Tennessee to Utah: journeyman electrician license reciprocity
Tennessee does not issue a statewide journeyman electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Utah'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 applicants without an equivalent license (standard route with out-of-state experience credit)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
If the origin jurisdiction is shown in gray on DOPL's Endorsement to Utah map (no equivalent statewide journeyman license), the applicant must meet Utah's standard qualifications: completion of an approved electrical training program of at least 576 classroom hours plus 8,000 hours as a licensed apprentice, or 16,000 hours as a licensed apprentice. Hours earned outside Utah count, but must be documented on the Verification of Electrician Experience form together with official verification from the jurisdiction where the hours were obtained; local (city or county) licenses may be used to help document hours and exams. The applicant must then pass the Utah Journeyman Electrician Written Exam (75% minimum) and the Utah Electrician Practical Exam, both administered by Prov, and pay DOPL's $116 application fee. New Jersey licensees are asked to document passing exams equivalent to Utah's journeyman exams.
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.8,000 hours as a licensed apprentice together with completion of an approved 576-hour training program taken over at least 48 months; otherwise 16,000 hours as a licensed apprentice. Up to 3,000 hours may be credited per 12-month period.
- Hours obtained outside Utah must be supported by official verification from the jurisdiction where they were obtained.
What you'll do to get licensed in Utah
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($116). Non-refundable DOPL application-processing fee.
- 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Utah Journeyman Electrician Written Exam (75% minimum) and Utah Electrician Practical Exam, administered by Prov; exam fees are paid directly to Prov.
Published fees on this path total $116, 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
How Utah licenses journeyman electricians
Utah journeyman electrician · “Journeyman Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL)
Utah issues a statewide Journeyman Electrician license through the Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) under the Utah Construction Trades Licensing Act (Utah Code 58-55) and Rule R156-55b. Utah has no signed state-to-state reciprocity agreements; instead it offers licensure by endorsement under Utah Code 58-1-302 to holders of licenses that DOPL has mapped as equivalent, provided the license has been held at least one year and is active and in good standing. Journeyman endorsement applicants are not required to take a Utah exam. Applicants from jurisdictions without an equivalent statewide license can still count verified out-of-state hours toward the standard route, which requires the Utah Journeyman Electrician Written Exam and the Utah Electrician Practical Exam.
Why Tennessee has nothing to transfer
Tennessee journeyman electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Tennessee has no statewide journeyman electrician license. The Board for Licensing Contractors regulates electrical work at only two levels: the contractor license with the CE (electrical) classification, required for projects of $25,000 and up, and the Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE), a personal license for projects under $25,000 that is accepted only in the roughly 65 counties where the State Fire Marshal's Division of Fire Prevention issues permits and inspects. The Board itself says the LLE exam 'is NOT comparable to the journeyman/master', that no experience is required to take it, and that 'there are no out-of-state reciprocal (exam waiver) agreements for the LLE'. Journeyman cards exist only where a city or county runs its own testing, licensing and inspection program: Nashville, Memphis/Shelby County, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Hamilton County, Clarksville, Murfreesboro, Franklin, Jackson and about two dozen other 'exempt jurisdictions' listed by the state do not accept the LLE and require their local journeyman or master license, or a state CE contractor license, to obtain permits. An out-of-state journeyman license has no state-level recognition in Tennessee; the state's LLE packet states flatly that 'out-of-state electricians and contractors must obtain a license in Tennessee', and none of the largest local programs publish a reciprocity or exam-waiver path, so a journeyman arriving from another state should expect to sit the local exam in each jurisdiction where they will work (or take the $50 LLE exam for small jobs in fire-marshal counties).
How local licensing works in Tennessee
How local licensing works. T.C.A. Title 62, Chapter 6 gives the Board for Licensing Contractors the CE contractor license (business-level, $25,000 and up, accepted by every jurisdiction) and the LLE (individual, under $25,000, valid only where the state inspects). Local governments that operate their own electrical inspection programs may license electricians for smaller work under their own codes, and the state publishes a list of exempt jurisdictions that do not accept the LLE. Every one of them accepts a state CE contractor license for permits, but none accepts another city's or state's journeyman card by rule.
Nashville (Metro Codes and Building Safety). The Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners and Appeals Board examines and licenses Master Electricians, Equipment Installers, Low Voltage Installers and Journeyman Electricians. A journeyman applicant must show completion of an electrical construction apprenticeship program or regular employment as a journeyman under an electrical contractor or master electrician, submit employer verification letters and a character letter, be approved by the Chief Electrical Inspector, and pass the Prov-administered Metro journeyman exam with 70% (30-day wait to retest). The application asks whether the applicant holds a master license in another city or state but describes no exam waiver.
Memphis / Shelby County (Office of Construction Code Enforcement). The joint Memphis and Shelby County Electrical Code licenses Journeyman Electricians and Linemen (age 20, three years of experience in the electrical field immediately preceding application, application in person with three industry recommendations, 30-day investigation, exam before the Electrical Code Advisory Board; exam $50, annual renewal $50) and registers apprentices ($12). Journeymen work under a licensed Master Electrician who pulls the permit. No reciprocity provision appears in the code.
Knoxville (Plans Review & Inspections). Knoxville is on the state's exempt list and requires everyone pulling a permit to hold a city registration matching their qualifications (state contractor, homeowner, or unlicensed/LLE-LLP registration). The city's own electrical exam, experience and fee details are not published on the pages found; contact 865-215-4311.
Chattanooga (Land Development Office). Issues a Journeyman electrical license ($55, two-year term) to applicants with 3 years or 6,000 documented hours of experience with an electrical contractor who pass the city test, and a separate 'state certified' journeyman registration on the same terms; a Board of Electrical Examiners oversees testing. No reciprocity is mentioned.
Out-of-state holders. The state has no journeyman license to endorse, the LLE has no reciprocity, and the four largest local programs publish no exam waiver for other jurisdictions' journeyman cards. Practical routes are: pass the local journeyman exam in each exempt jurisdiction where you will work; take the LLE exam ($50 license, no experience required) for sub-$25,000 work in fire-marshal counties; or, for independent contracting, obtain the state CE contractor license, which every jurisdiction accepts.
- Nashville / Davidson County (Metro Codes and Building Safety)
- Memphis / Shelby County (Office of Construction Code Enforcement)
- Knoxville (Plans Review & Inspections)
- Chattanooga (Land Development Office)
- Hamilton County
- Clarksville
- Murfreesboro
- Franklin
- Jackson
- Kingsport
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Utah journeyman electrician exam if I'm licensed in Tennessee?
- Yes. Utah requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Utah journeyman electrician license from Tennessee?
- Published fees on this path total $116, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Tennessee work hours count in Utah?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Utah's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Utah to Tennessee?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Utah to Tennessee, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- Utah DOPL - Electrical licensing home page · Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) · Agency Page · verified September 14, 2026dopl.utah.gov URLs redirect here. Lists license classifications and names Prov as the exam vendor.
- Utah DOPL - Electrical Exam Information · Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) · Agency Page · verified September 14, 2026Journeyman: Utah Journeyman Electrician Written Exam + Utah Electrician Practical Exam (6 modules). Master: Utah Master Electrician Law and Rule Exam + Utah Electrician Practical Exam. Exams administered by Prov; fee amounts are published by Prov, not on this page.
- Journeyman Electrician - Out of State Applicants Applying by Endorsement · Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) · Agency Page · verified September 14, 2026Directs applicants to the Journeyman Electrician Endorsement to Utah map and the Verification of Licensure form. States no examination requirement for journeyman endorsement applicants.
- Journeyman Electrician - Out of State Applicants Not Applying by Endorsement · Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) · Agency Page · verified September 14, 2026
- Utah Electrician Application (JE / RJE / ME / RME) with checklist and instructions · Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) · Form · verified September 14, 2026Form version v20260716. $116.00 non-refundable application-processing fee for all applicants. Endorsement checklist: official verification showing active licensure in good standing for at least one year from a jurisdiction designated as equivalent; master endorsement applicants must pass the Utah Master Electrician Law and Rule Examination at 75% or greater. Hours obtained outside Utah count with official verification from that jurisdiction.
- Endorsement to Utah: Journeyman Electrician (state-by-state equivalency map) · Utah Code 58-55; 58-1-302 · Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) · Other · verified September 14, 2026Map last updated 7/1/2020. Green = equivalent license (endorsement available if held at least one year, active, in good standing); yellow = additional documentation needed (NJ); gray = no equivalent statewide license.
- Licensure By Endorsement Verification Form (LE-58-V-App) · Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) · Form · verified September 14, 2026Completed by the origin state; records method of licensure (exam date and score, apprenticeship or hours) and disciplinary history.
- Utah Admin. Code R156-55b Electricians Licensing Act Rule - 2025 amendment text (Utah State Bulletin 2025-11, Filing 57162) · Utah Admin. Code R156-55b-302a, R156-55b-302b · Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Rule text as amended in 2025 (anticipated effective 7/22/2025). R156-55b-302a: journeyman = 576-hour program over at least 48 months plus 8,000 apprentice hours, or 16,000 apprentice hours; master = 8,000 journeyman hours (or 4,000 with AAS, or 2,000 apprentice hours with ABET EE degree). R156-55b-302b: journeyman passes Written Exam (75%) and Practical Exam; master passes Law and Rule Exam (75%). The eRules page at adminrules.utah.gov could not be retrieved.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.