Electrician License from Pennsylvania to Kentucky: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Kentucky accept a Pennsylvania electrician license?
There is no Pennsylvania state license to carry to Kentucky: Pennsylvania issues no statewide journeyman electrician license. Kentucky does license this work, so ask the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Electrical Licensing, Public Protection Cabinet whether it credits a local license or your documented experience; otherwise you qualify as a new applicant.
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Verdict
No state license to transfer
The issue on this move is the starting point: Pennsylvania issues no statewide journeyman or master electrician license, so there is no Pennsylvania state license for Kentucky to verify, endorse or reciprocate. Kentucky does license electricians, through the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Electrical Licensing, Public Protection Cabinet, and it licenses out-of-state electricians by endorsement — but that route starts from a state license. Ask the board, in writing, whether it credits a local Pennsylvania license or your documented hours; otherwise plan for its new-applicant route and exam. Kentucky waives its Journeyman's Electrical Exam for a reciprocal applicant holding an active Virginia or West Virginia journeyman/master electrician license (with a letter of good standing); applicants from any other state must pass the Journeyman's Electrical Exam administered by PROV, NASCLA, or Pearson VUE.
What's different between Pennsylvania and Kentucky
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Kentucky. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Pennsylvania to Kentucky (this page): No state license to transfer.
Kentucky to Pennsylvania (the reverse move): No state license to transfer.
Pennsylvania issues no statewide journeyman electrician license, so neither direction is a state-license transfer.
- Does coming from Pennsylvania matter?
Coming from Pennsylvania matters here: only 13 of 50 origins (the other 49 states and DC) get this result for a move into Kentucky.
The others get: licensure by endorsement (35) and reciprocity agreement (2).
- Reciprocity agreements
Kentucky's reciprocity agreement list names 2 states (Virginia and West Virginia), not including Pennsylvania.
- Fee and processing
Pennsylvania issues no statewide journeyman electrician license, so there is no Pennsylvania state license application fee or processing time to compare with Kentucky's.
- Experience hours
Kentucky's first-time-applicant standard is 8,000 hours of documented experience for the journeyman license; Pennsylvania sets none at state level because it issues no statewide journeyman electrician license.
- Exam rules on record
Kentucky and Pennsylvania carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Kentucky (this move): Kentucky waives its Journeyman's Electrical Exam for a reciprocal applicant holding an active Virginia or West Virginia journeyman/master electrician license (with a letter of good standing); applicants from any other state must pass the Journeyman's Electrical Exam administered by PROV, NASCLA, or Pearson VUE
- Pennsylvania (the reverse move): Not applicable — Pennsylvania issues no statewide electrician license, so there is no state journeyman exam to waive or transfer; each municipality that licenses electricians sets its own exam and standards, and local licenses generally do not transfer between Pennsylvania municipalities
What changes, Pennsylvania → Kentucky
| Pennsylvania (current) | Kentucky (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Experience hours | — | 8,000 |
| Application fee | No statewide license, so no state fee; municipal license and exam fees vary by city and are not published statewide | $100 (Electrician (journeyman) license is $100 for the 24-month term (prorated by application/birth month); Master Electrician is $200 and Electrical Contractor $400 (DHBC EL-3 fee schedule; 815 KAR 35:060). No separate reciprocity fee.) |
| Processing time | No statewide license; processing depends on the individual municipality | DHBC does not publish a processing time for electrical license applications |
| Licensing authority | None — no statewide electrician licensing board (licensing is municipal). State building-code oversight: Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry, Bureau of Occupational and Industrial Safety (Uniform Construction Code) | Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Electrical Licensing, Public Protection Cabinet |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Kentucky sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Review Kentucky's requirements on the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Electrical Licensing, Public Protection Cabinet website (linked below) — rules change.
- Ask the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Electrical Licensing, Public Protection Cabinet whether it credits a local Pennsylvania license or your documented experience: Pennsylvania issues no statewide journeyman electrician license, so there is no state license to verify.
- Otherwise apply as a new applicant: meet Kentucky's education/experience requirements and pass the exams it requires.
- Submit the application with fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-07-21.
- Kentucky DHBC — Electrical New Application Checklist (2.4.25): reciprocity states + experience hours ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Kentucky DHBC — Form EL-3 Electrical License Application with fee schedule (Oct 2024) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- 815 KAR 35:060 — Licensing of electrical contractors, master electricians, and electricians (fees) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- PA Dept. of Labor & Industry — Contractor Licensing (Commonwealth has no licensure for most construction trades; keeps no records of municipal licenses) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- PA Dept. of Labor & Industry — Uniform Construction Code (home) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
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