Engineering License from New Jersey to Illinois: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Illinois accept a New Jersey PE license?
A PE license transfers from New Jersey to Illinois by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation — Board of Professional Engineers, verify your New Jersey license, and meet Illinois's endorsement requirements. FE and PE exam results transfer via your NCEES Record and are not retaken; Illinois requires passage of both the FE and PE exams for licensure, but an endorsement applicant whose FE was waived in another jurisdiction may submit a waiver request to the Board (68 Ill. Adm. Code 1380.280); Illinois has no separate state law exam. Note: Professional Engineer (PE) and Structural Engineer (SE) are separate Illinois licenses.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Illinois grants PE licensure by comity, so a Professional Engineer licensed in New Jersey does not start over — but does file a full Illinois application. Your New Jersey license, ABET degree, qualifying experience, and FE and PE results reach the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation — Board of Professional Engineers through your NCEES Record; the board's task is to confirm they meet Illinois's practice act, not to re-test you. Two things govern your timeline: keeping your New Jersey license active and unencumbered while the Illinois application is pending, and clearing any Illinois-specific exam or statutes review before the license issues.
What's different between New Jersey and Illinois
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Illinois. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
New Jersey to Illinois (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Illinois to New Jersey (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from New Jersey matter?
Coming from New Jersey does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Illinois.
- Application fee
Illinois lists $100 for an out-of-state applicant and New Jersey lists $75 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Exam rules on record
Illinois and New Jersey carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Illinois (this move): FE and PE exam results transfer via your NCEES Record and are not retaken; Illinois requires passage of both the FE and PE exams for licensure, but an endorsement applicant whose FE was waived in another jurisdiction may submit a waiver request to the Board (68 Ill. Adm. Code 1380.280); Illinois has no separate state law exam. Note: Professional Engineer (PE) and Structural Engineer (SE) are separate Illinois licenses
- New Jersey (the reverse move): FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record (or direct board-to-board verification) and are not retaken; New Jersey requires that your original license was earned by the full written examination (8-hour Fundamentals plus 8-hour Principles and Practice) and imposes no separate state jurisprudence exam
What changes, New Jersey → Illinois
| New Jersey (current) | Illinois (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $75 (NJ professional engineer application fee is $75 (nonrefundable) plus an initial license fee of $80 in year one or $40 in year two of the biennial period; transmitting an NCEES Record to the board costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES) | $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) |
| Processing time | Board publishes no comity turnaround; comity applications are reviewed by the Board against N.J.S.A. 45:8-35, which meets periodically | IDFPR does not publish a guaranteed endorsement turnaround; the board's PE FAQ states that using an NCEES Record may shorten processing time |
| Licensing authority | New Jersey State Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (Division of Consumer Affairs) | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation — Board of Professional Engineers |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Illinois sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Illinois's current requirements on the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation — Board of Professional Engineers website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation — Board of Professional Engineers.
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold a current, active PE license issued by another U.S. jurisdiction under substantially equivalent standards.
- Satisfy the NCEES Engineering Education Standard (EAC/ABET degree or approved equivalent; evaluations showing deficiencies are not accepted).
- Submit an NCEES Record in lieu of transcripts, experience forms, and exam certifications (encouraged; may shorten processing).
- Note that PE and SE are licensed separately in Illinois and neither can offer the other's services.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep my New Jersey PE license after I'm licensed in Illinois?
Yes — PE licenses stack. Keep the New Jersey 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.
- 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)
- NCEES — Records Program (comity licensure) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NJ Board of PE&LS — Comity Review for Professional Engineers License ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NJ Board of PE&LS — Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors Fee Schedule (N.J.A.C. 13:40-6.1) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
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