Nevada to Washington: master electrician license reciprocity
Nevada does not issue a statewide master electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Washington'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.
No out-of-state credit toward the master certificate
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
An out-of-state master or journeyman license gives no advantage toward the Washington Master Electrician (01) certificate. RCW 19.28.191(1)(a) requires four years holding a valid journey level certificate, L&I's master electrician page requires four years certified as a general journey level electrician with L&I, and WAC 296-46B-945 states that no credit may be applied from out-of-state toward qualifying for the master examination. The applicant must first obtain the Washington journey level (01) certificate (by exam, or by reciprocity from Oregon), hold it for four years, and then apply for and pass the master exam, which is scheduled with PSI after L&I approval.
Fees listed are what the applicant pays once eligible after four years as a Washington journey level electrician. The $106.70 first-time master exam fee applies when the department administers the exam; PSI-administered exams are paid to PSI at PSI's rate.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Do not count
What you must already have
- You must have held your Nevada license for at least 4 years.
What you'll do to get licensed in Washington
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($204.60). Master electrician exam application fee (includes original certificate and application processing).
- 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Washington Master Electrician (01) exam, open book, minimum score 70 percent; scheduled with PSI after L&I approval.
- 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($106.70). Master electrician first-time examination fee when administered by the department (retest $125.00); PSI-administered exams are paid to PSI.
Published fees on this path total $311.30, 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 · $106.70
How Washington licenses master electricians
Washington master electrician · “Master Electrician (01)”
Statewide license
Issued by Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, Electrical Program
Washington issues a statewide Master Electrician (01) certificate through the Department of Labor & Industries. To sit the master exam an applicant must have held a valid journey level electrician certificate for four years, and L&I applies this as four years certified as a general journey level electrician with L&I; WAC 296-46B-945 states that no out-of-state credit may be applied toward qualifying for the master exam. Master certificates cannot be obtained through reciprocity, and Washington has no master-level agreement with any state. An out-of-state master electrician therefore first obtains the Washington journey level (01) certificate, holds it for four years, and then takes the master exam. Certificates renew every three years with 24 hours of continuing education.
Why Nevada has nothing to transfer
Nevada master electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Nevada does not issue a master electrician license. The state-level electrical credential is a classification C-2 Electrical Contracting license from the Nevada State Contractors Board (NSCB), which is a business license issued to a sole proprietor, partnership, corporation or LLC and qualified by a named individual, not a license held by the electrician personally. A master-level personal card exists only at the local level: Clark County, the City of Las Vegas and the City of Reno recognize a 'Master Electrician' category, obtained by passing the ICC G16 Master Electrician exam at 75% and holding an ESP-issued Nevada Electrical Qualifications Card, and Clark County code allows a master electrician or electrical qualified individual to satisfy the contractor's on-site supervision duty. None of these jurisdictions publish reciprocity for an out-of-state master license. To contract independently, an arriving master electrician must obtain a C-2 license: the qualifying individual needs four years of experience as a journeyman, foreman, supervising employee or contractor within the past 15 years, must pass the PSI-administered Nevada Business and Law exam and the C-2 trade exam, and the business must pay the $300 application fee and $600 biennial license fee, submit a financial statement and background check, and post a bond of $1,000 to $500,000 set by the Board. Under licensure by endorsement (NAC 624.600 and 624.615) the C-2 trade exam and experience certification are waived for a qualified individual who has held an active electrical contractor license with no discipline for the past four years in Arizona (CR-11), California (C-10), Connecticut (E1), Louisiana (9 Electrical Work), North Carolina (Unlimited Electrical) or Tennessee (CE Electrical), while Florida (EC) and West Virginia (A Electrical) licensees get experience credit but must take the Nevada trade exam; the Business and Law exam is never waived.
How local licensing works in Nevada
State level. NRS 624 and NAC 624 create only contractor licenses. NAC 624.200 defines classification C-2 Electrical Contracting (C-2a Electrical Wiring, C-2b Integrated Ceilings, C-2c Fire Detection, C-2d Low Voltage Systems, C-2e Lines to Transmit Electricity, C-2f Residential Wiring, C-2g Photovoltaics). The license belongs to the business; the individual who qualifies it must have four years of journeyman-or-higher experience within 15 years (NRS 624.260(6)) and pass the Business and Law and trade exams unless the trade exam is waived under NAC 624.600 for an endorsing-state exam approved under NAC 624.615. Fees: $300 application, $600 to issue or renew (NAC 624.130), PSI exam fees, bond $1,000-$500,000 (NRS 624.270).
Clark County. Clark County Code §22.02.260 recognizes a Master Electrician (all aspects of electrical work) alongside the journeyman categories; a master or the contractor's qualified individual is responsible for supervision, inspection and code conformance of the contractor's permitted work, and a master found not to meet the NSCB qualified-individual standard is not recognized until re-examined. The exam is the ICC G16 Master Electrician (75% under the ESP program) and the card is issued by ESP with 30 CEU hours per three-year renewal, including an 8-hour NEC update. The code's only equivalency is for certificates from the accepted testing agency or other Nevada political subdivisions within Clark County.
City of Las Vegas and City of Henderson. Las Vegas Administrative Code §306 uses the same master electrician / qualified individual / journeyman supervision rule and the ESP card; Henderson is listed by ESP as requiring the card but its ordinance was not verified.
City of Reno. Reno's published journeyman program covers the ICC G17/G18 exams; the ESP presentation lists Reno as a participating jurisdiction for master cards as well, but Reno's own page does not describe a separate master card.
Out-of-state holders. No local jurisdiction publishes a waiver of the ICC master exam for an out-of-state master license. The practical route is to pass the ICC G16 exam and obtain the ESP card, or, if contracting, to apply for a C-2 license through NSCB, where the endorsement charts above may waive the trade exam.
- Clark County (Department of Building and Fire Prevention)
- City of Las Vegas (Department of Building and Safety)
- City of Henderson (per ESP program notice; ordinance not verified)
- City of Reno (Development Services)
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Washington master electrician exam if I'm licensed in Nevada?
- Yes. Washington requires the trade exam on this path.
- How long do I need to have held my Nevada license?
- At least 4 years before applying.
- What does it cost to get a Washington master electrician license from Nevada?
- Published fees on this path total $311.30, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Nevada work hours count in Washington?
- No. Washington does not credit out-of-state hours on this path.
- Does it work the other way, from Washington to Nevada?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Washington to Nevada, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- L&I - Master Electrician Certificate · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Agency Page · verified September 14, 2026Requires at least 4 years certified as a general journey level electrician with L&I (2 years for specialties); master exam taken through PSI; renewal every three years with 24 CE hours.
- Application for a Reciprocal (01) General Journey Level Electrician Certificate (F500-148-000) · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Form · verified September 14, 2026States that Washington is party to a reciprocal agreement with Oregon and no other states, that a license not obtained through Oregon examination cannot be reciprocated, and that Washington master certificates cannot be obtained through reciprocity. PDF text was read through the search index; the file itself did not extract in this session.
- RCW 19.28.191 - Application for certificate of competency - Qualifications - Examination · RCW 19.28.191 · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 14, 2026(1)(a): to take the master journey level exam the applicant must have possessed a valid journey level electrician certificate of competency for four years. (1)(c): journey level exam eligibility via 8,000-hour apprenticeship, an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained through examination in a jurisdiction requiring at least 8,000 supervised hours, 16,000 hours of out-of-state experience, or 8,000 hours in armed forces construction battalions.
- WAC 296-46B-909 - Electrical/telecommunications fees · WAC 296-46B-909 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Fee table filed 5/5/26, effective 7/1/26. Journey level, specialty, or reciprocal electrician application (includes original certificate and processing) $114.60; journey level exam fee when administered by the department $80.30; master electrician exam application $204.60; master first-time exam fee $106.70, retest $125.00.
- WAC 296-46B-945 - Qualifying for master, journey level, specialty electrician examinations · WAC 296-46B-945 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Journey level exam pathways include an out-of-state journey level certificate obtained by examination in a jurisdiction requiring 8,000 supervised hours (4,000 in new commercial/industrial), or 16,000 hours of out-of-state experience; documentation by notarized letters from licensed contractors, apprenticeship directors or employers. States: 'No credit may be applied from out-of-state toward qualifying for a master electrician certificate of competency examination.'
- WAC 296-46B-960 - Administrator and electrician certificate of competency examinations · WAC 296-46B-960 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 14, 2026Open-book exam; minimum passing score 70 percent on any exam or section; two-week wait after a failure, three-month wait after three failures in a year; exam must be completed within one year of approval.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.