Texas to Ohio: master electrician license reciprocity
Ohio has a reciprocity agreement with Texas: a Texas 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 Texas (master electrician), announced June 5, 2026
A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation announced on June 5, 2026 that it had entered into a reciprocal agreement with the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board under which a Texas Master Electrician license and an Ohio master electrical contractor license are treated as substantially equivalent. To qualify, the applicant must have held the Texas master electrician license in good standing for at least one year and have obtained it by passing the Texas-administered exam; each state's own prerequisites still apply, which for Ohio includes the Ohio Business and Law exam requirement. As of the verification date OCILB had not published a Texas reciprocity application page on com.ohio.gov, so the Ohio filing procedure and fee are assumed to follow OCILB's other reciprocity applications ($25 per trade, verification of licensure, $500,000 liability certificate, assignment to a contracting company) and should be confirmed with OCILB.
Only the Texas-side announcement was found; the Ohio-side page, form number and fee were not confirmed from an Ohio source. The URL pattern used for OCILB's other partner pages returns a blank portal page for Texas.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Required
- Agreement
- Active since June 5, 2026
What you must already have
- Your Texas license must have been obtained by examination, not by reciprocity or grandfathering.
- You must have held your Texas license for at least 1 year.License held in good standing for at least one year
- Your Texas license must be active and in good standing.
What you'll do to get licensed in Ohio
- 1Law / code exam. Pass a law, rules, or code exam. Ohio Business and Law examination (PSI).
- 2Application fee. Pay the application fee ($25). OCILB reciprocity application fee per trade (assumed to match OCILB's other reciprocity forms; not confirmed for Texas).
- 3Insurance. Carry the required insurance ($500,000). Certificate of contractor liability insurance of at least $500,000 (standard OCILB licensing requirement).
- 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
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.
- Law / code exam
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
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.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Ohio master electrician exam if I'm licensed in Texas?
- The trade exam is waived, but Ohio requires a law or code exam.
- How long do I need to have held my Texas license?
- At least 1 year before applying.
- What does it cost to get a Ohio master electrician license from Texas?
- 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.
- 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.
- TDLR News - Texas Expands Electrician Reciprocity with Ohio (June 5, 2026) · Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Texas-side announcement of the TDLR-OCILB agreement: an Ohio master electrical contractor license is substantially equivalent to a Texas master electrician license; applicants must have held the license in good standing at least one year and obtained it by passing the state exam; each state's prerequisites still apply, including journeyman licensure and Ohio business law exam requirements. No Ohio-side page for Texas was found on com.ohio.gov as of the verification date.
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.