One Application Form for Three Professions
A graduate who wants to practice psychotherapy in Florida before full licensure registers as an intern first. Whether that path leads to Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, or Licensed Mental Health Counselor, the application filed is the same document: Form DH-MQA 1175, Application for Registration as a Registered Intern for Clinical Social Work, Marriage & Family Therapy or Mental Health Counseling (Revised 5/2025) (64B4-3.0085(1)). What changes between the three is the education behind the application and, later, the exam and supervisor rules that apply once registered.
What Goes in With the Form
The DH-MQA 1175 filing is not the form alone. It goes to the Board with a $150 nonrefundable fee (64B4-4.015), a signed letter from the applicant's qualified supervisor, and Livescan fingerprints. Florida statute caps the intern registration fee at $200 (s. 491.0045(2)(a), F.S.); $150 is the current amount charged under that cap.
The supervisor's letter is not optional paperwork. The qualified supervisor submits a signed letter to the Board agreeing to supervise, naming the applicant, the supervisor and the supervisor's license number, before supervision may begin (64B4-3.0085(2); 64B4-2.0025(5)(a)-(b)). Separately, every qualified supervisor also files a Qualified Supervisor Statement, Form DH-MQA 5049 (Revised 3/2025), before that supervision begins (64B4-2.0025(4)).
Livescan fingerprinting through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is required for initial registration, with the cost paid by the applicant (s. 456.0135, F.S.).
The Degree Behind the Application
For the RCSWI application, the degree is a CSWE-accredited master's or doctoral program in social work, including 24 semester hours or 32 quarter hours in theory of human behavior and practice methods, with at least one course in psychopathology (s. 491.005(1)(c), F.S.). An applicant whose program did not emphasize direct clinical services may register with as few as 15 semester or 22 quarter hours completed, with the rest of the coursework due before exam approval (s. 491.005(1)(d), F.S.).
For the RMHCI application, the degree requirement includes the equivalent of at least 700 hours of university-sponsored supervised clinical practicum, internship, or field experience, including at least 280 hours of direct client services (s. 491.005(4)(c)1.c, F.S.). See Florida LMHC requirements for how that practicum fits into the full path to licensure, and Florida LCSW requirements for how the coursework above fits the RCSWI path.
Registering Is Not the Same as Starting the Clock
Filing the DH-MQA 1175 does not, by itself, put an intern on the clock for clinical or supervision hours. Nothing counts until the Board has approved the qualified supervisor named on the file: "Experience obtained under the supervision of a qualified supervisor will not count toward completion of the experience requirement until the registered intern has received board approval of the qualified supervisor" (64B4-3.0085(4)). For the full supervision rules that follow, see Florida registered intern supervision requirements.
Registration and supervisor approval are two separate things. Client sessions under a supervisor do not bank hours until that supervisor is approved.
If the Graduate Program Didn't Fully Cover the Practicum
Each track has its own form for a qualified supervisor to complete when the graduate program's practicum did not fully satisfy the degree requirement. For an RCSWI applicant, that is the Supervision Plan Form for Registered Clinical Social Work Interns, HD5044-MQA (Revised 02/20), submitted by the qualified supervisor as an acceptable plan for meeting the clinical-practicum hours the program left short (64B4-3.0085(6)).
For an RMHCI applicant, the equivalent is HD5047-MQA, Graduate-Level Practicum, Internship, or Field Experience Verification for Mental Health Counseling (Revised 02/20), completed by the qualified supervisor under the same circumstances (64B4-3.0085(9)). For an RMFTI applicant, it is DH5045-MQA, the marriage and family therapy version of that verification (Revised 08/2024), completed by the qualified supervisor when the practicum wasn't fully satisfied by the graduate program (64B4-3.0085(8)).
Where the Application Goes
The Board's address for applications and fees is P.O. Box 6330, Tallahassee, FL 32314-6330, and its email is MQA.491@flhealth.gov. Later in the process, each supervisor files the per-supervisor experience verification, the DH-MQA 1181, by the same email or by mail to the address printed on that form: 4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin C-08, Tallahassee, FL 32399-3258.
What Happens After the Board Approves the Registration
Once the RCSWI, RMHCI, or RMFTI registration is issued, a 60-month clock starts on that issuance date for registrations issued after March 31, 2017, and the registration cannot be renewed (s. 491.0045(5)-(6), F.S.). Everything an intern does toward the clinical experience and supervision requirements has to happen inside that window, working under a supervisor the Board has separately approved. For what the intern does with that window and what happens if it runs out, see the 60-month registered intern limit.
Filing the Registered Intern Application, Step by Step
Confirm the education requirement for your track
CSW: 24/32 semester or quarter hours in theory and practice methods with a psychopathology course, or 15/22 hours under the early-registration option. MHC: the practicum, at least 700 hours including 280 direct-service hours, built into the degree.
Secure a qualified supervisor and their signed letter
The supervisor's letter to the Board, naming the applicant, the supervisor and the supervisor's license number, has to be on file before supervision can begin.
Have your supervisor file the Qualified Supervisor Statement
Form DH-MQA 5049 is a separate filing from the supervisor's letter, and it is the supervisor who files it.
Complete Livescan fingerprinting
Electronic fingerprinting through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, at the applicant's cost.
File DH-MQA 1175 with the $150 fee
One form covers the RCSWI, RMHCI, and RMFTI applications alike.
Add the practicum form only if your program fell short
HD5044-MQA for CSW, HD5047-MQA for MHC, or DH5045-MQA for MFT, each completed by the qualified supervisor.
Send the package to the Board
Email MQA.491@flhealth.gov or mail it to P.O. Box 6330, Tallahassee, FL 32314-6330.
Wait for supervisor approval before counting hours
The registration and the supervisor approval are two separate events. Hours only count after the second one.
Common Mistakes on the Registered Intern Application
Assuming hours count from the registration date
They count from the date the Board approves the qualified supervisor, not from the date the intern registration itself is issued.
Filing DH-MQA 1175 before the supervisor's letter is ready
The supervisor's signed letter has to accompany the application. A file missing it is not a complete package.
Skipping the Qualified Supervisor Statement
DH-MQA 5049 is filed by the supervisor, separately from the supervisor's letter to the Board. Both are required.
Filing a practicum-shortfall form that isn't needed
HD5044-MQA, HD5047-MQA, and DH5045-MQA are only for a practicum the graduate program did not fully satisfy, not a routine attachment.
Filing an RCSWI application without the psychopathology course
The 24/32-hour coursework requirement specifically includes at least one course in psychopathology, not just general theory and practice hours.
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Related Florida Registered Intern Guides
What Is an RCSWI in Florida
The registration itself: title, scope, and where it leads.
What Is an RMHCI in Florida
The mental health counseling registration and its path to licensure.
Florida LCSW Requirements
The full RCSWI-to-LCSW path, hours and all.
Florida LMHC Requirements
The full RMHCI-to-LMHC path, hours and all.
Florida Registered Intern Supervision Requirements
Frequency, delivery mode, and the alternation rule in full.
The 60-Month Registered Intern Limit
What happens at expiration, and the ways out.
FAQ: RCSWI Application in Florida
What form do I use for the RCSWI application in Florida?▾
The RCSWI application, and the RMHCI and RMFTI applications, all use the same form: DH-MQA 1175, Application for Registration as a Registered Intern for Clinical Social Work, Marriage & Family Therapy or Mental Health Counseling (Revised 5/2025), filed with the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling (64B4-3.0085(1)).
How much does the Florida registered intern application cost?▾
The intern registration fee is $150, nonrefundable (64B4-4.015). Florida statute caps this fee at $200 (s. 491.0045(2)(a), F.S.), so $150 is the current rate the Board is charging under that cap, not a separate number of its own.
Does the RCSWI application require fingerprints?▾
Yes. Electronic Livescan fingerprinting through the Florida Department of Law Enforcement is required for initial registration, with the cost borne by the applicant (s. 456.0135, F.S.). It is filed alongside the DH-MQA 1175 application, the qualified supervisor's signed letter, and the $150 fee.
What education do I need before filing an RCSWI application?▾
A CSWE-accredited master's or doctoral degree in social work, including 24 semester or 32 quarter hours in theory of human behavior and practice methods with at least one course in psychopathology (s. 491.005(1)(c), F.S.). An applicant whose program did not emphasize direct clinical services may register with as few as 15 semester or 22 quarter hours completed, with the remainder due before exam approval (s. 491.005(1)(d), F.S.).
When do my hours start counting after I register?▾
Not on the date you register. Hours only count once the Board has approved the qualified supervisor named on your file: 'Experience obtained under the supervision of a qualified supervisor will not count toward completion of the experience requirement until the registered intern has received board approval of the qualified supervisor' (64B4-3.0085(4)).
Where do I send the Florida registered intern application?▾
To the Board, by email at MQA.491@flhealth.gov or by mail to the Board's applications address, P.O. Box 6330, Tallahassee, FL 32314-6330. The supervisor's later per-supervisor experience verification (DH-MQA 1181) uses the same email, or mail to the address printed on that form: 4052 Bald Cypress Way, Bin C-08, Tallahassee, FL 32399-3258.
Is the RCSWI application the same as the RMHCI and RMFTI applications?▾
The form is identical: DH-MQA 1175 covers all three professions on one document, filed with the same $150 fee and the same qualified supervisor letter (64B4-3.0085(1)-(3)), and the same Livescan fingerprints (s. 456.0135, F.S.). What differs by profession is the graduate education behind it and, later, which national exam and supervisor-eligibility rules apply.
More Florida guides
For the Board's other registered-intern guides and the rest of the cluster, see all Florida guides.
Requirements verified against Chapter 491, F.S. and Rule Chapter 64B4, F.A.C., as adopted by the Florida Board of Clinical Social Work, Marriage and Family Therapy and Mental Health Counseling and current as of September 2026. Statutes and rules can change. Always confirm current requirements at floridasmentalhealthprofessions.gov before making decisions about your licensure path. This guide is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or professional advice.