New Hampshire to Colorado: journeyman electrician license reciprocity
Colorado has a reciprocity agreement with New Hampshire: a New Hampshire journeyman electrician can get a Colorado license without retaking the trade exam.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
NERA reciprocal agreement with New Hampshire (journeyman)
A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.
Colorado follows the bylaws of the National Electrical Reciprocal Alliance (NERA) and lists New Hampshire as a journeyman reciprocity state. A New Hampshire journeyman (or master working as a journeyman) whose license is current, active, and in good standing, was obtained by passing a state-administered exam, and has been held for at least one year receives a Colorado Journeyman Electrician license without written examination. Licenses granted by grandfathering without an exam do not qualify. Reciprocity applicants do not need to document experience hours.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Agreement
- Active
What you must already have
- Your New Hampshire license must be active and in good standing.
- Your New Hampshire license must have been obtained by examination, not by reciprocity or grandfathering.
- You must have held your New Hampshire license for at least 1 year.
What you'll do to get licensed in Colorado
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee. Application fee paid in DPO Online Services (amount not published on the public pages; non-refundable).
- 2Other. Verification of Licensure form completed by the issuing state board.
How Colorado licenses journeyman electricians
Colorado journeyman electrician · “Journeyman Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Colorado State Electrical Board (DORA Division of Professions and Occupations)
Colorado issues a statewide Journeyman Electrician license through the State Electrical Board within DORA's Division of Professions and Occupations. There are three routes: examination (8,000 hours over at least four years, 288 hours of classroom education, and the PSI-administered Colorado exam), endorsement of an active state-issued license obtained by exam on the NEC edition Colorado currently uses (the 2026 NEC since August 1, 2026), and reciprocity for journeymen from the 14 NERA member states. Endorsement and reciprocity both issue the license without a Colorado exam. Applications are filed through DPO Online Services; licenses expire September 30 every three years.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Colorado journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in New Hampshire?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with New Hampshire.
- How long do I need to have held my New Hampshire license?
- At least 1 year before applying.
Sources
- 3 CCR 710-1 - State Electrical Board Rules and Regulations · 3 CCR 710-1, Rule 1.7 (Application for Licensure) · Colorado Secretary of State (Code of Colorado Regulations) · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
- Colorado Revised Statutes Title 12, Article 115 - Electricians (Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 12) · C.R.S. §§ 12-115-107(2)(i), 12-115-113 · Colorado General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
- Colorado Electrical Applications and Forms - Licensure Requirements (Examination, Endorsement, Reciprocity) · Colorado DORA, Division of Professions and Occupations · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Colorado Electrical Homepage - State Electrical Board · Colorado DORA, Division of Professions and Occupations · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- DPO Journeyman Electrician (JW) Initial Application Preview · Colorado DORA, Division of Professions and Occupations · Form · verified September 23, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.