2020 Legislation

• BSW and MSW students must take the ASWB examination no more than 6 months prior to graduation
• Limit on the number of times an applicant can take the licensing exam without special permission from the BOSW is removed
• LICSW applications by examination “360 clinical clock hour” academic requirement:
  • Number of clock hours allowed via continuing education (CE) increased from 90 to 120 
  • Post-test requirement for hours completed via CE removed
  • All 120 CE hours may be completed via CE independent learning
  • CE applied to this must meet CE requirement for license renewal under Minnesota Statutes section 148E.130
• For seasoned professionals applying in MN who are fully vetted and licensed in other states, licensure by endorsement is simplified and streamlined 
• No changes to existing social work license types or scopes of practice

License Renewal Cards:

• Mailing paper license/renewal cards will be discontinued as of August 1, 2020 
• Primary source verification of licensure will be provided using Public License Lookup online service

License Renewal Notices:

• New legislation provides option for license renewal notices to be sent via email 
• In the future, mailing paper license renewal postcards will be discontinued 

Changes apply to all licensees after August 1, 2020

• Number of clinical content CE hours at renewal for LICSW license decreased from 24 to 12 hours  
• Number of CE hours allowed via CE independent learning increased to 50% of required CE hours
• Definition of social work ethics expanded to include cultural awareness and social diversity (no change to requirement to complete 2 hours of social work ethics CE per license renewal term)

Change from Active License Status to Alternate License Status: Change applies to applications received on or after August 1, 2020

• Licensees may only change license status (to Temporary Leave, Emeritus Inactive, or Emeritus Active) at time of license renewal

Reactivation from Alternate License Status to Active License Status:  Changes apply to “open/in-process” applications as of August 1, 2020

• CE requirement changed to “at least” 2 CE hours in social work ethics
• Completion of the Board’s “Know Your Licensing Law” online learning service required

Emeritus Active (EA) License Status: Changes apply to all current EA licenses on or after August 1, 2020

• Maximum number of hours for paid social work practice increased from 240 to 500 per year for: 1) providing licensing supervision, 2) consultation, and 3) presenting continuing education 

• CE hours earned while holding temporary license may be counted toward CE requirement at first license renewal (change applies to current temporary licensees as of August 1, 2020)
• “Persons licensed in another jurisdiction/without permanent MN license” may practice in Minnesota on a temporary license for 6 months once in a 12-month period
• “Teacher” temporary license (applicant whose permanent residence is outside the USA and teaching social work in an academic institution in Minnesota not to exceed 12 months) repealed

• Number of required license types for licensed professionals changed to reflect current data (current 15 member board maintained):
  • 5 public members
  • 3 LSW
  • 2 LICSW
  • 2 LGSW or LISW
  • 3 members any license type
• Social work practice setting requirements updated to better reflect diversity of workforce
• “Underrepresented community” qualification added, in addition to current “community of color” qualification, to ensure more inclusive board member representation, including communities of color, LGBTQ, persons with disabilities  

No. After August 1, 2020, you will not need to receive permission from the BOSW to take the exam more than three times. However, note that your exam approval will still “expire” when your application closes (one year from date submitted), and you will still need to follow ASWB requirements to wait 90 days before taking the exam again.

No. You are only eligible to apply for level of license you hold in another state by endorsement. If you hold a masters license in another state (typically means you’ve passed the ASWB Masters exam), you are eligible to apply for a Minnesota LGSW by endorsement. To be eligible for a Minnesota LICSW, you must have an independent clinical license in another state (typically means you’ve completed your state’s supervision requirements and passed the ASWB Clinical exam).

No. If you hold a masters license in another state, you are eligible to apply for a Minnesota LGSW by endorsement. While you would have the option to apply for a Minnesota LICSW by examination, you would need to meet all Minnesota requirements including Minnesota’s supervised practice requirements and the 360 Clinical Clock Hour requirement. Another option is to obtain an independent clinical license in your current state, and then apply for a Minnesota LICSW by endorsement once you hold an active independent clinical license in another state.

Students cannot be approved to take the ASWB exam more than six months before graduation. ASWB does not allow students to take the exam more than six months before graduation, so the new legislation simply provides consistency with existing ASWB requirements. The BOSW has always encouraged student applicants to submit their applications about six months before they will graduate to maximize the one-year application period.

Yes, CE hours you complete after August 1 with a current temporary license may be applied toward your permanent license requirements. For example, if you complete a 6 hour CE training on August 5, and your permanent license is issued on August 12, those 6 CE hours may be applied to the CE requirements for your first permanent license renewal.

Yes. Under the previous regulations, “persons licensed in another jurisdiction/without permanent MN license” were only able to be approved for one six-month temporary license. Under the new regulations, if you hold a current social work license in another state, you can be approved to practice in Minnesota with a temporary license for a 6 month period once every 12 months. For example, if you had a temporary license that was valid from February 2019 to August 2019, you could apply for another temporary license in September 2020 to practice in Minnesota for a 6 month once the temporary license is issued.

No. Licensees whose renewal application is approved on or after August 1, 2020 will not receive a paper license/renewal card in the mail. Instead, you (or anyone who needs to verify your license) can access your license information at the BOSW website using the Public License Lookup online service, which provides primary source verification. In fact, the online verification is updated in real time and is more accurate than a paper card.  Since it can be accessed online at any time, you don’t need to worry about having your license card with you. The online license verification can also be printed if you need a physical copy. The BOSW will still mail a paper license certificate (8 ½” x 11” wall certificate) when you first obtain your license, or if you change license types.

The new regulations provide the BOSW the option of sending license renewal notices electronically rather than by U.S. Mail. The BOSW will provide more information and notice to licensees in advance of the change being made. Subscribe to Licensing News & Updates to stay informed. To ensure the BOSW has your current email address, log in to your profile to update your email address. Please note that subscribing to receive email updates from the BOSW is NOT the same as updating your license profile. All official license communication will be sent only to the information you provide after logging in to your license profile through online services. 

Yes, if you will submit your license renewal application on or after August 1, 2020, you may follow the new CE requirements, even though your current renewal term started before August 1. 

Example 1: If you are an LICSW, and your license expires September 30, 2020, you are only required to report 12 hours of clinical content CE (out of the total 40 CE hours required for a two-year renewal term) when you submit your license renewal, rather than the 24 hours of clinical content required under the current regulations that you were notified of at your last renewal. 

Example 2: If your license expires December 31, 2020, you may plan to complete up to 50% of your required CE hours through CE independent learning, rather than the maximum of 15 hours under pre-August 1 regulations.

It depends when you submit your renewal application. You are eligible to renew your license 45 days before your expiration date, so if you submit your renewal application and fee before August 1, 2020, you will need to comply with under pre-August 1, 2020 regulations. If you wait to submit your renewal application and fee on or after August 1, 2020, then the new requirements will apply. To avoid the renewal late fee, be sure to submit your application and renewal fee prior to August 31, 2020.

It depends when you submit your renewal application. You are eligible to renew your license with a late fee within 60 days of your expiration date. So if you submit your late renewal application and fee before August 1, 2020, you will need to comply with the current regulations. If you wait to submit your late renewal application and fee on or after August 1, 2020, if you are still within the 60-day late renewal window, the new requirements will apply.

New requirements will apply to any application for reactivation from alternate status (Temporary Leave or Emeritus Inactive) that is "open/in process" as of August 1, 2020. Unless your reactivation is approved prior to August 1, 2020, you will need to complete at least 2 CE hours in social work ethics and the “Know Your Licensing Law” online service. However, due to technology limitations, the online service will not be available until fall of 2020. The BOSW will contact reactivation applicants with specific information and instructions. 

Note that there are no changes to reactivations from expiration. When reactivating an expired license, licensees must report CE hours that were in effect when the license expired (typically 40 CE hours), and the "Know Your Licensing Law" online service is not required.

After August 1, 2020, licensees can only apply for an alternate license status at the time of renewal, so you will need to wait until you are within 45 days of your renewal date to submit an application for license status change. Since license renewal fees and CE requirements are tied to a two-year renewal term, changing your license status in the middle of your renewal term costs more to you (because license renewal fees are nonrefundable), causes confusion with CE requirements, and creates extra processing. Limiting status changes to the time of renewal streamlines the process and benefits both licensees and the BOSW.

Yes. As of August 1, 2020, current Emeritus Active (EA) status licensees may follow the new requirements for increased paid social work practice hours and activities. For example, if you had already provided the maximum 240 hours of paid licensing supervision per year allowed under the current regulations, beginning August 1, 2020, you may provide an additional 260 hours (for a maximum of 500 paid hours per year) in any of the following areas: 1) providing licensing supervision, 2) consultation, and/or 3) presenting continuing education.