Mississippi trade license reciprocity
How Mississippi licenses each trade and level, who it reciprocates with, and where a Mississippi license goes.
Electricians
Mississippi journeyman electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Mississippi does not issue a journeyman electrician license. The Mississippi State Board of Contractors (MSBOC) licenses contracting businesses - commercial contractors on projects over $50,000 and residential contractors and residential electrical subcontractors above the residential thresholds - through a Certificate of Responsibility with a qualifying party, and none of its classifications, exams or reciprocity agreements apply to an individual journeyman. Individual electricians are licensed, where they are licensed at all, by cities under their own ordinances: Southaven issues Apprentice, Journeyman and Master Electrician licenses and accepts a current journeyman license from another jurisdiction or a passed ICC journeyman exam in place of its own testing, while Hattiesburg licenses only master electrical contractors and requires all work to be supervised by one. An out-of-state journeyman license has no state-level recognition in Mississippi; the electrician must check the ordinance of each city where they will work and apply locally, and Southaven-style acceptance of ICC scores or another jurisdiction's card is the closest thing to reciprocity that exists.
How local licensing works in Mississippi
How local licensing works. Mississippi has no state electrician license. MSBOC regulates contractors (Miss. Code Title 31 ch. 3 for commercial, Title 73 ch. 59 for residential): a commercial license is required for every contractor and subcontractor on commercial jobs over $50,000, and residential electrical subcontractors need a residential license on new homes over $50,000 or remodels over $10,000. Those licenses attach to the business and its qualifying party, not to journeymen. Journeyman licensing is a municipal matter and varies by city.
Southaven. The Building Department licenses Apprentice Electricians ($20), Journeyman Electricians ($50) and Master Electricians ($100). A journeyman applicant files the application with photo ID and a copy of a current/active journeyman license held in another jurisdiction and/or written proof of passing the ICC journeyman exam, so an out-of-state journeyman card or ICC score substitutes for local testing. Work must comply with the 2023 NEC. The city refers all reciprocity questions for out-of-state contractors to MSBOC.
Hattiesburg. Chapter 9 of the city code creates an Electrical Examining Review Board and a Master Electrical Contractor License (21 years old, five years of proven experience by affidavit from licensed master electrical contractors, SBCCI exam with 70%); the ordinance does not license journeymen, and no one may install, repair or alter electrical installations except under the direct supervision of a licensed master electrical contractor. A license may be granted to a person holding a valid license from another city that meets the requirements of House Bill 359.
Jackson. Third-party guides say the City of Jackson examines and licenses journeyman and master electricians through its inspection division, but the city's website exposes only general business-license pages and its trade-license requirements could not be verified; contact the city directly.
Out-of-state holders. No Mississippi city found publishes a formal reciprocity agreement with another state for journeymen. The portable credentials in practice are a passed ICC journeyman exam and a current journeyman license from another jurisdiction, which Southaven accepts outright.
Mississippi master electrician
Licensed by cities and counties
Mississippi does not issue a personal master electrician license. The state-level electrical credential is the Mississippi State Board of Contractors (MSBOC) contractor license in the Electrical classification (commercial, required on projects over $50,000; application $400, renewal $400) or the Residential Electrical classification (application $50), issued to the business through a Certificate of Responsibility with a named qualifying party who passes the open-book PSI electrical trade exam (or the NASCLA Master Electrical exam) and the mandatory Mississippi Law and Business Management exam. Because it is a business license, a master electrician who only wants to work for an employer has nothing to transfer to at the state level; the master-level personal credential exists only in cities such as Southaven (Master Electrician, $100, which itself requires an active MSBOC license, $10,000 bond and liability insurance) and Hattiesburg (Master Electrical Contractor License, five years of experience and the SBCCI exam). MSBOC does waive its electrical trade exam, for $50 per exam, for qualifying parties licensed at least one year by the Alabama Electrical Board, the North Carolina Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board, the South Carolina Contractors Licensing Board or Residential Builders Commission, and the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, and its Universal Recognition form (Miss. Code 73-50-2) waives the trade exam for new Mississippi residents licensed elsewhere for a year; the Law and Business exam is never waived.
How local licensing works in Mississippi
State contractor license (business level). MSBOC's Electrical major classification covers installation, repair, alteration and design of electrical wiring, fixtures, raceways and conduit and includes nine specialties; the qualifying party passes the PSI electrical trade exam or the NASCLA-accredited Master Electrical exam, and every applicant passes the Mississippi Law and Business Management exam. Fees (schedule effective January 1, 2016): commercial application $400, renewal $400, additional classification $100, reciprocity/verification of license $25, request for waiver of exam $50; residential application $50, renewal $100. Reciprocity (revised 07/2025) waives the trade exam only, $50 per exam waived, for a qualifying party who has held the reciprocal license one year with no discipline in the agreement's look-back period: Alabama Electrical Board (Alabama exam taken), North Carolina Electrical Contractors Board (electrical and alarm systems; one year), Ohio CILB (electrical, HVAC, plumbing, refrigeration; no discipline in the last year), South Carolina Contractors Licensing Board (building and electrical; exam by PSI, Experior, Block or NAI), South Carolina Residential Builders Commission (residential electrical; no discipline in 3 years) and Tennessee (all exams; no discipline in the last year). Arkansas and Louisiana agreements exclude electrical work. Form UROL additionally waives the trade exam for an individual who has established Mississippi residency and held a similar license in any other state for at least one year (or worked three years in a state without construction licensing).
Southaven. Master Electrician license $100: application, photo ID of the license qualifier, certificate of liability insurance, a $10,000 general surety bond in favor of the city, an active MSBOC contractor's license certificate and the company EIN. An out-of-state applicant without an MSBOC license must provide a letter of good standing from a municipality where their license is active and may not take residential projects or commercial projects over $50,000; the city applies MSBOC's reciprocity standards.
Hattiesburg. The Electrical Examining Review Board issues the Master Electrical Contractor License: age 21, five years of proven experience attested by affidavits from licensed master electrical contractors (an electrical engineering degree substitutes for three years, a trade-school certificate for two), three character letters, and the SBCCI examination with a 70% minimum, given four times a year. Insurance and bond requirements of the city code and MSBOC regulations also apply. The ordinance allows a license for a person who holds a valid license from another city meeting the requirements of House Bill 359; no interstate reciprocity is described.
Jackson. Trade-license requirements could not be verified on the city's website.
Out-of-state masters. The realistic route is the MSBOC license: use the reciprocity verification form (AL, NC, OH, SC, TN electrical boards) or Form UROL to waive the trade exam, pass the Law and Business exam, then obtain any city master license that the local ordinance requires, which in Southaven is granted on the strength of the MSBOC license plus bond and insurance.
HVAC Technicians
Mississippi journeyman HVAC technician
Licensed by cities and counties
Mississippi does not issue a journeyman HVAC license. The Mississippi State Board of Contractors (MSBOC) licenses contracting businesses (commercial HVAC/mechanical contractors on projects over $50,000 and Residential HVAC contractors on residential work above the residential thresholds) through a Certificate of Responsibility held by the company and a tested qualifying party, and its FAQ states that it does not license individual journeymen; none of its exams or reciprocity agreements apply to a technician who only wants to work for an employer. Individual HVAC mechanics are licensed, where they are licensed at all, by cities under their own ordinances: Southaven issues Apprentice, Journeyman and Master Mechanical licenses and accepts a current journeyman license from another jurisdiction or a passed ICC journeyman exam in place of its own testing, while Gulfport licenses only the Mechanical/HVAC contractor's qualifying party and has no journeyman card. An out-of-state journeyman HVAC license has no state-level recognition in Mississippi; the technician must check the ordinance of each city where they will work and apply locally, and Southaven-style acceptance of another jurisdiction's card or an ICC score is the closest thing to reciprocity that exists. EPA Section 608 refrigerant certification is a separate federal requirement that applies everywhere in the state.
How local licensing works in Mississippi
How local licensing works. Mississippi's contractor law is enforced by MSBOC at the business level; there is no state journeyman or technician card and no statute standardizing city trade licenses. Cities that license individual mechanics do so under their own ordinances, and most coastal and metro cities instead license the contractor or its qualifying party.
Southaven. The Building Department issues Apprentice Mechanical ($20), Journeyman Mechanical ($50) and Master Mechanical ($100) licenses. A journeyman applicant files the application with photo ID and either a copy of a current, active journeyman license held in another jurisdiction or written proof of passing the ICC journeyman exam; no Southaven exam is given. Work must follow the 2024 International Mechanical Code. The city refers all questions about out-of-state reciprocity to MSBOC.
Gulfport. Building Code Services issues a Mechanical/HVAC contractor license in the name of the company's qualifying party ($100, waived for holders of an MSBOC Certificate of Responsibility) with a notarized application, five reference letters (not required with an MSBOC license), $100,000/$300,000 liability insurance naming the city and a home-jurisdiction privilege license. There is no journeyman license; technicians work under the licensed contractor.
Other cities. Jackson, Hattiesburg, Biloxi and other municipalities license contractors and, in some cases, trades under their own ordinances; no official page publishing a journeyman HVAC card for those cities could be opened, so their requirements are not recorded here.
Out-of-state holders. No Mississippi jurisdiction publishes reciprocity for another state's journeyman HVAC license. In practice a journeyman card from another jurisdiction or a passing ICC journeyman mechanical score is accepted by Southaven, and elsewhere the technician simply works under a locally licensed contractor.
Mississippi master HVAC technician
Licensed by cities and counties
Mississippi does not issue a personal master HVAC license. The state-level HVAC credential is the Mississippi State Board of Contractors (MSBOC) contractor license: commercial 'Heat, Ventilation, A/C - HVAC' under the Mechanical classification (required on commercial jobs over $50,000; application and renewal $400, $300,000/$600,000 liability insurance, CPA-reviewed financial statement) or Residential HVAC (required for residential work over $10,000 in remodeling or $50,000 new construction; application $50, renewal $100). The license is issued to the business through a Certificate of Responsibility with a named qualifying party who passes the open-book PSI HVAC (or Residential HVAC) trade exam and the mandatory Mississippi Law and Business Management exam, so a master HVAC mechanic who only wants to work for an employer has nothing to transfer to at the state level; the personal master credential exists only in cities such as Southaven (Master Mechanical, $100, which itself requires an active MSBOC license, a $10,000 bond and liability insurance) and Gulfport (Mechanical/HVAC contractor license issued to the qualifying party, $100). MSBOC waives its HVAC trade exam, for $50 per exam, for qualifying parties who have held a license for at least one year with the Alabama Board of Heating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors, the Alabama General Contractors Board, the Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors, the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (HVAC or Refrigeration), the South Carolina Residential Builders Commission (Residential HVAC) or the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, provided the license was obtained by that board's exam and there has been no disciplinary action in the period stated in each agreement; the Business and Law exam is never waived. EPA Section 608 certification is a separate federal requirement.
How local licensing works in Mississippi
State contractor license (business). MSBOC issues commercial and residential contractor licenses to companies through a Certificate of Responsibility. The commercial HVAC classification ('Heat, Ventilation, A/C - HVAC', with Ductwork, Refrigeration and Boiler specialties) requires the PSI open-book HVAC trade exam and the Mississippi Law and Business Management exam taken by the qualifying party (owner, officer or responsible managing employee), a $400 application fee ($400 annual renewal, $100 per additional classification), general liability insurance of $300,000 per occurrence / $600,000 aggregate naming MSBOC, and a CPA-reviewed financial statement showing net worth of $50,000 for a major classification or $20,000 for a specialty. Residential HVAC and Residential Mechanical (HVAC plus plumbing) licenses require the Residential HVAC (and Plumbing) exam and the Law and Business exam, a $50 application fee ($100 per additional classification, $100 renewal), proof of liability insurance with no minimum, three reference letters and documented experience in the classification.
MSBOC exam waivers for out-of-state qualifying parties. Reciprocity waives the trade exam only ($50 per exam waived, plus a $25 verification fee) after the origin board completes MSBOC's Reciprocity Verification Form; the applicant must have held the origin license for one year and passed that board's exam. HVAC waivers are available for the Alabama Heating and Air board (current license, Alabama exam), the Alabama General Contractors Board (HVAC can be waived; no discipline in the last year), Louisiana (HVAC can be waived but not mechanical or plumbing; the formal agreement ended but MSBOC continues to recognize Louisiana scores), Ohio CILB (HVAC and Refrigeration; no discipline in the last year), the South Carolina Residential Builders Commission (Residential HVAC; no discipline in three years) and Tennessee (all exams, the only state whose mechanical and plumbing exams are waived; no discipline in the last year). Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and the South Carolina Contractors Licensing Board agreements do not cover HVAC. Everyone takes the Mississippi Law and Business Management exam.
Southaven. Master Mechanical license ($100) for the license qualifier: application, photo ID, certificate of liability insurance, $10,000 surety bond in favor of the city, an active MSBOC contractor's license certificate and the company EIN. An out-of-state contractor without an MSBOC license must instead provide a letter of good standing from a municipality where its license is active and may not take residential projects or commercial projects over $50,000; the city defers to MSBOC on reciprocity.
Gulfport. Mechanical/HVAC contractor license ($100, waived with an MSBOC Certificate of Responsibility) issued in the name of the qualifying party: notarized application, current MSBOC license if held, five reference letters (waived with an MSBOC license), $100,000/$300,000 public liability insurance naming the city, home-jurisdiction privilege license and photo ID.
Out-of-state holders. A master HVAC licensee from another state who wants to contract in Mississippi applies to MSBOC as the qualifying party of a business, uses the exam waiver if the origin board is on the list, and then registers with each city; a master who only wants employment needs no state license and, in most cities, no personal card.