Georgia to Washington: journeyman electrician license reciprocity
Georgia does not issue a statewide journeyman electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Washington's standard path for out-of-state applicants.
Your origin state does not issue a statewide license at this level, so there is no license to transfer. The destination's standard out-of-state path is shown; expect to meet it in full.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
Examination with credit for out-of-state certificate or experience (all states except Oregon)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
An electrician from any state other than Oregon applies to take the Washington journey level (01) exam using the Out-of-State Application for Electrical Examination. Eligibility is met with an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained through examination by a jurisdiction requiring at least 8,000 hours of supervised experience (with at least 4,000 hours in new commercial or industrial work), or with at least 16,000 hours of out-of-state electrical construction experience (4,000 in new commercial or industrial installations). Experience is documented with notarized letters from licensed electrical contractors, apprenticeship training directors or employers. After L&I approves the application the applicant schedules the open-book exam with PSI; the minimum passing score is 70 percent on each section.
The Washington journey level exam is a single open-book exam that permits use of RCW 19.28 and WAC 296-46B; no separate law exam is published. The $80.30 exam fee applies when the department administers the exam; exams scheduled through PSI are paid to PSI at PSI's rate, which is not published in the WAC.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- Out-of-state journey level electrician certificate obtained through examination by a state licensing jurisdiction requiring at least 8,000 hours of supervised experience (at least 4,000 hours in new commercial or industrial installations), OR at least 16,000 hours of out-of-state experience in the electrical construction trade (at least 4,000 hours in new commercial or industrial installations)
What you'll do to get licensed in Washington
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($114.60). Journey level electrician application fee (includes original certificate and application processing).
- 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Washington General Journey Level Electrician (01) exam, open book, minimum score 70 percent; scheduled with PSI after L&I approval.
- 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($80.30). Journey level examination fee when administered by the department (first test or retest); PSI-administered exams are paid to PSI.
Published fees on this path total $194.90, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
What you'll need to buy or arrange
Exam preparation
Most boards contract PSI, Prov, or ICC for exams. Check which code edition the exam is written to before buying a prep course.
- Trade exam
- Exam fee · $80.30
How Washington licenses journeyman electricians
Washington journeyman electrician · “General Journey Level Electrician (01)”
Statewide license
Issued by Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, Electrical Program
Washington issues a statewide General Journey Level Electrician (01) certificate of competency through the Department of Labor & Industries. An out-of-state electrician can qualify to sit the Washington journey level exam with an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained by examination in a jurisdiction requiring at least 8,000 supervised hours, or with 16,000 hours of documented out-of-state experience; the exam is open book and requires a 70 percent score. Washington's only electrician reciprocity agreement is with Oregon: holders of an Oregon General Journeyman (J) or General Supervising (S) license obtained by Oregon examination can receive the 01 certificate without taking the Washington exam. Certificates renew every three years on the holder's birthdate and require 24 hours of continuing education.
Why Georgia has nothing to transfer
Georgia journeyman electrician
No individual license at this level
Georgia does not issue a journeyman electrician license. The Construction Industry Licensing Board's Division of Electrical Contractors licenses only electrical contractors (Class I Restricted and Class II Non-Restricted); the Board's licensing rules create master and journeyman licenses for plumbers (Rule 121-3-.02) but no journeyman category for electricians, and neither the Board's home page nor its how-to guide offers any individual electrician credential below contractor. Electricians who are not contractors work as employees under a licensed electrical contractor with no personal state license. An out-of-state journeyman license therefore has nothing to transfer to in Georgia and is neither required nor recognized for employment. The one place it helps is the road to a contractor license: the Board's examination application accepts experience 'gained working under a Licensed Electrical Contractor' including one licensed out of state (the applicant notes whether that license is equivalent to a Georgia Restricted or Non-Restricted license), so hours worked as a journeyman elsewhere count toward the 4 years (8,000 hours) needed to sit for the Georgia electrical contractor exam.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Washington journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in Georgia?
- Yes. Washington requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Washington journeyman electrician license from Georgia?
- Published fees on this path total $194.90, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Georgia work hours count in Washington?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Washington's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Washington to Georgia?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Washington to Georgia, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- L&I - Electrician certification (journey level and specialty) · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Agency Page · verified September 14, 20268,000 hours (no more than 4,000 in 4,000-hour specialties) and 96 hours basic classroom instruction; out-of-state and military experience accepted via the Out-of-State Application for Electrical Examination (F626-009-000); exams scheduled with PSI after L&I approval; renewal every three years with 24 CE hours. Contains the 'Reciprocal agreement with Oregon' section.
- Application for a Reciprocal (01) General Journey Level Electrician Certificate (F500-148-000) · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Form · verified September 14, 2026States that Washington is party to a reciprocal agreement with Oregon and no other states, that a license not obtained through Oregon examination cannot be reciprocated, and that Washington master certificates cannot be obtained through reciprocity. PDF text was read through the search index; the file itself did not extract in this session.
- RCW 19.28.191 - Application for certificate of competency - Qualifications - Examination · RCW 19.28.191 · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 14, 2026(1)(a): to take the master journey level exam the applicant must have possessed a valid journey level electrician certificate of competency for four years. (1)(c): journey level exam eligibility via 8,000-hour apprenticeship, an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained through examination in a jurisdiction requiring at least 8,000 supervised hours, 16,000 hours of out-of-state experience, or 8,000 hours in armed forces construction battalions.
- WAC 296-46B-909 - Electrical/telecommunications fees · WAC 296-46B-909 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Fee table filed 5/5/26, effective 7/1/26. Journey level, specialty, or reciprocal electrician application (includes original certificate and processing) $114.60; journey level exam fee when administered by the department $80.30; master electrician exam application $204.60; master first-time exam fee $106.70, retest $125.00.
- WAC 296-46B-945 - Qualifying for master, journey level, specialty electrician examinations · WAC 296-46B-945 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Journey level exam pathways include an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained by examination in a jurisdiction requiring 8,000 supervised hours (4,000 in new commercial/industrial), or 16,000 hours of out-of-state experience; documentation by notarized letters from licensed contractors, apprenticeship directors or employers. States: 'No credit may be applied from out-of-state toward qualifying for a master electrician certificate of competency examination.'
- WAC 296-46B-960 - Administrator and electrician certificate of competency examinations · WAC 296-46B-960 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Open-book exam; minimum passing score 70 percent on any exam or section; two-week wait after a failure, three-month wait after three failures in a year; exam must be completed within one year of approval.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.