California to Alaska: master electrician license reciprocity
California does not issue a statewide master electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Alaska'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.
Electrical Administrator license by credentials (all states)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
Alaska publishes no state-by-state reciprocity list for electrical administrators; every out-of-state applicant uses licensure by credentials under AS 08.40.120(b) and 12 AAC 32.025. The department waives the examination if the applicant holds a current, active electrical administrator (or equivalent) license in another state, has that state send verification of licensure directly to the division, has the state verify on form 08-4899b that the applicant passed an exam equivalent to Alaska's (with the exam content outline), and meets the experience qualifications for the category applied for. CBPL warns that passing an exam in another state does not guarantee qualification, and transcripts must come directly from the school if education is used to qualify. The fee is $150 (nonrefundable application) plus $170 (license), $320 in total. An applicant who cannot document an equivalent exam applies by examination instead (form 08-4898) and must score at least 70% on the PSI electrical administrator exam within the 12 months before licensure.
The division does not publish which states' administrator, master or contractor exams it accepts as equivalent; each is reviewed with the exam content outline. The PSI exam fee for the by-examination route is not published on the application form. A journeyman-level trade license alone is not an electrical administrator equivalent.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- Your California license must be active and in good standing.
- You must have passed a licensing exam in California that the destination considers comparable.
- Meets the category qualifications in 12 AAC 32.055-32.075 (e.g. Unlimited Commercial Wiring: journeyman electrician in inside commercial wiring for four of the last six years, or an EE degree plus one year, or other listed combinations)
What you'll do to get licensed in Alaska
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($150). Nonrefundable application fee (12 AAC 02.210).
- 2License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($170). Biennial license fee; licenses expire December 31 of odd-numbered years.
- 3Other. Verification of licensure sent directly by every jurisdiction where an electrical administrator license is or was held, including any disciplinary history.
- 4Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam (if applicable). PSI Electrical Administrator examination (70% minimum, results valid one year) - required only if an equivalent out-of-state exam cannot be verified.
Published fees on this path total $320, 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 · if applicable
How Alaska licenses master electricians
Alaska master electrician · “Electrical Administrator”
Statewide license
Alaska has no master electrician license. Its highest person-held electrical credential is the Electrical Administrator license issued under AS 08.40 by the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing (CBPL), which is treated here as the master level; CBPL describes it as a supervisory license required for at least one employee of every Alaska contractor doing NEC or NESC work, and it does not by itself allow the holder to perform that work (a journeyman certificate of fitness from the Department of Labor is needed for hands-on work). An electrical administrator is an individual who passes the PSI-administered administrator exam (70%) and meets category experience rules, for example four of the last six years as a journeyman electrician in inside commercial wiring for the Unlimited Commercial Wiring category (12 AAC 32.145); the license is issued in categories (Unlimited Linework Outside, Outside Communications, Unlimited Commercial Wiring, Inside Communications, Residential Wiring, Controls) and the holder may be assigned to only one registered contractor. The administrator license does not by itself allow the holder to perform code work; administrators who also hold a journeyman COF from the Department of Labor function like a master electrician in other states. Fees are $150 to apply plus $170 for the biennial license, which expires December 31 of odd-numbered years.
Why California has nothing to transfer
California master electrician
No individual license at this level
Issued by Contractors State License Board (contractor licensing only)
California does not issue a master electrician license or any personal electrician credential above the DIR General Electrician certification. The state-level credential above that is a C-10 Electrical Contractor license from the Contractors State License Board (CSLB), which is issued to a business (sole owner, partnership, corporation or LLC) and qualified by a named individual rather than held by the electrician personally, so an out-of-state master electrician has nothing to transfer to unless they intend to contract. A master electrician who only wants to work for an employer needs the DIR electrician certification described at the journeyman level. To contract independently the qualifying individual must document at least four years of journeyman-level or higher experience within the past 10 years, pay the $450 application fee, pass both the CSLB Law and Business exam and the C-10 trade exam through PSI within 18 months, be fingerprinted, post a $25,000 contractor's bond (plus a $25,000 bond of qualifying individual where applicable), carry workers' compensation or file an exemption, and pay the initial license fee of $200 (sole owner) or $350 (non-sole owner) for a two-year license. CSLB's reciprocity program covers contractors licensed for the previous five years in good standing in Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada or North Carolina, but only classifications on the Reciprocal Classifications List: for electrical work the only mapped classifications are Arizona C-11, K-11 and L-11 Electrical, which map to California C-10; Nevada's C-2 Electrical is not mapped (only Nevada C-2d Low Voltage maps to C-7), and the Louisiana, Mississippi and North Carolina entries cover only general building. Where reciprocity is granted CSLB may waive the C-10 trade exam but retains the right to require it, staff determine comparability case by case, and the Law and Business exam, bond, fingerprinting and all other licensure requirements still apply. A DIR electrician certification is not required for a licensed contractor's own work, only for electricians employed by C-10 contractors.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Alaska master electrician exam if I'm licensed in California?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Alaska master electrician license from California?
- Published fees on this path total $320, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my California work hours count in Alaska?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Alaska's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Alaska to California?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Alaska to California, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- Electrical Administrator License by Credentials Application (Form 08-4899, Rev. 06/25/2025) · Alaska DCCED, Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 15, 2026Categories: Unlimited Linework Outside, Outside Communications, Unlimited Commercial Wiring, Inside Communications, Residential Wiring, Controls and Control Wiring. Fees: $150 nonrefundable application fee plus $170 license fee ($320 total). Requires verification of licensure from every jurisdiction where the applicant holds or held an electrical administrator license and verification of an equivalent exam (form 08-4899b with content outline) sent directly by that state. Warns that passing an exam in another state does not guarantee qualification. Licenses are biennial, expiring December 31 of odd-numbered years.
- Electrical Administrator License by Examination Application (Form 08-4898, Rev. 06/25/2025) · Alaska DCCED, Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 15, 2026By-examination path: $150 application fee plus $170 license fee ($320 total); applicant must score at least 70% on the electrical administrator examination administered by PSI Services; results are valid for one year. The PSI exam fee is not stated on the form.
- Alaska CBPL - Electrical Administrators program page · Alaska Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing (CBPL) · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Program page: CBPL staffs the electrical administrator program and the Department of Commerce adopts its regulations and makes licensing decisions, while electricians are regulated by the Department of Labor's Mechanical Inspection Section. Verbatim: 'The Electrical Administrator license is required for at least one employee of a valid Alaskan Contractor that performs work that is covered by the National Electric (NEC) or National Electric Safety (NESC) codes. It is a supervisory license only and does not allow the license holder to perform work covered by the NEC or the NESC.' Lists the six categories (Controls and Control Wiring, Inside Communication, Residential Wiring, Outside Communications, Unlimited Commercial Wiring, Unlimited Line Work), online renewal, and $20 license-verification requests (up to 10 business days). The live page is behind DataDome bot protection and returns HTTP 403 to automated clients; the text was read from the Internet Archive capture of February 5, 2026 on 2026-09-15.
- Statutes and Regulations - Electrical Administrators (AS 08.40 and 12 AAC 32) · AS 08.40.090, AS 08.40.120(b), AS 08.40.130; 12 AAC 32.015, 12 AAC 32.025, 12 AAC 32.145 · Alaska DCCED, Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Statute · verified September 15, 2026AS 08.40.090: a person may not act as an electrical administrator without a license. AS 08.40.120(b): the department shall waive the examination for an applicant licensed as an electrical administrator or the equivalent by another state who meets the category qualifications and passed an equivalent examination. 12 AAC 32.025: licensure by credentials requires verification of a current active license and of the equivalent exam, both sent directly by the other state. 12 AAC 32.015: licensure by examination requires a score of at least 70% within the preceding 12 months. 12 AAC 32.145: unlimited commercial wiring category requires e.g. four of the last six years as a journeyman electrician in inside commercial wiring, or an EE degree plus one year, or other listed combinations.
- Alaska DOLWD Mechanical Inspection - Frequently Asked Questions · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Faq · verified September 15, 2026Covers only electrician and plumber certificates; says 'Alaska also has Mechanical Administrator and Electrical Administrator licenses which cover supervision and sign-off of code work. Refer to DCCED for details on these licenses.' Also notes that provisional plumber certificates do not allow fuel gas work because many states exclude gas from their plumber license.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.