(a) A person may not engage in or represent that the person is engaged in the practice of marriage and family therapy, professional counseling, psychology, or social work within this state, unless the person is licensed or otherwise authorized to practice by law.
(b) A person is engaged in the practice of marriage and family therapy within this state if any of the criteria set out in §502.002(6) of the Occupations Code occurs while a client is located in this state.
(c) A person is engaged in the practice of professional counseling within this state if any of the criteria set out in §503.003(a) of the Occupations Code occurs while a client is located in this state.
(d) A person is engaged in the practice of psychology within this state if any of the criteria set out in §501.003(b) of the Occupations Code occurs while a client is located in this state.
(e) A person is engaged in the practice of social work within this state if any of the criteria set out in §505.0025 of the Occupations Code occurs while a client is located in this state.
(f) In accordance with §113.002 of the Occupations Code, a licensee of the Executive Council may provide a mental health service, that is within the scope of the license, through the use of a telehealth service to a client who is located outside of this state, subject to any applicable regulation of the jurisdiction in which that client is located. Such conduct does not constitute the practice of marriage and family therapy, professional counseling, psychology, or social work in this state.
(g) For the purposes of this rule, the term "client" means:
  (1) a recipient of marriage and family therapy, professional counseling, psychology, or social work services within the context of a professional relationship, including a child, adolescent, adult, couple, family, group, organization, community, or other populations, or other entities receiving services;
  (2) an individual or entity requesting the services (e.g., an employer, a state, tribal, or federal court, an attorney acting on behalf of his or her client, an office or agency within local, state, or federal government), the recipient of those services (e.g., the subject of an evaluation, assessment, or interview), and an individual or entity interviewed, examined, or evaluated for the purpose of those services (e.g. a collateral witness or collateral sources of information);
  (3) an organization such as a business, charitable, or governmental entity that receives services directed primarily to the organization, rather than to individuals associated with the organization;
  (4) minors and wards in guardianships, as well as their legal guardians; and
  (5) any related term for the recipient of services, such as a patient, evaluee, examinee, interviewee, participant, or any other similar term.

Source Note: The provisions of this §882.23 adopted to be effective September 1, 2020, 45 TexReg 4756; amended to be effective March 27, 2024, 49 TexReg 1944