Engineering License from Florida to Maryland: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Maryland accept a Florida PE license?
A PE license transfers from Florida to Maryland by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Maryland State Board for Professional Engineers (Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing), verify your Florida license, and meet Maryland's endorsement requirements. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Council Record and are not retaken; Maryland has no separate state jurisprudence or law exam for engineers.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Maryland grants PE licensure by comity, so a Professional Engineer licensed in Florida does not start over — but does file a full Maryland application. Your Florida license, ABET degree, qualifying experience, and FE and PE results reach the Maryland State Board for Professional Engineers (Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing) through your NCEES Record; the board's task is to confirm they meet Maryland's practice act, not to re-test you. Two things govern your timeline: keeping your Florida license active and unencumbered while the Maryland application is pending, and clearing any Maryland-specific exam or statutes review before the license issues.
What's different between Florida and Maryland
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Maryland. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Florida to Maryland (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Maryland to Florida (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Florida matter?
Coming from Florida does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Maryland.
- Application fee
Maryland lists $56–$142 for an out-of-state applicant and Florida lists $230 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Processing time
Maryland lists 4–8 weeks; Florida has no verified processing-time figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Exam rules on record
Maryland and Florida carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Maryland (this move): FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Council Record and are not retaken; Maryland has no separate state jurisprudence or law exam for engineers
- Florida (the reverse move): FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; Florida licenses by endorsement (it explicitly does not license by reciprocity or comity) and, instead of a proctored state exam, requires completing the FBPE Laws and Rules Study Guide with a score of 90 percent or greater
What changes, Florida → Maryland
| Florida (current) | Maryland (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $230 (Endorsement fee collected by DBPR, comprising the application fee, the initial licensure fee ($100, the only refundable portion), and an unlicensed-activity fee. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES) | $56–$142 (MD reciprocal license: $56 application fee + $86 initial license fee (2-year term) = $142 total; fees effective Aug 1, 2024. Transmitting an NCEES Council Record to the board costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES) |
| Processing time | FBPE publishes no endorsement turnaround; the board states that using an NCEES Record significantly speeds up the licensure process | 4–8 weeks (Board states it typically takes one to two months to obtain a license by reciprocity. The Board meets monthly (usually the second Thursday) to review completed reciprocal applications; applications with an MLE (Model Law Engineer) NCEES Council Record are approved administratively on an ongoing basis. Incomplete reciprocal applications are administratively closed after 30 days) |
| Licensing authority | Florida Board of Professional Engineers (FBPE) | Maryland State Board for Professional Engineers (Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Maryland sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Maryland's current requirements on the Maryland State Board for Professional Engineers (Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Maryland State Board for Professional Engineers (Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold an active PE license in another U.S. jurisdiction based on comparable qualifications.
- Submit an NCEES Council Record (which satisfies all supporting documentation), or otherwise provide official transcripts, exam verification, license verification, an experience record, and character references.
- Meet the education/experience standard: an ABET-accredited engineering degree plus 4 years of acceptable experience (or a non-ABET degree plus 8 years, or 12 years of experience), with the FE exam passed.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep my Florida PE license after I'm licensed in Maryland?
Yes — PE licenses stack. Keep the Florida license active (its renewal and continuing-education/PDH clock run separately) and you hold both. Engineers working near state lines or nationally routinely carry several PE licenses at once, all sourced from a single NCEES Record.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-07-21.
- Maryland Board for Professional Engineers — Reciprocal License Application ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Maryland Board for Professional Engineers — Fees ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Maryland Board for Professional Engineers — Licensing FAQs (reciprocity timing, education/experience) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NCEES — Records Program (comity licensure) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- FBPE - Licensure Process: Professional Engineers (endorsement, fee, Laws and Rules Study Guide) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
How we verify · All sources · Corrections log · spot an error? hello@licensereciprocity.com