Electrician License from Texas to North Dakota: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does North Dakota accept a Texas electrician license?
An electrical license transfers from Texas to North Dakota by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the North Dakota State Electrical Board (NDSEB), verify your Texas license, and meet North Dakota's endorsement requirements. No ND written exam is required under NERA reciprocity if you passed a state-administered exam in a reciprocal state; applicants from non-reciprocal states must pass the ND journeyman exam.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
North Dakota publishes no reciprocity list covering Texas, but the North Dakota State Electrical Board (NDSEB) licenses out-of-state electricians by endorsement, so this move runs on the board's case-by-case judgment rather than an automatic waiver. If you hold a master license, check the board's separate master-level rules — master electricians typically endorse rather than transfer through journeyman reciprocity. Ask the board, in writing, exactly which exam or experience requirement it will waive before you rely on it.
What's different between Texas and North Dakota
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into North Dakota. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Texas to North Dakota (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
North Dakota to Texas (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Texas matter?
Texas gets North Dakota's most common result: 24 of 50 origins (the other 49 states and DC) get the same one, so for most movers the origin does not change the answer.
The others get: no state license to transfer (13) and reciprocity agreement (13).
- Reciprocity agreements
North Dakota's reciprocity agreement list names 13 states, not including Texas.
Texas's reciprocity agreement list names 10 states (Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Wyoming), not including North Dakota.
- Application fee
North Dakota lists $50 for an out-of-state applicant and Texas lists $30 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Experience hours
North Dakota's first-time-applicant standard is 8,000 hours of documented experience for the journeyman license; Texas's is 8,000.
The two standards are the same.
- Exam rules on record
North Dakota and Texas carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- North Dakota (this move): No ND written exam is required under NERA reciprocity if you passed a state-administered exam in a reciprocal state; applicants from non-reciprocal states must pass the ND journeyman exam
- Texas (the reverse move): Texas waives its journeyman electrician exam for an applicant who holds a journeyman license obtained by that state's examination in a reciprocal state and has held it for at least one year; applicants from non-reciprocal states must apply and pass the Texas journeyman exam
What changes, Texas → North Dakota
| Texas (current) | North Dakota (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Experience hours | 8,000 | 8,000 |
| Application fee | $30 ($30.00 journeyman electrician reciprocal license fee; the master electrician reciprocal license fee is $45.00.) | $50 ($25 reciprocal application fee + $25 journeyman license fee on approval; master reciprocity is $50 + $50) |
| Processing time | TDLR does not publish a fixed processing time for out-of-state reciprocal license applications | NDSEB does not publish a processing time; no written exam is required for reciprocity |
| Licensing authority | Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) — Electricians program | North Dakota State Electrical Board (NDSEB) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — North Dakota sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm North Dakota's current requirements on the North Dakota State Electrical Board (NDSEB) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the North Dakota State Electrical Board (NDSEB) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current, active license in good standing, held continuously for at least the 1 year before applying.
- Original license earned by passing a state-administered exam — grandfathered (non-exam) licenses are not eligible for reciprocity.
- Document 8,000 hours of journeyman experience (10,000 hours for master).
- If your state has no continuing-education requirement, complete a ND-approved 8-hour code-related class.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does this route work for a master electrician?
Not necessarily — master licenses move on separate terms. Some boards keep their own master reciprocity list; otherwise they review the master license individually. Confirm the North Dakota State Electrical Board (NDSEB)'s master-level experience and exam requirements, which are separate from the journeyman track this site's grid tracks.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-07-21.
- NDSEB — Reciprocal License Agreements & Requirements ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NERA — National Electrical Reciprocal Alliance (About) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- TDLR — Electricians: Out-of-State (reciprocity) applicants ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- TDLR News — Texas Expands Electrician Reciprocity with Ohio (2026-06-05) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
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