Do I have to take the Ohio master electrician exam if I'm licensed in Kentucky?

No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with Kentucky.

What does it cost to get a Ohio master electrician license from Kentucky?

Published fees on this path total $25, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.

Kentucky to Ohio: master electrician license reciprocity

Reciprocity· Exam waivedVerified September 15, 2026· 8 sources

Ohio has a reciprocity agreement with Kentucky: a Kentucky master electrician can get a Ohio license without retaking the trade exam.

Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.

Reciprocity with Kentucky (master electrician + contractor)

A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.

OCILB issues an Ohio Electrical Contractor license without examination to an applicant who currently holds both a Kentucky Master Electrician license and a Kentucky Electrical Contractor license, both obtained by passing Kentucky's examinations; contractors who were grandfathered into their Kentucky license are not eligible. The applicant files OCILB form DIC 3529 with a $25 non-refundable fee per trade, has the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction complete the Reciprocity Verification of Licensure under state seal (license status, exam score and any disciplinary history), provides a $500,000 certificate of liability insurance naming OCILB as certificate holder, and assigns the license to a contracting company. Kentucky's side of the agreement issues Kentucky master and contractor licenses to Ohio contractor licensees.

The Kentucky form does not mention the Ohio Business and Law exam, unlike the Tennessee form; R.C. 4740.08 provides for licensure 'without examination' under a written agreement.

At a glance

Trade exam: Waived
Law / code exam: Not required
Agreement: Active

What you must already have

Your Kentucky license must have been obtained by examination, not by reciprocity or grandfathering.
Your Kentucky license must be active and in good standing.
You must have no disciplinary action or unresolved complaints on your record.

What you'll do to get licensed in Ohio

1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($25). Reciprocity application fee, non-refundable, per trade (form DIC 3529).
2Insurance. Carry the required insurance ($500,000). Certificate of liability insurance with complete operations coverage of at least $500,000, certificate holder OCILB.
3Other. Reciprocity Verification of Licensure completed under seal by the Kentucky licensing board, including exam score.
4Other. Assignment of the license to a contracting company (R.C. 4740.01).

Published fees on this path total $25, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.

What you'll need to buy or arrange

Liability insurance

Some states require proof of general liability or workers' compensation coverage at licensing time.

Insurance · $500,000

How Ohio licenses master electricians

Ohio master electrician · “Electrical Contractor (OCILB state license)”

Statewide license

Verified September 15, 2026· 5 sources

Issued by Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB), Ohio Department of Commerce

Ohio has no license called 'master electrician'; its top person-held electrical credential is the statewide Electrical Contractor license issued by the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) to an individual (R.C. 4740.01(A)), who must then assign it to a contracting company. It is the credential Texas treats as equivalent to a master electrician license, and other states' reciprocity forms pair it with their master electrician licenses. A new applicant must be 18, a citizen or legal alien, have five years as a tradesperson in the electrical trade immediately before applying (or be an Ohio registered engineer with three years of construction business experience), pass BCI and FBI background checks, pass both sections of the PSI-administered examination (trade and Business & Law), carry $500,000 of contractor liability insurance in one company name, and pay a $25 application fee and $25 license fee. OCILB publishes reciprocity application pages for Kentucky, North Carolina, West Virginia, South Carolina, Tennessee and Louisiana, and Texas announced a master-level agreement with OCILB in June 2026. Licenses expire annually and renew with continuing education.

Moving to Ohio Leaving Ohio

Common questions

Do I have to take the Ohio master electrician exam if I'm licensed in Kentucky?: No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with Kentucky.
What does it cost to get a Ohio master electrician license from Kentucky?: Published fees on this path total $25, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.

Sources

Ohio Department of Commerce - Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) · Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Industrial Compliance · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026States that OCILB issues licenses to qualified electrical, HVAC, plumbing, hydronics and refrigeration contractors who pass the licensing examination. No journeyman or individual electrician license is mentioned.
OCILB - Contractors & Contracting Companies (state license requirements, reciprocity list, document checklists) · Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Industrial Compliance · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Opened through the r.jina.ai text proxy because com.ohio.gov returned 404 to the fetcher. States that OCILB issues state licenses to commercial contractors in five trades: Electrical, HVAC, Hydronics, Plumbing and Refrigeration. Requirements: age 18, citizen or legal alien, five years as a tradesperson in the trade (or Ohio registered engineer with three years of construction business experience), no disqualifying offense, pass the trade examination, $500,000 contractor liability coverage, fees; BCI and FBI background checks after board approval and before the exam. Fees: $25 application per trade, $25 licensing fee per trade, $60 annual escrow renewal. 'Reciprocity with other states' section: Ohio offers reciprocity only to applicants who passed the state-recognized test; Tennessee accepts Ohio grandfathered licensees; where noted the Business and Law (B&L) exam is required. List: Alabama - HVAC and Refrigeration; Arkansas - Plumbing; Kentucky - Electrical, HVAC, Refrigeration; Louisiana - Electrical, HVAC, Refrigeration - B&L; Mississippi - Electrical, HVAC, Refrigeration, Plumbing - B&L; North Carolina - Electrical; South Carolina - Electrical, HVAC, Plumbing - B&L; Tennessee - Electrical, HVAC, Refrigeration, Plumbing, Hydronics - B&L; West Virginia - Electrical, HVAC, Plumbing; Virginia - Electrical; Texas - Electrical. Reciprocity applicant checklist: notarized reciprocity application, OCILB verification form signed by the other state's board, $25 application fee per trade. The page says nothing about a journeyman, technician or individual HVAC license and nothing about EPA Section 608.
OCILB - Reciprocity Application - Kentucky (EL, HV, RE) · Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Industrial Compliance · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Opened through the r.jina.ai text proxy. Title 'Electrical, HVAC, Refrigeration'; eligibility text is written for the electrical trade (Kentucky master electrician plus contractor license, both obtained by examination in Kentucky; grandfathered contractors cannot reciprocate). Form DIC 3529; last reviewed July 2022.
OCILB Kentucky Reciprocity Application and Reciprocity Verification of Licensure (PDF) · Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board · Form · verified September 15, 2026Type of license applying for: EL, HVAC, RE; each trade requires a separate application and fee. All applicants must have tested with Kentucky; licenses obtained by grandfathering cannot reciprocate. The Reciprocity Verification of Licensure, completed under state seal by the Kentucky board and returned directly to OCILB, has fields for the State of Kentucky HVAC license numbers HM (master) and HJ (journeyman), license status, examination score and disciplinary history. $500,000 certificate of liability insurance naming OCILB, assignment to a contracting company, $25.00 non-refundable fee per trade.
Ohio Revised Code 4740.01 - Construction industry licensing board definitions · R.C. 4740.01(A), (C), (E) · Ohio Legislative Service Commission · Statute · verified September 15, 2026'License' means a license the board issues to an individual as a heating, ventilating, and air conditioning contractor, refrigeration contractor, electrical contractor, plumbing contractor, or hydronics contractor. 'Tradesperson' means an individual employed by a contractor who performs the work without assuming responsibility for the means, method or manner of the work; tradespersons are not licensed under the chapter. 'Contracting company' is a company in the construction industry working on construction projects. Effective September 17, 2014.
Ohio Revised Code 4740.06 - License application; qualifications for examination · R.C. 4740.06(B), (C), (F), (H) · Ohio Legislative Service Commission · Statute · verified September 15, 2026(B) age 18, citizen or legal alien, five years as a tradesperson in the trade (or registered engineer with three years' business experience), contractor's liability insurance. (C) alternative qualification for holders of a substantially similar out-of-state license: at least five building authorizations and a tax return showing income under that license. (F) the specialty section authorizes the license within 90 days of the application once the applicant qualifies and passes the exam. (H) renewal without re-examination with continuing education. Effective September 30, 2025 (H.B. 96, 136th General Assembly).
Ohio Revised Code 4740.08 - Reciprocity · R.C. 4740.08 · Ohio Legislative Service Commission · Statute · verified September 15, 2026When a written reciprocity agreement between the states exists, an individual licensed in the other state who submits a copy of the agreement and pays the licensure fee is licensed without examination if the specialty section finds the other state's requirements substantially equal and that it extends similar reciprocity to Ohio licensees; the section may withdraw authorization for good cause before issuance. Effective December 29, 2023.
Ohio Revised Code 4740.09 - Fees · R.C. 4740.09 · Ohio Legislative Service Commission · Statute · verified September 15, 2026License, renewal and late fees are set by each specialty section subject to Controlling Board approval; the statute itself contains no dollar amounts.

Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.

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