LicensebyState

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

New Mexico has reciprocity agreements with 10 states. Everyone else follows its standard out-of-state path: experience credit.

New Mexico journeyman electrician · “EE-98J Journeyman Electrician (certificate of competence)”

Statewide license

Verified September 15, 2026· 5 sources

Issued by New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, Construction Industries Division (CID)

New Mexico issues statewide journeyman certificates of competence through the Construction Industries Division (CID) of the Regulation and Licensing Department; PSI processes applications and administers the exams under contract. The residential and commercial journeyman electrician classification is EE-98J, which requires four years (8,000 hours) of experience gained within the ten years before application; a residential-only ER-1J and several two-year specialty journeyman classifications also exist. A new EE-98J applicant passes a two-part written exam (Part 1 Code, open book on the 2020 NEC; Part 2 Theory, closed book) and a practical exam, each with a 75% passing score. CID reciprocates only the EE-98J classification, with ten states. Certificates are active for three years, and EE-98J holders complete 16 hours of continuing education per three-year code cycle.

States New Mexico reciprocates with

Every origin state

Reciprocity 10Experience credit 24No credit 16
Every state's path into New Mexico
StateMechanismNoteVerified
AlabamaExperience credit2026-09-15
AlaskaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
ArizonaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
ArkansasReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
CaliforniaExperience credit2026-09-15
ColoradoReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
ConnecticutExperience credit2026-09-15
DelawareExperience credit2026-09-15
District of ColumbiaExperience credit2026-09-15
FloridaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
GeorgiaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
HawaiiExperience credit2026-09-15
IdahoReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
IllinoisNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
IndianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
IowaExperience credit2026-09-15
KansasNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
KentuckyExperience credit2026-09-15
LouisianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
MaineExperience credit2026-09-15
MarylandExperience credit2026-09-15
MassachusettsExperience credit2026-09-15
MichiganExperience credit2026-09-15
MinnesotaExperience credit2026-09-15
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 HampshireExperience credit2026-09-15
New JerseyExperience credit2026-09-15
New YorkNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
North CarolinaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
North DakotaExperience credit2026-09-15
OhioNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
OklahomaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
OregonExperience credit2026-09-15
PennsylvaniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
Rhode IslandExperience credit2026-09-15
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
UtahExperience credit2026-09-15
VermontExperience credit2026-09-15
VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-15
WashingtonExperience credit2026-09-15
West VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-15
WisconsinExperience credit2026-09-15
WyomingReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15

Getting licensed in New Mexico from scratch

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

Verified September 23, 2026· 10 sources

EE-98J Journeyman Electrician certificate by examination

New Mexico issues the EE-98J journeyman certificate of competence to an applicant at least 18 years old who documents four years (8,000 hours) of electrical experience gained within the ten years before applying and passes a three-part exam. By statute, two of the four years must be in commercial or industrial work. You apply to PSI, which handles licensing for the Construction Industries Division (CID), with a notarized Journeyman Certificate Application, a notarized Electrical Work Verification Form from each employer or supervisor, and the $75 fee. Once approved, you schedule and pass Part 1 Code (open book), Part 2 Theory (closed book) and a hands-on practical, scoring at least 75% on each. There is no separate law exam; New Mexico code questions are part of Part 1.

Part 1 Code has 50 questions in 145 minutes and allows the 2020 National Electrical Code, the New Mexico Electrical Code (14.10.4 NMAC) and the National Electrical Safety Code; Part 2 Theory has 50 questions in 120 minutes with no references; the practical is scored out of 100 points in 120 minutes and covers projects such as motor control, transformers and conduit bending. Experience counts only if it was gained with a contractor licensed in the trade or was legal work where it was performed; PSI reviews military, out-of-country and homeowner experience case by case. After approval you must test within six months, you may not take the same exam more than twice in 30 days, and passing scores are valid for one year. The application asks about child support compliance and disqualifying felony convictions (14.6.3.8(F) NMAC), which can be grounds for denial. An active New Mexico EE-98 qualifying party may apply for the parallel journeyman certificate without a work verification form.

Trade exam
Required
Law / code exam
Not required
Exam given by
PSI
Passing score
75%
Renewal
Every 3 years
Continuing education
16 hours per cycle

Who can apply

  • You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Four years of practical experience in the electrical trade, at least two of them in commercial or industrial work (NMSA 60-13-38(I)), all within the ten years immediately before application (14.6.4.8(C) NMAC).
  • Be at least 18 years old.

Other ways to qualify

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

Four-year electrical apprenticeship

NMSA 60-13-38(I) also makes an applicant eligible after four years of apprenticeship in the electrical trade. The application asks apprenticeship graduates to name the program. The same exam and fees apply.

  • Complete a registered apprenticeship (4 years): Four years of apprenticeship in the electrical trade.
  • Be at least 18 years old.

Accredited technical training plus experience

Technical training from an accredited college, university, technical-vocational institute, manufacturer's program or apprenticeship program counts toward the experience requirement. Each year of training counts as half a year of experience, and training may cover no more than half of the total, so at least 4,000 hours must be work experience. Attach official transcripts to the application. The statute also lists four years of accredited training in the electrical trade as a route of its own.

  • Accredited technical training in the electrical trade, credited at half a year of experience per year of training, up to half of the four-year requirement
  • You must document at least 4,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Within the ten years before application.
  • Be at least 18 years old.

Approved vocational electrical program plus two years of commercial experience

An applicant who completed an electrical trade program approved by the vocational education division of the state public education department is eligible after two years of practical experience in commercial electrical work (NMSA 60-13-38(I)(4)).

  • Completion of an electrical trade program approved by the vocational education division of the New Mexico public education department
  • You must document at least 2 years of qualifying work experience.
  • Be at least 18 years old.

Steps to get licensed

  1. 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($75). Journeyman application and certificate fee per classification, paid to PSI with the notarized application and work verification forms; returned if the application is rejected.
  2. 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. EE-98J exam by PSI: Part 1 Code (50 questions, open book, 2020 NEC and New Mexico Electrical Code), Part 2 Theory (50 questions, closed book) and a practical exam; 75% required on each.
  3. 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($206.64). PSI fee for all three EE-98J parts ($68.88 per part, charged for each attempt).

Published fees on this path total $281.64, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.

Keeping it active

Every 3 years with 16 hours of continuing education per cycle and a $75 renewal fee.

16 hours of CID-approved continuing education in each three-year period: at least 8 hours on the current code (code change) and 8 hours of other industry-related instruction. Proof of completion must be submitted with the renewal application, or the renewal is not processed. CID publishes the approved course list on its continuing education page.

The certificate expires three years after issuance, on the last day of the month it was issued. A late renewal costs an extra $25, and a certificate not renewed within six months of expiration is cancelled.

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 · $206.64

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. Construction Industries Licensing Act, NMSA 1978 Chapter 60, Article 13 · NMSA 1978 §§ 60-13-2(E), 60-13-14, 60-13-16, 60-13-38 · New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  2. 14.6.4 NMAC - Construction Industries Licensing: Journeyman Certification · 14.6.4.8 NMAC · New Mexico Commission of Public Records, State Records Center and Archives · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
  3. 14.6.6 NMAC - Construction Industries Licensing: Classifications and Scopes of Work · 14.6.6.8 and 14.6.6.9 NMAC · New Mexico Commission of Public Records, State Records Center and Archives · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
  4. New Mexico Journeyman Certificate Application and Instructions (PSI, updated August 2025) · PSI Services for the NM Construction Industries Division · Form · verified September 23, 2026
  5. NM CID / PSI - How to Renew a Journeyman Certificate · PSI Services for the NM Construction Industries Division · Form · verified September 23, 2026
  6. State of New Mexico Journeyman Examinations Candidate Information Bulletin (PSI, updated 4/13/2023) · PSI Services for the NM Construction Industries Division · Other · verified September 23, 2026
  7. New Mexico Licensing Fees (CID contractor, qualifying party and journeyman fee schedule) · PSI Services for the New Mexico Construction Industries Division · Other · verified September 23, 2026
  8. NM Regulation and Licensing Department - Apply for a Construction Industries License · New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, Construction Industries Division · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  9. NM Regulation and Licensing Department - CID Continuing Education · New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, Construction Industries Division · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  10. NM RLD Construction Industries Division - Fees · New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, Construction Industries Division · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026

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