Why Tracking Correctly Matters From Day One
Most associates and trainees start tracking their hours casually. They figure they will clean things up later. The problem is that several BBS rules are retroactive-proof: once you make certain mistakes, you cannot fix them. Hours logged in the wrong category cannot be moved after the fact. Hours that exceed the weekly cap are permanently lost. Weeks without supervision simply do not count toward your 104-week requirement, no matter how many client hours you logged.
If your AMFT registration lapses, every hour you earned while it was expired is gone. These are not hypothetical risks. They are the most common reasons associates face delays of six months or more when applying for licensure.
Stakes statement: Every week you track incorrectly is a week you may have to repeat. A single lapse in registration or a month of exceeding the weekly cap can cost you hundreds of hours of real clinical work. The time to get this right is now, not when you are filling out your licensure application.
For a full breakdown of every hour requirement, minimum, maximum, and deadline, see our California LMFT hours requirements guide. If you are considering the LCSW path instead, see our LMFT vs LCSW comparison for California to understand how tracking requirements differ.
What You Need to Track Every Week
Each weekly log entry should capture these 11 data points. If you are working at multiple sites or under multiple supervisors, you need a separate log for each supervisor-site combination.
- ✓Date range (week start and end)
- ✓Work setting name and address
- ✓Supervisor name and license number
- ✓Column A total: all direct client contact hours
- ✓Column A1: direct hours with couples, families, and children (subset of A)
- ✓Column B total: all non-clinical experience hours
- ✓Column B1: individual or triadic supervision hours (subset of B)
- ✓Column B2: group supervision hours (subset of B)
- ✓Column C total: A + B (never add subcategories separately)
- ✓Supervisor signature (electronic accepted per BBS)
- ✓Your status: Trainee (pre-degree) or AMFT (post-degree)
One form per supervisor per site. If you see clients at two agencies under different supervisors, you need two weekly logs for that week. If you see clients at two agencies under the same supervisor, you still need two logs because the work settings differ.
The A/B/C Hour Category System Explained
The BBS organizes all supervised experience into two primary categories that combine into a weekly total. Understanding this structure is essential because miscategorizing hours is one of the most common tracking mistakes. For a detailed walkthrough of how to fill out each column on the actual BBS form, see our guide on BBS Form 37A-525.
| Column | What It Covers | Min / Max | Add to C? |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | Direct client contact (individual, group, couples, family therapy) | Min 1,750 hrs | Yes |
| A1 | Couples, families, and children (subset of A) | Min 500 hrs | No (included in A) |
| B | Non-clinical experience (supervision, testing, reports, advocacy, workshops) | Max 1,250 hrs | Yes |
| B1 | Individual or triadic supervision (subset of B) | - | No (included in B) |
| B2 | Group supervision (subset of B) | - | No (included in B) |
| C | Weekly total = A + B | Max 40/week | - |
The most common Column C mistake: Adding A + A1 + B + B1 + B2. This double-counts subcategories. Column C is always A + B only. A1 is already inside A. B1 and B2 are already inside B.
Tracking Hours Across Multiple Sites or Supervisors
Working at multiple sites is common, especially in the early associate years. The tracking rules are straightforward but unforgiving: you maintain one weekly log per supervisor per site, and the 40-hour weekly cap applies across ALL sites combined, not per site.
This is where spreadsheets become dangerous. Each site has its own log. Without a system that aggregates your weekly totals across every log, you will not know you have exceeded 40 hours until it is too late.
Worked example: how 5 hours disappear
Week of March 3, 2026:
- Site A (community clinic): 25 hours logged
- Site B (private practice): 20 hours logged
- Combined total: 45 hours
- BBS-countable hours: 40
- Hours permanently lost: 5
In a spreadsheet with separate tabs per site, this error is invisible. You would not discover it until assembling your licensure application, possibly years later.
Prevention: At the end of every work week, add up your Column C totals from all sites. If you are consistently close to 40, adjust your schedule before you go over. A tracking app that aggregates across sites does this automatically.
The 40-Hour Weekly Cap: How to Stay Under It
The BBS caps countable experience at 40 hours per week. This is a hard cap, not an average. You cannot log 50 hours one week and 30 the next and call it 40 per week. The excess hours from the 50-hour week are gone.
The cap applies across all work settings, all supervisors, and all hour categories combined. It does not matter whether the hours are direct client contact or non-clinical experience. If A + B from all your sites in a single week exceeds 40, only 40 count.
Set a weekly alarm
Every Friday, tally your hours across all sites for the week. If you are approaching 40, stop logging or redistribute to the following week.
Track weekly, not monthly
Monthly totals hide weekly spikes. A 160-hour month could be four perfect 40-hour weeks or two 50-hour weeks and two 30-hour weeks. Only the first scenario gives you full credit.
For the full breakdown of all hour requirements including pre-degree caps and the 6-year time limit, see our California LMFT hours requirements guide.
Tracking Your 104 Supervised Weeks
The 104-week requirement is one of the most overlooked rules. It operates independently from your total hour count: you could theoretically hit 3,000 hours in 75 weeks if you worked enough each week, but you would still need to continue until you reached 104 supervised weeks.
What counts as a supervised week
A week counts only if you logged experience hours AND received at least one unit of supervision that same week. Hours without supervision in the same week do not count toward the 104.
52 individual supervision weeks
At least 52 of your 104 weeks must include individual or triadic supervision (not just group). Track this separately because it is a common bottleneck.
Gaps are acceptable. You do not need 104 consecutive weeks. If you take a month off, those weeks simply do not count, and you resume when you return.
Which will you hit last? At any point in your journey, project both your total hours and your total supervised weeks. If you are on track to hit 3,000 hours before 104 weeks, you know weeks are your bottleneck and can plan accordingly. If weeks are ahead of hours, focus on maximizing weekly productivity within the 40-hour cap.
Getting Supervisor Signatures: Paper vs Digital
Your supervisor must sign your weekly log each week. This is not optional and it is not something you can batch at the end of the month. The BBS requires weekly supervisor review and attestation of the hours you logged.
The good news: the BBS accepts electronic signatures. Per their 2025 FAQ guidance, digital signatures are valid as long as both parties can attest to their authenticity. This means you do not need to print, sign, scan, and re-file paper logs every week.
Paper signatures
- - Print the weekly log
- - Both parties sign by hand
- - Scan or photocopy for backup
- - Store originals safely for years
Electronic signatures
- - Accepted per BBS 2025 FAQ
- - No printing or scanning required
- - Automatic digital backup
- - Easier to maintain weekly cadence
If your supervisor is leaving: Get every outstanding weekly log signed before their last day. Once they leave, obtaining signatures becomes significantly more difficult, and unsigned logs may not be accepted by the BBS. Best practice: collect signatures within 48 hours of each work week ending.
When to Submit Your Logs to the BBS
A common misconception among new associates: you do NOT submit your weekly logs to the BBS on a rolling basis. There is no weekly, monthly, or annual submission requirement while you are accumulating hours.
Your signed weekly logs (Form 37A-525) and experience verification forms (Form 37A-301) are submitted together with your Application for Licensure Examination once you have completed all requirements. This means you may be storing two to six years of weekly logs.
Organize now, not later. Keep your logs in chronological order by site and supervisor. If you wait until application time to sort through years of paperwork, you will spend weeks reconstructing your records. A digital system that maintains this order automatically saves significant time at the end.
You can download the official forms directly from the BBS: Form 37A-525 (Weekly Log) and Form 37A-301 (Experience Verification).
Spreadsheets vs Purpose-Built Tracking Apps
Spreadsheets are free and flexible. For a single-site associate with one supervisor, they can work fine for the first year. But the BBS requirements are complex enough that spreadsheets fail silently on several critical rules. Here is an honest comparison.
| Capability | Spreadsheet | Tracking App |
|---|---|---|
| Track raw A/B/C hours | Yes | Yes |
| Enforce 40-hr weekly cap | Manual | Automatic |
| Count 104 supervised weeks | Manual | Automatic |
| Track A1 subset progress | If you build it | Built-in |
| Multi-site weekly cap | Cross-reference tabs | Automatic |
| Generate BBS Form 37A-525 | No | One click |
| Supervisor signature tracking | No | Built-in |
| Pre/post-degree separation | Manual | Automatic |
| BBS rule updates | You maintain it | Updated for you |
| Cost | Free | $4.95-7.95/mo (or $49-79/yr) |
We are not saying spreadsheets never work. For a simple, single-site case with one supervisor, they are adequate. But they fail silently on complex situations: the multi-site weekly cap, the 104-week count, the A1 sub-requirement ratio, and pre-degree vs post-degree classification. You will not know something is wrong until you apply for licensure.
How HourJourney Tracks Every BBS Requirement
HourJourney was built by someone with direct experience navigating California BBS licensure. Every feature maps directly to a BBS requirement, so nothing falls through the cracks.
| BBS Requirement | HourJourney Feature |
|---|---|
| A/B/C hour categorization | Guided entry form with A, A1, B, B1, B2 fields that auto-calculate C |
| 40-hour weekly cap | Real-time warning when your combined weekly total approaches or exceeds 40 |
| 104 supervised weeks | Automatic week counter that only increments when hours + supervision are both logged |
| 52 individual supervision weeks | Separate tracker for weeks with individual/triadic supervision |
| 500-hour A1 sub-requirement | Live progress bar showing couples/families/children hours vs. target |
| Pre-degree vs post-degree | Auto-classifies entries based on your degree awarded date |
| Form 37A-525 generation | One-click PDF export pre-filled with your data in BBS format |
| Form 37A-301 generation | Experience verification forms generated per supervisor per site |
| Multi-site aggregation | Dashboard shows combined totals across all sites with per-site breakdown |
Track every hour with confidence
30-day free trial. Plans start at $4.95/month ($49/year) for trainees, $7.95/month ($79/year) for associates. No spreadsheet gymnastics required.
Start Your Free 30-Day TrialFAQ: Tracking LMFT Supervised Hours
How do I track LMFT hours in California?+
Track your hours weekly using the BBS A/B/C category system. Log Column A (direct client contact), Column B (non-clinical experience), and Column C (the weekly total of A + B, capped at 40 hours). Maintain a separate log per supervisor per site, get weekly supervisor signatures, and track your supervised weeks independently of total hours.
Can I track LMFT hours in a spreadsheet?+
You can, but spreadsheets have significant limitations. They cannot automatically enforce the 40-hour weekly cap across multiple sites, count your 104 supervised weeks, flag A1 sub-requirement progress, or generate BBS PDF forms. Spreadsheets work for simple single-site cases but fail silently when your situation becomes more complex.
What is the best app to track LMFT hours?+
HourJourney is a purpose-built BBS hours tracking app for California pre-licensed therapists. It enforces BBS rules automatically (40-hour weekly cap, A/B/C categories, 104 supervised weeks, A1 sub-requirement tracking) and generates pre-filled BBS PDF forms. Plans start at $4.95/month (or $49/year — save 17%) with a 30-day free trial.
How do I track hours at multiple jobs?+
Maintain a separate weekly log for each supervisor-and-site combination. The critical rule: your combined hours across ALL sites in a single week cannot exceed 40. Hours above 40 are permanently lost. A tracking app that aggregates across sites can prevent this; a spreadsheet requires manual cross-referencing each week.
Do I submit my hour logs to the BBS every week?+
No. Keep all signed weekly logs organized in chronological order and submit them together with your Application for Licensure Examination when you have completed all requirements. Your supervisor must still sign the logs weekly, but you do not send anything to the BBS until you are applying for licensure.
How often does my supervisor need to sign my logs?+
Every week. The BBS requires weekly supervisor review and signature. Electronic signatures are accepted per BBS 2025 FAQ guidance. Best practice: get signatures within 48 hours of each work week ending. If your supervisor is leaving, get all outstanding logs signed before their last day.
How do I track my 104 supervised weeks?+
Supervised weeks are counted independently from total hours. A week counts only if you logged experience hours AND received supervision that same week. At least 52 of those 104 weeks must include individual or triadic supervision. Gaps between weeks are fine. Project whether you will reach 3,000 hours or 104 weeks first to plan accordingly.
What happens if I exceed the 40-hour weekly cap?+
Any hours above 40 in a single week are permanently lost. The cap applies across all work settings combined, not per site. For example, 25 hours at Site A plus 20 hours at Site B equals 45 total, but only 40 count. The 5 excess hours cannot be moved to another week or recovered.
How do I make sure my couples and family hours are on track?+
You need at least 500 hours of direct experience treating couples, families, and children (the A1 sub-category within Column A). Track A1 separately and check the ratio periodically: if A1 is consistently below 29% of your total Column A hours, consider adjusting your caseload to include more couples and family cases.
Related guides
California LMFT Hours Requirements: The Complete 2026 Guide
Every hour minimum, maximum, and deadline, in plain English.
BBS Form 37A-525: How to Fill It Out Without Losing Hours
A step-by-step walkthrough of the weekly supervision log.
The 90-Day Rule for AMFTs in California
What counts, what doesn't, and how to protect your hours.
California LMFT 3,000 Hours: The Complete Guide
How the 3,000 total breaks down and strategies to reach it efficiently.
Requirements reflect BBS guidance current as of 2025-2026. Always verify at bbs.ca.gov. This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice.