Transfer Your Teaching License to Montana: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)
Last verified: 2026-08-07 · source: Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) — Educator Licensure ↗
A Montana teaching license is not automatically exchanged for your out-of-state one. Under the NASDTEC agreement, the Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) — Educator Licensure 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: $80–$95 (First-time Montana license: $80 for a Class 2 Standard Teaching license and $95 for a Class 1 Professional Teaching license (each includes a $10 non-refundable processing fee); subsequent licenses are $70/$85. Fees are non-refundable and paid electronically in TeachMT. Fingerprint background-check costs are additional.).
Moving to Montana from a specific state?
Pick your current state — the checker returns your exact pathway.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
The framing that saves relocating teachers real trouble: Montana is giving you a runway, not a transfer. The provisional credential lets you take a classroom immediately, but the clock on Montana'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.
Montana is the clearest case of 'reciprocity' being a misnomer: OPI states outright that 'Montana does not have reciprocity with any state for teacher licensure' — every out-of-state teacher files a full application. The license itself is not transferred; your out-of-state license is one document among transcripts, a university program recommendation, and a fingerprint check, and it functions (with two years of experience) as one of four ways to satisfy Montana's assessment requirement instead of the PRAXIS. Montana also imposes a requirement no other state does: completion of 'An Introduction to Indian Education for All in Montana' for both the Class 2 Standard and Class 1 Professional teaching licenses.
Montana requirements at a glance
| Exam | Montana accepts a current out-of-state educator license plus two years of teaching experience as one of four ways to satisfy the assessment requirement, in place of a minimum qualifying score on the Montana-required PRAXIS subject assessment. Applicants without that license-plus-experience combination must post a qualifying PRAXIS score, pass a student-teaching portfolio, or show a 3.0 or higher GPA in the relevant coursework. |
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| Additional requirements |
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| Fees | $80–$95 (First-time Montana license: $80 for a Class 2 Standard Teaching license and $95 for a Class 1 Professional Teaching license (each includes a $10 non-refundable processing fee); subsequent licenses are $70/$85. Fees are non-refundable and paid electronically in TeachMT. Fingerprint background-check costs are additional.) |
| Processing time | OPI publishes no processing-time range for new licenses. It warns only that summer is the busiest period and that applications left incomplete are purged after 90 days. Not estimated here. |
Step by step
- Confirm Montana's current requirements on the Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) — Educator Licensure website — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) — Educator Licensure (application linked on this page).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Apply electronically through the TeachMT licensing system — OPI accepts no paper applications.
- Submit official transcripts and a copy of your current out-of-state educator license.
- Submit a university recommendation verifying completion of a teacher preparation program, student teaching, and the endorsements you qualify for.
- Complete a fingerprint background check.
- Complete the course 'An Introduction to Indian Education for All in Montana'.
- Have foreign degrees evaluated course-by-course by a NACES member agency.
- Pay the fees ($80–$95 (First-time Montana license: $80 for a Class 2 Standard Teaching license and $95 for a Class 1 Professional Teaching license (each includes a $10 non-refundable processing fee); subsequent licenses are $70/$85. Fees are non-refundable and paid electronically in TeachMT. Fingerprint background-check costs are additional.)) and allow OPI publishes no processing-time range for new licenses. It warns only that summer is the busiest period and that applications left incomplete are purged after 90 days. Not estimated here..
Official links
Coming from a specific state?
Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into Montana:
Frequently asked questions
Does my teaching license transfer to Montana?
A Montana teaching license is not automatically exchanged for your out-of-state one. Under the NASDTEC agreement, the Montana Office of Public Instruction (OPI) — Educator Licensure 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: $80–$95 (First-time Montana license: $80 for a Class 2 Standard Teaching license and $95 for a Class 1 Professional Teaching license (each includes a $10 non-refundable processing fee); subsequent licenses are $70/$85. Fees are non-refundable and paid electronically in TeachMT. Fingerprint background-check costs are additional.).
Is teaching reciprocity automatic in Montana?
No. Montana 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 Montana add?
Montana accepts a current out-of-state educator license plus two years of teaching experience as one of four ways to satisfy the assessment requirement, in place of a minimum qualifying score on the Montana-required PRAXIS subject assessment. Applicants without that license-plus-experience combination must post a qualifying PRAXIS score, pass a student-teaching portfolio, or show a 3.0 or higher GPA in the relevant coursework..
What does a Montana out-of-state teaching certificate cost and how long does it take?
$80–$95 (First-time Montana license: $80 for a Class 2 Standard Teaching license and $95 for a Class 1 Professional Teaching license (each includes a $10 non-refundable processing fee); subsequent licenses are $70/$85. Fees are non-refundable and paid electronically in TeachMT. Fingerprint background-check costs are additional.); processing OPI publishes no processing-time range for new licenses. It warns only that summer is the busiest period and that applications left incomplete are purged after 90 days. Not estimated here..
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-08-07.
- Montana OPI — Educator Licensure (out-of-state applicants; 'Montana does not have reciprocity with any state for teacher licensure') ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Montana OPI — Educator Licenses (Class 1 and Class 2 requirements) ↗ (accessed 2026-08-07)
- Montana OPI — Educator Licensure Fees, effective July 27, 2026 ↗ (accessed 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]