Why check
Anyone can call themselves a relationship coach. Using a protected title such as Professional Counselor or Marriage and Family Therapist, and practicing counseling, requires a license from a state board. Checking the license takes a few minutes and tells you two things you can't find out any other way: whether the license is active, and whether the board has taken any public disciplinary action. CivilCouplesCounseling doesn't check licenses for you, so this step is yours.
Step 1: Get the counselor's full name and license number
Ask for it. A counselor should give you their license type and number without hesitation; many list them on their website or intake forms. Note the exact spelling of their name as it appears on the license.
Step 2: Find the right board
Each state licenses counselors through its own boards, and different professions often have different boards. A marriage and family therapist and a clinical social worker in the same office may hold licenses from two separate boards. Our city pages name the boards for that state and link their official lookups. If you're not sure which board covers a title, the state's health or professional licensing department usually lists them all.
Step 3: Search the official lookup
Use the board's own website, not a third-party directory. Search by name or license number. Check:
- the license type, and that it matches what the counselor told you;
- the status (active, expired, inactive, or under some restriction);
- the expiration date;
- any disciplinary action, which may be listed on the record or under a separate complaints or discipline section.
Some boards update their lookups on a schedule, for example monthly, so a very recent change may not appear yet.
Reading a disciplinary record
A disciplinary record doesn't always mean a counselor is unsafe to see, and a clean record doesn't prove a counselor is a good fit. Read what the action was about, when it happened, and whether it's been resolved. Boards usually publish the order or a summary. If an action concerns boundaries with clients, honesty in billing or practicing without a valid license, take it seriously. If something is unclear, you can ask the counselor about it directly, or contact the board.
Step 4: Understand the titles
License titles differ by state, and many states have an associate or provisional level for counselors who have finished their degree and are completing supervised practice. An associate-level counselor works under a supervisor; it's reasonable to ask who that supervisor is. Neither level is a ranking of skill, and a counselor's experience with couples matters more than the letters after their name.
Step 5: Telehealth across state lines
Licensure generally follows where the client is during a session. If you'll be in a different state from the counselor, for example because you're traveling or one of you lives elsewhere, ask whether their license allows them to see you there.
If something looks wrong
If the license is expired, restricted, or the details don't match what you were told, ask the counselor about it before booking. If you have a concern about a licensee's conduct, the board's website explains how to file a complaint.
A quick checklist
- Full name and license number, from the counselor.
- Right board for that license type, in the right state.
- Active status and expiration date on the official lookup.
- Any disciplinary action, read in full.
- For telehealth, permission to see you where you'll be.
The directory's part
CivilCouplesCounseling introduces couples to independent providers. It doesn't check licenses, so please check before your first session.