LicensebyState

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

Maryland has reciprocity agreements with 0 states. Everyone else follows its standard out-of-state path: experience credit.

Maryland journeyman electrician · “Journeyperson Electrician”

Statewide license

Verified September 23, 2026· 8 sources

Issued by Maryland State Board of Electricians (Department of Labor)

Maryland issues a statewide Journeyperson Electrician license through the State Board of Electricians in the Department of Labor. Statewide journeyperson and apprentice licensing began July 1, 2021 under the Maryland Electricians Act; before that the State licensed only master electricians and each county or Baltimore City licensed journeypersons, and those local bodies now issue registrations rather than licenses. A new applicant qualifies with 4 years of electrical work under the direction and supervision of a master electrician (or a similarly qualified employee of a governmental unit) and then passes the PSI-administered journeyperson exam (70 questions, 70% to pass, open book on the NEC, $65); completing a MATC- or federally-approved apprenticeship with 576 classroom hours and 8,000 work hours waives both the experience and the exam requirements. The original license fee is $18.50. Maryland no longer reciprocates out-of-state journeyperson licenses: the Board's how-to-apply page says 'currently there are no provisions to reciprocate a journeyperson license obtained out of state' and that applicants must apply by examination. Master-license reciprocity with Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia is unaffected. Licensed journeypersons work under the direction and control of a master electrician.

Every origin state

Experience credit 34No credit 16
Every state's path into Maryland
StateMechanismNoteVerified
AlabamaExperience credit2026-09-23
AlaskaExperience credit2026-09-23
ArizonaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
ArkansasExperience credit2026-09-23
CaliforniaExperience credit2026-09-23
ColoradoExperience credit2026-09-23
ConnecticutExperience credit2026-09-23
DelawareExperience credit2026-09-23
District of ColumbiaExperience credit2026-09-23
FloridaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
GeorgiaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
HawaiiExperience credit2026-09-23
IdahoExperience credit2026-09-23
IllinoisNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
IndianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
IowaExperience credit2026-09-23
KansasNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
KentuckyExperience credit2026-09-23
LouisianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
MaineExperience credit2026-09-23
MassachusettsExperience credit2026-09-23
MichiganExperience credit2026-09-23
MinnesotaExperience credit2026-09-23
MississippiNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
MissouriNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
MontanaExperience credit2026-09-23
NebraskaExperience credit2026-09-23
NevadaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
New HampshireExperience credit2026-09-23
New JerseyExperience credit2026-09-23
New MexicoExperience credit2026-09-23
New YorkNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
North CarolinaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
North DakotaExperience credit2026-09-23
OhioNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
OklahomaExperience credit2026-09-23
OregonExperience credit2026-09-23
PennsylvaniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
Rhode IslandExperience credit2026-09-23
South CarolinaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
South DakotaExperience credit2026-09-23
TennesseeNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-23
TexasExperience credit2026-09-23
UtahExperience credit2026-09-23
VermontExperience credit2026-09-23
VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-23
WashingtonExperience credit2026-09-23
West VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-23
WisconsinExperience credit2026-09-23
WyomingExperience credit2026-09-23

Getting licensed in Maryland from scratch

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

Verified September 23, 2026· 15 sources

Journeyperson Electrician license by examination

Maryland issues the Journeyperson Electrician license to an applicant who has spent at least 4 years regularly and principally providing electrical services under the direction and supervision of a master electrician (or a similarly qualified government employee) and passes the State journeyperson exam. Because all electrical work in Maryland must be done by a licensed master, journeyperson or apprentice, those years are normally worked under a State apprentice license. You register for the exam with PSI, uploading your certification of experience, and PSI approves eligibility before you pay and schedule. The exam is open book on the National Electrical Code and requires 70% to pass; there is no separate law or business exam. After passing, you apply to the Board online and pay the $18.50 original license fee.

PSI administers the exam at test centers in Baltimore, College Park, Hagerstown, Lanham and Salisbury. It has 70 questions, 49 correct answers (70%) pass, and the time limit is 210 minutes; the only reference allowed is an unmarked copy of NFPA 70 (the PSI bulletin lists the 2020 edition), which may be tabbed and highlighted. A failed candidate must wait 30 days before retesting and 60 days between later attempts, and pays the exam fee each time. The PSI bulletin says the Board may credit up to 3 years toward the experience requirement for a comparable formal course of study or professional training. The apprentice license itself has no prerequisites and costs $12. Journeypersons working for a licensed master electrician do not need their own liability insurance.

Trade exam
Required
Law / code exam
Not required
Exam given by
PSI
Exam format
Open book
Passing score
70%
Renewal
Every 2 years
Continuing education
5 hours per cycle

Who can apply

  • You must document at least 4 years of qualifying work experience.At least 4 years engaged or employed regularly and principally in providing electrical services for all types of electrical equipment and apparatus, under the direction and supervision of a master electrician or a similarly qualified employee of a governmental unit (Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-304(c)). Work done in a completed approved apprenticeship counts toward the 4 years.

Other ways to qualify

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

Completed approved apprenticeship (experience and exam waived)

The Board must waive both the experience and the examination requirements for an applicant who provides written proof of completing an electrician apprenticeship program approved by the Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Council or the federal Office of Apprenticeship, consisting of at least 576 classroom hours and 8,000 hours of work experience. The applicant files the Board's waiver application online, pays the fee and uploads a copy of the MATC or federal completion certificate; the Board accepts only those certificates. The Board's application page adds that the certificate must have been received within two years of applying.

  • Complete a registered apprenticeship: Electrician apprenticeship program approved by the Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Council or the federal Office of Apprenticeship.
  • Complete at least 576 hours of classroom or related instruction.
  • You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.

Steps to get licensed

  1. 1Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Maryland Journeyperson Electrician exam administered by PSI: 70 questions, 49 correct (70%) to pass, 210 minutes, open book on NFPA 70 (National Electrical Code).
  2. 2Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($65). PSI examination fee, paid to PSI; covers one exam attempt, non-refundable and valid for one year.
  3. 3License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($18.50). Original journeyperson license fee (non-refundable), paid to the Board with the online license application after passing the exam.
  4. 4Background check. Complete a background check. The application asks about criminal convictions. If you answer yes, upload a written explanation in your own words and a certified true test copy of the court record; the Board reviews each case, and a conviction is not an automatic bar..

Published fees on this path total $83.50, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.

Keeping it active

Every 2 years with 5 hours of continuing education per cycle and a $18.50 renewal fee.

Five hours of qualifying continuing education completed during the 24 months before renewal, covering the National Electrical Code, NFPA codes and standards related to electrical services, or other subjects allowed by Business Occupations and Professions §6-205(b). Hours from before the preceding license term do not count. The Board publishes a list of continuing education providers.

Licenses are valid for two years from issue and expire on a staggered basis; the Board mails renewal instructions about 60 days before expiration.

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
  • Exam fee · $65

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. Maryland State Board of Electricians - Taking the Exam (PSI) · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  2. Maryland State Board of Electricians - Licensing FAQs · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Faq · verified September 23, 2026
  3. Maryland State Board of Electricians - Fees (effective July 1, 2025) · COMAR 09.09 · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  4. Maryland State Board of Electricians - Home · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-604 · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  5. Maryland State Board of Electricians - Licensing Applications (how to apply) · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  6. Maryland State Board of Electricians - Renew a License · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  7. Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-304 - Qualifications of applicants · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-304 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  8. Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-305 - Applications · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-305 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  9. Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-306 - Examinations · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-306 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  10. Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-307.1 - Waiver of experience and examination for journeyperson applicants · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-307.1 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  11. Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-309 - Issuance of State license · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-309 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  12. Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-310 - Term and renewal of State licenses · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-310 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  13. Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §6-604 - Insurance · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §6-604 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  14. COMAR 09.09.02 - State Board of Electricians: Continuing Education · COMAR 09.09.02.01-.03 · Maryland Division of State Documents · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
  15. PSI - Maryland Master and Journeyperson Electrician Qualification Information Bulletin · PSI Services LLC for the Maryland State Board of Electricians · Other · verified September 23, 2026

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