(a) Each applicant for licensure as a marital and family therapist shall present to the department satisfactory evidence that such applicant has: (1) Completed a graduate degree program specializing in marital and family therapy from a regionally accredited college or university or an accredited postgraduate clinical training program accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education offered by a regionally accredited institution of higher education; (2) completed a supervised practicum or internship with emphasis in marital and family therapy supervised by the program granting the requisite degree or by an accredited postgraduate clinical training program, accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education offered by a regionally accredited institution of higher education in which the student received a minimum of five hundred direct clinical hours that included one hundred hours of clinical supervision; (3) completed twelve months of relevant postgraduate experience, including (A) a minimum of one thousand hours of direct client contact offering marital and family therapy services subsequent to being awarded a master's degree or doctorate or subsequent to the training year specified in subdivision (2) of this subsection, and (B) one hundred hours of postgraduate clinical supervision provided by a licensed marital and family therapist; and (4) passed an examination prescribed by the department. The fee shall be three hundred fifteen dollars for each initial application.

(b) The department may grant licensure without examination, subject to payment of fees with respect to the initial application, to any applicant who is currently licensed or certified as a marital or marriage and family therapist in another state, territory or commonwealth of the United States, provided such state, territory or commonwealth maintains licensure or certification standards which, in the opinion of the department, are equivalent to or higher than the standards of this state. No license shall be issued under this section to any applicant against whom professional disciplinary action is pending or who is the subject of an unresolved complaint.

(c) Licenses issued under this section may be renewed annually in accordance with the provisions of section 19a-88. The fee for such renewal shall be three hundred twenty dollars. Each licensed marital and family therapist applying for license renewal shall furnish evidence satisfactory to the commissioner of having participated in continuing education programs. The commissioner shall adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, to (1) define basic requirements for continuing education programs, which shall include not less than one contact hour of training or education each registration period on the topic of cultural competency and, on and after January 1, 2016, not less than two contact hours of training or education during the first renewal period in which continuing education is required and not less than once every six years thereafter on the topic of mental health conditions common to veterans and family members of veterans, including (A) determining whether a patient is a veteran or family member of a veteran, (B) screening for conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, risk of suicide, depression and grief, and (C) suicide prevention training, (2) delineate qualifying programs, (3) establish a system of control and reporting, and (4) provide for waiver of the continuing education requirement for good cause.

(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of this section, an applicant who is currently licensed or certified as a marital or marriage and family therapist in another state, territory or commonwealth of the United States that does not maintain standards for licensure or certification that are equivalent to or higher than the standards in this state may substitute three years of licensed or certified work experience in the practice of marital and family therapy, as defined in section 20-195a, in lieu of the requirements of subdivisions (2) and (3) of subsection (a) of this section.

(P.A. 85-507, S. 2, 5; P.A. 87-212, S. 1, 4; P.A. 89-251, S. 104, 203; P.A. 95-289, S. 3; P.A. 97-213, S. 2, 13; 97-311, S. 18; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 99-2, S. 53, 72; P.A. 00-135, S. 8, 21; P.A. 02-89, S. 46; P.A. 07-252, S. 76; P.A. 09-232, S. 44; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3, S. 212; P.A. 10-117, S. 67; P.A. 13-76, S. 4; 13-208, S. 70; P.A. 14-231, S. 57; P.A. 15-242, S. 63; 15-244, S. 122; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 15-5, S. 474; P.A. 18-168, S. 43.)

History: P.A. 87-212 added provision that the degree program in a related mental health field be approved by a certifying authority for the profession in which the degree is offered and made a technical change; P.A. 89-251 increased the fee from $150 to $450; P.A. 95-289 amended Subsec. (a), changing certification to licensure and increasing requirements, grandfathering in those certified as of the effective date of the act i.e. October 1, 1995, and reducing application fee from $450 to $250, and amended Subsec. (b), changing certification to licensure and eliminating the requirement that an out-of-state applicant be currently practicing; P.A. 97-213 amended Subsec. (a)(1) to allow licensure if applicant has completed an accredited postgraduate clinical program and to delete provision that any person certified under chapter shall be deemed licensed, amended Subsec. (a)(2) to substitute “twenty-four consecutive months” for “eighteen consecutive months”, amended Subsec. (a)(3) to insert Subpara. designators, added new Subsec. (c) re requirements for licensure in effect prior to January 1, 1998, and made technical changes, effective June 26, 1997; P.A. 97-311 added provisions as Subsec. (c) substantially similar to those added by P.A. 97-213, except that in P.A. 97-213 the word “and” appeared before “(2) successfully completed” whereas in P.A. 97-311, which passed the second house after P.A. 97-213, the word “or” appeared before “(2) successfully completed”; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 99-2 amended Subsec. (c) by extending from 1998 to 2000 the time for application for and granting of a license and by making a technical change, effective July 1, 1999; P.A. 00-135 made technical changes and added new Subsec. (d) re continuing education, effective May 26, 2000; P.A. 02-89 deleted as obsolete Subsec. (c) requiring the commissioner to grant a license not later than February 6, 2000, to any person who applies for licensure prior to January 1, 2000, and submits satisfactory evidence of certain relevant experience or successful completion of certain educational programs and redesignated Subsec. (d) as Subsec. (c); P.A. 07-252 amended Subsec. (a)(2) to delete minimum number of months required for supervised practicum or internship and time period within which to complete such practicum or internship, effective July 12, 2007; P.A. 09-232 amended Subsec. (a)(3)(B) by deleting language re licensed marital and family therapist not being directly compensated by applicant for providing required supervision; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 09-3 amended Subsecs. (a) and (c) to increase fees from $250 to $315; P.A. 10-117 amended Subsec. (b) by permitting licensure of applicant who is licensed in another state, territory or commonwealth of the United States provided such state, territory or commonwealth maintains licensure or certification standards that are equivalent to or higher than the standards of this state and added Subsec. (d) re substitution of 5 years of licensed or certified work experience in lieu of requirements of Subsec. (a)(2) and (3); P.A. 13-76 amended Subsec. (c)(1) by adding provision re continuing education to include training or education in cultural competency, effective October 1, 2013, and applicable to registration periods beginning on and after October 1, 2014; P.A. 13-208 amended Subsec. (a) by substituting provision re program accredited by Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education and offered by a regionally accredited institution of higher education for provision re program approved by said commission and recognized by U.S. Department of Education in Subdiv. (1), and by substituting provision re practicum or internship supervised by program accredited by Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education and offered by a regionally accredited institution of higher education for provision re practicum or internship supervised by program approved by said commission and recognized by U.S. Department of Education in Subdiv. (2); P.A. 14-231 amended Subsec. (d) by replacing 5 years with 3 years re substitution of work experience; P.A. 15-242 amended Subsec. (c) by adding provisions re training or education on topic of mental health conditions common to veterans and family members of veterans; P.A. 15-244 amended Subsec. (c) to increase renewal fee from $315 to $320, effective July 1, 2015; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 15-5 changed effective date of P.A. 15-244, S. 122, from July 1, 2015, to October 1, 2015, and applicable to the renewal of a license or certificate that expires on or after that date, effective June 30, 2015; P.A. 18-168 amended Subsec. (a)(3) by replacing “a minimum of twelve months of relevant postgraduate experience, including at least (A) one thousand hours” with “completed twelve months of relevant postgraduate experience, including (A) a minimum of one thousand hours”.