LicensebyState

Moving to Alaska as a journeyman electrician: every state's rule

Alaska has reciprocity agreements with 13 states. Everyone else follows its standard out-of-state path: endorsement.

Alaska journeyman electrician · “Electrician Journeyman Certificate of Fitness”

Statewide license

Verified September 15, 2026· 5 sources

Issued by Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Labor Standards and Safety Division, Mechanical Inspection Section

Alaska issues a statewide Electrician Journeyman Certificate of Fitness (COF) through the Department of Labor and Workforce Development's Mechanical Inspection Section; a state COF is required for construction work subject to the National Electrical Code everywhere in Alaska (AS 18.62.010). A new applicant documents 8,000 hours of supervised electrical work (no more than 2,000 residential; up to 1,000 classroom hours, 1,000 lineman hours and 4,000 military/vocational hours may be substituted) and passes the department's open-book exam on the 2020 NEC with a score of at least 70%. The COF costs $50 to apply for plus $200 on issue, is valid for two years, and renews with 16 hours of continuing education. Since August 8, 2025 the department reciprocates journeyman certificates with any US jurisdiction whose requirements are substantially similar (8 AAC 90.111), still names thirteen long-standing reciprocal states, and offers a one-year provisional certificate to any out-of-state journeyman.

States Alaska reciprocates with

Every origin state

Reciprocity 13Endorsement 21No credit 16
Every state's path into Alaska
StateMechanismNoteVerified
AlabamaEndorsement2026-09-15
ArizonaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
ArkansasReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
CaliforniaEndorsement2026-09-15
ColoradoReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
ConnecticutEndorsement2026-09-15
DelawareEndorsement2026-09-15
District of ColumbiaEndorsement2026-09-15
FloridaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
GeorgiaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
HawaiiEndorsement2026-09-15
IdahoEndorsement2026-09-15
IllinoisNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
IndianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
IowaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
KansasNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
KentuckyEndorsement2026-09-15
LouisianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
MaineEndorsement2026-09-15
MarylandEndorsement2026-09-15
MassachusettsEndorsement2026-09-15
MichiganEndorsement2026-09-15
MinnesotaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
MississippiNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
MissouriNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
MontanaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
NebraskaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
NevadaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
New HampshireReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
New JerseyEndorsement2026-09-15
New MexicoReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
New YorkNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
North CarolinaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
North DakotaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
OhioNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
OklahomaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
OregonEndorsement2026-09-15
PennsylvaniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
Rhode IslandEndorsement2026-09-15
South CarolinaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
South DakotaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
TennesseeNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
TexasReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
UtahEndorsement2026-09-15
VermontEndorsement2026-09-15
VirginiaEndorsement2026-09-15
WashingtonEndorsement2026-09-15
West VirginiaEndorsement2026-09-15
WisconsinEndorsement2026-09-15
WyomingReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15

Getting licensed in Alaska from scratch

No license yet, or nothing that transfers? This is how Alaska issues a journeyman electrician license to a first-time applicant.

Verified September 23, 2026· 11 sources

Electrician Journeyman Certificate of Fitness by examination

Alaska issues the Electrician Journeyman Certificate of Fitness to applicants who document 8,000 hours of electrical work under the direct supervision of a journey-level electrician and pass the Mechanical Inspection Section's open-book exam on the 2020 National Electrical Code with a score of at least 70%. Hours worked in Alaska count only while you hold an Electrician Trainee certificate, which is issued to apprentices indentured in a US Department of Labor registered apprenticeship program; experience legally obtained in another state also counts. No more than 2,000 of the hours may be residential work, and maintenance work does not count. You file the Electrical and Plumbing Certificate of Fitness Application with notarized Experience Verification Forms; once the department approves the packet it schedules your exam, and the certificate is issued after you pass.

The department tests in Anchorage, Juneau and Fairbanks on the first and third Wednesday of each month, with a four-hour limit. Proctored testing in other Alaska cities is available through Department of Labor job centers, and Alaska-based electrical unions may test at their halls. Application review takes 7 to 10 business days before an exam can be scheduled, and an applicant who fails must wait 30 days to retest. No separate exam fee is listed; testing through an approved third-party facility or proctor outside the department's offices is at the applicant's expense. An Alaska-based union may verify hours by sworn affidavit in place of employer forms. The Electrician Trainee certificate costs $250 ($50 application plus $200 certificate fee) and is valid for six years.

Trade exam
Required
Law / code exam
Not required
Exam given by
Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection Section
Exam format
Open book
Passing score
70%
Renewal
Every 2 years
Continuing education
16 hours per cycle

Who can apply

  • You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Work subject to the National Electrical Code, performed for a properly licensed contractor under the direct supervision of a journeyman (8 AAC 90.890). At most 2,000 hours of residential work count. Up to 1,000 classroom hours from a registered apprenticeship or accredited electrical training program and up to 1,000 hours of power lineman work may be counted. Maintenance electrician experience does not count.
  • Hours worked in Alaska must be earned while holding an Electrician Trainee Certificate of Fitness, which requires indenture in a US Department of Labor registered electrical apprenticeship programApply for the trainee certificate with the Davis-Bacon letter from the RAPIDS system showing your apprenticeship registration. No more than two trainees may work per certified journeyman on a job site.

Other ways to qualify

Each of these replaces the requirements above. You only need one.

Experience legally obtained in another state

Electrical work performed outside Alaska counts toward the 8,000 hours if it was done legally in that state, for a contractor licensed there, under the direct supervision of a journeyman. Along with the Experience Verification Forms, submit either the license that state issued you or a letter on that state's letterhead confirming that no license is required for that scope of work. The same residential, classroom and lineman limits apply, and you still take the Alaska exam.

  • You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.
  • A license issued by the state where the work was done, or a letter on that state's letterhead confirming that no license is required for that scope of work

Military or vocational training hours plus work experience

Up to 4,000 of the 8,000 hours may come from military service in a qualifying specialty, credited at up to 500 hours per full year assigned and proven with a DD Form 214, or from a department-approved vocational program, proven with the program's certificate. The department decides which military specialty codes and vocational schools qualify. The remaining hours must be work experience that meets the usual rules.

  • Up to 4,000 hours of military service in a qualifying specialty or of approved vocational training
  • You must document at least 4,000 hours of qualifying work experience.

Steps to get licensed

  1. 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($50). Nonrefundable application fee, paid with the Electrical and Plumbing Certificate of Fitness Application.
  2. 2License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($200). Two-year Electrician Journeyman certificate fee, charged only after you pass the exam.
  3. 3Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Alaska Electrician Journeyman exam given by the Mechanical Inspection Section: open book on the 2020 National Electrical Code, four-hour limit, 70% to pass.
  4. 4Other. Notarized Experience Verification Form from each employer, or a sworn affidavit from an Alaska-based union, documenting the qualifying hours.

Published fees on this path total $250, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.

Keeping it active

Every 2 years with 16 hours of continuing education per cycle and a $200 renewal fee.

16 hours of approved continuing education completed in the 24 months before renewal. At least 8 hours must cover significant changes or updates to the National Electrical Code, and no more than 8 hours may be industry-related.

You may renew up to 90 days before the certificate expires. A certificate can be renewed without retesting up to two years after it expires, but renewing more than 90 days after expiration adds the $50 application fee.

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

Continuing education

Renewals usually need approved CE hours, often on the latest NEC. Reciprocal licensees are rarely exempt.

  • Continuing education

Sources for this section

  1. 8 AAC 70.025 - Minimum electrical standards · 8 AAC 70.025 · Alaska Legislature (Alaska Administrative Code) · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
  2. 8 AAC 90.160 - Electrician journeyman certificate of fitness · 8 AAC 90.160 · Alaska Legislature (Alaska Administrative Code) · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
  3. 8 AAC 90.890 - Work legally performed and experience legally obtained · 8 AAC 90.890 · Alaska Legislature (Alaska Administrative Code) · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
  4. Electrical and Plumbing Certificate of Fitness Application (v.20250902) · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Form · verified September 23, 2026
  5. Alaska Certificate of Fitness Information Packet - AS 18.62 and 8 AAC 90 with FAQ (Version 20250715) · AS 18.62.010, AS 18.62.020, AS 18.62.030, AS 18.62.050(c), AS 18.62.070; 8 AAC 90.111, 8 AAC 90.112, 8 AAC 90.115, 8 AAC 90.125, 8 AAC 90.130, 8 AAC 90.192, 8 AAC 90.890, 8 AAC 90.900(14) · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Admin Rule · verified September 16, 2026
  6. Experience Verification Form - Plumbing and Electrical Code Work (v.20250828) · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Form · verified September 23, 2026
  7. Alaska DOLWD Mechanical Inspection - Certificate of Fitness License Requirements (Electrician) · 8 AAC 90.111, 8 AAC 90.112, 8 AAC 90.160 · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  8. Alaska DOLWD Mechanical Inspection - Frequently Asked Questions · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Faq · verified September 23, 2026
  9. Renewal Application for Electrical and Plumbing Certificate of Fitness (v.20250902) · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Form · verified September 23, 2026
  10. Alaska DOLWD Mechanical Inspection - Testing Information · 8 AAC 90.115 · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  11. Trainee Application for Electrical and Plumbing Certificates of Fitness (v.20250828) · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Form · verified September 23, 2026

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