Tennessee to Alaska: master electrician license reciprocity
Tennessee does not issue a statewide master electrician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Alaska'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.
Electrical Administrator license by credentials (all states)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
Alaska publishes no state-by-state reciprocity list for electrical administrators; every out-of-state applicant uses licensure by credentials under AS 08.40.120(b) and 12 AAC 32.025. The department waives the examination if the applicant holds a current, active electrical administrator (or equivalent) license in another state, has that state send verification of licensure directly to the division, has the state verify on form 08-4899b that the applicant passed an exam equivalent to Alaska's (with the exam content outline), and meets the experience qualifications for the category applied for. CBPL warns that passing an exam in another state does not guarantee qualification, and transcripts must come directly from the school if education is used to qualify. The fee is $150 (nonrefundable application) plus $170 (license), $320 in total. An applicant who cannot document an equivalent exam applies by examination instead (form 08-4898) and must score at least 70% on the PSI electrical administrator exam within the 12 months before licensure.
The division does not publish which states' administrator, master or contractor exams it accepts as equivalent; each is reviewed with the exam content outline. The PSI exam fee for the by-examination route is not published on the application form. A journeyman-level trade license alone is not an electrical administrator equivalent.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- Your Tennessee license must be active and in good standing.
- You must have passed a licensing exam in Tennessee that the destination considers comparable.
- Meets the category qualifications in 12 AAC 32.055-32.075 (e.g. Unlimited Commercial Wiring: journeyman electrician in inside commercial wiring for four of the last six years, or an EE degree plus one year, or other listed combinations)
What you'll do to get licensed in Alaska
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($150). Nonrefundable application fee (12 AAC 02.210).
- 2License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($170). Biennial license fee; licenses expire December 31 of odd-numbered years.
- 3Other. Verification of licensure sent directly by every jurisdiction where an electrical administrator license is or was held, including any disciplinary history.
- 4Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam (if applicable). PSI Electrical Administrator examination (70% minimum, results valid one year) - required only if an equivalent out-of-state exam cannot be verified.
Published fees on this path total $320, 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 · if applicable
How Alaska licenses master electricians
Alaska master electrician · “Electrical Administrator”
Statewide license
Alaska has no master electrician license. Its highest person-held electrical credential is the Electrical Administrator license issued under AS 08.40 by the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing (CBPL), which is treated here as the master level; CBPL describes it as a supervisory license required for at least one employee of every Alaska contractor doing NEC or NESC work, and it does not by itself allow the holder to perform that work (a journeyman certificate of fitness from the Department of Labor is needed for hands-on work). An electrical administrator is an individual who passes the PSI-administered administrator exam (70%) and meets category experience rules, for example four of the last six years as a journeyman electrician in inside commercial wiring for the Unlimited Commercial Wiring category (12 AAC 32.145); the license is issued in categories (Unlimited Linework Outside, Outside Communications, Unlimited Commercial Wiring, Inside Communications, Residential Wiring, Controls) and the holder may be assigned to only one registered contractor. The administrator license does not by itself allow the holder to perform code work; administrators who also hold a journeyman COF from the Department of Labor function like a master electrician in other states. Fees are $150 to apply plus $170 for the biennial license, which expires December 31 of odd-numbered years.
Why Tennessee has nothing to transfer
Tennessee master electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Tennessee does not issue a master electrician license. The state-level credential for electrical contracting is a contractor license with the CE (electrical) classification from the Board for Licensing Contractors, which is issued to a business (sole proprietorship, partnership, LLC or corporation) that names a qualifying agent, and which is required for any electrical project of $25,000 or more. To obtain it the qualifying agent passes the Tennessee Business & Law exam and the CE trade exam (Prov), and the business files a reviewed or audited CPA financial statement (or, from July 1, 2026, a surety bond) that sets its monetary limit, proves general liability and workers' compensation insurance, and pays a $250 application fee ($200 biennial renewal). The Board has trade-exam-waiver agreements under which a contractor licensed in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina or West Virginia, or one who passed the NASCLA electrical exam, skips the CE trade exam but still takes the Business & Law exam and meets every other requirement; the Board stresses that these 'do NOT allow using another state's license in Tennessee'. Master electrician licenses proper exist only at the local level in the jurisdictions that run their own inspection programs: Nashville (Metro Master Electrician, six years of experience), Memphis/Shelby County (Master Electrician, four years as a journeyman), Chattanooga (Class I electrical contractor, three years as a journeyman) and other exempt jurisdictions, each with its own exam and fees and none publishing reciprocity for out-of-state masters. An out-of-state master electrician who only wants to work for an employer needs no state license; to pull permits for small jobs they need the local master license or an LLE where accepted, and to contract for work of $25,000 or more they need the state CE contractor license.
How local licensing works in Tennessee
State CE contractor license (business level). Required statewide for electrical projects of $25,000 and up and accepted by every local jurisdiction for permits, but it is a business license, not a personal master credential. Requirements: qualifying agent (owner, officer or full-time employee) passes the Tennessee Business & Law exam and the Electrical (CE) trade exam administered by Prov; reviewed or audited financial statement less than 12 months old (or a contractors' surety bond at 50% of the requested limit from July 1, 2026) setting a monetary limit of 10 times the lesser of working capital or net worth ($300,000 of each for an unlimited limit); general liability insurance scaled to the limit; workers' compensation or exemption; $250 initial fee, $200 renewal every two years; exam scores valid about two years. Trade exam waiver (the only state reciprocity): a contractor licensed in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina or West Virginia whose board verifies a comparable electrical exam on the Request for Contractor License Verification form, or who passed the NASCLA Electrical exam, files that verification in place of the CE trade exam score. The Business & Law exam is never waived, applicants with discipline, open complaints or felonies are ineligible, and the waiver cannot be used for the LLE. Arkansas's agreement covers only building classifications, not electrical.
Nashville (Metro Codes and Building Safety). The Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners and Appeals Board issues the Metropolitan Master Electrician certificate. Applicants need six years of experience (an electrical engineering degree may substitute), employer verification letters, a character letter and approval by the Chief Electrical Inspector, then pass the Prov-administered Metro master exam with 70%. The application asks whether the applicant holds a master license in another city or state and how long, but no exam waiver is described. Nashville registers state CE contractors separately.
Memphis / Shelby County (Office of Construction Code Enforcement). The Master Electrician license (Sec. 1305 of the joint electrical code) requires age 24 and either an electrical engineering degree plus two years of installation experience or four certified years as a journeyman; application in person with three industry recommendations, 30-day investigation, exam before the Electrical Code Advisory Board on theory, installation, the NEC and local codes. Fees: exam $150, initial license $100, active renewal $150. A separate Electrical Contractor license ($150 exam, $150 license, $150 registration) must be held by or employ a master; state-certified CE contractors register for $150 instead of testing. No reciprocity provision appears in the code.
Chattanooga (Land Development Office). The Class I electrical license is the contractor/master credential: three or more years as a journeyman or plant electrician (or three years as a Class II residential contractor, a prior Class I license, a Tennessee PE license, or equivalent), city examination, $415 per two-year term. A Board of Electrical Examiners oversees testing; no reciprocity is mentioned.
Knoxville (Plans Review & Inspections). Knoxville is on the state's exempt list and requires a city registration to pull permits; a state CE contractor registers directly. Details of Knoxville's own electrical contractor/master exam and fees are not published on the pages found (865-215-4311).
Out-of-state holders. No Tennessee city or the state endorses another state's master license as such. The realistic paths are: (1) obtain the state CE contractor license, using the trade-exam waiver if licensed in AL, LA, MS, NC, OH, SC or WV or NASCLA-tested, which every jurisdiction accepts; or (2) apply for the local master license in each exempt jurisdiction where you will work, documenting the experience required there and passing the local exam.
- Nashville / Davidson County (Metro Codes and Building Safety)
- Memphis / Shelby County (Office of Construction Code Enforcement)
- Knoxville (Plans Review & Inspections)
- Chattanooga (Land Development Office)
- Hamilton County
- Clarksville
- Murfreesboro
- Franklin
- Jackson
- Kingsport
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Alaska master electrician exam if I'm licensed in Tennessee?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Alaska master electrician license from Tennessee?
- Published fees on this path total $320, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Tennessee work hours count in Alaska?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Alaska's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Alaska to Tennessee?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Alaska to Tennessee, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- Electrical Administrator License by Credentials Application (Form 08-4899, Rev. 06/25/2025) · Alaska DCCED, Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 15, 2026Categories: Unlimited Linework Outside, Outside Communications, Unlimited Commercial Wiring, Inside Communications, Residential Wiring, Controls and Control Wiring. Fees: $150 nonrefundable application fee plus $170 license fee ($320 total). Requires verification of licensure from every jurisdiction where the applicant holds or held an electrical administrator license and verification of an equivalent exam (form 08-4899b with content outline) sent directly by that state. Warns that passing an exam in another state does not guarantee qualification. Licenses are biennial, expiring December 31 of odd-numbered years.
- Electrical Administrator License by Examination Application (Form 08-4898, Rev. 06/25/2025) · Alaska DCCED, Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 15, 2026By-examination path: $150 application fee plus $170 license fee ($320 total); applicant must score at least 70% on the electrical administrator examination administered by PSI Services; results are valid for one year. The PSI exam fee is not stated on the form.
- Alaska CBPL - Electrical Administrators program page · Alaska Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing (CBPL) · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Program page: CBPL staffs the electrical administrator program and the Department of Commerce adopts its regulations and makes licensing decisions, while electricians are regulated by the Department of Labor's Mechanical Inspection Section. Verbatim: 'The Electrical Administrator license is required for at least one employee of a valid Alaskan Contractor that performs work that is covered by the National Electric (NEC) or National Electric Safety (NESC) codes. It is a supervisory license only and does not allow the license holder to perform work covered by the NEC or the NESC.' Lists the six categories (Controls and Control Wiring, Inside Communication, Residential Wiring, Outside Communications, Unlimited Commercial Wiring, Unlimited Line Work), online renewal, and $20 license-verification requests (up to 10 business days). The live page is behind DataDome bot protection and returns HTTP 403 to automated clients; the text was read from the Internet Archive capture of February 5, 2026 on 2026-09-15.
- Statutes and Regulations - Electrical Administrators (AS 08.40 and 12 AAC 32) · AS 08.40.090, AS 08.40.120(b), AS 08.40.130; 12 AAC 32.015, 12 AAC 32.025, 12 AAC 32.145 · Alaska DCCED, Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Statute · verified September 15, 2026AS 08.40.090: a person may not act as an electrical administrator without a license. AS 08.40.120(b): the department shall waive the examination for an applicant licensed as an electrical administrator or the equivalent by another state who meets the category qualifications and passed an equivalent examination. 12 AAC 32.025: licensure by credentials requires verification of a current active license and of the equivalent exam, both sent directly by the other state. 12 AAC 32.015: licensure by examination requires a score of at least 70% within the preceding 12 months. 12 AAC 32.145: unlimited commercial wiring category requires e.g. four of the last six years as a journeyman electrician in inside commercial wiring, or an EE degree plus one year, or other listed combinations.
- Alaska DOLWD Mechanical Inspection - Frequently Asked Questions · Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development, Mechanical Inspection · Faq · verified September 15, 2026Covers only electrician and plumber certificates; says 'Alaska also has Mechanical Administrator and Electrical Administrator licenses which cover supervision and sign-off of code work. Refer to DCCED for details on these licenses.' Also notes that provisional plumber certificates do not allow fuel gas work because many states exclude gas from their plumber license.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.