New Hampshire to Maine: master electrician license reciprocity
Maine has a reciprocity agreement with New Hampshire: a New Hampshire master electrician can get a Maine license without retaking the trade exam.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
Reciprocal agreement with New Hampshire (master)
A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.
New Hampshire is one of the two long-standing master-level reciprocity partners named on Maine's master licensing page, the reciprocity application and the board FAQ. A New Hampshire master electrician who obtained the license by passing New Hampshire's written examination and has been licensed and actively working as an electrician for the required period is issued a Maine Master Electrician license without taking the Maine exam. The applicant files the Reciprocity License Application with license verification from New Hampshire, Work Experience Affidavits documenting at least 12,000 hours of electrical installation work, and the $171 fee ($150 license plus $21 criminal records check).
Experience wording differs across official sources: the application checklist requires affidavits for 12,000 hours; 32 M.R.S. §1206 says 8,000 hours licensed and actively engaged; the licensing page, 2019 information sheet and rule Chapter 150 say six years. A self-employed master with no supervising electrician may document six years of experience with statements from three community leaders.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Agreement
- Active
What you must already have
- Your New Hampshire license must have been obtained by examination, not by reciprocity or grandfathering.
- Your New Hampshire license must be active and in good standing.
- You must document at least 12,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Licensed and actively engaged in electrical installations; documented by Work Experience Affidavit(s).
What you'll do to get licensed in Maine
- 1License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($150). Master Electrician license fee (two-year term), part of the $171 reciprocity application fee.
- 2Background check. Complete a background check ($21). Criminal records check fee, part of the $171 reciprocity application fee.
- 3Other. License verification from the New Hampshire board and Work Experience Affidavit(s).
Published fees on this path total $150, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
How Maine licenses master electricians
Maine master electrician · “Master Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Maine Electricians' Examining Board (Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation)
Maine issues a statewide Master Electrician license through the Electricians' Examining Board within OPOR. A new applicant qualifies with 4,000 hours as a licensed journeyman, 12,000 hours as a licensed helper or apprentice, or 6,000 hours as a journeyman-in-training, plus 576 hours of approved study, completes a 45-hour NEC course, and passes the Prov-administered master exam ($90). The license costs $150 for a two-year term plus a $21 State Bureau of Identification report. Out-of-state masters may be licensed by reciprocity without examination if their state has a formal agreement with the board (New Hampshire and Vermont on the licensing page and application form; the board's FAQ now also names Massachusetts and Rhode Island), or by endorsement under board rule Chapter 180 (effective July 2024) if their state's master requirements are substantially equivalent to Maine's.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Maine master electrician exam if I'm licensed in New Hampshire?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with New Hampshire.
- What does it cost to get a Maine master electrician license from New Hampshire?
- Published fees on this path total $150, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Does it work the other way, from Maine to New Hampshire?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Maine to New Hampshire, the mechanism is endorsement.
Sources
- Electricians' Examining Board - Frequently Asked Questions (reciprocity answers by license type) · Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (OPOR) · Faq · verified September 15, 2026
- Electricians' Examining Board - Master Electrician licensing requirements, fees and reciprocity · Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (OPOR) · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Electricians' Examining Board - Reciprocity License Application and Instructions (Journeyman and Master) · 02-318 CMR ch. 130 s. 1(D)(2) · Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (OPOR) · Form · verified September 15, 2026
- Electricians' Examining Board - Reciprocity information sheet (2019) · Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (OPOR) · Other · verified September 15, 2026
- State of Maine OPOR Candidate Information Bulletin (Prov, MOPOR-2025.05.14) · Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation / Prov, Inc. · Form · verified September 23, 2026
- 02-318 CMR Chapter 180 - Electricians' Examining Board: Licensure by Endorsement · 02-318 CMR ch. 180 (eff. July 22, 2024) · Maine Secretary of State / Electricians' Examining Board · Admin Rule · verified September 15, 2026
- Electricians' Examining Board Rules (compiled December 2021) - Chapter 150 Reciprocity · 02-318 CMR ch. 150 · Maine Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (OPOR) · Admin Rule · verified September 15, 2026
- 32 MRSA §1202-B - Issuance and scope of licenses (journeyman and master qualifications) · 32 M.R.S. §1202-B · Maine Legislature · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
- 32 MRSA §1206 - Reciprocity · 32 M.R.S. §1206 · Maine Legislature · Statute · verified September 15, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.