Engineering License from Texas to Colorado: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Colorado accept a Texas PE license?
A PE license transfers from Texas 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 Texas 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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Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Colorado grants PE licensure by comity, so a Professional Engineer licensed in Texas does not start over — but does file a full Colorado application. Your Texas 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. Two things govern your timeline: keeping your Texas license active and unencumbered while the Colorado application is pending, and clearing any Colorado-specific exam or statutes review before the license issues.
What's different between Texas and Colorado
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Colorado. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Texas to Colorado (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Colorado to Texas (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Texas matter?
Coming from Texas does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Colorado.
- Application fee
Texas lists $75 for the reverse move; Colorado has no verified fee figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Processing time
Texas lists about 8 weeks for the reverse move; Colorado has no verified processing-time figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Exam rules on record
Colorado and Texas carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Colorado (this move): 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
- Texas (the reverse move): FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Council Record and are not retaken; applicants already licensed as a PE in another U.S. state qualify for a waiver of the PE examination, but EVERY applicant must additionally pass the open-book Texas Ethics of Engineering examination (state-specific)
What changes, Texas → Colorado
| Texas (current) | Colorado (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $75 (TBPELS PE license application fee (covers the Texas Ethics of Engineering exam); a fingerprint-based criminal-history check is also required (fee paid to the state's fingerprint vendor). Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 first board / $100 each additional, paid separately to NCEES. Renewal is $100 for two years.) | 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 | ~8 weeks (TBPELS states an average application processing time of about two months (eight weeks) on its PE Application Process page, depending on the adequacy of the submittal; the ethics exam, NCEES Record, and fingerprint TX DPS/FBI criminal-history check must all clear before licensure (outgoing verification requests can separately take up to 30 business days).) | 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 | Texas Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (TBPELS) | 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 listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep my Texas PE license after I'm licensed in Colorado?
Yes — PE licenses stack. Keep the Texas 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)
- TBPELS — Basic Licensure Requirements ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- TBPELS — Exam Waiver Requirements ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- TBPELS — PE Application Process ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- TBPELS — Agency Fees ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
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