Before granting you a license, every state reviews your history: how you have acted and whether you have told the whole truth. This review applies to people who take the bar exam, who apply to be a Foreign Legal Consultant and who register as in-house counsel.
In the United States, knowing the law is not enough to practice: each state's court must be convinced that the applicant is honest, trustworthy and responsible. That is why, before admitting you, it reviews your history: your studies, your jobs, your finances, any court proceedings and your record as a lawyer in your country.
It is up to you to show that you have good character, not up to the board to prove otherwise. California's rules and New York's instructions say so.
The golden rule
Tell everything, even if it does not help you. Florida's board warns that it has seen many cases in which the applicant's lack of candor ended up being the deciding reason to deny admission, more than what had happened. In New York, any false statement or omission of a material fact can lead to rejection. And in Florida, material omissions can extend to five years the wait before applying again. Besides, what you leave out may come to light: NCBE offers states a service that cross-checks applications to spot people who applied in another jurisdiction without saying so, and in 2023, 45 jurisdictions used it.
The review exists in every route, but it is not the same in all of them.
The state's board investigates your history. In some states it starts before the exam and in others after it, but in all of them the result is the same: without a favorable decision on your character there is no license, even if you pass the exam.
Your character is reviewed here too. In Florida, NCBE investigates it, and The Florida Bar does not accept your application until it receives the NCBE report. In California, the State Bar makes the same moral character determination as for any applicant. In New York, the rule requires the same good character as for a member of the bar.
In all three states you are also asked for a certificate or a letter from the authority that disciplines lawyers in your country.
In Florida, The Florida Bar reviews your application. You state under oath that you are not subject to a disciplinary proceeding and have not been permanently denied admission on character or fitness grounds, and you file certificates of good standing, no more than 30 days old, from every jurisdiction where you are admitted.
Each state organizes the review in its own way. Four examples, and NCBE's role:
Florida Board of Bar Examiners
The Board of Bar Examiners, an agency of the Supreme Court of Florida, investigates every applicant and recommends them only if they meet the character and fitness requirements; the Court issues the order of admission. According to the board, the investigation takes four to five months on average.
For Foreign Legal Consultants, NCBE does the investigation.
Committees on Character and Fitness, Appellate Division
Each of the four departments of the Appellate Division has a committee on character and fitness. You are assigned according to where you live or work; if you live outside the state and do not work in it full time, to the Third Department.
You need two affirmations of good moral character from people who have known you for at least two years and who are not relatives or people from your current job or your law school, and every applicant has an interview with the committee before being admitted.
State Bar of California, moral character determination
The State Bar makes a "moral character determination." It recommends requesting it at least 8 to 10 months before the date you want to be admitted: it takes at least six months from the time the file is complete, and a year or more if there is an informal conference.
A positive determination is valid for 36 months and can be extended.
Texas Board of Law Examiners
The Board of Law Examiners, nine lawyers appointed by the Supreme Court of Texas, investigates every applicant, Foreign Legal Consultants included, with an FBI fingerprint check. The rule gives it a deadline: it must tell you its decision no later than 270 days after you filed the application and fees.
If the decision is adverse, it must explain the results of the investigation and give you an objective list of what you can do to correct it.
National Conference of Bar Examiners
For some states, NCBE investigates applicants' character and prepares a report, but it does not decide: it says it makes no determinations or recommendations, and the decision belongs to the state. Not every state uses its service; California, for example, does not.
In 2026 it published an updated version of its standard form: several questions that used to say "ever" now look at a specific period, such as the last five or ten years, although others, such as criminal convictions or sanctions as a lawyer, still ask "ever." It also asks about your applications and admissions in other countries, your studies abroad and your addresses over the last ten years. Each state decides when it adopts the new version.
Florida's rules list what can count against an applicant. Other states look at the same things in other words:
And they do not stop at what you declare. NCBE, in the states that use its service, writes to the sources to verify your answers and looks for contradictions or facts you did not mention: criminal and civil records and proceedings, jobs and military service, studies and degrees, professional licenses, sanctions by bars, authorities, universities or employers, finances, fitness to practice and references. Then it gives the state a report that flags what may be of concern.
A problem in your past does not disqualify you on its own. The board looks at how much time has passed, how serious it was, whether it was an isolated event, what you have done since, and whether you have been candid in your application.
In Florida, an applicant who claims rehabilitation must prove it by clear and convincing evidence: for example, having complied with what they were ordered to do, having made amends for the harm and having a good reputation in their community and profession.
In Florida, the board can call you to an investigative hearing and, if it still has doubts, file formal specifications that are heard before at least five of its members; you can bring a lawyer, at your own expense. The result can be admission, conditional admission, a wait of up to two years or denial, and you can ask the Supreme Court to review it within 60 days.
In California there is first an informal conference; then you can ask the Committee of Bar Examiners to review the decision and, if it is still adverse, request a hearing before the State Bar Court. If you are denied, in Florida and in California you generally must wait at least two years to apply again.
Be careful about practicing without a license. Advising clients in the United States without a license can count against you in the review: California expressly mentions it in its guidelines, among the conduct that shows a lack of respect for the rights of others and for the judicial process. Before you accept a job, confirm what you can and cannot do.
Many states use NCBE's standard form, in whole or in part; in 2023, 25 jurisdictions used its online application. In 2026, NCBE published a sample of the updated version. It is worth reading before you start, even if your state uses its own: it shows you what you will be asked and gives you time to gather the answers.
Some questions look at a specific period: alcohol or drug use, the last three years; delinquent debts, the last five; citations, arrests or charges, the last ten. Others still ask "ever," such as criminal convictions and sanctions as a lawyer.
If you studied or practiced abroad: The form asks about your applications and admissions to practice in other countries, with the name and address of each authority; about every period of study abroad; about your addresses over the last ten years, with country and province; and about your driver's license from another country. It also asks for references from every place you have lived in the last ten years, including outside the United States.
It is a sample: NCBE does not control what each state's form includes, and each state decides when it adopts the new version. Before filling out yours, always use your state's form.
If you go through the Foreign Legal Consultant or in-house counsel route, you also have a form of your own, and almost all of them ask about your character. These are the official ones for Florida, New York, California and Texas. They change from time to time: always download them from the official page, never from a copy.
| State and route | What comes first | Official forms |
|---|---|---|
| FloridaForeign Legal Consultant | NCBE comes first. The Florida Bar does not accept your application until it receives the NCBE report. | |
| FloridaIn-house counsel (Authorized House Counsel) | You apply to The Florida Bar and pay a US$1,650 fee: online, in its member portal, with a username you register first; or on paper, with the offline form. Certificates of good standing must be no more than 30 days old (the online application says 60; the checklist says 30). |
|
| New YorkForeign Legal Consultant | You apply to the clerk of the Appellate Division for the department where you live or intend to practice. Each department publishes its own instructions. |
|
| New YorkIn-house counsel (Registered In-House Counsel) | Use the forms for attorneys not admitted in the U.S.: there are others for those already licensed in a state. They are filed with the Appellate Division. | |
| CaliforniaForeign Legal Consultant (Registered Foreign Legal Consultant) | The moral character application comes first, in the same portal: your application is not approved without a positive determination. | |
| TexasForeign Legal Consultant | You open an account in ATLAS, the Board of Law Examiners' online system, pay the fee and download the application there. The Board gives no advance opinions: do not apply if you do not meet rule 14. |
Other states where you can register as in-house counsel with your license from another country: In-house counsel, state by state
If you studied or practiced outside the United States, you will be asked for proof from your country. The most common:
Some of these documents take weeks in your country, and then they have to be translated and, if the state asks, apostilled. Request them early and check the date: a certificate that is too old is not accepted.
What each board publishes, as of October 2026. The fees are those of the character review, not of the exam, except in Florida, where a single fee covers both, and in Texas, where the review comes with the application.
| State | When to file | How long it takes | Review fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida · bar exam | With your application: the board reviews your history before recommending you. | 4 to 5 months on average, according to the board. If it has not finished after 9 months, you can ask the Court to step in. | It is the bar application fee: it pays for the investigation and, if you register on time, your first exam (US$125 more if you use a laptop). US$1,000 if you are not admitted in any jurisdiction; US$1,600 to US$3,000 if you have been admitted for more than 12 months, depending on the years. Ask the board which category your license from another country puts you in. Non-refundable. |
| Florida · Foreign Legal Consultant | First with NCBE: The Florida Bar does not accept your application without its report. | NCBE does not publish a time frame. | NCBE: US$975, or US$500 if you already have an NCBE report of the same category. There is no exam here. |
| New York | After passing the exam and being certified to the Appellate Division; you have three years from the exam to file the complete application. | No time frame is published. It includes an interview with the committee. | Confirm it with your department of the Appellate Division. The exam is paid separately, to the Board of Law Examiners. |
| California | After you register; the State Bar recommends doing it 8 to 10 months before the date you want to be admitted. | At least 6 months from the time the file is complete; a year or more if there is an informal conference. | US$1,054 if you are already a lawyer (US$900 in general). Valid for 36 months; an extension costs US$496. The exam is paid separately. |
| Texas · bar exam | With your exam application, in ATLAS: the Board investigates your character while it reviews your application. | Up to 270 days from when you file the application and fees: it is the deadline rule 10 gives it. | The fees are in rule 18: the application fee for foreign-trained applicants is US$700, and the schedule also lists an investigation fee (US$150) and the fingerprint fee (US$40). Confirm with the Board which ones apply to you. |
| Texas · Foreign Legal Consultant | With your application, in ATLAS. The Board gives no advance opinions: do not apply if you do not meet rule 14. | Up to 270 days, according to the Board's checklist. | It comes with the application fee: US$990, plus US$10 for the designation of an agent. Non-refundable. There is no exam here. |
Fees change: NCBE, for example, raised its fees on October 1, 2026. Confirm them with the board before you pay.
And NAFA? NAFA does not represent anyone before a board and does not file applications. In the membership orientation we help you understand what you will be asked for and gather your country's documents in time. If there is something sensitive in your history, discuss it first with a lawyer experienced in bar admissions in your state.
Reviewed on October 21, 2026. Fees and forms change: always confirm with your state's board before you file.
This page is for information and is not legal advice. If something in your history worries you, discuss it with a lawyer experienced in bar admissions in your state before you file your application.
The character and fitness review can take months, and so can the documents from your country. We guide you on which route suits you and what to gather before you start.
