Electrician License from Pennsylvania to Utah: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Utah accept a Pennsylvania electrician license?
There is no Pennsylvania state license to carry to Utah: Pennsylvania issues no statewide journeyman electrician license. Utah does license this work, so ask the Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) — Electrician licensing 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 Utah to verify, endorse or reciprocate. Utah does license electricians, through the Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) — Electrician licensing, 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. Utah waives its journeyman electrician exam for an out-of-state applicant qualifying by endorsement — i.e., holding a current, active license obtained by examination (minimum 75% score) in a state DOPL determines has substantially similar standards; applicants whose state does not qualify apply 'not by endorsement' and must sit the Utah exam. Master applicants must pass the Utah law-and-rules exam regardless.
What's different between Pennsylvania and Utah
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Utah. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Pennsylvania to Utah (this page): No state license to transfer.
Utah 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 Utah.
The others get: licensure by endorsement (37).
- 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 Utah's.
- Experience hours
Utah'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
Utah and Pennsylvania carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Utah (this move): Utah waives its journeyman electrician exam for an out-of-state applicant qualifying by endorsement — i.e., holding a current, active license obtained by examination (minimum 75% score) in a state DOPL determines has substantially similar standards; applicants whose state does not qualify apply 'not by endorsement' and must sit the Utah exam. Master applicants must pass the Utah law-and-rules exam regardless
- 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 → Utah
| Pennsylvania (current) | Utah (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 | DOPL's fee schedule lists the electrician license application fee (DOPL page content indicates roughly $110 initial, ~$78 renewal); the official fee-schedule PDF and DOPL application pages returned HTTP 403 to automated retrieval, so the exact current amount is not reproduced here — verify on the DOPL fee schedule |
| Processing time | No statewide license; processing depends on the individual municipality | DOPL does not publish a fixed processing time for licensure by endorsement |
| 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) | Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) — Electrician licensing |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Utah sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Review Utah's requirements on the Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) — Electrician licensing website (linked below) — rules change.
- Ask the Utah Division of Professional Licensing (DOPL) — Electrician licensing 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 Utah'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.
- Oregon BCD — signed Utah/Oregon Journeyman & Master reciprocal agreement (Utah endorsement terms: without exam, 75%+, current/active, 8,000 hrs) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Utah DOPL — Journeyman Electrician, Out-of-State Applicants Applying by Endorsement ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Utah DOPL — Division fee schedule ↗ (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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