Social work licensure in Illinois

Requirements last verified August 16, 2026 against the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Professional Regulation.

License levels

LSWLicensed Social Worker
The board lists this level but does not state its ASWB exam on the pages we checked — confirm with them directly.
LCSWLicensed Clinical Social Worker
Requires the ASWB Clinical exam.
3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience after the graduate degree, under a qualified supervisor. The ASWB Clinical exam attempt must have been made on or after 1 January 2019.

Worth knowing about Illinois

Illinois has an exam-alternative pathway to the LCSW under Public Act 103-433 (225 ILCS 20/8.2), effective 1 January 2024 — and it is widely described wrongly. It does not let you skip the exam. IDFPR’s own notice states the law “requires at least one attempt to pass the required licensure examination”, plus 3,000 hours of supervised professional experience that are “in addition to” the 3,000 hours of clinical experience already required. The attempt must have been made since 1 January 2019 and the alternative hours must be no more than ten years old. It is a route for someone who has sat the exam and not passed it — not a way around sitting it.

Common questions about Illinois

Which ASWB exam do I need for Illinois?: LCSW requires the ASWB Clinical exam. Your board tells ASWB which category you are approved to take, so confirm with them before you register — registration fees are nonrefundable.
What social work licenses does Illinois issue?: LSW (Licensed Social Worker); LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker).
How many supervised hours does Illinois require?: LCSW: 3,000 hours. The board sets the conditions on those hours — who may supervise, over what period — so read its own rules before you begin accruing them.
Is this information current?: These requirements were last checked against Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Professional Regulation on 2026-08-16. Licensure rules change without much notice, so treat the board as the authority and this page as a starting point.

Which exam will you sit?

Whatever Illinois calls its license levels, the exam behind them is one of five.

License levels

LSWLicensed Social Worker

The board lists this level but does not state its ASWB exam on the pages we checked — confirm with them directly.

LCSWLicensed Clinical Social Worker

Requires the ASWB Clinical exam.

3,000 hours of supervised clinical experience after the graduate degree, under a qualified supervisor. The ASWB Clinical exam attempt must have been made on or after 1 January 2019.

Worth knowing about Illinois

Common questions about Illinois

Which ASWB exam do I need for Illinois?

LCSW requires the ASWB Clinical exam. Your board tells ASWB which category you are approved to take, so confirm with them before you register — registration fees are nonrefundable.

What social work licenses does Illinois issue?

LSW (Licensed Social Worker); LCSW (Licensed Clinical Social Worker).

How many supervised hours does Illinois require?

LCSW: 3,000 hours. The board sets the conditions on those hours — who may supervise, over what period — so read its own rules before you begin accruing them.

Is this information current?

These requirements were last checked against Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, Division of Professional Regulation on 2026-08-16. Licensure rules change without much notice, so treat the board as the authority and this page as a starting point.