Do I have to take the Alabama journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in New York?

Yes. Alabama requires the trade exam on this path.

What does it cost to get a Alabama journeyman electrician license from New York?

Published fees on this path total $150, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.

Do my New York work hours count in Alabama?

Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Alabama's eligibility requirements.

Does it work the other way, from Alabama to New York?

Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Alabama to New York, the mechanism is not applicable.

New York to Alabama: journeyman electrician license reciprocity

No credit· Start overVerified September 15, 2026· 5 sources

New York does not issue a statewide journeyman electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Alabama'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 documented out-of-state experience (all states other than Texas)

Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.

The Board publishes no endorsement process for journeymen from states other than Texas; §34-36-7(b) lets the Board recognize licenses from states with equal or higher standards, but only the states on its reciprocal list qualify and Texas is the sole journeyman partner. An out-of-state journeyman therefore files the Electrical Journeyman Examination Application (JCE-1) and documents a minimum of 8,000 hours of electrical installation experience by notarized employer affidavits with matching W-2 or 1099 forms (or a registered apprenticeship work affidavit); the forms do not restrict the employer to Alabama, so experience earned elsewhere is credited. Up to 2,000 of the 8,000 hours may be substituted with approved education or apprenticeship (1,000 hours per year). The applicant then passes the Alabama journeyman exam or the NASCLA Portable Journeyman exam through Prov ($115) and applies for the license with form EC-1 and the $35 license fee. Alabama has no separate law or business exam for journeymen.

Exam approvals expire two years after approval if the exam has not been passed (303-X-3-.03(4)). Whether the Board accepts a NASCLA Portable Journeyman score earned in another state in lieu of sitting the exam again was not confirmed from an official page; the forms page says the NASCLA exam is accepted 'to qualify for reciprocal licensing' only in the electrical contractor context.

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.Installation of electrical wiring, apparatus or equipment for lighting, power or controls, documented by notarized employer affidavits; up to 2,000 hours may come from approved education or apprenticeship (303-X-3-.03).

What you'll do to get licensed in Alabama

1Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($115). Journeyman Electrician examination fee (Alabama exam or NASCLA Portable J exam via Prov), non-refundable.
2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Alabama Journeyman Electrician exam administered by Prov (2023 NEC; 2026 NEC from January 1, 2027).
3License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($35). Journeyman Electrician license fee (form EC-1); annual renewal $35.
4Other. Notarized Affidavit of Employment (JCE-4) from each employer with corresponding W-2 or 1099 forms, or DOL registered apprenticeship Work Affidavit (JCE-5).

Published fees on this path total $150, 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 · $115
Trade exam

How Alabama licenses journeyman electricians

Alabama journeyman electrician · “Journeyman Electrician”

State license plus local requirements

Verified September 15, 2026· 5 sources

Issued by Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors

Alabama issues a statewide Journeyman Electrician license through the Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors. A new applicant must document at least 8,000 hours of experience installing electrical wiring, apparatus or equipment (up to 2,000 hours may be substituted with approved education or apprenticeship) and pass the journeyman exam administered by Prov, either the Alabama exam or the NASCLA Portable Journeyman exam ($115 either way); the license fee is $35 and it renews annually for $35. Exams currently reference the 2023 NEC and will move to the 2026 NEC on January 1, 2027. Alabama law also lets counties and municipalities license and examine journeymen for work inside their boundaries, but a statewide Board license is deemed qualifying in every county and municipality, and journeymen employed by a Board licensee are exempt from local licensing. The Board's only journeyman reciprocity partner is Texas; every other out-of-state journeyman must qualify by documented experience and take the Alabama exam.

How local licensing works in Alabama

Ala. Code §34-36-13(a) requires a journeyman to hold a license 'from the board or from the county or municipality where the electrical contracting work is being performed', and §34-36-13(b)(2) preserves the authority of counties and municipalities to require their own examinations. A holder of a valid statewide Board license is deemed qualified and must be allowed to work in any county or municipality on proof of the license, subject to the local building permit and business license. Local journeyman cards therefore exist only as a substitute for the state license within the issuing jurisdiction; the Board's reciprocity applies only to state-issued licenses, and no Alabama city or county reciprocity rule was verified from an official page.

Moving to Alabama Leaving Alabama

Why New York has nothing to transfer

New York journeyman electrician

Licensed by cities and counties

Verified September 15, 2026· 15 sources

New York has no statewide electrician license at any level: the Department of State's Division of Licensing Services issues no electrician license, and its only page on the subject treats master electrician licenses as credentials issued by local governments. Journeyman-level licensing therefore exists only where a city or county ordinance creates it, and most jurisdictions do not. New York City licenses only Master and Special Electricians; journeymen and helpers work as employees under a licensed master or special electrician without any personal license, and their supervised hours (at least two years in the city) are what later qualify them for the master exam. Buffalo is the main city with a true Journeyman Electrician license (five years under a licensed master plus a New York State journeyman card, an ICC exam or a city exam), and Suffolk County carries a journeyman category in its Consumer Affairs licensing codes. Rochester's lower tier is a Single-Phase (residential) license rather than a journeyman card. An out-of-state journeyman license has no state-level recognition in New York; a journeyman should confirm the rules of the specific city or county where they will work and, in most places, simply work for a licensed master while accumulating local hours.

How local licensing works in New York

How local licensing works. No state agency licenses electricians in New York. Each city or county that requires a license runs its own examining board under its own ordinance, so requirements, exams and fees differ from one jurisdiction to the next, and a license from one jurisdiction is not automatically valid in another.

New York City. The Department of Buildings issues Master Electrician and Special Electrician licenses only; there is no journeyman license or registration. Electricians work as employees under a licensed master or special electrician. Experience toward the master license must be gained 'under the direct and continuing supervision of a licensed master or special electrician in the United States', with at least two of the required years in New York City, so out-of-state supervised hours count toward the master exam but do not create any journeyman credential.

Buffalo. The Electrical Examining Board issues a Journeyman Electrician License. Minimum qualification is five years working as an employee of a licensed master electrician (not self-employed), plus one of: a New York State journeyman electrician license/card, a passing ICC exam score together with the five years of experience, or at the board's discretion other proof such as a passing score on a City of Buffalo-administered exam. The notarized application lists every master electrician worked for with dates and hours, supported by master electrician affidavits.

Rochester. No journeyman license. The Electrical Examining Board issues a Single-Phase (residential) license requiring two years of applicable experience, interpreted as at least 3,000 hours within the past five years (at least half in the field with tools, up to 1,500 hours from course work or estimating/design/supervision), and an ICC-based exam with a 70 percent passing grade.

Syracuse and Albany. Both cities license electricians through their own examining boards (Syracuse Division of Code Enforcement; Albany Electrical Examining Board under General Code Chapter 171, Article III). The pages that could be opened describe master-level licensing and application deadlines but publish no journeyman card requirements.

Suffolk County. The Department of Consumer Affairs licenses Master Electricians and Restricted Electrical licensees and its licensing code list includes an 'AJ - Journeyman' category; the journeyman requirements themselves are not on the pages that could be opened.

Westchester County and Yonkers. Westchester County issues master and special electrician licenses by examination; it has no journeyman license. Yonkers does not license electricians itself and its electrical permits are issued to master electricians licensed by Westchester County.

Nassau County. The county's FAQ recognizes electricians as a trade held to a 'standard of competency' by state or local law, but no page describing a Nassau electrician license could be opened; treat Nassau's requirements as unverified.

Out-of-state holders. No jurisdiction above publishes a reciprocity or endorsement path for a journeyman license from another state. Buffalo will accept an ICC exam score with five years of experience under any licensed master; elsewhere an arriving journeyman works under a locally licensed master electrician until eligible for that jurisdiction's master exam.

Moving to New York Leaving New York

Common questions

Do I have to take the Alabama journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in New York?: Yes. Alabama requires the trade exam on this path.
What does it cost to get a Alabama journeyman electrician license from New York?: Published fees on this path total $150, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
Do my New York work hours count in Alabama?: Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Alabama's eligibility requirements.
Does it work the other way, from Alabama to New York?: Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Alabama to New York, the mechanism is not applicable.

Sources

Alabama Administrative Code Chapter 303-X-3 - Licensing (certified rules effective February 14, 2026) · Ala. Admin. Code 303-X-3-.02, -.03, -.06, -.10 · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors · Admin Rule · verified September 15, 2026303-X-3-.02: electrical contractor applicants must document 8,000 hours of design, planning, lay-out and direct supervision of electrical construction (or 8,000 hours as a journeyman in charge of jobs); the license is unlimited in voltage and bid amount; (10) the Board may recognize a license from a reciprocating state with equal or greater standards, the list of approved reciprocal states is kept at the Board office and the Executive Director approves or denies reciprocal applicants. 303-X-3-.03: journeyman applicants must document 8,000 hours; (6) same reciprocity language. 303-X-3-.06(2): an electrical contractor by reciprocity must hold a current and valid license in a qualifying reciprocal state with no previous or pending disciplinary action. 303-X-3-.10 (effective January 17, 2026): EC exam $165, journeyman exam $115, EC license $150, journeyman license $35, renewals $150/$35, Reciprocal Electrical Contractor License $315.
Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors - Fees · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Fee table: EC exam $165; journeyman exam $115; EC license $150; journeyman license $35; EC renewal $150; journeyman renewal $35; EC late renewal $50 per year up to 5 years; inactive EC certificate $75; inactive journeyman certificate $15; replacement card $25; Reciprocal License Application Fee $315.
Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors - Forms and Testing Information (How to Get Licensed; Reciprocal Applications) · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Defines the Electrical Contractor (interchangeable with 'Master Electrician') and Journeyman Electrician licenses; exam fees $165 (EC) and $115 (journeyman), license fees $150 (EC) and $35 (journeyman); exams by Prov on the 2023 NEC (2026 NEC from January 1, 2027); NASCLA exams offered. Lists the reciprocal boards: Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Ohio and Louisiana (EC only) and Texas (EC or Journeyman); states the Board no longer shares reciprocity with Georgia; gives the five reciprocity steps (Alabama Business and Law exam, notarized reciprocity application, $315 fee effective February 14, 2026, Verification of License form, foreign-corporation registration) and that the NASCLA Electrical Contractors exam also qualifies for reciprocal licensing.
Form JCE-1 - Electrical Journeyman Examination Application · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors · Form · verified September 15, 2026Statewide journeyman licenses are issued by examination; applicants must document a minimum of 8,000 hours of experience by notarized employer affidavits (form JCE-4) with W-2/1099 forms, or a DOL registered apprenticeship work affidavit (JCE-5); one year of approved education or apprenticeship substitutes for 1,000 hours up to 2,000 hours; exam choices are the Alabama journeyman exam (Prov, $115) or the NASCLA Portable J exam ($115).
Code of Alabama 1975, Title 34, Chapter 36 - Electrical Contractors and Journeyman Electricians · Ala. Code §§ 34-36-3, 34-36-7, 34-36-13 · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors (compilation of the Code of Alabama) · Statute · verified September 15, 2026§34-36-3 defines Electrical Contractor (a person qualified to plan, lay out and supervise electrical installations with four years as a journeyman in charge of jobs or four years in design and construction) and Journeyman Electrician. §34-36-7(b): the Board may recognize a license issued by any other state with standards equal to or higher than Alabama's and shall actively seek to reciprocate; §34-36-7(c): licenses are issued only to a person, never to a firm; §34-36-7(d): no new provisional (local-license-based) contractor licenses after May 15, 2024. §34-36-13(a): no person may perform work as a master or journeyman electrician without a license from the Board or from the county or municipality where the work is performed; §34-36-13(b)(2): local governments may examine electricians but a holder of a valid statewide Board license is deemed qualified in every county and municipality.

Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.

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