Transfer Your Teaching License to Minnesota: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)

Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board (PELSB) ↗

A Minnesota teaching license is not automatically exchanged for your out-of-state one. Under the NASDTEC agreement, the Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board (PELSB) reviews your credential, issues a provisional certificate so you can start teaching, and requires its exams and any missing coursework within a set window before the full license. Application fee: $89 ($89.00 initial/first-time Minnesota educator license application fee, which includes the fingerprint card fee; $57.00 for existing Minnesota license holders. Non-refundable, paid by check or money order payable to PELSB — no cash. This supersedes the $90.25 fee printed on the February 2025 application forms).

Moving to Minnesota from a specific state?

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Verdict

Licensure by endorsement

The framing that saves relocating teachers real trouble: Minnesota is giving you a runway, not a transfer. The provisional credential lets you take a classroom immediately, but the clock on Minnesota's tests and coursework starts with it. Map the requirements below to a timeline the day you accept a position — the deadline inside your provisional window is the thing that trips people, not the difficulty of any single requirement.

Reciprocity is a misnomer — Minnesota does not auto-exchange an out-of-state license; you enter its tiered system by application. Out-of-state teachers typically apply for a Tier 3 license (valid three years, renewable an unlimited number of times, 75 clock hours to renew) or, with three years of classroom experience as teacher of record, an initial Tier 4 license (valid five years, 125 clock hours to renew). For applicants from outside Minnesota the grade-level scope of the licensure field may be restricted to the grade levels of the teaching experience, including student teaching. Fees were re-verified against the current April 2026 application forms — the $90.25 figure on the February 2025 forms is superseded.

Minnesota requirements at a glance

Out-of-state teaching certificate transfer requirements for Minnesota, verified 2026-08-07
Exam	Minnesota's exams are the MTLE. An out-of-state applicant who qualifies on a professional teaching license from another state in good standing plus two years of teaching experience as teacher of record must have passed the applicable MTLE content and pedagogy exams before applying — PELSB does not accept out-of-state test scores on that pathway. Only an applicant who completed a state-approved preparation program outside Minnesota but did NOT hold licensure in that same state may submit Section 6A, a certifying officer's verification of the testing required at the time of preparation, for review in lieu of Minnesota testing. Related-services (non-teaching) fields require no testing.
Additional requirements	Submit one complete Tier 3 (or Tier 4) license application packet to PELSB, or apply through the online licensing system if you have never held a PELSB license Hold a bachelor's degree and document a state-approved teacher preparation program including 12 or more weeks of field-specific student teaching Submit a copy of the valid out-of-state professional license plus a Verification of Teaching Experience form — two years for the Tier 3 license route, three years for an initial Tier 4 license Submit passing MTLE content and pedagogy scores, or Section 6A verification of out-of-state testing if you did not hold a license in the state where the preparation program was completed Include a completed FD-258 fingerprint card with the packet if this is your first Minnesota educator license
Fees	$89 ($89.00 initial/first-time Minnesota educator license application fee, which includes the fingerprint card fee; $57.00 for existing Minnesota license holders. Non-refundable, paid by check or money order payable to PELSB — no cash. This supersedes the $90.25 fee printed on the February 2025 application forms)
Processing time	PELSB publishes no processing timeframe on the Tier 3 or Tier 4 application forms; it warns only that partial or incomplete applications will be returned

Step by step

Confirm Minnesota's current requirements on the Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board (PELSB) website — rules change.
Submit the endorsement application to the Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board (PELSB) (application linked on this page).
Arrange license verification from your current state.
Submit one complete Tier 3 (or Tier 4) license application packet to PELSB, or apply through the online licensing system if you have never held a PELSB license.
Hold a bachelor's degree and document a state-approved teacher preparation program including 12 or more weeks of field-specific student teaching.
Submit a copy of the valid out-of-state professional license plus a Verification of Teaching Experience form — two years for the Tier 3 license route, three years for an initial Tier 4 license.
Submit passing MTLE content and pedagogy scores, or Section 6A verification of out-of-state testing if you did not hold a license in the state where the preparation program was completed.
Include a completed FD-258 fingerprint card with the packet if this is your first Minnesota educator license.
Pay the fees ($89 ($89.00 initial/first-time Minnesota educator license application fee, which includes the fingerprint card fee; $57.00 for existing Minnesota license holders. Non-refundable, paid by check or money order payable to PELSB — no cash. This supersedes the $90.25 fee printed on the February 2025 application forms)) and allow PELSB publishes no processing timeframe on the Tier 3 or Tier 4 application forms; it warns only that partial or incomplete applications will be returned.

Official links

Minnesota Professional Educator Licensing and Standards Board (PELSB) ↗Minnesota application ↗

Coming from a specific state?

Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into Minnesota:

California → Minnesota Florida → Minnesota Georgia → Minnesota Illinois → Minnesota Michigan → Minnesota New York → Minnesota North Carolina → Minnesota Ohio → Minnesota Pennsylvania → Minnesota Texas → Minnesota

Frequently asked questions

Does my teaching license transfer to Minnesota?

Is teaching reciprocity automatic in Minnesota?

No. Minnesota reviews your out-of-state credential and issues a provisional certificate; you complete its tests and coursework within a set window before the full license. It is the right to apply, not an instant swap.

What tests or requirements does Minnesota add?

Minnesota's exams are the MTLE. An out-of-state applicant who qualifies on a professional teaching license from another state in good standing plus two years of teaching experience as teacher of record must have passed the applicable MTLE content and pedagogy exams before applying — PELSB does not accept out-of-state test scores on that pathway. Only an applicant who completed a state-approved preparation program outside Minnesota but did NOT hold licensure in that same state may submit Section 6A, a certifying officer's verification of the testing required at the time of preparation, for review in lieu of Minnesota testing. Related-services (non-teaching) fields require no testing..

What does a Minnesota out-of-state teaching certificate cost and how long does it take?

$89 ($89.00 initial/first-time Minnesota educator license application fee, which includes the fingerprint card fee; $57.00 for existing Minnesota license holders. Non-refundable, paid by check or money order payable to PELSB — no cash. This supersedes the $90.25 fee printed on the February 2025 application forms); processing PELSB publishes no processing timeframe on the Tier 3 or Tier 4 application forms; it warns only that partial or incomplete applications will be returned.

Sources

Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.

Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-08-07

How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]