Kansas to Texas: master electrician license reciprocity
Kansas does not issue a statewide master electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Texas'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.
Out-of-state master without a reciprocity agreement
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
TDLR publishes no electrician-specific endorsement process for master electricians from states outside its reciprocity agreements. Occupations Code §51.4041 lets TDLR waive prerequisites case by case for an applicant holding a similar license from a state with substantially equivalent requirements, and TDLR calls that review its primary method for out-of-state licensees, but the electrician program pages do not describe how it is applied to masters. Otherwise the applicant files the standard Master Electrician application, must have held a journeyman license for at least two years, documents 12,000 hours of on-the-job training, and must pass the Texas master exam. Texas has no separate law or business exam for individual electricians.
TDLR's application page links the two-year journeyman requirement to the Texas Journeyman Electrician license and requires training under a Master Electrician licensed in Texas; whether an out-of-state journeyman license or out-of-state supervised hours are credited was not confirmed from an official page. Journeyman Industrial Electrician experience may not be used to qualify.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
What you must already have
- You must document at least 12,000 hours of qualifying work experience.On-the-job training under the supervision of a master electrician (Tex. Occ. Code §1305.153).
- Held a journeyman electrician license for at least two years
What you'll do to get licensed in Texas
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($45). Master Electrician license application fee (non-refundable), 16 TAC §73.80.
- 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Texas Master Electrician exam administered by PSI (NEC knowledge and calculations portions, open book, 2023 NEC).
- 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($78). PSI examination fee for both portions; retake $78.
Published fees on this path total $123, 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
- Exam fee · $78
How Texas licenses master electricians
Texas master electrician · “Master Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR)
Texas issues a statewide Master Electrician license through TDLR. A new applicant must have held a journeyman electrician license for at least two years, have 12,000 hours of on-the-job training under a master electrician (TDLR's application page specifies a Texas-licensed master), and pass the PSI-administered master exam. TDLR has master-level reciprocity agreements with seven states, four of them added between December 2025 and June 2026; qualifying licensees are licensed without the Texas exam. Licenses are valid for one year and renewed annually.
Why Kansas has nothing to transfer
Kansas master electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Kansas does not issue a master electrician license; the master credential exists only at the county and city level under the framework in K.S.A. 12-1525 to 12-1527. State law requires a master certificate of competency to rest on a valid journeyman certificate held for at least two years plus a passing score of 75% on an ICC, IAPMO or Prometric standard master exam, and makes that certificate valid proof of competency in every Kansas jurisdiction that licenses electricians. Sedgwick County/Wichita (MABCD) issues master electrician certificates ($35) to certified journeymen with two more years of field experience who pass ICC 554/KGD/F16/G16/T16; Kansas City, Kansas licenses master electricians after four years of experience including two years of commercial or industrial work; Lawrence certifies masters with four years of field experience or two years as a journeyman ($20); and Johnson County uses the ICC Standard Master Electrician exam (554/KGD) to qualify the individual behind a Class DE electrical contractor license ($325 for a new license). None of these jurisdictions has a reciprocity agreement with another state - MABCD states it does not reciprocate with other jurisdictions - so an out-of-state master's advantage is limited to submitting an already-passed ICC master exam score (Johnson County and MABCD accept the ICC national master exams) and documented experience in place of retesting.
How local licensing works in Kansas
How local licensing works. Kansas has no state master electrician license. K.S.A. 12-1526(f) requires applicants for a master certificate to have held a valid journeyman certificate for at least two years, and 12-1525 designates the ICC, IAPMO and Prometric master exams (75% minimum). A master certificate of competency earned on a standard exam is accepted for licensure in any other Kansas county or city without re-examination; a license based on a local alternative exam is valid only in that jurisdiction unless a reciprocal agreement exists (12-1527).
Sedgwick County and Wichita (MABCD). Master electrician certificate: current electrical journeyman certificate plus two years of field experience as a certified journeyman, and a 75% score on ICC 554, KGD, F16, G16 or T16 Master Electrician. New certificate $35, two-year term, renewal $35 with six trade and six general CEUs. An electrical contractor license additionally needs a qualified person holding the master certificate, $300,000 general liability insurance naming MABCD, and 12 hours of CE per renewal; trade contractor licenses expire December 31 of odd years. MABCD states it does not reciprocate with other jurisdictions or with state testing.
Johnson County. The county licenses electrical contractors (Class DE, electrical services only) rather than individual masters. The company's Qualifying Individual must show a passing score on the ICC Standard Master Electrician exam (554 or KGD, Pearson VUE); the county accepts equivalent ICC, Prometric, ETS-subsidiary and IAPMO exams and may recognize ICC National exams with a verified score of 75% or higher. Fees: $100 application plus $225 per license type ($325 for one new license), $225 renewal, $75 late fee; eight hours of CE per classification per year for the Qualifying Individual.
Kansas City, Kansas (Unified Government). Code sec. 8-158: no one may work as a master electrician without a Unified Government master electrician's license. Applicants must be 21 and document one year of experience planning, laying out and supervising electrical installations plus three additional years under a licensed electrical contractor or master electrician, at least two of them in commercial or industrial work; an approved post-high-school electrical course earns up to two years' credit. Testing is through Prometric via the Building Inspection division; fees and reciprocity are not published.
Lawrence. Master electrician certification requires four years of practical field experience or two years as a journeyman, verified by notarized employer statements, and a 75% score on the K.S.A. standard exam ($50 exam application); license $20, renewal $10, six hours of CE per year. Certificates of competency from other Kansas jurisdictions are accepted.
Out-of-state masters. No interstate reciprocity is published anywhere in Kansas. A master who already passed an ICC master exam elsewhere should present the score (Sedgwick County lists the national ICC 554/F16/G16/T16 exams; Johnson County will consider ICC National scores of 75%+) with experience documentation; otherwise the ICC or Prometric master exam must be taken through a sponsoring Kansas jurisdiction, after which the certificate is portable statewide.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Texas master electrician exam if I'm licensed in Kansas?
- Yes. Texas requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Texas master electrician license from Kansas?
- Published fees on this path total $123, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Does it work the other way, from Texas to Kansas?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Texas to Kansas, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1305 - Electricians · Tex. Occ. Code §§1305.153, 1305.155, 1305.164 · Texas Legislature · Statute · verified September 14, 2026§1305.155 journeyman: 8,000 hours OJT under a master electrician and pass the exam. §1305.153 master: 12,000 hours OJT, journeyman license held at least two years, pass the exam. §1305.164: the executive director may license an applicant licensed in a state with which Texas has an agreement to recognize licenses.
- Texas Occupations Code §51.4041 - Alternative Qualifications for License · Tex. Occ. Code §51.4041 · Texas Legislature · Statute · verified September 14, 2026Allows TDLR to waive license prerequisites for an applicant holding a similar license from a jurisdiction with substantially equivalent requirements or a reciprocity agreement, and to enter reciprocity agreements with the Governor's approval.
- Electricians Administrative Rules, 16 TAC Chapter 73 · 16 TAC §§73.20, 73.21, 73.24, 73.80 · Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026§73.24(a): an applicant licensed in a state with a reciprocity agreement may obtain the equivalent Texas license without examination if all other requirements of Occupations Code ch. 1305 are met. §73.80: journeyman application $30, master application $45.
- TDLR - Apply for a New Master Electrician License · Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 14, 2026
- TDLR Electrician Candidate Information Bulletin (PSI) · Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation / PSI Services · Other · verified September 14, 2026Exam fee table: Journeyman Electrician $78; Master Electrician (both portions) $78; retakes $78.
- TDLR - Electrician Exam Information · Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 14, 2026
- TDLR - Transfer Your Out-of-State Electrician License to Texas · Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 14, 2026Lists the current journeyman and master reciprocity partner states, the eligibility bullets, fees, and the reciprocity application forms.
- TDLR - Removing Barriers for Out-of-State Licensees at a Glance (AAG FORM-019, Jan. 2025) · Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation · Other · verified September 14, 2026Agency-wide summary: substantial-equivalence review under Occupations Code 51.4041(b)(1) is described as the primary case-by-case method for out-of-state licensees; reciprocity agreements require the Governor's approval. Its electrician partner lists are as of January 2025.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.