Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (marriage and family therapist) · New Jersey · regulated by New Jersey State Board of Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners · high confidence
| Pre-license credential | Licensed Associate Marriage and Family Therapist (LAMFT) |
|---|---|
| Supervised experience | Two calendar years of supervised MFT experience plus one calendar year of counseling experience (calendar year = 1,500 hours) |
| Supervision | Minimum 50 hours face-to-face supervision per supervised calendar year (1 hour/week) |
| Minimum time | Calendar year = 1,500 hours over 50 weeks (full-time) or ≥750 hours in each of two 50-week periods |
| Time limit | No experience deadline; LAMFT license is 2 years, renewable ≤2 times (≤6 years as LAMFT) |
| Weekly cap | No more than 30 hours/week and 125 hours/month |
| Exams | AMFTRB National Marriage and Family Therapy Examination |
Supervision
- How much: Minimum 50 hours face-to-face supervision per supervised calendar year (1 hour/week)
- How often: One hour per week
- Group supervision: Not more than one-half of supervision hours; group = 2 to 6 supervisees
- Who may supervise: ≥5 full-time years MFT practice; NJ LMFT, or other NJ license with MFT/MSW/equivalent graduate training; ≤6 full-time supervisees
When hours count and what to keep
- Before your degree: Master's route: two of the three calendar years must follow the master's; post-master's/doctoral route: one year after that degree
- Paperwork: Board-approved LAMFT Clinical Supervision Plan; supervisor forms every six months; 'Documentation of Experience' forms for MFT and general counseling; Client Contact and Supervision Hours
Can you be supervised remotely in New Jersey?
Only partly. Some supervision or presence must be in person or on site. What shapes this: in-person minimum, prior board approval, video limited.
- Video supervision: ≤50% of supervision hours by telesupervision; real-time two-way video in which the supervisor sees the supervisee; asynchronous may only augment
- Phone only: not allowed (audio-only telephone, email, IM, text or fax in isolation are not telesupervision)
- In-person minimum: ≥50% of supervision hours face-to-face in person; at least one in-person meeting before telesupervision starts
- Supervisor licensed in New Jersey? required: NJ MFT license, or another NJ license plus qualifying MFT-related degree, and ≥5 full-time years of MFT practice
- Supervisor credential: Qualified supervisor per 13:34-2.4(a) (NJ license + 5 years); before telesupervising, ≥6 hours of telesupervision education/training from an approved entity
- Supervisee cap: ≤ equivalent of 6 full-time mental health professionals at one time; group supervision 2-6
- Board approval first: Written supervision plan must be approved by the Board before the LAMFT performs counseling; supervision documentation filed every 6 months
The client’s location decides which state’s rules apply. This is not legal advice; confirm with the board before building a program. Compare every state on the remote-supervision map.
Recent and pending changes
N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4 amended eff. 9/18/2023 (55 N.J.R. 2014(a)); telesupervision rule at 13:34-3.5
In the board’s own words
“a minimum of two calendar years of supervised marriage and family therapy experience and one calendar year of counseling experience” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4(b)✓ matched in the source
“A minimum of 50 hours of face-to-face supervision, at the rate of one hour per week, of which not more than one-half” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4(b)1i✓ matched in the source
“"One calendar year" means 1,500 hours over a 50-week period, which is considered full-time” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4(a)✓ matched in the source
“an associate marriage and family therapist license shall be renewed no more than two times” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.2(e)✓ matched in the source
“All associate marriage and family therapist licenses shall be issued for a two-year period” — P.L.2017, c.350, s.9 (N.J.S.A. 45:8B-18.1)✓ matched in the source
“marriage and family therapy intern or person preparing for the practice of marriage and family therapy under qualified supervision” — N.J.S.A. 45:8B-6(b) (P.L.2017, c.350, s.3)✓ matched in the source
“A maximum of 1,150 hours of actual marriage and family therapy client contact” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4(b)1ii✓ matched in the source
“No more than one-half of the supervision hours may be provided through telesupervision.” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4(b)1i(1)✓ matched in the source
“shall use interactive, real-time, two-way communication technologies, which shall include a video component that allows the qualified supervisor to see” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-3.5(b)✓ matched in the source
“"Telesupervision" does not include the use, in isolation, of audio-only telephone conversation, electronic mail, instant messaging, phone text, or facsimile transmission.” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4(a)✓ matched in the source
“Have at least one in-person, face-to-face meeting with the intern or licensed associate marriage and family therapist prior to utilizing telesupervision.” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-3.5(a)2✓ matched in the source
“A New Jersey license to practice as a marriage and family therapist” — N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4(a)✓ matched in the source
5 more quotes are in the state explorer.
Other licenses in New Jersey
- LPC (professional counselor)
- LCSW (clinical social worker)
- Psychologist
- All New Jersey licenses · every state
Sources
- N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.4 (experiential requirements for LMFT)
- N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.1 (LMFT licensure; AMFTRB exam)
- N.J.A.C. 13:34-2.2 (LAMFT licensure; renewal limit; supervision plan)
- N.J.A.C. 13:34-3.3 (responsibilities of qualified supervisors)
- N.J.A.C. 13:34-3.5 (telesupervision)
- P.L.2017, c.350 (official chapter law): C.45:8B-6, C.45:8B-18.1, C.45:8B-18.2
- N.J.S.A. 45:8B-18 (experience requirements), Justia 2025 edition (lead; text matches statute history through L.2017 c.350)
- 56 N.J.R. 215(b), Notice of Readoption of N.J.A.C. 13:34 without change, eff. 12/28/2023 (DCA adoptions list)
- NJ Board of MFT Examiners, Applications and Forms
- N.J.A.C. 13:34-3.4 (LAMFT responsibilities)
Checked against New Jersey State Board of Marriage and Family Therapy Examiners’s rules, statutes and publications on September 25, 2026. The board decides; if your situation is unusual, confirm with them.