Colorado Journeyman PrepLicense, exam and code, in one place Start the free practice testPractice exam

Checked against primary sources 2026-09-07

Two doors, not one

Colorado Electrical License Reciprocity: The 14 States

Reciprocity and endorsement are different routes with different tests, and people file for the wrong one. Reciprocity runs on an agreement between boards. Endorsement runs on substantial equivalence, and right now it runs into a conflict between two live state documents.

Test yourself: thirty free questions, timed

On this page
  1. The two doors, in statute
  2. The 14 reciprocity states
  3. What reciprocity asks of you
  4. The NERA route, and its missing list
  5. Endorsement, and the edition problem
  6. Endorsement still counts your hours
  7. Working in Colorado while you wait
  8. What Colorado does not ask for
  9. Questions people ask
  10. What this page cites

The two doors, in statute

C.R.S. 12-115-113(1) covers endorsement. The board shall issue an electrical license by endorsement to any person licensed to practice in another jurisdiction if the person presents proof satisfactory to the board that, at the time of application, the person possesses credentials and qualifications that are substantially equivalent to requirements in Colorado for licensure.

C.R.S. 12-115-113(2) covers reciprocity. The board shall issue an electrical license by reciprocity where a reciprocal agreement for an equivalent license exists between the board and the electrical board, or its equivalent, of the state where the applicant is licensed.

C.R.S. 12-115-113(3) lets the Board specify by rule what counts as substantially equivalent, and C.R.S. 12-115-107(2)(i) gives the Board the power to make the agreements in the first place.

The 14 reciprocity states

Quoted from the Board's applications page: Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming.

The Board's own journeyman application preview adds a negative that most prep sites leave out: Texas is not a reciprocal state.

Reciprocity covers journeyman and master certificates. A residential wireman coming from another state goes through endorsement instead.

What reciprocity asks of you

Three conditions, quoted from the Board's applications page.

Hold a Journeyman certificate or a Master Electrician certificate that is current, active, and in good standing.

Have gained that certificate through a state administered examination with a passing score.

Have held the Journeyman certificate or the Master Electrician certificate for at least 1 year.

The middle condition is the one that stops people. A certificate obtained by grandfathering, or by any route other than a state administered examination, does not qualify. The journeyman application preview repeats it as holding an active license in a reciprocal state issued by examination.

The NERA route, and its missing list

Board rule 3 CCR 710-1.7 adds a second path: a journeyman or master license in good standing from a state that is a member in good standing of the National Electrical Reciprocal Alliance, or from any entity or jurisdiction that has a reciprocity agreement with the Board.

The problem is the list. NERA's own About page publishes no member roster, only a color coded map with no states named.

A Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry handout says NERA consists of 19 member States and names 12 that attended the 2025 meeting: Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Colorado is not named in that document.

So the Colorado rule points at a membership list that the body holding it does not publish. If you plan to use the NERA route, ask the Board to confirm the state in writing before you pay anything.

Endorsement, and the edition problem

The Board's applications page says the license you hold must be active, issued, and regulated by the state, AND gained by testing on the current National Electrical Code (NEC) in use in Colorado. A Verification of Licensure form completed by the issuing state board is required, and the Board publishes that form.

Then the Board's application previews name an edition. All three say the current NEC code in use in Colorado is the 2023 NEC. The residential wireman preview goes further and asks whether you have passed a state licensing examination based on the 2023 NEC, adding that licenses not issued by testing, or by testing on a different version of the NEC, are not eligible for endorsement.

Against that, Secretary of State rule filing 2026-00171 put Colorado on the 2026 National Electrical Code effective July 15, 2026, and PSI has tested the 2026 edition since August 1, 2026.

Both are live state documents and we cannot resolve them. An applicant tested on the 2026 NEC and an applicant tested on the 2023 NEC cannot both satisfy a rule written around one current edition. Call the Board on 303-894-7800 and ask which edition the endorsement test is being applied against today, and get the answer in writing.

Endorsement still counts your hours

Endorsement is not a shortcut around the experience requirement. The journeyman application preview asks endorsement applicants for the same 8,000 hours of electrical experience in no less than 4 years. The master preview asks for 10,000 hours in no less than 5 years.

The rule's own endorsement wording is edition neutral, and asks for an active license in another state, completion of an apprenticeship program, and having successfully completed a comparable written state electrical examination based on the current edition of the National Electrical Code.

So bring the hours documentation as well as the license verification.

Working in Colorado while you wait

The journeyman application preview's employment condition applies to you too. If you are performing electrical work in Colorado, you have to be employed by a Colorado electrical contractor and registered as an apprentice with that company, unless you fit one of the four exemptions.

Not residing in Colorado is one of those exemptions, so an out of state applicant who has not moved yet is not caught.

The Board also publishes a Spanish language endorsement and reciprocity application, listed on its applications page.

What Colorado does not ask for

There is no separate reciprocity examination and no Colorado laws and rules test for incoming licensees on any page we read. That is different from several neighbouring states, and it is worth knowing before you buy a study guide for a test that does not exist.

What you do face is paperwork: the Verification of Licensure from your issuing board, the hour documentation, and the edition question above.

Questions people ask

Which states have electrical reciprocity with Colorado?

Fourteen: Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming. The Board publishes the list on its applications page.

Does Colorado have reciprocity with Texas?

No. The Board's own journeyman application preview says Texas is not a reciprocal state, so a Texas licensee uses the endorsement route instead.

What does Colorado reciprocity require?

A current, active journeyman or master certificate in good standing, gained through a state administered examination with a passing score, and held for at least one year.

What is the difference between reciprocity and endorsement?

Reciprocity runs on an agreement between the two boards and is limited to the 14 states. Endorsement runs on substantial equivalence under C.R.S. 12-115-113(1) and is open to any state, with a Verification of Licensure form and the Colorado hour totals.

Which NEC edition does endorsement test against?

The sources disagree. The Board's application previews say the current code in use in Colorado is the 2023 NEC, while the state's rule filing put Colorado on the 2026 NEC from July 15, 2026. Ask the Board directly and get the answer in writing.

Is there a Colorado laws and rules exam for out of state electricians?

None appears on any page we read. There is no separate reciprocity examination either. The work is documentation rather than testing.

Put it to the test

Thirty free questions, timed, with the working shown

Every miss comes back with the arithmetic worked out and the code section named, so you learn the trap and not just the answer. No account.

Start the free practice testSee the $79 question bank

All questions here are original. They are not actual exam questions, and no question bank can promise you a pass.

What this page cites

If your notes still say 2023

The 2023 to 2026 section crosswalk maps every section that moved, both directions, $29 once.

NEC and National Electrical Code are registered trademarks of the National Fire Protection Association.

Trojan Digital Marketing is an independent company. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by NFPA, the Colorado State Electrical Board, PSI, or any licensing authority, school or union.

The Colorado examinations are open book only in the sense that PSI puts a book on the desk. PSI provides the National Electrical Code and a formula page at the test center, bars writing, highlighting, underlining and indexing on them, and allows no other materials. The questions have followed the 2026 edition since 1 August 2026, and the 2023 book is provided on request until 1 November 2026.

All practice questions are original. They are not actual exam questions.

Built and maintained by Jeff Clerisier, Trojan Digital Marketing.

Every rule here is cited to the section it comes from, and corrections are logged in public with the date. This is study material rather than electrical advice, and it does not replace your own code book or your inspector.

Free, weekly

One exam question a week, worked all the way through

One original question in the Colorado style, the arithmetic worked, the code section named, and a short note whenever a Colorado licensing or code rule moves. Unsubscribe in one click.