading about the forms is the hard way.
SparkHours fills them in from the hours you log, and your supervisor signs each week from a link. Start with a 14-day free trial. No credit card required.
Already have an account? Sign in