Updated for 2026

New Hampshire LCMHC Continuing Education Requirements

New Hampshire counselors must complete 40 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew their LCMHC license, including 6 hours of ethics, 30 hours of category A, and 3 hours of suicide prevention.

40hours every 2 years
Topic minimums, counted within the 40
30category A
6ethics
3suicide prevention

The renewal cycle is biennial and is counted from your license anniversary.

What the board saysNew Hampshire board rule
Each licensee shall complete 40 hours of approved continuing education (CE) every 2 years1. … (c) At least 6 of the 40 CE hours shall be completed in ethics2 and shall be from Category A. (d) At least 3 of the 40 CE hours shall be completed in suicide prevention3, in accordance with RSA 330-A:10, XI and shall be from Category A. … Participation in home study courses4 shall be limited to: a. Up to a maximum of 30 CE hours4 for pastoral psychotherapists, licensed independent clinical social workers, school social workers, clinical mental health counselors, and marriage and family therapists
What it means
  1. 40 hours every 2 years
  2. 6 hours of ethics from Category A
  3. 3 hours of suicide prevention from Category A
  4. No more than 30 hours of home study
N.H. Admin. Rules, Mhp 402.01, 402.04Last verified August 2026Ruleset 2026.6How we verify
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Requirements

New Hampshire LCMHC requirements

Total

40 hoursYou need 40 hours every 2 years. The renewal cycle is biennial and is counted from your license anniversary.

Topic minimums, counted within the 40

The remaining 1 hour is not tied to a topic minimum.
Category A
30
You need 30 hours each cycle.
Ethics
6
You need 6 hours each cycle.
Suicide Prevention
3
You need 3 hours each cycle.

Limits on how the hours are earned

Category B
max 10 hrs
Home study / self-study
max 30 hrs
First time presentation
max 10 hrs per activity
Teaching update
max 5 hrs per activity
Peer reviewed book
max 10 hrs per activity
Peer reviewed journal article
max 6 hrs per activity

Up to 30 hours may be completed through home study / self-study.

Cycle and record rules

Renewal
The renewal cycle is biennial and is counted from your license anniversary.
Approved providers
Qualifying CE may be offered or sponsored by national professional association, international professional association, regional professional association, and state professional association.
Board audit
The board may audit licensees to verify CE compliance.
Late renewal
The board allows a 180-day grace period after expiration. A late renewal adds a late fee.

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 your renewal.

Your result appears here as you enter hours.

Open the full LPC CE hours calculator

Also hold a New Hampshire LMFT or LCSW license? Each board runs its own CE cycle. See the New Hampshire LMFT and New Hampshire LCSW requirements.

New Hampshire LCMHC required trainings and mandates

Beyond the 40-hour CE total, New Hampshire requires specific trainings. Some are due once around initial licensure, and others run on their own recurring schedule.

Recurring mandates outside the 2-year cycle

  • Each licensee shall complete 40 hours of collaboration every 2 years (peer consultation, study groups, supervision, interdisciplinary case discussions). These hours do NOT count toward the 40-hour CE requirement and must be attested to separately at renewal.
Full board policy details
  • At least 30 of the 40 CE hours must be Category A (approved by a recognized professional organization such as APA, NASW, NBCC, AAMFT, ACA, AMA, AMHCA, or ASWB). No more than 10 hours may be Category B (non-approved/self-directed).
  • The 6 required ethics CE hours must be earned from Category A (approved-provider) sources, i.e., courses approved by a recognized national professional organization (APA, NASW, NBCC, AAMFT, ACA, AMA, AMHCA, or ASWB). Ethics hours completed as Category B (non-approved/self-directed) do not satisfy the ethics requirement.
  • The 3 required suicide-prevention CE hours must be earned from Category A (approved-provider) sources. Category B (non-approved/self-directed) suicide-prevention hours do not satisfy the suicide-prevention requirement.
  • Up to 30 of the 40 CE hours may be home study under the rule effective August 19, 2025. Live, interactive webinars are also Category A activities.
  • Instructor credit is available for first-time preparation/teaching of a new course (10 CEs) or thorough updating of an existing course (5 CEs). Repeating identical course content without substantial changes does not earn additional instructor credit.
  • Publication credit is category-specific: each peer-reviewed Category A journal article counts as 6 CE hours and a peer-reviewed Category A book counts as 10. Category B books count as 6 hours, and Category B journal articles are limited to 5 hours per year. Category B credit also remains subject to the overall 10-hour cycle cap.
  • License status rules: licensees on inactive status are exempt from CE during the inactive period but must pay an annual inactive fee to maintain inactive status. To reactivate from inactive status or reinstate an expired license (within 6 months), the licensee must document 40 CE hours (including 6 ethics and 3 suicide prevention) completed within the 2 years prior to the application. Retired practitioners are effectively CE-exempt while not licensed. CE hardship waivers may be granted by the Board if requested at least 60 days before expiration for serious illness, disability, family emergency, or extreme financial hardship.
  • Active-duty military accommodation: a licensee serving on active duty in the armed forces may switch the license to inactive status and has up to one year after returning from active duty to reactivate the license without penalty. This accommodation is separate from the standard inactive-status pathway and from the Board's discretionary CE hardship-waiver process.
  • Board-approved supervisors must complete at least 6 Category A CE hours in clinical supervision as part of the 40-hour biennial total.
  • No first-renewal exemption or proration: new licensees must complete the full 40-hour requirement (including 6 ethics and 3 suicide prevention) in their initial 24-month cycle.
  • Dual-license credit reuse: a licensee holding both LCMHC and LMFT may use a single 40-hour CE portfolio to satisfy both license renewals, as evidenced by the combined dual renewal fee.

New Hampshire LCMHC CE: frequently asked questions

How many CE hours do New Hampshire LCMHC licensees need?

New Hampshire requires 40 continuing education hours every 2 years to renew a LCMHC license. The renewal cycle is biennial and is counted from your license anniversary.

How many ethics hours are required for New Hampshire LCMHC licensees?

Of the total, 6 hours must be in ethics.

How often do New Hampshire LCMHC licensees renew?

The renewal cycle is biennial and is counted from your license anniversary.

Are there subject-specific CE requirements for New Hampshire LCMHC licensees?

Yes. In addition to ethics, New Hampshire requires 30 hours of category A, 3 hours of suicide prevention.

Can New Hampshire LCMHC licensees complete CE online or by home study?

Up to 30 hours may be completed through home study / self-study.

Sources and verification

State source
New Hampshire board rule
Profession source
NBCC continuing education guidance
Last verified
August 2026
Ruleset version
2026.6

We reviewed this page against the New Hampshire 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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New Hampshire 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.New Hampshire mental health workforce data →7,050 active providers, or 498.1 per 100,000 residents, ranked 19 of 51. The page includes a county density map and free CSV downloads.

Other New Hampshire CE requirement pages

New Hampshire LMFTNew Hampshire LCSWNew Hampshire PsychologistNew Hampshire Addiction CounselorNew Hampshire PMHNP

LPC CE requirements in other states