Kentucky LMFT & LMFT-A Continuing Education Requirements
What a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT / LMFT-A) must complete to renew in Kentucky.
3
ethics hours
Annual · renewal date depends on the licensee's issue date.
Kentucky LMFT & LMFT-A requirements
| Requirement | Notes |
|---|---|
| Total continuing education | See the board source for the total-hour requirement. |
| Renewal | Annual cycle: counted from your license anniversary. |
| Ethics | 3 hours required each cycle. |
| Approved providers | Qualifying CE may be offered or sponsored by national professional association, state professional association, and accredited university and recognized associations in mft. |
| Late renewal | A late renewal allows a 90-day grace period after expiration and a late fee. |
| Other mandates | One-time 3-hour training covering domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, required by state law (KRS 194A.540), typically within the first three years of licensure. If board-approved for CE, the hours may also count toward the annual CE total in the year taken. |
| Other mandates | 6 hours of suicide assessment required every 6 years. |
Total hours
See the board source for the total-hour requirement.
Renewal
Annual cycle: counted from your license anniversary.
Ethics
3 hours required each cycle.
Approved providers
Qualifying CE may be offered or sponsored by national professional association, state professional association, and accredited university and recognized associations in mft.
Late renewal
A late renewal allows a 90-day grace period after expiration and a late fee.
Other mandates
One-time 3-hour training covering domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, required by state law (KRS 194A.540), typically within the first three years of licensure. If board-approved for CE, the hours may also count toward the annual CE total in the year taken.
6 hours of suicide assessment required every 6 years.
Kentucky LMFT & LMFT-Arequired trainings & mandates
Kentucky also requires specific trainings — some once around initial licensure, some on their own recurring schedule.
Recurring mandates outside the 1 year cycle
- One-time 3-hour training covering domestic violence, child abuse, elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation, required by state law (KRS 194A.540), typically within the first three years of licensure. If board-approved for CE, the hours may also count toward the annual CE total in the year taken.
- 6 hours of suicide assessment required every 6 years.
Full board policy details
- Provider approval: CE provided or approved by AAMFT and its state affiliates, CE offered by a COAMFTE-accredited educational institution, and relevant graduate-level academic courses from an accredited institution are automatically accepted without further board review (201 KAR 32:060 Section 1). Any other CE activity is not automatically creditable — it must be submitted to the board for review and may be determined relevant and subsequently approved before credit is granted. No category of activity is exempt from this approval requirement; all hours must be approved continuing education hours.
- No minimum number of live/in-person hours. All 15 hours (10 for associates) may be completed via approved online study, distance learning, or face-to-face workshops. Live-online interactive webinars are accepted as equivalent to live courses. There is no per-day or per-course hour cap.
- Teaching/presenting: full CE credit per contact hour of instruction, not to exceed one-half of the CE requirement per cycle (max 7.5 hours for a licensee, 5 for an associate). The course or instruction itself must be board-approved or from an automatically accepted source — teaching is not exempt from the approval requirement. Credit shall not be issued for repeated instruction of the same course within a renewal period. Teaching the same course in different years may count in each year, but not twice in one cycle.
- Relevant publications in a professionally recognized (peer-reviewed) journal may count for one-half of the required hours (7.5 hours for a licensee, 5 for an associate). No more than one publication may be counted during each renewal period. Publications must be in professionally recognized journals — they are not exempt from board recognition of the source.
- Course repeat restrictions: credit is not awarded for duplicate content within the same renewal cycle. Each unique CE activity counts only once. Attending or teaching the identical program more than once in one cycle yields a single credit event.
- License status rules: LMFTs and associates may request inactive licensure status under 201 KAR 32:081, during which annual CE is not required. To return to active status, the licensee must show proof of completing the required CE (generally one cycle's hours — 15 for a licensee) prior to reactivation. There is no separate retired/emeritus status; an unrenewed license lapses rather than converting to a special category. The board may grant a CE waiver or extension of up to one year for medical disability, illness, or undue hardship, requested in writing during the renewal grace period. A medical waiver request must be supported by a physician's (or similar) note; for other hardships a signed statement explaining the situation is required. The license remains active and valid during an approved CE extension. Extensions may be re-requested if the hardship persists.
- Kentucky does not offer an exam re-take or any exam route in lieu of completing CE hours. The only remedies for CE deficiency are a board-approved hardship extension/waiver or electing inactive status.
We turn every category, format limit, and one-time rule on this page into a live checklist on your Kentucky LMFT / LMFT-A record, and reapply board changes automatically as they happen.
Track Kentucky LMFT / LMFT-A CE free →Kentucky LMFT & LMFT-A CE: frequently asked questions
How many ethics hours are required for Kentucky LMFT / LMFT-A licensees?
Of the total, 3 hours must be in ethics.
How often do Kentucky LMFT / LMFT-A licensees renew?
Annual cycle: counted from your license anniversary.
Sources & verification
- State source
- Kentucky board rule
- Last verified
- July 2026
- Ruleset version
- 2026.2
Reviewed against the Kentucky board source and refreshed from the compiled ruleset above. Methodology and disclaimer. Compliance data is for guidance only, not legal or board advice. Always confirm requirements with your licensing board before renewing. See something wrong? Report it →
Track your Kentucky LMFT / LMFT-A CE without the spreadsheet.
Log your hours, watch every category pace toward your annual renewal, and keep your certificates in one record. Free to start, no credit card required.
Create your free recordKentuckyguides & data
What to keep for a CE audit
What boards ask for in a CE audit, how long each state says to keep certificates, what the notice looks like, and a printable checklist.
Kentucky mental health workforce data
18,646 active providers, or 404.7 per 100,000 residents, ranked 29 of 51. County density map and free CSV downloads.
Other Kentucky CE requirement pages
LMFT CE requirements in other states
AlabamaAlaskaArizonaArkansasCaliforniaColoradoConnecticutDelawareFloridaGeorgiaHawaiiIdahoIllinoisIndianaIowaKansasLouisianaMaineMarylandMassachusettsMichiganMinnesotaMississippiMissouriMontanaNebraskaNevadaNew HampshireNew JerseyNew MexicoNew YorkNorth CarolinaNorth DakotaOhioOklahomaOregonPennsylvaniaRhode IslandSouth CarolinaSouth DakotaTennesseeTexasUtahVermontVirginiaWashingtonWest VirginiaWisconsinWyoming