Did You Know? Exploring Recent Changes to Florida’s MOBILE Act

The 2026 legislative session contained several significant pieces of legislation for marriage and family therapists in Florida. Key issues that were targeted during the legislative session included the licensure by endorsement process and an extension of the deadline for Florida MFTs to graduate from a COAMFTE-accredited program to obtain initial licensure.  

The MOBILE Act is the current pathway for LMFTs to enter the state through licensure by endorsement. This legislation requires LMFTs to have two years of experience and have passed the AMFTRB national exam to utilize this expedited process in Florida. California contains the largest population of marriage and family therapists in the country. Due to the national exam requirement in the MOBILE Act, many qualified California MFTs are not eligible for licensure by endorsement in Florida. During the session, AAMFT introduced a bill through its Access MFTs effort to address the existing barriers in the MOBILE Act. However, the bill did not advance to a hearing. 

Encouragingly, last fall Florida enacted changes to the MOBILE Act that could help address some of the barriers we identified. Through meetings between AAMFT and the Florida Department of Health, the regulatory board staff indicated that the new changes meant that the two years of experience required under the MOBILE Act can include experience gained under intern or associate licensure. This is a much friendlier interpretation than the original provisions in the MOBILE Act. AAMFT will continue to monitor this law as changes are implemented and data is released by the Florida Department of Health.  

In addition to the MOBILE Act, Florida also has a very friendly telehealth law. MFTs can practice telehealth in Florida by registering with the Florida Department of Health, provided they hold an active, unencumbered license in another US state or territory. Under telehealth provider registration, MFTs who took the California exam rather than the national exam are eligible to provide services in Florida. There is not a years of experience requirement to practice telehealth as a registered provider in Florida.  

Shifting to the education accreditation extension for MFTs in Florida, Florida SB 902 was amended to push back the requirement that MFTs graduate from a COAMFTE-accredited program to obtain licensure. Instead of requiring graduation from a COAMFTE-accredited program starting in 2027, the date has been extended to 2032. Although the amendment was successfully added to the SB 902, that bill died on the last day of the session. However, the extension was also added to another piece of legislation, HB 1279, with the help of other groups and legislators tackling the same issue. HB 1279 was signed into law by Governor Ron DeSantis on May 1. 

For questions about these and other licensure or advocacy items in Florida, please reach out to familyteam@aamft.org.