Order the transfer in your ASWBCentral account under Purchase Score Transfer. It costs US$40 per board and ASWB sends it within 7 to 10 business days. The new board accepts it if it uses the same exam category for your license, but it will still want separate license verifications, experience forms and often a state law exam.
You passed the ASWB exam years ago for one state and now you are applying in another. You do not retake it. You order a score transfer, and the new board receives your result directly from ASWB. The part people miss is that the transfer is only one of several things the new board wants, and it is the cheapest and fastest of them.
How do I order the transfer?
From your ASWBCentral account: log in, choose the exam, open the ACTION menu and select "Purchase Score Transfer." Each transfer goes to one board and costs a non-refundable US$40. ASWB says it sends the score within 7 to 10 business days and warns that some boards take longer to post it once received. If your name has changed since you tested, you have to send ASWB legal documentation of the change before it will process the request.
You may see older advice to join ASWB's Social Work Registry, which included a free transfer. ASWB says the Registry no longer accepts new applications or renewals and is shutting down in March 2027; existing members can request record transfers until March 31, 2027. Exam records stay in ASWBCentral, so for most people the US$40 transfer is the route.
Will the new board accept my score?
If the state uses the same exam category for the license you are applying for, yes. ASWB's guidebook says a score "is valid in all states and provinces for the same examination category." The trouble comes when categories do not line up. A Masters pass does not satisfy a board that wants the Clinical exam for its clinical license, and Texas, for one, says it does not accept the Advanced Generalist exam in place of the Clinical. Check the category against the license before paying for anything; which ASWB exam do you need? has the map.
Can a failed score count somewhere with a lower passing mark?
No. ASWB reports each attempt as a pass or a fail, and New York's Office of the Professions puts it plainly: "a failing score cannot be calculated as a passing score." ASWB's transfer page describes sending passed scores.
What else will the new board ask for?
The score proves you passed the exam. It does not prove you are licensed, in good standing or experienced. Expect some combination of:
- License verification from every state where you have held a license, often on the board's own form. New York's endorsement route, for instance, asks each state to complete its Form 3.
- Verification of experience, sometimes from colleagues rather than your supervisor. New York's endorsement route requires verified LCSW practice of at least 10 years, attested on its Forms 4E and 4F.
- A state law or jurisprudence exam, which no transfer covers.
- Transcripts sent directly by the school, and fingerprints in most states.
Order the ASWB transfer early, but do not expect it to be the step that sets your timeline. The license verifications and experience forms usually are. Our License by Endorsement service collects all of it in the order each board wants; see pricing or transferring an LCSW to another state.
Common questions
- How much does it cost to send ASWB scores to another state?
- US$40 per transfer, non-refundable, ordered in ASWBCentral. ASWB's Social Work Registry, which once included a free transfer, is closed to new members and shuts down in March 2027.
- How long does an ASWB score transfer take?
- ASWB says it sends the score within 7 to 10 business days. Some boards take additional time to record it after it arrives.
- Can I transfer a failed ASWB score to a state with a lower cut score?
- No. ASWB reports results as pass or fail, and boards such as New York state that a failing score cannot be treated as a pass. The transfer service sends passed scores.
- Is a score transfer enough to get licensed in a new state?
- No. Boards also want verification of every license you hold, proof of education and often experience, fingerprints, and in many states a jurisprudence exam.
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