Kentucky to Alabama: master electrician license reciprocity
Alabama has no reciprocity agreement with Kentucky. Your Kentucky experience counts toward eligibility, but you must pass the Alabama exam.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
Examination with documented out-of-state experience (states without an agreement)
Nothing is waived, but your documented out-of-state hours count toward eligibility to sit the exam.
A master electrician or electrical contractor from a state outside the Board's reciprocal list has no endorsement path: §34-36-7(b) and rule 303-X-3-.02(10) limit recognition to states on the Board's approved reciprocal list. The applicant instead files the Electrical Contractor Examination Application (ECE-1) and documents a minimum of four years or 8,000 hours of supervisory electrical construction experience (design, planning, lay-out and direct supervision) by notarized affidavits from a licensed electrical contractor, electrical or building inspector, or electrical project manager, with corresponding W-2 or 1099 forms; the forms do not require the experience to be in Alabama. Up to 2,000 hours may be substituted with approved education or apprenticeship. The applicant then passes the Alabama Electrical Contractor exam or the NASCLA Electrical Contractors exam via Prov ($165) and applies for the license with forms EC-1 and EC-2 and the $150 license fee. One exception: because the Board 'also accepts the NASCLA Electrical Contractors Exam to qualify for reciprocal licensing', an applicant from any state who already passed the NASCLA electrical exam may instead use the reciprocity route (Business and Law exam, notarized reciprocal application, $315 fee, NASCLA exam waiver form).
The Business and Law exam is required only on the reciprocity route; the examination route pages list only the trade exam. Exam approvals expire one year after approval if the exam has not been passed (303-X-3-.02(7)). An applicant holding an Alabama-registered professional electrical engineer license also qualifies to sit for the exam (303-X-3-.02(11)). Georgia licensees follow this default path: the Board's forms page states it 'no longer shares reciprocity with Georgia' and that outstanding Georgia reciprocal applications no longer qualify; no termination date is published.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Four years of supervisory electrical construction experience (design, planning, lay-out and direct supervision), or 8,000 hours as a journeyman in charge of jobs; up to 2,000 hours from approved education or apprenticeship (303-X-3-.02).
What you'll do to get licensed in Alabama
- 1Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($165). Electrical Contractor examination fee (Alabama exam or NASCLA Portable EC exam via Prov), non-refundable.
- 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Alabama Electrical Contractor exam or NASCLA Electrical Contractors exam administered by Prov (2023 NEC; 2026 NEC from January 1, 2027).
- 3License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($150). Electrical Contractor license fee (forms EC-1 and EC-2); annual renewal $150.
- 4Other. Notarized Affidavit of Supervisor or Work Experience from each employer with corresponding W-2 or 1099 forms.
- 5Continuing education. Complete continuing education. 14 hours of continuing education every two years to keep the license (303-X-3-.04(5)).
Published fees on this path total $315, 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 · $165
- Trade exam
Continuing education
Renewals usually need approved CE hours, often on the latest NEC. Reciprocal licensees are rarely exempt.
- Continuing education
How Alabama licenses master electricians
Alabama master electrician · “Electrical Contractor (master-electrician equivalent)”
State license plus local requirements
Issued by Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors
Alabama's highest person-held electrical credential is the statewide Electrical Contractor license, which the Board's own page says 'may also be interchanged with Master Electrician'. Under Ala. Code §34-36-7(c) it is issued only to a person (never to a firm), and the licensee then qualifies a business through the EC-2 business information form, so it is treated here as the master level. A new applicant must document 8,000 hours (four years) of experience designing, planning, laying out and directly supervising electrical construction, or 8,000 hours as a journeyman in charge of jobs, and pass the Alabama Electrical Contractor exam or the NASCLA Electrical Contractors exam through Prov ($165); the license fee is $150, renewal is $150 per year, the license is unlimited in voltage and bid amount, and 14 hours of continuing education are required every two years. The Board has electrical contractor reciprocity with Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Ohio, Louisiana and Texas, accepts the NASCLA Electrical Contractors exam as a basis for reciprocal licensing, and ended reciprocity with Georgia. Counties and municipalities may also license electrical contractors for work within their boundaries, but a statewide license is deemed qualifying everywhere in the state.
How local licensing works in Alabama
Ala. Code §34-36-13(a) lets a person engage in electrical contracting under a license 'from the board or from the county or municipality where the electrical contracting work is being performed', and §34-36-13(b)(2) preserves local examinations, while a valid statewide license is deemed qualifying in every county and municipality on proof of the license plus the local permit and business license. The former provisional electrical contractor license, which converted a county or municipal license into a geographically limited state credential, can no longer be issued since May 15, 2024 (§34-36-7(d)); existing holders may only renew ($75). The Board's reciprocity covers state boards only, and no Alabama city or county reciprocity rule was verified from an official page.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Alabama master electrician exam if I'm licensed in Kentucky?
- Yes. Alabama requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Alabama master electrician license from Kentucky?
- Published fees on this path total $315, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Kentucky work hours count in Alabama?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Alabama's eligibility requirements.
Sources
- Alabama Administrative Code Chapter 303-X-3 - Licensing (certified rules effective February 14, 2026) · Ala. Admin. Code 303-X-3-.02, -.03, -.06, -.10 · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors · Admin Rule · verified September 15, 2026303-X-3-.02: electrical contractor applicants must document 8,000 hours of design, planning, lay-out and direct supervision of electrical construction (or 8,000 hours as a journeyman in charge of jobs); the license is unlimited in voltage and bid amount; (10) the Board may recognize a license from a reciprocating state with equal or greater standards, the list of approved reciprocal states is kept at the Board office and the Executive Director approves or denies reciprocal applicants. 303-X-3-.03: journeyman applicants must document 8,000 hours; (6) same reciprocity language. 303-X-3-.06(2): an electrical contractor by reciprocity must hold a current and valid license in a qualifying reciprocal state with no previous or pending disciplinary action. 303-X-3-.10 (effective January 17, 2026): EC exam $165, journeyman exam $115, EC license $150, journeyman license $35, renewals $150/$35, Reciprocal Electrical Contractor License $315.
- Form ECE-1 - Electrical Contractor Examination Application · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors · Form · verified September 15, 2026Requires a minimum of four years or 8,000 hours of supervisory electrical construction experience (designed, planned, laid out and directly supervised electrical construction) documented by notarized affidavits from a licensed electrical contractor, inspector or project manager, with W-2/1099 forms; education substitutes up to 2,000 hours; exam choices are the Alabama Electrical Contractor exam (Prov, $165) or the NASCLA Portable EC exam ($165).
- Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors - Fees · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Fee table: EC exam $165; journeyman exam $115; EC license $150; journeyman license $35; EC renewal $150; journeyman renewal $35; EC late renewal $50 per year up to 5 years; inactive EC certificate $75; inactive journeyman certificate $15; replacement card $25; Reciprocal License Application Fee $315.
- Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors - Forms and Testing Information (How to Get Licensed; Reciprocal Applications) · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Defines the Electrical Contractor (interchangeable with 'Master Electrician') and Journeyman Electrician licenses; exam fees $165 (EC) and $115 (journeyman), license fees $150 (EC) and $35 (journeyman); exams by Prov on the 2023 NEC (2026 NEC from January 1, 2027); NASCLA exams offered. Lists the reciprocal boards: Mississippi, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, Ohio and Louisiana (EC only) and Texas (EC or Journeyman); states the Board no longer shares reciprocity with Georgia; gives the five reciprocity steps (Alabama Business and Law exam, notarized reciprocity application, $315 fee effective February 14, 2026, Verification of License form, foreign-corporation registration) and that the NASCLA Electrical Contractors exam also qualifies for reciprocal licensing.
- Code of Alabama 1975, Title 34, Chapter 36 - Electrical Contractors and Journeyman Electricians · Ala. Code §§ 34-36-3, 34-36-7, 34-36-13 · Alabama Board of Electrical Contractors (compilation of the Code of Alabama) · Statute · verified September 15, 2026§34-36-3 defines Electrical Contractor (a person qualified to plan, lay out and supervise electrical installations with four years as a journeyman in charge of jobs or four years in design and construction) and Journeyman Electrician. §34-36-7(b): the Board may recognize a license issued by any other state with standards equal to or higher than Alabama's and shall actively seek to reciprocate; §34-36-7(c): licenses are issued only to a person, never to a firm; §34-36-7(d): no new provisional (local-license-based) contractor licenses after May 15, 2024. §34-36-13(a): no person may perform work as a master or journeyman electrician without a license from the Board or from the county or municipality where the work is performed; §34-36-13(b)(2): local governments may examine electricians but a holder of a valid statewide Board license is deemed qualified in every county and municipality.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.