Oregon to Washington: journeyman electrician license reciprocity
Washington has a reciprocity agreement with Oregon: a Oregon journeyman electrician can get a Washington 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 Oregon (journey level 01)
A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.
Washington and Oregon have a signed reciprocity agreement for general journey level electricians. A holder of an Oregon General Journeyman Electrician (J) license obtained after completing an 8,000-hour apprenticeship with at least 576 classroom hours and passing the Oregon exam, or an Oregon General Supervising Electrician (S) license obtained by Oregon examination, can receive the Washington General Journey Level (01) certificate without taking the Washington exam. Under WAC 296-46B-940 the Oregon license must be current and valid and obtained by examination, and the applicant is ineligible if a Washington certificate was suspended, revoked or lapsed, if money is owed to the department, or if the applicant failed the Washington exam for this certificate within the past two years. An individual may use reciprocity from another state only once in Washington. Apply with form F500-148-000.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
- Agreement
- Active
What you must already have
- Your Oregon license must be active and in good standing.
- Your Oregon license must have been obtained by examination, not by reciprocity or grandfathering.
- Completed an 8,000-hour apprenticeship requiring at least 576 classroom hours (equivalent to a Washington-approved program), or worked at least 16,000 hours in the electrical construction trade
- Has not failed the Washington examination for this certificate within the past two years, and does not hold a suspended, revoked, inactive or unrenewed Washington certificate or owe an outstanding final judgment to the department
- Reciprocity from another state may be used only once in Washington
What you'll do to get licensed in Washington
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($114.60). Reciprocal electrician application fee (includes original certificate and application processing), submitted with form F500-148-000.
Published fees on this path total $114.60, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
How Washington licenses journeyman electricians
Washington journeyman electrician · “General Journey Level Electrician (01)”
Statewide license
Issued by Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, Electrical Program
Washington issues a statewide General Journey Level Electrician (01) certificate of competency through the Department of Labor & Industries. An out-of-state electrician can qualify to sit the Washington journey level exam with an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained by examination in a jurisdiction requiring at least 8,000 supervised hours, or with 16,000 hours of documented out-of-state experience; the exam is open book and requires a 70 percent score. Washington's only electrician reciprocity agreement is with Oregon: holders of an Oregon General Journeyman (J) or General Supervising (S) license obtained by Oregon examination can receive the 01 certificate without taking the Washington exam. Certificates renew every three years on the holder's birthdate and require 24 hours of continuing education.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Washington journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in Oregon?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with Oregon.
- What does it cost to get a Washington journeyman electrician license from Oregon?
- Published fees on this path total $114.60, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Oregon work hours count in Washington?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Washington's eligibility requirements.
Sources
- Reciprocal Agreement for Oregon General Journeyman Electricians and Washington General Journey Level (01) Electricians · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Agreement Document · verified September 14, 2026Signed agreement hosted by L&I (Oregon BCD hosts the same document). Scanned image; text not extractable in this session, so the effective date is not recorded.
- L&I - Electrician certification (journey level and specialty) · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Agency Page · verified September 14, 20268,000 hours (no more than 4,000 in 4,000-hour specialties) and 96 hours basic classroom instruction; out-of-state and military experience accepted via the Out-of-State Application for Electrical Examination (F626-009-000); exams scheduled with PSI after L&I approval; renewal every three years with 24 CE hours. Contains the 'Reciprocal agreement with Oregon' section.
- Application for a Reciprocal (01) General Journey Level Electrician Certificate (F500-148-000) · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Form · verified September 14, 2026States that Washington is party to a reciprocal agreement with Oregon and no other states, that a license not obtained through Oregon examination cannot be reciprocated, and that Washington master certificates cannot be obtained through reciprocity. PDF text was read through the search index; the file itself did not extract in this session.
- RCW 19.28.191 - Application for certificate of competency - Qualifications - Examination · RCW 19.28.191 · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 14, 2026(1)(a): to take the master journey level exam the applicant must have possessed a valid journey level electrician certificate of competency for four years. (1)(c): journey level exam eligibility via 8,000-hour apprenticeship, an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained through examination in a jurisdiction requiring at least 8,000 supervised hours, 16,000 hours of out-of-state experience, or 8,000 hours in armed forces construction battalions.
- WAC 296-46B-909 - Electrical/telecommunications fees · WAC 296-46B-909 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Fee table filed 5/5/26, effective 7/1/26. Journey level, specialty, or reciprocal electrician application (includes original certificate and processing) $114.60; journey level exam fee when administered by the department $80.30; master electrician exam application $204.60; master first-time exam fee $106.70, retest $125.00.
- WAC 296-46B-940 - Reciprocity · WAC 296-46B-940 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Conditions for a reciprocal certificate: valid agreement in the category; proof of a current valid certificate; apprenticeship equivalent to a Washington-approved program with 8,000+ hours or 16,000 hours in the trade; certificate obtained by examination; fees per WAC 296-46B-909. Ineligible if a Washington certificate was suspended, revoked, inactive or not renewed, judgments are owed, or a Washington exam for the certificate was failed within two years. Reciprocity may be used only once.
- WAC 296-46B-945 - Qualifying for master, journey level, specialty electrician examinations · WAC 296-46B-945 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Journey level exam pathways include an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained by examination in a jurisdiction requiring 8,000 supervised hours (4,000 in new commercial/industrial), or 16,000 hours of out-of-state experience; documentation by notarized letters from licensed contractors, apprenticeship directors or employers. States: 'No credit may be applied from out-of-state toward qualifying for a master electrician certificate of competency examination.'
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.