Substance Abuse Counselor Requirements in South Carolina: Credentials, Hours and Exams
South Carolina licenses substance abuse counselors through the Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Addiction Counselors, and Psycho-Educational Specialists, created by 2018 Act No. 249.
After a graduate degree (with 48 graduate hours built into it) and a 600-hour internship, you pass a board-approved exam and become an Addiction Counselor Associate under a licensed supervisor, with two years to finish before needing an extension.
From there, 1,120 post-master's supervised hours lead to a Licensed Addiction Counselor licence.
Addiction Professionals of South Carolina runs a separate, private IC&RC certification many facility counselors also pursue.
Verify before you rely on this
At a glance
Addiction Counselor Associate leading to the Licensed Addiction Counselor (LAC), with a Licensed Addiction Counselor Supervisor tier above it.
Separately, Addiction Professionals of South Carolina (APSC) issues ADC-In-Process, ADC, AADC and CS certifications.
A state licence under S.C. Code § 40-75, administered by the SC Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Addiction Counselors, and Psycho-Educational Specialists (LLR), created by 2018 Act No. 249.
APSC, a private IC&RC member board, issues a separate certification.
The LAC requires a master's degree or higher (§ 40-75-220(A)(3)(b)).
The Associate route requires the same graduate-level credential — either a CACREP-accredited addiction program, or a master's, specialist's or doctoral degree that itself includes a minimum of 48 graduate semester hours, 27 of them in listed subject areas including 6 hours of substance use disorder/addiction-specific coursework (Reg.
36-10(2), (3)).
The 48 hours is a requirement within the degree, not a substitute for it.
APSC's ADC requires only a bachelor's; its AADC requires a master's.
Associate internship: 600 hours, of which 300 hours must be primarily with the substance use disordered population, including 120 hours of direct client contact (Reg.
36-10(3)(l)).
LAC: 1,120 hours of post-master's clinical experience and supervision over at least 2 years, including 1,000 hours of documented direct client contact and 120 hours of documented supervision, at least 60 of it individual/triadic (Reg.
36-11).
The licence requires passing "an examination approved by the board" (§ 40-75-220(A)(1)); the Associate submits evidence of a passing score on board-approved examinations (Reg.
36-10(4)).
The exam's name is not stated in the sources read.
APSC requires the IC&RC written exam for ADC (plus an oral interview for bachelor's-level candidates) or for AADC.
§ 40-75-20(4) defines "Assessment" in counseling practice to include "assessing, diagnosing, and treating, using standard diagnostic nomenclature" a client's problems typical of the developmental life cycle, and separately lets a counselor assess more serious problems categorized in standard diagnostic nomenclature if specifically trained to assess and treat that particular problem — with a duty to refer any problem beyond the counselor's own training and competence. § 40-75-20(18)(c) separately lists "referring for further assessment, diagnosis, evaluation and mental health therapy" among an addiction counselor's functions.
The statute does not expressly connect (4)'s Assessment definition to (18)'s addiction-counseling function list.
§ 40-75-290 exempts, among other categories: salaried employees performing trained-for duties solely within a government agency, licensed mental health or AOD facility, accredited academic institution, licensed nonprofit, or research institution (1); students in a supervised course of study (2); nonresidents appropriately licensed or credentialed in their home state, working no more than 5 days a month and 30 days a year (3); volunteers accountable to a sponsoring agency (4); other licensed professionals such as physicians, psychologists, nurses and social workers who don't hold themselves out as licensed addiction counselors (5); clergy acting within ministerial duties for no fee, or acting under an established church's auspices while remaining accountable to it and not holding out as licensed (6); and members of peer or self-help groups such as AA or NA (7).
The state licence has its own reciprocity provision at § 40-75-260: the board may enter reciprocal agreements with states whose addiction-counselor licensure requirements are substantially the same or higher (A), and may license someone currently credentialed in another U.S. jurisdiction who meets the standards defined in regulation (B)(1) — but not while an investigation into the applicant is pending (B)(3).
Separately, APSC, South Carolina's IC&RC member board, accepts reciprocity from other IC&RC or NAADAC boards on a case-by-case basis.
The licence renews every two years with 40 hours of Board-approved continuing education, 34 hours related to the license and 6 hours of ethics (Reg.
36-16(1)); a first-time licensee skips CE for the period the initial license was issued.
As a portion of that same 40 hours — not an addition to it — 1 hour must cover suicide assessment, treatment and management, for renewal cycles ending after 2025 (§ 40-75-250(D)).
Licensed Addiction Counselor Supervisors must separately complete 10 hours of CE in supervision each two-year period.
APSC certification also renews every two years with 40 CE hours including 6 in ethics.
The South Carolina credential ladder
- Addiction Counselor Associate(LACA)Pre-licensure
A state licence issued once the education requirement is met and the licensing exam is passed, but before the supervision and experience hours are complete (§ 40-75-240); the Associate may work only under a licensed addiction counselor supervisor or another approved board-licensed clinician (§§ 40-75-20(5), 40-75-30(A)).
The Associate licence runs on a 2-year clock — an Associate who hasn't finished the remaining requirements in that time may apply to the board for an extension (§ 40-75-240).
- Licensed Addiction Counselor(LAC)Independent
South Carolina's operative SUD counselor licence, required to practise as an addiction counselor in the state; it protects the titles "licensed addiction counselor" and "addiction counselor" (§§ 40-75-30(A), (D)).
- Licensed Addiction Counselor Supervisor(LACS)Supervisor
The licence tier for supervising Associates: § 40-75-230 requires at least 5 years in the practice of addiction counseling, while S.C. Code Regs.
36-12(3) separately asks for at least 3 years of that practice immediately preceding the application — confirm with the board how the two figures apply together.
Regulation 36-12(4) then requires either (a) an existing LPC-S, LMFT-S credential or CCS by SCAADAC, or (b) 36 hours of individual/triadic supervision, over at least two years, by another licensed addiction counselor supervisor or Board-approved supervisor, of the applicant's own supervision of 2 to 6 Addiction Counselor Associates, plus (c) 3 semester hours of graduate study in supervision.
A state licence since 2018, and a private board beside it
South Carolina's licence ladder runs Addiction Counselor Associate to Licensed Addiction Counselor, with a Licensed Addiction Counselor Supervisor tier reached under § 40-75-230's 5-year practice requirement — all administered by LLR's counselor board.
Section 40-75-30(A) makes practising as an addiction counselor without the licence unlawful, and (D) separately protects the titles "licensed addiction counselor" and "addiction counselor."
APSC (formerly SCAADAC), which issues ADC-In-Process, ADC, AADC and CS certifications, is a separate, private IC&RC member board — it is not a substitute for the state licence, and it is a mistake to describe South Carolina as having no addiction-counselor licence.
The same letters mean different tiers in different states; see CADC vs LADC vs LCDC vs CAC.
“It is unlawful for a person to practice as a professional counselor, a marriage and family therapist, or an addiction counselor in this State without being licensed in accordance with this article.”
A master's degree, with 48 graduate hours built into the Associate route
The Licensed Addiction Counselor requires a minimum of a master's degree or higher degree program.
The Associate route can be met through a CACREP-accredited addiction program, or through a master's, specialist's or doctoral degree that itself contains a minimum of 48 graduate semester hours — 27 of them in listed subject areas including 6 hours of substance use disorder/addiction-specific coursework — plus a 100-hour practicum and a 600-hour internship.
The 48 hours is a requirement embedded inside the graduate degree, not an alternative that lets someone skip the degree; a bachelor's alone qualifies only for APSC's separate, private ADC certification.
For which entry tiers take no degree at all, see can you be an addiction counselor without a degree?
“submit evidence of successful completion of a master's degree, specialist's degree or doctoral degree with a minimum of forty-eight (48) graduate semester hours”
1,120 hours post-master's, or 600 for the Associate internship
The Associate internship runs at least 600 hours, of which 300 hours must be primarily with the substance use disordered population and at least 120 hours must be direct client contact.
The LAC itself needs 1,120 hours of post-master's clinical experience and supervision in addiction counseling, performed over not fewer than 2 years, including a minimum of 1,000 hours of documented direct client contact and 120 hours of documented supervision, at least 60 of which must be individual or triadic.
A graduate counting hours should track the internship and post-master's totals separately — they are not the same clock.
For the whole path from coursework to credential, see how to become a substance abuse counselor.
“a minimum of one thousand one hundred twenty (1120) hours of post-master's clinical experience and post master's supervision in addiction counseling performed over a period of not fewer than two (2) years”
The exam comes before the supervised hours, not after
The licence requires passing an examination approved by the Board, and the Associate must submit evidence of a passing score on Board-approved examinations.
Under § 40-75-240, the Associate licence issues once the education requirement is met and that exam is passed — before the supervision and experience hours are completed, not after.
Neither the statute nor the regulation names the exam in the text read, so a candidate should confirm the current exam with LLR before scheduling.
On the parallel private track, APSC requires the IC&RC written exam for ADC, plus an oral interview for bachelor's-level candidates, or the IC&RC written exam for AADC.
“has satisfied the educational requirements, as specified by the board in regulation, for licensure but who has not yet completed the supervision or experience requirements and has passed the examination required for licensure”
Who may supervise an Associate, and what it takes to become one
An Associate may work under a Licensed Addiction Counselor Supervisor, but the statute also allows "other approved board-licensed clinician" (§ 40-75-30(A)), and Reg.
36-11(3) counts "other qualified licensed mental health practitioner approved by the Board prior to beginning supervision" — an Associate isn't limited to an LACS, but that clinician must be Board-approved first.
Reg.
36-10(5) adds a hard gate on top: an Associate can't begin services until a completed, Board-satisfactory supervision plan is received by the Board.
Reaching the supervisor tier itself needs at least 5 years in addiction counseling practice (§ 40-75-230) — Reg.
36-12(3) separately asks for 3 years immediately preceding the application, so confirm with the board how the two apply together — plus either (a) an LPC-S, LMFT-S credential or CCS by SCAADAC, or (b) 36 hours of supervision, over 2+ years, of the applicant's own supervision of 2 to 6 Associates, and (c) 3 semester hours of graduate study in supervision.
“An addiction counselor associate only may work under a licensed addiction counselor supervisor or other approved board-licensed clinician as provided in regulation.”
Diagnosis within trained competence, and a duty to refer beyond it
Section 40-75-20(4) defines "Assessment" in counseling practice to include assessing, diagnosing and treating a client's problems typical of the developmental life cycle, and separately lets a counselor assess more serious problems categorized in standard diagnostic nomenclature if specifically trained to assess and treat that particular problem.
A counselor must refer any problem beyond their own training and competence to a specifically trained licensed professional.
Section 40-75-20(18)(c) separately lists "referring for further assessment, diagnosis, evaluation and mental health therapy" among an addiction counselor's functions.
The statute does not expressly connect (4)'s Assessment definition to (18)'s addiction-counseling function list — a counselor unsure where the line falls in a given case should raise it with LLR or the facility's clinical director.
For what an addiction credential does and does not let you diagnose or bill, see can a certified addiction counselor diagnose or bill insurance?
“assessing, diagnosing, and treating, using standard diagnostic nomenclature, a client's attitudes, abilities, achievements, interests, personal characteristics, disabilities, and mental, emotional, and behavioral problems that are typical of the developmental life cycle”
Moving to South Carolina: two boards, two reciprocity rules
The state licence's reciprocity terms sit in § 40-75-260: the board may enter a reciprocal agreement with a state whose licensure requirements are substantially the same or higher (subsection (A)), and may license someone currently credentialed in another U.S. jurisdiction who meets the standards defined in regulation (B)(1) — except while an investigation into the applicant is pending (B)(3).
A counselor relocating to South Carolina should still confirm current requirements with LLR before assuming another state's licence transfers automatically.
On the separate private track, APSC's Appendix VII accepts reciprocity, case-by-case, from a candidate who currently holds NCAC I, II or MAC, an IC&RC clinical counselor certification, or any state addictions certification or licence built on the NAADAC or IC&RC written exam.
For what IC&RC reciprocity transfers, and why NAADAC credentials do not, see IC&RC vs NAADAC.
“The board may enter into a reciprocal agreement with a state that credentials professional counselors, marriage and family therapists, or addiction counselors if the board finds that the state has substantially the same or higher licensure requirements.”
Two-year renewal, 40 hours with a suicide-assessment hour folded in
The licence is renewed every two years.
Regulation 36-16(1) requires 40 hours of Board-approved continuing education per two-year licensure period — 34 hours related to the license and 6 hours in ethical standards — though a first-time licensee skips CE for the licensing period in which the initial license was obtained.
Section 40-75-250(D) requires at least 1 hour of that same 40-hour total, not an addition to it, to cover suicide assessment, treatment and management, for license renewal cycles ending after 2025.
Licensed Addiction Counselor Supervisors must separately complete 10 hours of CE in supervision each two-year period.
APSC's certification runs on its own two-year cycle, with 40 CE hours including 6 in ethics.
“at least one hour of continuing education in suicide assessment, treatment, and management treatment, which may be completed virtually, as a portion of the total continuing education requirement for license renewal”
Two 2024 laws — one adds CE, the other doesn't reach addiction counselors
2024 Act No. 158, effective May 20, 2024, added the suicide assessment, treatment and management continuing education requirement now in § 40-75-250(D) — but by the act's own SECTION 4, that requirement applies only to license renewal cycles ending after 2025 — since every renewal cycle from here forward ends after 2025, it now applies to every licensee's next renewal.
2024 Act No. 189, effective the next day, added criminal record checks — but only for licensed professional counselor applicants, not addiction counselor applicants, so it should not be described as a new requirement for the LAC.
The Board's regulations 36-10, 36-11 and 36-12 were separately amended effective May 27, 2022 (State Register 46:05), and the licence itself dates from 2018 Act No. 249, effective May 18, 2018.
The facility rule that shapes how counselors are actually staffed
Regulation 61-93.500.508(A) requires each licensed alcohol or drug abuse facility to have at least one Staff Counselor who is fully certified or licensed, with any non-certified or non-licensed counselors under that person's direct on-site supervision.
Subsection (B) goes further: every staff member and volunteer providing clinical counseling services must individually hold one of several qualifications — certification through APSC (or its in-process pathway, completed within 3 years of hire), NAADAC, an IC&RC-approved board, or another DAODAS-approved body; licensure as a psychiatrist, psychologist, social worker, or as a counselor under § 40-75-30; or a Licensed Addiction Counselor Associate credential under appropriate supervision, with full LAC licensure completed within 3 years of hire.
Subsection (E) makes the deadline a hard stop: anyone who misses their certification or licensing window must cease providing counseling services until it's achieved.
Separately, § 40-75-290 exempts several categories of workers from needing the state licence at all — so the two rules interact rather than one simply requiring the other.
“Any individual employed as a direct Patient Counselor, Opioid Treatment Program Counselor, or prevention services professional, to include contracted Staff, who does not obtain his or her certification or licensing within the above time-periods, shall cease providing counseling services until that certification or licensing status is achieved.”
What This Page Does — and Doesn’t — Cover
This page summarizes the South Carolina statute, rules, board pages and other documents cited above, as read for this state-by-state substance abuse counselor requirements series, current as of September 2026.
It does not list application forms, fees beyond those cited above, or processing times, and it is not a substitute for the instructions the South Carolina Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Addiction Counselors, and Psycho-Educational Specialists (Dept. of Labor, Licensing and Regulation) publishes.
Nor does it cover peer specialist certification in South Carolina.
Hour totals, exams and supervision rules change by statute and by board rule; for why the same letters mean different tiers from state to state, see CADC vs LADC vs LCDC vs CAC.
Confirm every requirement with the South Carolina Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Addiction Counselors, and Psycho-Educational Specialists (Dept. of Labor, Licensing and Regulation) before you count hours, register for an exam or apply — and before you take one of the substance abuse counselor jobs in South Carolina that asks for it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a license to be a substance abuse counselor in South Carolina?
It depends on the setting.
Section 40-75-30(A) makes it unlawful to practise as an addiction counselor without a licence, but § 40-75-290 exempts seven categories, including qualifying government, facility, academic, nonprofit or research employees performing the duties they were trained and hired for (1), students in a supervised course of study (2), short-term nonresidents credentialed in their home state (3), sponsored volunteers (4), other licensed professionals (5), clergy acting for no fee or under a church's auspices (6), and peer or self-help group members (7).
Many facility counselors instead hold APSC's private certification, one of several credentials the facility staffing rule (Reg.
61-93.500.508) also accepts.
Can you become a Licensed Addiction Counselor in South Carolina without a master's degree?
No, not on the state licence track.
Section 40-75-220(A)(3)(b) requires a master's degree or higher for the LAC, and the Associate route requires the same graduate-level credential — a CACREP addiction program, or a master's, specialist's or doctoral degree that itself includes 48 graduate semester hours.
That 48-hour figure is a requirement built into the degree, not a way to qualify without one.
A bachelor's degree alone qualifies only for APSC's separate, private ADC certification, which is not the state licence.
How many supervised hours does a Licensed Addiction Counselor need in South Carolina?
1,120 hours of post-master's clinical experience and supervision, performed over not fewer than 2 years, under S.C. Code Regs.
36-11.
That total must include at least 1,000 hours of documented direct client contact and 120 hours of documented supervision, with at least 60 of the supervision hours individual or triadic.
This is separate from the 600-hour internship required for the Addiction Counselor Associate.
Is South Carolina's addiction counselor licence the same as APSC certification?
No. The Licensed Addiction Counselor is a state licence under S.C. Code § 40-75, issued by LLR's counselor board.
Addiction Professionals of South Carolina (APSC) is a separate, private IC&RC member board that issues ADC, AADC and related certifications.
Facilities regulated under Reg.
61-93.500.508 accept either credential for staffing, among several other qualifying certifications and licences, but one does not automatically convert into the other.
If I'm licensed as an addiction counselor in another state, can I transfer my license to South Carolina?
Possibly.
Under § 40-75-260, the board may enter reciprocal agreements with states whose licensure requirements are substantially the same or higher, and it may license someone currently credentialed elsewhere in the U.S. who meets the standards defined in regulation — except while an investigation into that applicant is pending.
Confirm current requirements directly with LLR rather than assuming another state's licence transfers automatically.
Separately, APSC's certification manual says APSC accepts reciprocity from other IC&RC or NAADAC boards on a case-by-case basis — that is APSC's own certification, not the state licence.
More South Carolina & Substance Abuse Counselor Resources
Sources
- S.C. Code Ann. Title 40, Chapter 75 (Professional Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Addiction Counselors, and Psycho-Educational Specialists) (retrieved 2026-09-24)
- S.C. Code Regs. 36-10, 36-11, 36-12, 36-16 (Cornell LII) (retrieved 2026-09-24)
- S.C. Code Regs. § 61-93.500.508, Counselors (II) (Cornell LII) (retrieved 2026-09-24)
- Addiction Professionals of South Carolina, Certification (retrieved 2026-09-24)
- SC Dept. of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, Counselors, MFTs, Addiction Counselors & Psycho-Educational Specialists board page (retrieved 2026-09-24)
Sourced from the statute, rules, board pages and other documents cited above.
Verified September 2026.
This is career information, not legal or clinical advice — confirm current rules with the South Carolina Board of Examiners for Licensure of Professional Counselors, Marriage and Family Therapists, Addiction Counselors, and Psycho-Educational Specialists (Dept. of Labor, Licensing and Regulation).