North Dakota to Minnesota: journeyman electrician license reciprocity
Minnesota has a reciprocity agreement with North Dakota: a North Dakota journeyman electrician can get a Minnesota license without retaking the trade exam.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
Reciprocal agreement with North Dakota (journeyworker)
A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.
Minnesota's reciprocity page and application list North Dakota as a reciprocity state for both Class A Journeyworker and Class A Master licenses. A North Dakota journeyman who obtained the license by a state-level examination, has held it for at least one year, and whose license is current and in good standing receives a Minnesota Class A Journeyworker Electrician license without taking the Minnesota exam. The applicant must not have failed a Minnesota exam of the same or greater class, must have no pending order to deny, suspend or revoke a Minnesota electrical license, and files the Individual Electrical License Reciprocity Application with the $50 fee; the license fee is billed on approval.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Agreement
- Active
What you must already have
- Your North Dakota license must have been obtained by examination, not by reciprocity or grandfathering.
- You must have held your North Dakota license for at least 1 year.
- Your North Dakota license must be active and in good standing.
- Has not failed a Minnesota examination for the same or greater class of license; no revoked or suspended license and no pending Minnesota denial, suspension or revocation order
What you'll do to get licensed in Minnesota
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($50). Individual Electrical License Reciprocity Application fee (non-refundable).
- 2License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($48). Class A Journeyworker license fee on approval: $40 base plus $8 board fee for the two-year term (Minn. Stat. 326B.092, subd. 7).
Published fees on this path total $98, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
How Minnesota licenses journeyman electricians
Minnesota journeyman electrician · “Class A Journeyworker Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI), Board of Electricity
Minnesota issues a statewide Class A Journeyworker Electrician license through the Department of Labor and Industry (DLI); there is no municipal electrician licensing. A new applicant documents at least 48 months of qualifying experience (Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subd. 2 and Minn. R. 3800.3520), pays the $50 application and examination fee, and passes the DLI-administered written exam. Under Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subd. 20 the commissioner, with Board of Electricity approval, has reciprocity agreements with nine states whose journeyworker licensees are licensed without the Minnesota exam. Licenses expire every two years and renewal requires 16 hours of continuing education, 12 of them on the NEC.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Minnesota journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in North Dakota?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with North Dakota.
- How long do I need to have held my North Dakota license?
- At least 1 year before applying.
- What does it cost to get a Minnesota journeyman electrician license from North Dakota?
- Published fees on this path total $98, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
Sources
- Minnesota DLI - Experience requirements for an electrical license · Minn. R. 3800.3520; Minn. Stat. 326B.33 · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota DLI - Electrical licensing basics · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry - Plumbing reciprocity · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Minnesota DLI - Individual Electrical License Reciprocity Application (CC0502) · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Form · verified September 15, 2026
- Minnesota Statutes 326B.33 - Electrical licenses and registration · Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subds. 1, 2, 20 · Minnesota Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes · 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.