Engineering License from Illinois to Colorado: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-07-21 · source: Colorado State Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors (Dept. of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations) ↗
A PE license transfers from Illinois to Colorado by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Colorado State Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors (Dept. of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations), verify your Illinois license, and meet Colorado's endorsement requirements. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; Colorado grants endorsement 'without further examination' and has no separate state jurisprudence exam.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Colorado grants PE licensure by comity, so a Professional Engineer licensed in Illinois does not start over — but does file a full Colorado application. Your Illinois license, ABET degree, qualifying experience, and FE and PE results reach the Colorado State Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors (Dept. of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations) through your NCEES Record; the board's task is to confirm they meet Colorado's practice act, not to re-test you. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; Colorado grants endorsement 'without further examination' and has no separate state jurisprudence exam. Two things govern your timeline: keeping your Illinois license active and unencumbered while the Colorado application is pending, and clearing any Colorado-specific exam or statutes review before the license issues.
What changes, Illinois → Colorado
| Illinois (current) | Colorado (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $100 ($100 Professional Engineer license application fee (68 Ill. Adm. Code 1380.275; the same single application fee applies to endorsement); renewal is $30 per year. Request that NCEES transmit your Record to Illinois — NCEES charges $175 first board / $100 each additional, paid separately) | Colorado's public board pages do not display a static PE endorsement fee; the amount appears only inside the downloadable application form and at checkout in the DPO Online Services system, so it is left null pending confirmation on an official page (contact [email protected]). Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES |
| Processing time | IDFPR does not publish a guaranteed endorsement turnaround; the board's PE FAQ states that using an NCEES Record may shorten processing time | DORA's Division of Professions and Occupations publishes no comity turnaround; endorsement is reviewed administratively once written verification from the original state (or the NCEES Record) is received |
| Licensing authority | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation — Board of Professional Engineers | Colorado State Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors (Dept. of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Colorado sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Colorado's current requirements on the Colorado State Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors (Dept. of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Colorado State Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors (Dept. of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold an active PE license in good standing in another U.S. jurisdiction with qualifications substantially equivalent to Colorado's current requirements (or those in effect when you were first licensed).
- Submit an NCEES Record, or file official sealed transcripts plus a sealed experience-verification/summary directly.
- Have the original licensing state send written verification of how you qualified for licensure and your current license status.
- Pay the fees (Colorado's public board pages do not display a static PE endorsement fee; the amount appears only inside the downloadable application form and at checkout in the DPO Online Services system, so it is left null pending confirmation on an official page (contact [email protected]). Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES) and allow DORA's Division of Professions and Occupations publishes no comity turnaround; endorsement is reviewed administratively once written verification from the original state (or the NCEES Record) is received.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Colorado accept a Illinois PE license?
A PE license transfers from Illinois to Colorado by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Colorado State Board of Licensure for Architects, Professional Engineers and Professional Land Surveyors (Dept. of Regulatory Agencies, Division of Professions and Occupations), verify your Illinois license, and meet Colorado's endorsement requirements. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; Colorado grants endorsement 'without further examination' and has no separate state jurisprudence exam.
Do I retake the FE or PE exam moving from Illinois to Colorado?
FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; Colorado grants endorsement 'without further examination' and has no separate state jurisprudence exam.
What does the Illinois-to-Colorado comity application cost?
Colorado's public board pages do not display a static PE endorsement fee; the amount appears only inside the downloadable application form and at checkout in the DPO Online Services system, so it is left null pending confirmation on an official page (contact [email protected]). Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES.
Can I keep my Illinois PE license after I'm licensed in Colorado?
Yes — PE licenses stack. Keep the Illinois 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.
- Colorado State Board of Licensure (AES) - Engineer and Intern Applications and Forms ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NCEES - Records Program (comity licensure) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- IDFPR — Professional Engineering Frequently Asked Questions (endorsement pathway, FE/PE requirement, NCEES Record, PE vs SE) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Ill. Admin. Code tit. 68, § 1380.275 — Fees (Professional Engineer license $100) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- IDFPR — Professional Engineering (Practice Act, rules, application forms) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]