Indiana to Arkansas: master electrician license reciprocity
Indiana does not issue a statewide master electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Arkansas'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.
Examination with credited out-of-state experience (states without a master agreement)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
A master electrician from a state without a master-level agreement gets no exam waiver at the master level; if the origin state is on the journeyman reciprocity list, the Board will reciprocate the master license only as an Arkansas journeyman license. To obtain the master license the applicant files the Board's electrician application and documents six years of construction-industry experience in residential and commercial work, including two years as a licensed journeyman, or an electrical engineering degree plus two years of construction experience, or a combination of apprenticeship, on-the-job training and experience the Board approves as equivalent; experience is verified by notarized employer affidavits and prior licenses are listed with their exam details. The applicant then passes the Arkansas master exam ($80) and pays the $50 license fee. A holder of a current master license from any state may also obtain a six-month temporary master license ($50) restricted to a specific industrial project while qualifying.
Rule 17 CAR §210-404(d) requires 'two (2) years' experience as a licensed journeyman electrician' without saying whether an out-of-state journeyman license satisfies it; the Board's general power to approve equivalent combinations of training and experience suggests case-by-case review, but no official page confirms this.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- Six years of construction-industry experience (residential and commercial) including two years as a licensed journeyman electrician, or an electrical engineering degree plus two years of construction-related experience, or a Board-approved equivalent (17 CAR §210-404(d))
What you'll do to get licensed in Arkansas
- 1Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($80). Master electrician examination fee (17 CAR §210-403(c)).
- 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Arkansas master electrician examination on the NEC edition adopted by the Board.
- 3License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($50). Master electrician license fee on passing the exam (Ark. Code §17-28-301); annual renewal $50.
- 4Other. Notarized Affidavit of Employment Experience from each employer, photocopies of licenses held, and transcripts or certificates for any education credit.
- 5Continuing education. Complete continuing education. Eight hours of continuing education per NEC code cycle to renew (Ark. Code §17-28-311).
Published fees on this path total $130, 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.
- Exam fee · $80
- Trade exam
Continuing education
Renewals usually need approved CE hours, often on the latest NEC. Reciprocal licensees are rarely exempt.
- Continuing education
How Arkansas licenses master electricians
Arkansas master electrician · “Master Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Arkansas Board of Electrical Examiners (Department of Labor and Licensing)
Arkansas issues a statewide Master Electrician license, an unlimited classification that authorizes the holder to plan, lay out and supervise electrical work; a journeyman who wants to contract with the public must employ at least one full-time master. A new applicant needs six years of construction-industry experience (residential and commercial) including two years as a licensed journeyman, or an electrical engineering degree plus two years of construction experience, or a Board-approved equivalent, then passes the master exam ($80) and pays the $50 license fee; the license renews annually for $50 with eight hours of continuing education per NEC cycle. Master-level reciprocity is limited: the Board's page lists Iowa, Oregon and Texas under its Master Reciprocal Agreement (and its explanatory text also names North Dakota). A master from any other journeyman-partner state can only be reciprocated into an Arkansas journeyman license, and the Board only reciprocates an original license, never one the partner state itself granted by reciprocity.
Why Indiana has nothing to transfer
Indiana master electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Indiana has no statewide master electrician or electrical contractor license and no state electrical board; the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency's list of regulated professions contains no electrical trade. The master-level credential exists only at the local level and under varying names: Indianapolis/Marion County licenses Electrical Contractors whose craft license holder has passed the city's exam, Allen County (Fort Wayne) issues an Electrical Supervisors License that it expressly treats as a master electrician license, Evansville and Bloomington license Master Electricians by local examination, and South Bend and Terre Haute license electrical contractors on proof of a passing ICC National Master Electrician (or Experior/master) exam score. An out-of-state master electrician license carries no state-level recognition in Indiana and none of the major jurisdictions publish a formal reciprocity path for other states' licenses; a master must apply in each city or county where they will pull permits, which in practice means holding an ICC national master exam score or passing the local exam, then meeting that jurisdiction's bond and insurance requirements.
How local licensing works in Indiana
How local licensing works. Indiana regulates plumbers at the state level but has never created a state electrician or electrical contractor license. Each city or county building department decides whether and how to license electrical contractors and master-level electricians, and there is no statewide portability rule. Several jurisdictions accept the ICC National Standard Master Electrician exam as the qualifying test, which makes an ICC score the most portable credential inside the state.
Indianapolis / Marion County. The Department of Business and Neighborhood Services issues an Electrical Contractor license to a business that has at least one electrical craft license holder who has passed the required examination (contact the Trade Board & Licensing Coordinator for the exam); a license holder may be connected to only one partnership, LLC or corporation. The packet requires proof of business registration, a certificate of insurance ($500,000 per occurrence bodily injury and $100,000 property damage, or $500,000 combined) naming the Consolidated City of Indianapolis and Marion County as additional insured, workers' compensation coverage or an Indiana exemption certificate (Ohio-based companies need an Indiana Certificate of Compliance), and a $10,000 license or permit surety bond expiring 12/31/2027. 2026 fees: new license holder $377 (applied for January-June 2026), $283 (July-December 2026) or $189 (2027); new business license $247, $185 or $124; business and license-holder renewals $247 each; more than five authorized agents $63 each. Licenses expire December 31 of odd-numbered years.
Fort Wayne / Allen County. The Building Department's Electrical Supervisors License requires four years and 7,000 hours as a journeyman (or eight years and 14,000 hours of documented OJT plus 30 days as a licensed journeyman) and a passing examination; the holder 'shall be considered a master electrician' and may qualify a business for the Electrical Contractors Business Registration ($90; supervisor license $25). Section H of the rules grants licensing reciprocity subject to the trade's reciprocity guidelines and the minimum qualifications, and allows the Building Commissioner to grant reciprocity at his discretion to applicants who present the necessary credentials.
Evansville. The Building Commission licenses Master Electricians (persons, firms or corporations installing or contracting to install electrical wiring and equipment). Applicants submit three notarized letters on letterhead proving at least four years of experience, are approved by the trade board to test, sit the exam through Ivy Tech and must score 75% or higher on each part, then receive a provisional license on paying the $300 fee and providing insurance and a surety bond; the Licensing and Disciplinary Board gives final approval. Renewal is $225 with a $25 late fee after January 31.
South Bend. The Building Department licenses electrical contractors after review of an application showing at least 21 years of age, four years of experience verified by employer letters (or business tax records), and a passing score of at least 70% on the ICC National Master Electrician exam (F16-N) via Pearson Vue or Prometric or a comparable nationally recognized exam approved by the Board of Examiners; a $5,000 surety bond naming the City of South Bend/St. Joseph County, workers' compensation proof, a $50 application review fee and $125 annual registration are required. South Bend issues reciprocal letters ($70) only to municipalities that accept the ICC master exams and cannot guarantee acceptance elsewhere.
Terre Haute. Commercial and residential electrical contractor licenses are issued to businesses; a full-time employee must have passed the Experior Assessment master electrician exam or equivalent for the commercial license (master, journeyman or residential exam for the residential license), proven by a letter from the testing agency. General contractor registration requirements also apply: a $10,000 bond on the city's form and $500,000/$100,000 insurance naming the city; a non-owner master signs a letter accepting responsibility as designated supervisor.
Bloomington. A city ordinance makes it unlawful to engage in electrical contracting without a city license and creates a Board for the Examination and Registration of Electricians that examines and licenses master electricians; current fees were not confirmed from the archived ordinance.
Out-of-state holders. No jurisdiction reviewed publishes reciprocity for another state's master or contractor license. Allen County has a discretionary reciprocity clause; South Bend and Terre Haute accept ICC/Experior national exam scores regardless of where they were earned; Indianapolis and Evansville require their own examinations. Expect to license separately in each jurisdiction and to meet each one's bond and insurance rules.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Arkansas master electrician exam if I'm licensed in Indiana?
- Yes. Arkansas requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Arkansas master electrician license from Indiana?
- Published fees on this path total $130, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Indiana work hours count in Arkansas?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Arkansas's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Arkansas to Indiana?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Arkansas to Indiana, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing - Electrical Inspection and Licensing (Board of Electrical Examiners; Reciprocal Agreements) · Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Lists the six license classes, the online exam application portal, and the Reciprocal Agreements table: Journeyman Reciprocal Agreement with Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, Wisconsin and Wyoming; Master Reciprocal Agreement column listing Iowa, Oregon and Texas. States that the Board only reciprocates an original license from the issuing state (a reciprocated license cannot be reciprocated), that a master license from a journeyman-only partner can only be reciprocated as a journeyman license 'except for Oregon and North Dakota which Arkansas has a Master License reciprocal Agreement', and that Wyoming only reciprocates a journeyman who completed a USDOL apprenticeship with at least 576 classroom hours. The explanatory paragraph (Oregon and North Dakota) and the master column (Iowa, Oregon, Texas) are not fully consistent.
- Arkansas Board of Electrical Examiners - Electrician Application (examination, reciprocal, temporary) · Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing · Form · verified September 15, 2026Single application form with 'Reciprocal' as a licensing qualification checkbox alongside Examination and Temporary. Requires photocopies of any electrician licenses held, whether the license was issued by examination, the exam score, date and testing firm, and notarized employer verification of work experience (Affidavit of Employment Experience); an electrical engineering degree plus two years' experience qualifies for the master exam.
- Rules of the Board of Electrical Examiners of the State of Arkansas, 17 CAR Part 210 · 17 CAR §§ 210-403, 210-404, 210-508, 210-509 · Arkansas Board of Electrical Examiners / Department of Labor and Licensing · Admin Rule · verified September 15, 2026§210-403(c): examination fees $80 for master, journeyman, residential master, residential journeyman and specialist sign electrician, $50 for industrial maintenance. §210-404(d): master applicants need an electrical engineering degree plus two years of construction experience, or six years in the construction industry (residential and commercial) including two years as a licensed journeyman, or a Board-approved equivalent. §210-404(e): journeyman applicants must have completed a four-year USDOL-approved apprenticeship (with a Released-for-Test form, or out-of-state completion certified by the responsible agency), or seek reciprocity with certification from the sister state that they are currently licensed as a journeyman in good standing, have held the license for one year, and were tested in the sister state, or have eight years (16,000 hours, maximum 2,000 per year) of electrical construction experience. §210-508: six-month temporary master ($50) or journeyman ($25) license for a holder of a current license of the same classification from another state, restricted to industrial projects. §210-509: the Board may license applicants holding equivalent licenses in other states, on payment of fees and proof of license, provided an agreement exists with that state.
- Board of Electrical Examiner Statutes, Ark. Code Ann. Title 17, Chapter 28 (2025 compilation) · Ark. Code Ann. §§ 17-28-203, 17-28-301, 17-28-304, 17-28-306, 17-28-311 · Arkansas Department of Labor and Licensing · Statute · verified September 15, 2026§17-28-203: exam fees may not exceed $100 (master, journeyman, residential classes). §17-28-301(a): license fees on passing the exam, $50 master and $25 journeyman; (b) annual renewal $50 master and $25 journeyman, late fee of one year's renewal plus $10 per month; reinstatement after 36 months requires retesting and a $1,000 penalty; (d) temporary six-month master or journeyman licenses for industry projects for applicants holding a current license of the same classification from another state. §17-28-304: no person may perform electrical work without a license. §17-28-306: the Board may issue licenses to applicants holding equivalent licenses in other states on payment of fees and proof of license, provided an agreement has been reached with that state to recognize Arkansas licenses. §17-28-311: eight hours of continuing education per NEC cycle for master and journeyman licensees.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.