Louisiana to Maryland: journeyman electrician license reciprocity
Louisiana does not issue a statewide journeyman electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Maryland'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 journeyperson without a reciprocal agreement
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
A journeyperson licensed in a state that has no reciprocal agreement with Maryland must apply for an original license by examination. The Board's FAQ states that reciprocal licensing is only available where the other state and the Board have entered into an agreement, and the Board lists only Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia. The applicant documents at least 4 years of regular, principal employment providing electrical services under the direction and supervision of a master electrician or a similarly qualified governmental employee (the statute does not limit this to Maryland-licensed masters), registers with PSI, passes the 70-question open-book journeyperson exam with 70%, and then pays the $18.50 license fee. Business Occupations and Professions §6-308 does allow the Board, by majority vote, to waive the exam for any state that waives its exam for Maryland licensees to a similar extent, provided the applicant was licensed by examination and has 4 years' experience with at least 2 years before out-of-state licensure; the Board has not published a process for invoking that waiver outside its four agreements.
Whether the Board credits experience gained under an out-of-state master electrician was not confirmed from an official page; the statute and application page say only 'a master electrician'. The PSI bulletin says the Board may allow up to 3 years of credit for formal study toward the journeyperson requirement, and the exam bulletin still references the 2020 NEC.
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 4 years of qualifying work experience.At least 4 years engaged regularly and principally in providing electrical services under the direction and supervision of a master electrician or a similarly qualified employee of a governmental unit (Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-304); an approved apprenticeship with 576 classroom hours and 8,000 work hours substitutes.
What you'll do to get licensed in Maryland
- 1Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Maryland Journeyperson Electrician exam administered by PSI: 70 questions, 49 correct (70%) to pass, 210 minutes, open book on NFPA 70.
- 2Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($65). PSI examination fee, paid to PSI, valid for one exam attempt.
- 3License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($18.50). Original journeyperson license fee (non-refundable), effective July 1, 2025.
Published fees on this path total $83.50, 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 · $65
How Maryland licenses journeyman electricians
Maryland journeyman electrician · “Journeyperson Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Maryland State Board of Electricians (Department of Labor)
Maryland issues a statewide Journeyperson Electrician license through the State Board of Electricians in the Department of Labor. Statewide journeyperson and apprentice licensing began July 1, 2021 under the Maryland Electricians Act; before that the State licensed only master electricians and each county or Baltimore City licensed journeypersons, and those local bodies now issue registrations rather than licenses. A new applicant qualifies with 4 years of electrical work under the direction and supervision of a master electrician (or a similarly qualified employee of a governmental unit) or by completing a MATC- or federally-approved apprenticeship with 576 classroom hours and 8,000 work hours, then passes the PSI-administered journeyperson exam (70 questions, 70% to pass, open book on the NEC, $65). The original license fee is $18.50. The Board has reciprocal agreements with Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia; its application pages list Virginia, Delaware and D.C. as origins for journeyperson reciprocity. Licensed journeypersons work under the direction and control of a master electrician.
Why Louisiana has nothing to transfer
Louisiana journeyman electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Louisiana does not issue a statewide journeyman electrician license. The only state electrical credential is the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors (LSLBC) commercial contractor license with the Electrical classification, required for any electrical project of $10,000 or more; it is issued to the contracting business (or to an individual as a sole proprietor) on the strength of a qualifying party who passed the trade exam, and the LSLBC FAQ and Types of Licenses pages list no journeyman or master electrician license. Journeyman licensing exists only where a parish or city ordinance creates it: New Orleans issues a Class 'D' Journeyman Electrical License ($60 per year) to applicants who pass the ICC F17 National Standard Journeyman Electrician exam, Jefferson Parish administers its own electrical exam and requires a parish-licensed electrician to file electrical permits, and Shreveport directs journeyman and master candidates to ICC testing while requiring contractor registration with the city. None of these jurisdictions publish a reciprocity or endorsement rule for out-of-state journeyman licenses; in practice the portable credential is the ICC National Standard Journeyman Electrician exam, which several cities accept directly. An out-of-state journeyman who only wants to work as an employee needs whatever local card the parish or city requires, and nothing at the state level.
How local licensing works in Louisiana
How local licensing works. The Contractors Licensing Law (La. R.S. 37:2150.1 et seq.) regulates contractors: an electrical contractor is anyone who contracts for electrical work valued at $10,000 or more, and the LSLBC licenses the business through a designated qualifying party. Individual electricians are licensed, where at all, by parish or city ordinance, and requirements differ by jurisdiction.
New Orleans. The Department of Safety and Permits issues a Class 'E' Electrician Trainee license ($30 per year, sponsored by a Class 'A' master license holder or union representative) and a Class 'D' Journeyman Electrical License ($60 per year, delinquent fee $5 per month). The journeyman applicant must be 18 or older and submit a passing ICC Official Results Report for exam F17 National Standard Journeyman Electrician (an unofficial stamped report is not accepted), a passport-style photo and ID; a journeyman must be employed by and work under a Class 'A' electrical contractor. The city page states no experience-hour requirement and no reciprocity for other jurisdictions' licenses; an out-of-state journeyman who has already passed the ICC F17 exam can apply on that score.
Jefferson Parish. The Department of Inspection and Code Enforcement publishes an Electrical Exam Application and requires that electrical permit filings be made by a Jefferson Parish licensed electrician; the parish trade contractor license costs $200 and lists the state license among its checklist items. The exam application is a scanned document whose eligibility text could not be read, and no reciprocity rule was found on the parish site.
Shreveport. The city requires every contractor performing electrical work to register with the city and refers journeyman or master testing to the International Code Council or the LSLBC; electrical work over $10,000 requires the state license.
Baton Rouge and Lafayette. No official page describing a journeyman electrician license or exam was located for the City of Baton Rouge/East Baton Rouge Parish or for Lafayette Consolidated Government; their permit pages cover permitting and inspection only. Applicants should contact the local building official.
Out-of-state holders. No parish or city page reviewed publishes reciprocity or endorsement for journeyman licenses from other states. The LSLBC's reciprocity (trade-exam waiver for anyone who passed another state's exam) applies only to its contractor license.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Maryland journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in Louisiana?
- Yes. Maryland requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Maryland journeyman electrician license from Louisiana?
- Published fees on this path total $83.50, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Louisiana work hours count in Maryland?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Maryland's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Maryland to Louisiana?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Maryland to Louisiana, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- Maryland State Board of Electricians - Maryland Electricians Act (2021 statewide licensing) · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. Title 6 · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Legislation signed May 30, 2021, effective July 1, 2021, renamed the State Board of Master Electricians to the State Board of Electricians and created State apprentice, journeyperson and master electrician licenses. Local jurisdictions lost authority to license electricians (they may issue registrations); individuals holding only local licenses had to obtain a State license by July 1, 2022, with an exam-waiver application deadline of December 31, 2022.
- Maryland State Board of Electricians - Taking the Exam (PSI) · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026PSI Examination Services administers the master and journeyperson exams at Baltimore, College Park, Hagerstown, Lanham and Salisbury; the examination fee is $65.00; register at test-takers.psiexams.com/mdelec.
- Maryland State Board of Electricians - Licensing FAQs · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Faq · verified September 15, 2026Q11-12: the Board 'currently has reciprocal agreements with Delaware, West Virginia, Virginia, and the District of Columbia'. West Virginia (State Fire Marshal) licensees who passed the West Virginia exam and have held the license at least two years in good standing, Virginia and D.C. licensees who passed those jurisdictions' written exams, and Delaware licensees in good standing for at least five years who passed the Delaware exam may apply without taking the Maryland written exam. Also: 30 days before an exam retake, 60 days between later attempts; a Maryland license obtained by local-jurisdiction reciprocity cannot be used to reciprocate to another state or D.C.
- Maryland State Board of Electricians - Fees (effective July 1, 2025) · COMAR 09.09 · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Original license: master $25.00, journeyperson $18.50, apprentice $12.00. Renewal: master $31.50, journeyperson $18.50, apprentice $12.00. Reinstatement $28/$63/$126 by lateness; letter of good standing $50; status change $63. Examination and re-examination fees are paid directly to the testing service.
- Maryland State Board of Electricians - Home · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-604 · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026States that all electrical work in Maryland must be performed by a licensed master, journeyperson or apprentice electrician, and that licensees must carry general liability insurance of at least $300,000 and property damage insurance of at least $100,000 with the State Board named as certificate holder.
- Maryland State Board of Electricians - Licensing Applications (how to apply) · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Describes each application path: journeyperson by examination (4 years under a master electrician), by MATC/FOA apprenticeship (576 classroom hours and 8,000 work hours), by local-jurisdiction reciprocity, and out-of-state reciprocity, which this page says is 'currently only' with Virginia (license obtained by examination or a Virginia apprenticeship program, held at least 1 year, must state it is journeyperson level). Master by examination (7 years, up to 3 years education credit) and master by reciprocity from 'a local jurisdiction, or the states of Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia or the District of Columbia' with a letter of verification and certificate of insurance. All Board fees are non-refundable.
- Maryland State Board of Electricians - Other Electrical Licenses in Maryland · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Before July 1, 2021 the Board issued only master licenses and local jurisdictions licensed apprentices and journeypersons; since then the State issues all three and local jurisdictions issue registrations. Lesser local categories (limited, low voltage) are still issued by local jurisdictions.
- Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-304 - Qualifications of applicants · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-304 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 15, 2026Master: at least 7 years providing electrical services under a master electrician or similarly qualified governmental employee, with up to 3 years credit for formal education/training and full credit for an approved apprenticeship. Journeyperson: at least 4 years under the same supervision, or an approved apprenticeship. All applicants must pass the State Board examination.
- Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-306 - Examinations · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-306 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 15, 2026Exams are objective and written, based on applicable electrical codes, with a passing score of 70%; the exam fee may not exceed the actual cost.
- Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-307 - Waiver of examination for local registrants · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-307 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 15, 2026The Board waives the exam for a holder of an active Maryland local registration who was licensed in the local jurisdiction before December 31, 2022 after passing an equivalent local exam and meeting equivalent requirements, with a good-standing statement from the local jurisdiction.
- Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-308 - Waiver of examination for out-of-state licensees (reciprocity) · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-308 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 15, 2026On a majority vote the Board may waive the exam for a master or journeyperson electrician licensed in another state who pays the application fee, meets Maryland's qualifications, holds an active equivalent license in good standing, was licensed there by examination after substantially equivalent requirements, and has 7 years' experience (at least 4 before out-of-state licensure) for master or 4 years (at least 2 before licensure) for journeyperson. Waivers are granted only if the other state waives its exam for Maryland licensees to a similar extent; not available to applicants licensed solely outside the United States. The Board 'shall pursue a policy of reciprocal recognition'.
- PSI - Maryland Master and Journeyperson Electrician Qualification Information Bulletin · PSI Services LLC for the Maryland State Board of Electricians · Other · verified September 15, 2026Master exam: 90 questions, 70% to pass, 240 minutes; journeyperson exam: 70 questions, 49 correct (70%), 210 minutes; both open book on NFPA 70 NEC 2020; exam fee $65, valid for one exam. Restates the §6-308 out-of-state waiver conditions and the West Virginia/Virginia/D.C./Delaware master agreement terms. Its journeyperson section still says out-of-state waivers are 'coming soon' and none are in place, which the Board's newer application pages supersede.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.