Transfer Your Contractor License to Tennessee: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)

Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce and Insurance) ↗

Tennessee offers trade-specific reciprocity through the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce and Insurance), covering general building, electrical, plumbing, HVAC work for licensees from states including Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and others. These agreements waive the relevant trade exam — not the business and law exam, bond, or registration. Fee: $250 (Initial contractor license application fee $250. The CPA-prepared reviewed or audited financial statement is a separate professional cost, and some verifying states charge a fee to complete the Board's license-verification form. Beginning July 1, 2026 exams are administered by Prov.). Select your trade and origin in the checker for the exact answer.

Moving to Tennessee from a specific state?

Pick your current state — the checker returns your exact pathway.

Run the Reciprocity Checker →

Verdict

Licensure by endorsement

Read Tennessee's agreements one trade at a time — that is the mistake most contractors make here. A deal that waives the electrical exam says nothing about general building, and a commercial agreement rarely covers residential work. The tables below separate them so you can see exactly which of your licenses travels and which does not.

Participating states are exactly eight — Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina and West Virginia — plus NASCLA exam acceptance. There is NO Georgia agreement and NO Virginia agreement; both appear on third-party lists and neither appears anywhere in the Board's own Rev. 06/2026 document. That document's summary table is typeset with the state labels offset one row above their data; the correct pairing is confirmed by the verification form on page 2, which spells out each state's scope in prose, and the two agree exactly. Scope by state: AL Commercial/Residential/Electrical/HVAC; AR Commercial/Residential; LA Commercial/Residential/Electrical/Mechanical; MS Commercial/Residential/Electrical/Mechanical; NC Commercial/Residential/Electrical; OH Electrical/Plumbing/HVAC; SC Commercial/Electrical/Plumbing/HVAC; WV Commercial/Residential/Industrial/Electrical/Mechanical/Masonry.

Tennessee requirements at a glance

Out-of-state contractor license transfer requirements for Tennessee, verified 2026-08-07
Exam	The Board for Licensing Contractors grants a TRADE-exam waiver only. An applicant actively licensed in a participating state whose board verifies a comparable examination may skip the Tennessee trade exam, but every contractor license except the restricted residential BC-A/r classification still requires the Tennessee Business & Law exam, and the reviewed or audited CPA financial statement that sets the monetary limit is never waived. NASCLA National Commercial and Electrical exam scores are also accepted in place of the trade exam.
Additional requirements	Pass the Tennessee Business & Law exam (required for every classification except restricted residential BC-A/r) Submit a reviewed or audited financial statement from a licensed accounting firm, less than 12 months old, to set the monetary limit Have the participating state complete the Board's Request for Contractor License Verification in place of the trade-exam score Be free of disciplinary action, open complaints and felony convictions — these disqualify an applicant from the trade exam waiver Pay the $250 application fee; the license is required before bidding or contracting at $25,000 or more
Fees	$250 (Initial contractor license application fee $250. The CPA-prepared reviewed or audited financial statement is a separate professional cost, and some verifying states charge a fee to complete the Board's license-verification form. Beginning July 1, 2026 exams are administered by Prov.)
Processing time	No processing-time estimate is published; applications are acted on at the Board's scheduled meetings.

Step by step

Confirm Tennessee's current requirements on the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce and Insurance) website — rules change.
Submit the endorsement application to the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce and Insurance) (application linked on this page).
Arrange license verification from your current state.
Pass the Tennessee Business & Law exam (required for every classification except restricted residential BC-A/r).
Submit a reviewed or audited financial statement from a licensed accounting firm, less than 12 months old, to set the monetary limit.
Have the participating state complete the Board's Request for Contractor License Verification in place of the trade-exam score.
Be free of disciplinary action, open complaints and felony convictions — these disqualify an applicant from the trade exam waiver.
Pay the $250 application fee; the license is required before bidding or contracting at $25,000 or more.
Pay the fees ($250 (Initial contractor license application fee $250. The CPA-prepared reviewed or audited financial statement is a separate professional cost, and some verifying states charge a fee to complete the Board's license-verification form. Beginning July 1, 2026 exams are administered by Prov.)) and allow No processing-time estimate is published; applications are acted on at the Board's scheduled meetings..

Official links

Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce and Insurance) ↗Tennessee application ↗

Coming from a specific state?

Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into Tennessee:

Alabama → Tennessee Arkansas → Tennessee California → Tennessee Florida → Tennessee Georgia → Tennessee Illinois → Tennessee Louisiana → Tennessee Michigan → Tennessee Mississippi → Tennessee New York → Tennessee North Carolina → Tennessee Ohio → Tennessee Pennsylvania → Tennessee South Carolina → Tennessee Texas → Tennessee West Virginia → Tennessee

Frequently asked questions

Does my contractor license transfer to Tennessee?

Which states does Tennessee have general building contractor reciprocity with?

Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia (verified 2026-08-07 against the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce and Insurance)). Commercial building (BC-B) trade-exam waiver. NASCLA National Commercial exam also accepted. Ohio's agreement covers only Electrical, Plumbing and HVAC, so Ohio is excluded from building.

Which states does Tennessee have electrical contractor reciprocity with?

Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, West Virginia (verified 2026-08-07 against the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce and Insurance)). CE classification trade-exam waiver; the NASCLA National Electrical exam is also accepted. Arkansas's agreement covers Commercial and Residential building only, so Arkansas is excluded.

Does reciprocity waive all of Tennessee's requirements?

No. Tennessee's reciprocity waives the relevant trade exam only; the business/law exam, financial statement, bond, and insurance still apply.

What does a Tennessee contractor license cost and how long does it take?

$250 (Initial contractor license application fee $250. The CPA-prepared reviewed or audited financial statement is a separate professional cost, and some verifying states charge a fee to complete the Board's license-verification form. Beginning July 1, 2026 exams are administered by Prov.); processing No processing-time estimate is published; applications are acted on at the Board's scheduled meetings..

Sources

Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.

Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-08-07

How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]