Tennessee Electrical License Reciprocity (2026): CE Contractor States

Tennessee's electrical contractor license (CE) reciprocates with Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina and West Virginia, plus a passed NASCLA electrical exam. Reciprocity lets you skip the CE trade exam, nothing more. You still pass the Tennessee Business and Law exam and give the Board a CPA-reviewed financial statement or surety bond, plus liability and workers' comp insurance. The Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) license has no reciprocity at all.

Moving to Tennessee: licenses that count for the CE

Your out-of-state license must be active. Your home board must also confirm that you passed a comparable exam.

Arkansas is on the chart for building licenses only, so an Arkansas electrical license doesn't count. Georgia isn't on the chart.

How much money the CE takes

Your monetary limit is the biggest single job your license allows. Tennessee sets it at 10 times your working capital or your net worth, whichever is lower.

• Example: a $150,000 limit needs $15,000 in both working capital and net worth.
• Unlimited: $300,000 in both working capital and net worth.
• Financial statement: CPA-reviewed for limits up to $3,000,000, CPA-audited above that, and less than 12 months old.
• Surety bond instead (since July 1, 2026): at least 50% of the limit you ask for, on the Board's Contractors' Surety Bond form.
• Insurance: general liability sized to your monetary limit, plus workers' comp unless you prove an exemption.

All of this is spelled out in Steps 2 and 3 of the Board's contractor license page.

The LLE and city licenses sit outside reciprocity. Every LLE applicant passes the LLE trade exam, even if licensed elsewhere. State licenses also work only where the state runs electrical permits, so Knoxville, Chattanooga and the rest of Hamilton County, Nashville/Davidson County and the other places on the exempt list run their own programs.

Memphis and Shelby County

• Memphis and unincorporated Shelby County license master and journeyman electricians locally under the joint electrical code. Bartlett, Germantown and the other Shelby County cities are also off the state program.
• The local exams are ICC's T16 Master and T17 Journeyman, both on the 2020 NEC per the June 30, 2026 ICC bulletin. The state CE and LLE exams use the 2017 NEC.
• A company with a state CE license still registers with the local code office before pulling permits. See JCR's Memphis/Shelby County guide.

What to send the Tennessee Board

• License verification: fill in the top of the Request for Contractor License Verification (page 2 of the waiver PDF). Your home board completes the rest. It takes the place of a trade exam score, and some states charge for it.
• Business and Law score: your qualifying agent (the owner, officer or full-time employee who tests for the company) books the exam with Prov. The Board typically accepts scores for 2 years.
• Application: the Initial New Contractor Application on CORE, $250.
• Money and insurance: the financial statement or surety bond and the insurance certificates described above.
• Paperwork: 1 letter of reference (not from family) and a notarized contractor's affidavit. Out-of-state companies also register with the Tennessee Secretary of State.

Taking a Tennessee license to other states

Each receiving state writes its own rules. These are the states whose official pages name a Tennessee license or accept one like it.

Where a Tennessee license won't help

• The LLE: no state's agreement names it. Louisiana's any-passed-exam rule is the only possible opening.
• A CE you got by waiver: Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina and Texas want an exam you passed yourself, and Ohio turns away licenses earned through reciprocity. A CE from the Tennessee waiver usually won't carry to a third state.
• Georgia: its electrical board offers no reciprocity to anyone.
• Kentucky: its electrical reciprocity covers Ohio, Virginia and West Virginia only.
• Virginia: DPOR's agreement list has no Tennessee entry. Its universal license recognition law is the only route, and DPOR decides whether your license covers similar work.

States not listed here are covered in JCR's 50-state reciprocity guide. North Carolina's side is in the NC reciprocity guide.

Neighbors with their own JCR guides: Mississippi reciprocity guide and South Carolina reciprocity guide.

Comparing exams by state? The state requirements page lists each one.

How to get a Tennessee CE through reciprocity

1. Check that your state and license appear on the waiver chart for electrical work.
2. Name a qualifying agent who is an owner, officer or full-time employee. A non-owner also files the Board's power of attorney form.
3. Have the qualifying agent pass the Tennessee Business and Law exam at Prov.
4. Send the verification form to your home board and wait for it to come back signed.
5. Get a CPA-reviewed financial statement or a surety bond, plus insurance certificates, a reference letter and the notarized affidavit.
6. File the Initial New Contractor Application on CORE with the $250 fee and the verification form.
7. Before you bid work in Memphis, Nashville or another exempt city, check that city's own licensing and registration.

Tennessee reciprocity questions

Does Tennessee have reciprocity with North Carolina?

Yes, for electrical contractors. An NC Unlimited license counts for the Tennessee CE, and a Tennessee CE qualifies for any NC class from SP to Unlimited. Each side still gives its own business or laws exam.

Can I get a Tennessee LLE through reciprocity?

No. The waiver can't be used for an LLE application. Every LLE applicant passes the LLE trade exam with Prov, whatever licenses they hold elsewhere.

Does Tennessee accept a Georgia electrical license?

No. Georgia isn't on Tennessee's waiver chart, so Georgia contractors take the CE trade exam. Georgia doesn't accept Tennessee licenses either.

Is the Tennessee Business and Law exam required with reciprocity?

Yes. Reciprocity skips only the trade exam, and every contractor license except the restricted residential limited license needs Business and Law. It's an open-book Prov exam with 50 questions in 2½ hours, and you need 73%.

What financial statement or bond does a Tennessee CE need?

Your job limit is 10 times your working capital or net worth, whichever is lower. A $150,000 limit takes $15,000 of each, and unlimited takes $300,000 of each. Instead of the CPA statement, you can post a surety bond for at least half the limit you want.

Does state reciprocity cover Memphis or Nashville?

No. Memphis and unincorporated Shelby County license electricians locally and test on the 2020 NEC. Nashville/Davidson County and the other cities on the state's exempt list run their own permits too.