Updated for 2026

Pennsylvania LMFT & LAMFT Continuing Education Requirements

Pennsylvania marriage and family therapists must complete 30 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew their LMFT / LAMFT license, including 3 hours of ethics, 2 hours of child abuse recognition and reporting, and 1 hour of suicide prevention.

30hours every 2 years
Topic minimums, counted within the 30
3ethics
2child abuse recognition and reporting
1suicide prevention

Next deadline: February 28, 2027The renewal cycle is biennial, and CE is due by February 28 of odd years.

What the board saysPennsylvania board rule
The Board requires, as a condition of biennial renewal of a marriage and family therapist’s license, the completion during the preceding biennium of 30 clock hours1 of continuing education in acceptable courses and programs offered by approved providers. Up to 20 clock hours may be obtained by home study2. Excess clock hours may not be carried over to the next biennium. At least 3 of the required 30 clock hours must be related to ethical issues3 and at least 2 of the required 30 clock hours must be completed in child abuse recognition and reporting4 …
What it means
  1. 30 hours every two years
  2. No more than 20 hours of home study
  3. 3 hours of ethics
  4. 2 hours on child abuse recognition and reporting
49 Pa. Code § 48.32Last verified October 2026Ruleset 2026.4How we verify
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Requirements

Pennsylvania LMFT & LAMFT requirements

Total

30 hoursYou need 30 hours every 2 years. The renewal cycle is biennial, and CE is due by February 28 of odd years.

Topic minimums, counted within the 30

The remaining 24 hours are not tied to a topic minimum.
Ethics
3
You need 3 hours each cycle.
Child Abuse Recognition and Reporting
2
You need 2 hours each cycle.
Suicide Prevention
1
You need 1 hour each cycle.

Limits on how the hours are earned

Home study / self-study
max 20 hrs

Up to 20 hours may be completed through home study / self-study.

Cycle and record rules

Renewal
The renewal cycle is biennial, and CE is due by February 28 of odd years.
Renewal fee
Renewal fees by license status
Status / feeAmount and conditions
Active renewal$95. Biennial fee under 49 Pa. Code 47.4.
Board fee schedule
Late charge per month or partial month$5. Additional monthly charge under Fee Act section 225; not a flat penalty.
Board fee schedule

CE course costs are separate. Late renewal does not authorize practice on an expired license.

We verified these fees on 2026-09-30. Board fee schedule.

New licensees
On the first renewal of a Pennsylvania associate MFT license (LAMFT), the only continuing-education requirement is 1 hour of suicide prevention and 2 hours of child abuse recognition and reporting training from approved providers, per the Board's renewal guide. Later renewals carry the full 30-hour requirement.
Approved providers
CE must come from Board-approved providers (49 Pa. Code §§ 48.35–48.36). The § 48.37 'other source' activities listed as provider exemptions here (first-time teaching, journal/book publications, preceptor/lecturer/speaker service) have no CE provider to approve and are creditable only after case-by-case Board approval — an application submitted before the event for teaching/preceptor/lecturer/speaker credit, or after publication for publication credit — not as a blanket exemption from Board oversight.
Board audit
The board may audit licensees to verify CE compliance.

To keep your proof in order, see what to keep for a CE audit, which covers every state’s retention period and what the audit notice asks for.

Your hours

Check where you stand

Enter the hours you have completed this cycle to see what is left before February 28, 2027.

Your result appears here as you enter hours.

Open the full LMFT CE hours calculator

Also hold a Pennsylvania LPC or LCSW license? Each board runs its own CE cycle. See the Pennsylvania LPC and Pennsylvania LCSW requirements.

Full board policy details
  • Up to 20 of the required 30 clock hours may be obtained by home study; home study courses must have specific learning objectives evaluated by the provider and be marked as such on the certificate. Because home study is capped at 20, at least 10 hours must come from non-home-study formats. As of November 19, 2019, the Board no longer maintains a dedicated live-CE requirement (permanent change), though the 20-hour home-study cap remains codified. Each course must run a minimum total duration of at least 2 clock hours (hours need not be contiguous). Excess clock hours may not be carried over to the next biennium. Courses in office management or practice building are not approved.
  • COURSE REPEAT RESTRICTIONS: Only first-time experience as a teacher earns credit, repeat teaching of the same material is not creditable. 'Other source' credit (clinical conferences/rounds/training under a preceptor, first-time teaching, publications, services as a preceptor/lecturer/speaker) is granted on a case-by-case basis with no fixed conversion ratios or per-activity numeric caps; teaching/preceptor/lecturer credit requires advance application, publication credit requires post-publication application. Chapter 48 contains no explicit prohibition on claiming the same course twice within one biennium (not expressly prohibited).
  • APPROVED PROVIDERS: Only courses or programs offered by Board-approved providers are accepted for CE credit. Providers may be individually approved under § 48.34 or fall within the preapproved categories of § 48.36, which include graduate and postgraduate training programs accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE), the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and its approved providers/courses, the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) and its approved providers/courses, and the Association of Social Work Boards' Approved Continuing Education (ACE) Program. Preapproved providers listed in 49 Pa. Code § 48.36 (COAMFTE-accredited graduate/postgraduate programs, NASW, NBCC, ASWB ACE); other providers require individual approval under § 48.34.
  • CHILD ABUSE TRAINING EXEMPTION RULES: The Board will NOT grant an exemption from the 2-hour child abuse recognition and reporting CE requirement based solely upon proof that children are not part of the licensee's practice, the training is required universally. A narrow exemption is available only where the licensee has already completed child abuse recognition and reporting training required by 23 Pa.C.S. § 6383(c), approved by the Department of Human Services, in an amount that equals or exceeds the required amount; documentation must be submitted to the Board.
  • LICENSE STATUS RULES: No CE is required merely to remain on inactive status; CE becomes relevant upon return to active practice. No separate 'retired' CE tier is defined. A licensee reinstating an inactive or lapsed license must show proof of compliance with the CE requirement for the preceding biennium (30 hours including 3 ethics, 2 child abuse, 1 suicide). The Board may grant an extension or waive all or a portion of the CE requirement upon written request with documentation for serious illness, military service, or other demonstrated hardship, evaluated case-by-case with no fixed maximum duration.

Pennsylvania LMFT & LAMFT CE: frequently asked questions

How many CE hours do Pennsylvania LMFT / LAMFT licensees need?

Pennsylvania requires 30 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew a LMFT / LAMFT license. The renewal cycle is biennial, and CE is due by February 28 of odd years.

How many ethics hours are required for Pennsylvania LMFT / LAMFT licensees?

Of the total, 3 hours must be in ethics.

How often do Pennsylvania LMFT / LAMFT licensees renew?

The renewal cycle is biennial, and CE is due by February 28 of odd years.

How much does Pennsylvania LMFT / LAMFT license renewal cost?
Renewal fees by license status
Status / feeAmount and conditions
Active renewal$95. Biennial fee under 49 Pa. Code 47.4.
Board fee schedule
Late charge per month or partial month$5. Additional monthly charge under Fee Act section 225; not a flat penalty.
Board fee schedule

CE course costs are separate. Late renewal does not authorize practice on an expired license.

We verified these fees on 2026-09-30. Board fee schedule.

Are there subject-specific CE requirements for Pennsylvania LMFT / LAMFT licensees?

Yes. In addition to ethics, Pennsylvania requires 2 hours of child abuse recognition and reporting, 1 hour of suicide prevention.

Can Pennsylvania LMFT / LAMFT licensees complete CE online or by home study?

Up to 20 hours may be completed through home study / self-study.

Is the first renewal different for new Pennsylvania LMFT / LAMFT licensees?

On the first renewal of a Pennsylvania associate MFT license (LAMFT), the only continuing-education requirement is 1 hour of suicide prevention and 2 hours of child abuse recognition and reporting training from approved providers, per the Board's renewal guide. Later renewals carry the full 30-hour requirement.

Sources and verification

State source
Pennsylvania board rule
Fee schedule
Pennsylvania board fee schedule
Last verified
October 2026
Ruleset version
2026.4

We reviewed this page against the Pennsylvania board source, and we refresh it 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

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Pennsylvania guides & data

What to keep for a CE audit →Learn what boards ask for in a CE audit, how long each state says to keep certificates, and what the notice looks like, then use the printable checklist.Pennsylvania mental health workforce data →50,517 active providers, or 386.8 per 100,000 residents, ranked 33 of 51. The page includes a county density map and free CSV downloads.

Other Pennsylvania CE requirement pages

Pennsylvania LPCPennsylvania LCSWPennsylvania PsychologistPennsylvania PMHNP

LMFT CE requirements in other states