Licensed Associate Counselor of Mental Health
Delaware Board of Mental Health and Chemical Dependency Professionals
Overview
The Licensed Associate Counselor of Mental Health (LACMH) is Delaware's pre-independent counseling credential for mental health professionals working toward full LPCMH licensure. LACMHs must practice under professional direct supervision as defined by the Delaware Board. To earn the LPCMH, candidates must complete 3,200 hours of supervised experience (including 1,600+ supervised clinical hours and 1,500+ direct client contact hours) over 2-4 consecutive years, with a minimum of 100 clinical supervision hours.
Delaware requires a supervision plan to be filed and approved by the Board BEFORE any hours begin counting — this is a hard prerequisite. The associate license is issued for 2 years and may be renewed up to 2 times (6-year lifetime ceiling). AuditHalo tracks all requirements continuously and alerts your team when any supervisee falls behind.
Summary
3,200 supervised practice hours over 2-4 consecutive years, including 1,600+ supervised clinical hours and 1,500+ face-to-face direct client contact hours (750+ must be individual). 100 supervision hours total, of which at least 60 must be individual (group capped at 40 hours, max 6 per group). Supervisor must be a licensed Professional Counselor of Mental Health (any state) or Board-approved alternative. Supervision plan must be filed and approved by the Board BEFORE hours begin counting.
Hour requirements
- Total practice hours
- 3,200
- Total supervision hours
- 100
- Min. individual share
- 60%
- Group session max
- 6 attendees
- Duration window
- 24 to 48 months
Checks AuditHalo runs
Supervision plan must be submitted to and approved by the Board before acquiring experience (24 Del. C. § 3033(b))
pre_registration_required · blocker
Supervisor must be a licensed Professional Counselor of Mental Health or Board-approved alternative (Admin. Code § 2.5)
supervisor_credential_required · blocker
At least 60 of 100 supervision hours must be individual; group capped at 40 hours (Admin. Code § 2.4.1.2.2)
individual_supervision_minimum_share · warning
Group supervision sessions capped at 6 supervisees (Admin. Code § 2.4.1.2.2)
group_size_limit · blocker
Must accumulate at least 3,200 supervised practice hours (24 Del. C. § 3032(a)(2))
total_practice_hours · info
Must accumulate at least 100 face-to-face professional direct supervision hours (Admin. Code § 2.4.1.2)
total_supervision_hours · info
Experience must be completed in 2-4 consecutive years (24 Del. C. § 3032(a)(2); Admin. Code § 2.4)
duration_window · warning
Supervisor qualifications
- Must be a licensed Professional Counselor of Mental Health in any US state or territory (Admin. Code § 2.5)
- Non-LPCMH supervisors (LMFT, Psychologist, LCSW, physician, APRN) allowed only with Board approval and a compelling clinical reason (Admin. Code § 2.5.1)
- Out-of-state supervisors must attest familiarity with Delaware statutes and rules (Admin. Code § 2.5.2)
- Must have at least 2 years post-licensure experience with no disciplinary actions (Admin. Code § 2.5.3.1)
- Must have 3 CE hours in clinical supervision within 2 years of application, or 12 lifetime hours (Admin. Code § 2.5.3.2)
- May supervise no more than 10 supervisees at a time (Admin. Code § 2.5.3.3)
Common mistakes to avoid
- The supervision plan MUST be filed with and approved by the Board BEFORE any hours begin counting — this is statutory (24 Del. C. § 3033(b)), not discretionary
- The 4-year window is consecutive — experience must be completed within 4 consecutive years from the start date
- At least 750 of the 1,500 direct client contact hours must be individual face-to-face sessions — group, couple, and family sessions can only fill the other 750
- Group supervision is capped at 40 of 100 hours — if you use any group supervision, at least 60 hours must be individual
- Any change in supervisor must be reported to the Board within 30 days on the approved form
- Supervised clinical work must occur in a HIPAA-covered setting designated for professional mental health counseling (Admin. Code § 2.3)
- The LACMH license has a 6-year lifetime ceiling (2-year term, renewable up to 2 times)
Verification
- Last verified
- 2026-07-21
- Verified by
- perplexity_research
Evidence package
Required signers: supervisor, supervisee
Immutability: sha256_signed_json
Track your DE hours
AuditHalo evaluates every hour you log against this rule and flags issues before they become problems.
Start freeDE LACMH — common questions.
How many supervised hours does a LACMH need in Delaware?
3,200 total supervised practice hours over 2-4 consecutive years. Within those, at least 1,600 must be supervised clinical experience, at least 1,500 must be face-to-face direct client contact (750+ individual), and at least 100 must be clinical supervision hours (60+ individual, 40 max group).
What qualifies as an approved supervisor in Delaware?
The default is a Licensed Professional Counselor of Mental Health (LPCMH) licensed in any US state. Other licensed professionals (LMFT, Psychologist, LCSW, physician, APRN) may supervise with Board approval and a compelling clinical reason. All supervisors must have 2+ years post-licensure experience, no disciplinary actions, and clinical supervision CE credits.
Must the supervision plan be filed before I start?
Yes — this is a statutory requirement. The plan must be submitted to and approved by the Board before acquiring any professional mental health counseling experience. Hours logged before plan approval do not count.
Can supervision be done via video in Delaware?
Yes. Delaware defines 'face-to-face' to include both in-person and live video conferencing (Admin. Code § 2.3). This applies to both client contact hours and supervision meetings.
Does AuditHalo generate the documentation Delaware requires?
AuditHalo generates tamper-evident evidence packages for each supervision session including date, duration, session type, supervisor credentials, and intent-confirmed signatures from both parties. The package is SHA-256 hashed and immutable. The Board's end-of-experience Direct Supervision Reference Form is submitted separately by the supervisor when applying for LPCMH.
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