LicensebyState

Moving to Montana as a master electrician: every state's rule

Montana has reciprocity agreements with 0 states. Everyone else follows its standard out-of-state path: endorsement.

Montana master electrician · “Master Electrician”

Statewide license

Verified September 15, 2026· 5 sources

Issued by Montana State Electrical Board (Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division)

Montana issues a statewide Master Electrician license through the State Electrical Board. Under MCA 37-68-304 an applicant needs either an electrical engineering degree from an accredited college plus 2,000 hours of practical experience, or at least 8,000 hours of legally obtained journeyman-level experience in planning, laying out or supervising electrical installations (no more than 50% residential), and must pass the PSI open-book exam on the 2020 NEC (at least 80 questions) with 75%. The $190 application fee includes the original license; renewal is $140 every two years with 16 CE hours. Out-of-state masters are reviewed for substantial equivalency: the board's published determinations mark only Alabama, Idaho, Nebraska, Utah and Wyoming as 'Yes', and their licensees are licensed by endorsement without the exam; masters from all other states must take the Montana exam. The board does not sign formal master-level reciprocity agreements (ARM 24.141.504(1) limits those to residential and journeyman licenses).

Every origin state

Endorsement 5Experience credit 34No credit 11
Every state's path into Montana
StateMechanismNoteVerified
AlabamaEndorsementexplicit agreement2026-09-15
AlaskaExperience credit2026-09-15
ArizonaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
ArkansasExperience credit2026-09-15
CaliforniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
ColoradoExperience credit2026-09-15
ConnecticutExperience credit2026-09-15
DelawareExperience credit2026-09-15
District of ColumbiaExperience credit2026-09-15
FloridaExperience credit2026-09-15
GeorgiaExperience credit2026-09-15
HawaiiExperience credit2026-09-15
IdahoEndorsementexplicit agreement2026-09-15
IllinoisNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
IndianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
IowaExperience credit2026-09-15
KansasNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
KentuckyExperience credit2026-09-15
LouisianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
MaineExperience credit2026-09-15
MarylandExperience credit2026-09-15
MassachusettsExperience credit2026-09-15
MichiganExperience credit2026-09-15
MinnesotaExperience credit2026-09-15
MississippiNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
MissouriExperience credit2026-09-15
NebraskaEndorsementexplicit agreement2026-09-15
NevadaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
New HampshireExperience credit2026-09-15
New JerseyExperience credit2026-09-15
New MexicoExperience credit2026-09-15
New YorkNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
North CarolinaExperience credit2026-09-15
North DakotaExperience credit2026-09-15
OhioExperience credit2026-09-15
OklahomaExperience credit2026-09-15
OregonExperience credit2026-09-15
PennsylvaniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
Rhode IslandExperience credit2026-09-15
South CarolinaExperience credit2026-09-15
South DakotaExperience credit2026-09-15
TennesseeNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
TexasExperience credit2026-09-15
UtahEndorsementexplicit agreement2026-09-15
VermontExperience credit2026-09-15
VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-15
WashingtonExperience credit2026-09-15
West VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-15
WisconsinExperience credit2026-09-15
WyomingEndorsementexplicit agreement2026-09-15

Getting licensed in Montana from scratch

No license yet, or nothing that transfers? This is how Montana issues a master electrician license to a first-time applicant.

Verified September 23, 2026· 10 sources

Master Electrician license by examination

Montana does not require a Montana journeyman license before the master exam. An applicant qualifies with at least 8,000 hours of legally obtained journeyman-level experience in planning, laying out or supervising electrical installations, or with an electrical engineering degree from an accredited college or university plus 2,000 hours of practical experience. Experience counts as journeyman level once you are recognized as a journeyman electrician by any state or jurisdiction, or have at least 8,000 hours of practical experience; hours worked as an apprentice do not count. The exam is given by PSI, is open book on the 2020 NEC and Montana electrical law and rules, and requires 75% to pass. The $190 application fee includes the original license.

Apply online through the department's licensing portal or on the paper application, and list every professional license you hold or have ever held, with verifications. Each employer completes a Master Experience Verification Affidavit that must be signed by a third party such as an owner or officer of the business; engineering transcripts must come directly from the school. After approval you pay PSI and schedule the exam, and you have one year to pass. The exam has at least 80 questions covering the National Electrical Code and Montana electrical law and rules, with the same open-book materials as the journeyman exam; there is no separate law exam. An applicant who fails the master exam two or more times may take a lower-level exam instead.

Trade exam
Required
Law / code exam
Not required
Exam given by
PSI
Exam format
Open book
Passing score
75%
Renewal
Every 2 years
Continuing education
16 hours per cycle

Who can apply

  • You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Journeyman-level experience means work done while recognized as a journeyman by a state or other jurisdiction, or after reaching 8,000 hours of practical experience (MCA 37-68-102); apprenticeship hours do not count. No more than 50% may be residential (ARM 24.141.515(2)).

Other ways to qualify

Each of these replaces the requirements above. You only need one.

Electrical engineering degree plus 2,000 hours

A graduate electrical engineer of an accredited college or university who has at least 2,000 hours of legally obtained practical electrical experience may take the master exam. Transcripts must be sent to the board directly by the school.

  • Electrical engineering degree from an accredited college or university
  • You must document at least 2,000 hours of qualifying work experience.

Steps to get licensed

  1. 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($190). Application for license by examination, including the original license fee; nonrefundable (ARM 24.141.405).
  2. 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Montana Master Electrician exam administered by PSI: at least 80 questions on the 2020 NEC and Montana electrical law and rules, open book, 75% to pass.
  3. 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($85). PSI examination fee, paid to PSI after board approval; nonrefundable and valid for one year from payment.
  4. 4Other. Official verification of every professional license you hold or have ever held, in any state or jurisdiction, and documents for any license discipline or criminal conviction.

Published fees on this path total $275, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.

Keeping it active

Every 2 years with 16 hours of continuing education per cycle and a $140 renewal fee.

16 hours of board-approved courses per two-year cycle, at least 8 of them on NEC updates. Courses approved by reciprocal states are accepted. Graduates of approved apprenticeship programs are exempt for their first renewal; licensees who move up from journeyman or residential to a higher license are not.

Every Montana electrician license expires on July 15 of even-numbered years, and renewal opens 60 days before. The board cut the 2026 renewal fee in half.

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 · $85

Continuing education

Renewals usually need approved CE hours, often on the latest NEC. Reciprocal licensees are rarely exempt.

  • Continuing education

Sources for this section

  1. Montana State Electrical Board - Continuing Education · ARM 24.141.2102 · Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  2. Montana State Electrical Board - Exam Information · Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  3. Montana State Electrical Board / PSI Examination Information Sheet (3/27/2025) · Montana Department of Labor & Industry / PSI Services · Other · verified September 23, 2026
  4. Montana State Electrical Board - Home · Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  5. Montana State Electrical Board Laws and Rules Booklet (MCA Title 37 Chapter 68 and ARM Title 24 Chapter 141) · ARM 24.141.405, 24.141.502, 24.141.503, 24.141.504, 24.141.515 · Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
  6. Montana State Electrical Board - Master Electrician Licensing Requirements, Application Checklist and Application (Rev. 07/22/2024) · MCA 37-68-304; ARM 24.141.502, 24.141.515(2) · Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division · Form · verified September 23, 2026
  7. Montana State Electrical Board - Master Electrician license information · Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  8. Montana State Electrical Board - Renewal Process · Montana Department of Labor & Industry, Business Standards Division · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  9. MCA 37-68-102 - Definitions (electricians) · MCA 37-68-102(7), (9) · Montana Legislature · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
  10. MCA 37-68-304 - Master electricians -- application -- qualifications -- contents of examination -- fees · MCA 37-68-304 · Montana Legislature · Statute · verified September 23, 2026

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