Kansas to Wisconsin: journeyman electrician license reciprocity
Kansas does not issue a statewide journeyman electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Wisconsin'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.
Out-of-state journeyman without a reciprocity agreement
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
A journeyman licensed in any state other than Iowa or New Hampshire gets no exam waiver in Wisconsin and applies through the Licensure by Examination method in LicensE like a first-time candidate. The license itself carries no credit, but the experience behind it does: DSPS and Wis. Stat. 101.87 count experience in installing, repairing and maintaining electrical wiring without limiting it to Wisconsin, so the applicant documents at least 8,000 hours over at least 48 months on the Trades Experience Form (Form 8168), which goes to the applicant's witnesses to sign, or shows completion of an electrical construction apprenticeship of at least three years approved by the U.S. Department of Labor or the Wisconsin Department of Workforce Development. The application and fees are submitted in LicensE ($35 application, $30 examination and $100 license fee under Table 305.02), DSPS then makes the applicant eligible to test, and the applicant must pass the Wisconsin journeyman exam. Wisconsin has no separate law or business exam for individual electricians.
DSPS publishes no endorsement route for non-reciprocal states. Fee amounts are from Table 305.02 of the administrative code and match DSPS's published fee list; the total is calculated in LicensE, and Pearson test-center exams cost marginally more than DSPS-site exams.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.At least 8,000 hours over at least 48 months installing, repairing and maintaining electrical wiring; a two-year electrical engineering or electrical-related technical degree or diploma counts as 12 months and 2,000 hours. A recognized three-year construction electrician apprenticeship is an alternative.
What you'll do to get licensed in Wisconsin
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($35). Journeyman Electrician license application fee (Table 305.02 line 25), paid in LicensE.
- 2Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($30). Journeyman Electrician examination fee (Table 305.02 line 25); paid again for each retake.
- 3Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Wisconsin Journeyman Electrician examination (open book on SPS 305, SPS 316 and the NEC; 70% to pass).
- 4License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($100). Journeyman Electrician initial license fee (Table 305.02 line 25); four-year credential.
- 5Other. Trades Experience Form (Form 8168) signed off by witnesses, or a Wisconsin Bureau of Apprenticeship Standards letter confirming apprenticeship completion, submitted with the LicensE application.
Published fees on this path total $165, 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.
- Exam fee · $30
- Trade exam
How Wisconsin licenses journeyman electricians
Wisconsin journeyman electrician · “Journeyman Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS)
Wisconsin issues a statewide Journeyman Electrician license through the Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS); under Wis. Stat. 101.862 no one may install, repair or maintain electrical wiring without a DSPS license or registration, and there is no municipal electrician licensing. A new applicant under Wis. Stat. 101.87 either completes a recognized construction electrician apprenticeship or documents 48 months with at least 8,000 hours of experience, applies in the LicensE portal, and passes the DSPS journeyman exam (open book on SPS 305, SPS 316 and the 2023 NEC; 70% to pass). Under Wis. Stat. 101.874 DSPS may enter into reciprocal agreements, and DSPS currently waives the exam only for journeymen licensed by examination in Iowa or New Hampshire. The license is renewed every four years for $100.
Why Kansas has nothing to transfer
Kansas journeyman electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Kansas has no state electrician license and no state electrical board. State law (K.S.A. 12-1525 to 12-1527) only sets a framework for the counties and cities that choose to license electricians: it names the ICC, IAPMO and Prometric standard exams as the competency tests, requires a 75% passing score, two years of supervised field experience for a journeyman or residential certificate (up to one year creditable from at least 930 hours of trade school), and continuing education of 12 hours every two years. A certificate of competency earned by passing one of those standard exams is valid proof of competency in every Kansas county or city that licenses electricians, without retesting, but a license based on a local alternative exam is good only in the issuing jurisdiction unless it has a reciprocal agreement. Sedgwick County/Wichita (MABCD), Kansas City, Kansas (Unified Government), Lawrence and other cities license journeymen; Johnson County licenses electrical contractors through a master-level qualifying individual and does not issue journeyman cards. There is no reciprocity with other states: MABCD states it does not reciprocate with state testing, and the only portable credential is a passing score on a Kansas Standard ICC (or, in some jurisdictions, national ICC, Prometric or IAPMO) journeyman exam, which an out-of-state electrician can usually submit in place of retesting.
How local licensing works in Kansas
How local licensing works. Kansas issues no personal electrician license. K.S.A. 12-1526 lets any county or city that requires electrician licensure administer the K.S.A. 12-1525 standard exams (ICC, IAPMO, Prometric), with a 75% minimum, uniform fees, two years of field experience under a certified electrician for a journeyman certificate (one year may be trade school of at least 930 program hours), and 12 hours of CE every two years. The resulting certificate of competency is valid in every licensing jurisdiction in Kansas without further examination, subject to each jurisdiction's experience check and fees. K.S.A. 12-1527 allows local alternative exams, but licenses earned on them stop at the jurisdiction line.
Sedgwick County and Wichita (MABCD). The Metropolitan Area Building and Construction Department issues journeyman electrician certificates to applicants with one year of field experience plus one year of electrical trade school, or two years of field experience (documented on company letterhead), who score 75% on ICC exam 558 or KGH Journeyman Electrician (565/KGX for residential only). New certificate $35; two-year term; renewal $35 with six trade-specific and six general CEUs. 'MABCD does not reciprocate with state testing, only those exams listed are approved for Sedgwick County', so an out-of-state journeyman must show one of the listed ICC scores (Block, Experior, Prometric, ICC and IAPMO testing facilities are recognized).
Johnson County (Olathe, Overland Park, Lenexa, Shawnee and other participating cities). Johnson County Contractor Licensing issues company licenses only, including the Class DE Electrical license ($100 application plus $225 per license type), qualified by a Qualifying Individual who passed the ICC Standard Master Electrician exam (554/KGD). There is no county journeyman license.
Kansas City, Kansas (Unified Government of Wyandotte County). Building Inspections licenses trade masters, who must hold a master's license (Prometric testing arranged through the department), and requires a city occupational tax license for contractors and subcontractors; the published pages do not describe a journeyman license, its fees or any reciprocity.
Lawrence. Planning and Development Services certifies journeyman electricians with two years of practical field experience (engineering degree counts 2.5 years, vocational training one year) who pass the K.S.A. standard exam with 75%; exam application $50, license $20, renewal $10, six hours of CE per year. A certificate of competency from another Kansas jurisdiction is the accepted standard for licensure.
Out-of-state holders. No Kansas jurisdiction found publishes a reciprocity agreement with another state. An out-of-state journeyman who has already passed an ICC journeyman exam (Kansas Standard or, where the jurisdiction allows, national) can submit that score with experience documentation; anyone else takes the ICC/Prometric exam through the local sponsoring jurisdiction and then benefits from statewide portability of the certificate.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Wisconsin journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in Kansas?
- Yes. Wisconsin requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Wisconsin journeyman electrician license from Kansas?
- Published fees on this path total $165, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Kansas work hours count in Wisconsin?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Wisconsin's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Wisconsin to Kansas?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Wisconsin to Kansas, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- Wisconsin DSPS - Journeyman Plumber: Licensure by Examination · Wis. Admin. Code SPS 305.93 · Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services · Agency Page · verified October 12, 2026
- Wisconsin DSPS - Journeyman Plumber (profession page) · Wis. Stat. 145.06; Wis. Admin. Code SPS 305.93 · Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services · Agency Page · verified October 12, 2026
- Wisconsin DSPS - Journeyman Electrician: Reciprocity · Wis. Stat. 101.874; Wis. Admin. Code SPS 305.47 · Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services · Agency Page · verified October 12, 2026
- Wisconsin DSPS - Credential Fees and Renewal Dates · Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services · Agency Page · verified October 12, 2026
- Wisconsin DSPS - Trades Exam and Continuing Education Information (exam fee schedule) · Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services · Agency Page · verified October 12, 2026
- Wis. Admin. Code ch. SPS 305 - Licenses, Certifications and Registrations (Table 305.02 fees; Table 305.06 terms; SPS 305.09; SPS 305.91, 305.93, 305.95) · Wis. Admin. Code SPS 305.02 Table 305.02 lines 62 and 65; SPS 305.06 Table 305.06; SPS 305.09; SPS 305.91; SPS 305.93; SPS 305.95 · Wisconsin Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
- Wis. Stat. 101.87 - Journeyman electrician license · Wis. Stat. 101.87 · Wisconsin Legislature · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
- Wis. Stat. 101.874 - Reciprocal agreements (electrical credentials) · Wis. Stat. 101.874 · Wisconsin Legislature · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.