The short version
PSYPACT® is an interstate compact among participating jurisdictions. It does not create a national psychology license. What it creates is a route by which a psychologist licensed in one participating state can lawfully deliver services into the others without holding a separate license in each — and it does this through two distinct pathways, one for telepsychology and one for temporary in-person work.
Each pathway has two pieces, and the order matters. ASPPB issues a credential certifying that you meet the education, examination, and discipline standards. The PSYPACT® Commission then issues an authorization that sits on top of that credential. You cannot have the second without the first, and if the credential lapses the authorization suspends immediately.
The two routes
Telepsychology across state lines
- ASPPB credential
- ASPPB E.Passport
- Commission authorization
- APIT® — Authority to Practice Interjurisdictional Telepsychology
- Limits
- Telepsychology only, delivered while you are physically located in your declared home state. Ongoing, with annual renewal.
- Third-party fees
- About $440 initially; about $140 a year to maintain.
Temporary in-person practice
- ASPPB credential
- Interjurisdictional Practice Certificate (IPC)
- Commission authorization
- TAP® — Temporary Authorization to Practice
- Limits
- In-person, face-to-face practice capped at 30 calendar days per year, per jurisdiction. Useful for forensic evaluations, neuropsychological testing, and consulting engagements.
- Third-party fees
- About $240 initially; about $90 a year to maintain.
Fees are set by ASPPB and the PSYPACT® Commission, are paid directly to them, and change from time to time. The figures above are indicative — we confirm the current schedule at intake. Our concierge fee is separate and is listed on our pricing page.
The home-state problem — read this before you apply
The E.Passport requires an active doctoral-level license in at least one participating jurisdiction, and the APIT® requires you to be physically located in your declared home state while you deliver telepsychology.
Put those together and the consequence is blunt: if every license you hold is in a non-participating jurisdiction — California and New York being the largest — the compact gives you nothing at all. Not a reduced benefit. Nothing. You cannot apply, because you fail the entry requirement.
The fix is to obtain a license in a participating state first. That is a full licensure-by-endorsement engagement, it takes months rather than weeks, and it is the single most common piece of work we do. It is worth starting before you need it.
Where it applies
41
Participating
1
Enacted, not yet effective
4
Legislation introduced
5
Not participating
Participation moves. States enact legislation, and enactment is a step short of an effective date; bills get introduced far more often than they pass. The only tier that authorizes anything is participating — treat the other three as news, not as permission.
Jurisdictions the compact does not currently reach
Who qualifies
A current, active, unrestricted psychology license based on a doctoral degree, held in at least one participating jurisdiction. This is the gate that stops most applicants — see the home-state problem below.
A doctoral program that was APA- or CPA-accredited, or designated through the Joint Designation Committee, at the time your degree was conferred or within eighteen months of it. Several alternate pathways exist for older degrees, including continuous licensure since before 1985 and the CPQ route for psychologists with fifteen or more years of independent licensure.
A passing EPPP score at or above the ASPPB recommended cut score.
No disciplinary action on any psychology license, in any jurisdiction, ever.
Official doctoral transcripts sent to ASPPB directly by the institution or its clearinghouse. A transcript you forward yourself is not accepted and is one of the most common causes of a stalled file.
What PSYPACT® does not do
It is not a license, and it is not a national license
An APIT® is an authorization layered on top of a state license and an ASPPB credential. Your home-state license remains the foundation; if it lapses or is disciplined, everything above it falls over.
It does not cover master’s-level clinicians
PSYPACT® is doctoral-psychologist-only. LPC/LMHC, LCSW/LMSW, and LMFT clinicians are outside it entirely. Their own compacts exist but are at much earlier stages — the Counseling Compact is issuing privileges in only a handful of states, and the Social Work Licensure Compact is not issuing to anyone yet.
It does not carry prescriptive authority
Under the compact you practise within the receiving state’s scope. Nine jurisdictions authorize prescribing psychologists, but that authority does not travel with you even if your home state grants it.
It does not get you paid
This is the one that surprises people most. CMS will enroll psychologists who satisfy compact requirements, but commercial payer contracts remain per-state and per-payer. Being in-network with a plan in one state does nothing for a patient in another. Treating without the right enrollment invites denials now and clawbacks years later.
On that last point — multi-state payer enrollment and credentialing is handled by our sister team at whiteglovecredentialing.com.
The renewal cliff
Both credentials renew annually, and the E.Passport renewal requires at least three hours of continuing education specifically about telepsychology — general CE does not count. Review takes three to four weeks, and a share of renewals are pulled for audit.
If the E.Passport lapses, ASPPB notifies the Commission and your APIT® moves to a suspended status. Your authority to practise across state lines stops on that date — there is no grace period during which you may keep seeing clients. Practising past a lapse is a board-complaint exposure in every receiving state, and a clawback exposure with every payer.
Authoritative sources
White Glove PSYPACT is an independent licensing-support service and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by the PSYPACT® Commission or ASPPB. PSYPACT®, APIT®, and TAP® are registered trademarks of the PSYPACT® Commission. Everything on this page is our own summary; for the authoritative and current statement of participation, rules, and fees, go to the source:
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