What LSW and LCSW Stand For
LSW stands for Licensed Social Worker. LCSW stands for Licensed Clinical Social Worker. Both licenses sit under the same statute, 225 ILCS 20 (the Clinical Social Work and Social Work Practice Act), administered by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) through its Social Work Examining and Disciplinary Board, but the statute defines them as two separate licenses, not two levels of one title.
The LSW is "a person who holds a license authorizing the practice of social work... Social casework and social group work may also include clinical social work, as long as it is not conducted in an independent practice" (225 ILCS 20/3(9)). IDFPR's own shorthand: "Licensed Social Worker is the SUPERVISED PRACTICE level license." It carries profession code 150.
The LCSW is "a person who holds a license authorizing the independent practice of clinical social work in Illinois" (225 ILCS 20/3(4)). IDFPR calls it the "INDEPENDENT PRACTICE level license." It carries profession code 149.
As of the IDFPR Active License Report dated September 1, 2026, 12,802 people hold an active LSW and 22,106 hold an active LCSW. The LSW count is a ceiling, not a pipeline: the LSW is a standalone, indefinitely renewable license, and not everyone holding one is working toward the LCSW.
LSW vs LCSW, Side by Side
Every figure below traces to a specific statute section, rule section, or the IDFPR Active License Report.
| Category | LSW | LCSW | Cite |
|---|---|---|---|
| What it authorizes | Practice of social work | Independent practice of clinical social work | 225 ILCS 20/3(9), (4) |
| Independent practice | No, under a professional's responsibility | Yes | 20/10(c); 1470.97(c) |
| Degree | CSWE-accredited MSW (or BSW route) | MSW, or doctorate (2,000-hour track) | 1470.30; 1470.20(a)(1),(2) |
| Exam | None, since January 1, 2022 | ASWB Clinical, or the exam alternative | 1470.70(a),(b); 20/8.2 |
| Post-degree experience | None required | 3,000 hours (2,000 doctorate) | 1470.20(a)(1),(2) |
| Application fee | $50 | $50 | 1470.55 |
| Renewal date and fee | November 30, odd years, $30/year | November 30, odd years, $30/year | 1470.90; 1470.55(b) |
| CE | 30 hrs / 24 mo, incl. 3 ethics + 3 cultural competence | Same, plus 6 hrs supervision CE once | 1470.95(a)(1),(2) |
| Protected titles | "social worker," "licensed social worker" | "clinical social worker," "licensed clinical social worker" | 20/10(a),(b) |
| Active licensees | 12,802 | 22,106 | Active License Report, 9/1/2026 |
Can an LSW Do Therapy in Illinois?
Yes, with a boundary drawn around independent practice rather than around the clinical work itself. The statute's definition of the LSW states that "social casework and social group work may also include clinical social work, as long as it is not conducted in an independent practice" (225 ILCS 20/3(9)). Treatment procedures under the Act include "among other things, individual, marital, family, and group psychotherapy" (225 ILCS 20/3(6)), and none of that is off-limits to an LSW on its own.
What changes in an independent practice setting is who answers for the case. There, an LSW "shall practice at all times under the order, control, and full professional responsibility of a licensed clinical social worker, a licensed clinical psychologist, a licensed clinical professional counselor, a licensed marriage and family therapist, or a psychiatrist" (225 ILCS 20/10(c), effective January 1, 2025). That list is wider than the LCSW-only rule that governs who can supervise an applicant's LCSW hours, covered below.
The same rule sets the LSW's employment status in that setting: "a licensed social worker shall always operate and represent themself as an employee of the independent practice and may not work as an independent contractor as defined by Internal Revenue Service regulations" (68 IAC 1470.97(c)). An LSW doing clinical work can be a salaried employee under one of those five professionals; an LSW cannot be a contractor running the case on their own.
The Path From LSW to LCSW, Step by Step
The master's-level route to the LCSW starts with a CSWE-accredited MSW. The next step is the LSW itself: a $50 application, and no exam, since "beginning January 1, 2022, an applicant for licensure as a licensed social worker is not required to take an examination" (68 IAC 1470.70(a); P.A. 102-0326). For everything the LSW covers on its own, see the Illinois LSW license.
The LCSW itself requires 3,000 hours of "satisfactory, supervised clinical professional experience subsequent to the receipt of the degree," or 2,000 hours with a doctorate (68 IAC 1470.20(a)(1),(2)). The rule sets weekly bands rather than a target pace: full-time experience runs "a minimum of 30 hours per week but not more than 40 hours per week," and part-time experience runs "not more than 29 hours per week" (1470.20(a)(3)).
Supervision throughout those hours comes from a licensed clinical social worker only: "after January 1, 1995, only experience supervised by a licensed clinical social worker will be acceptable" (1470.20(a)(4)(C)), meeting "an average of at least 4 hours each month to discuss client cases and treatment procedures" (1470.20(a)(4)(A)). The full supervisor rules, including where that supervision can happen and whether it can be paid, are in Illinois LCSW supervision requirements.
The exam is the Clinical ASWB examination, and IDFPR now grants automatic approval to sit for it at application, ahead of the hours finishing. A separate exam alternative exists in one sentence: an additional 3,000 hours of supervised professional experience, earned after at least one ASWB Clinical attempt on or after January 1, 2019, under a wider list of eligible supervisors (225 ILCS 20/8.2).
At application, each supervisor completes a VE-SW form and returns it "DIRECTLY TO THE APPLICANT IN A SEALED ENVELOPE", one form per supervisor, filed with the $50 LCSW application (68 IAC 1470.55). Both licenses then renew on the same calendar: November 30 of odd-numbered years (1470.90).
What Changes on January 1, 2027
Today, LCSW hours count from the date the MSW is received, whether or not the applicant has been issued the LSW yet. Public Act 104-702 changes that, effective January 1, 2027, by amending 225 ILCS 20/9.
| Period | Which hours count |
|---|---|
| Today, through December 31, 2026 | Hours count from the MSW, whether or not the LSW has been issued. |
| From January 1, 2027 | Hours count only if completed "subsequent to securing a master's degree in social work from an approved program and obtaining a social worker license under Section 9A or temporarily practicing pending the issuance of a social worker license under Section 9B if the license was ultimately issued" (225 ILCS 20/9, as amended by P.A. 104-702). |
The amendment carries its own grandfather clause for hours already on the books: "any hours of supervised clinical professional experience completed before the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 104th General Assembly may be counted toward the required hours... if the hours were completed subsequent to securing an applicable graduate degree and the completed hours would have qualified toward licensure under the law in effect at the time the hours were earned" (225 ILCS 20/9, as amended).
Endorsement applicants are carved out of the licensed-while-earning rule under the amended 225 ILCS 20/12.5. Part 1470 and the current IDFPR qualification sheets have not been rewritten to reflect any of this yet; the 149 sheet, effective 05/2025, does not mention the change.
Get the LSW before 2027. Apply for it before the first hour you mean to count toward the LCSW once 2027 arrives. Hours earned under today's rule, MSW-only, keep qualifying under the grandfather clause; hours earned after January 1, 2027 need the LSW (or 9B pending status) in place first.
How Long the Gap Between LSW and LCSW Is
Part 1470 sets weekly bands, not a stated minimum duration in weeks or months, so the timeline runs on arithmetic from the 3,000-hour total and the weekly caps in 1470.20(a)(3). At the full-time maximum of 40 hours a week, 3,000 hours arrives in about 75 weeks. At the part-time maximum of 29 hours a week, the same 3,000 hours takes just over 103 weeks. Neither number is a rule the way the hour total and the weekly bands are; both are the arithmetic consequence of dividing 3,000 by a weekly ceiling the rule does set.
There is no deadline to finish. The LSW itself renews indefinitely every two years, so nothing forces the clock to stop or restart while the 3,000 hours are still being earned, unlike a credential with a fixed non-renewable term.
Protected Titles: Who Can Call Themselves What
Illinois law protects two separate sets of titles. For the LSW: "social worker" and "licensed social worker" (225 ILCS 20/10(a); 68 IAC 1470.97(d)). For the LCSW: "clinical social worker" and "licensed clinical social worker" (225 ILCS 20/10(b)). Someone who has not earned either license cannot use either set of words to describe their practice in Illinois.
Illinois has no supervisor-designation credential layered on top of the LCSW. An Illinois LCSW is, by rule, qualified to supervise an applicant's LCSW hours without any separate title or suffix attached to that status.
Illinois runs the same two-tier shape on its counselor license: an LPC is the supervised-practice license and an LCPC is the independent one. If that is your track instead, see LPC vs LCPC in Illinois.
Track Every Hour From Day One
Illinois' verification form asks for a single clinical-hours total per supervisor, with no direct or indirect split. A supervisee who never kept a running total still has to reconstruct months of work by hand when a supervisor sits down to sign off. HourJourney keeps the record clean from the start:
- ✓Log every week's hours once, by supervisor and by site
- ✓Running totals, so your clinical-hours count is always visible
- ✓A per-supervisor record you can hand to whoever signs your verification form
- ✓Export history so nothing is reconstructed from memory
Built for pre-licensed clinicians.
Related Illinois Social Work Guides
Illinois LCSW Requirements
The full 3,000-hour breakdown, weekly bands, and every rule cite.
Illinois LCSW Supervision Requirements
Supervisor eligibility, the monthly rate, and what counts as acceptable supervision.
The Illinois LSW License
What the supervised-practice license requires and covers on its own.
LPC vs LCPC in Illinois
The same two-tier shape on the Illinois counselor track.
All Illinois Guides
Every Illinois licensure guide across the counselor, MFT, and social work tracks.
FAQ: LSW vs LCSW in Illinois
What is an LSW?▾
An LSW is a Licensed Social Worker, Illinois' supervised-practice social work license, profession code 150. The statute defines it as "a person who holds a license authorizing the practice of social work," and notes that social casework and group work "may also include clinical social work, as long as it is not conducted in an independent practice" (225 ILCS 20/3(9)). IDFPR's own shorthand is the "SUPERVISED PRACTICE level license." As of September 1, 2026, 12,802 people hold one.
What does LSW stand for?▾
Licensed Social Worker. It is issued by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) under 225 ILCS 20 and 68 Ill. Adm. Code Part 1470, on a master's degree in social work from a CSWE-accredited program, with no exam and no post-degree experience required. A bachelor's-degree route exists separately, supervised toward the LSW itself rather than the LCSW.
What is the difference between an LSW and an LCSW in Illinois?▾
The LSW authorizes "the practice of social work"; the LCSW authorizes "the independent practice of clinical social work in Illinois" (225 ILCS 20/3(9), 20/3(4)). An LSW can do clinical work, but only under a qualified professional's order, control, and full professional responsibility. An LCSW answers for the case on their own. Getting from one to the other, for a master's-level applicant, means 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience and the ASWB Clinical exam (1470.20(a); 1470.70(b)).
Can an LSW do therapy in Illinois?▾
Yes, within limits. Clinical social work, which includes "individual, marital, family, and group psychotherapy" as a treatment procedure, is part of what an LSW can practice, "as long as it is not conducted in an independent practice" (225 ILCS 20/3(9), 20/3(6)). In independent practice, an LSW works "under the order, control, and full professional responsibility" of an LCSW, a licensed clinical psychologist, an LCPC, an LMFT, or a psychiatrist, and must be an employee rather than an independent contractor there (225 ILCS 20/10(c), effective January 1, 2025; 68 IAC 1470.97(c)).
How do you go from LSW to LCSW in Illinois?▾
Earn the MSW, hold the LSW (no exam has been required for it since January 1, 2022), then complete 3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience after the degree, 2,000 for a doctorate (1470.20(a)). Supervision comes from an LCSW, averaging at least 4 hours a month (1470.20(a)(4)(A),(C)). Pass the ASWB Clinical exam, file a VE-SW form from each supervisor, and submit the $50 LCSW application (1470.55; 1470.70(b)).
Do I need the LSW before my LCSW hours count?▾
Today, no: LCSW hours count from the date the MSW is received, whether or not the LSW is held (1470.20(a)). From January 1, 2027, that changes. P.A. 104-702 amends 225 ILCS 20/9 so hours count only if earned after the MSW and after the LSW is issued, or while temporarily practicing pending the LSW if it is ultimately issued. Hours already earned by then still count if they would have qualified under the law in effect when they were earned (225 ILCS 20/9, as amended).
Can an LSW bill insurance in Illinois?▾
IDFPR's licensing rules for the LSW and LCSW, 225 ILCS 20 and 68 Ill. Adm. Code Part 1470, do not address insurance billing or reimbursement at all. Billing eligibility is set by individual insurers, Medicaid rules, and provider-enrollment policy, none of which appear in the IDFPR sources this page is built from. This page does not speculate on billing eligibility; confirm directly with the payer in question.
How long does it take to go from LSW to LCSW in Illinois?▾
It depends on the weekly hours worked, since Part 1470 sets bands rather than a total duration. At the full-time maximum of 40 hours a week, 3,000 hours arrives in about 75 weeks. At the part-time maximum of 29 hours a week, the same 3,000 hours takes just over 103 weeks. Both figures are arithmetic, not a stated duration floor; Part 1470 states no minimum number of weeks or months for the LCSW hours (1470.20(a)(3)).
More on the Illinois social work track
Once you know which license you are aiming at, the next questions are usually Illinois LCSW requirements, Illinois LCSW supervision requirements, and the Illinois LSW license. For every Illinois guide across all three tracks, see all Illinois guides or browse the guides index.
Illinois's third supervised track is marriage and family therapy: see Illinois ALMFT to LMFT hours requirements.
Requirements verified against 225 ILCS 20 and 68 Ill. Adm. Code Part 1470 (last amended effective August 4, 2025), plus the IDFPR Qualifications for Licensure sheets for profession codes 149 and 150. Read the rule in full at Part 1470 on ILGA or start at idfpr.illinois.gov. Statutes and regulations can change. Always confirm current requirements with IDFPR before making decisions about your licensure path. This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice.