# Contractor License Reciprocity: Which States Honor Which

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Publisher: SimplyWise, Inc. (https://www.simplywise.com)
Published: August 28, 2026
Updated: October 4, 2026
Category: Contractor Licenses by State
Summary: Contractor license reciprocity by state: what each board actually waives, which partner states are named, and the one exam that 18 jurisdictions accept.

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## Contractor License Reciprocity: Which States Honor Which

No board lets you contract on another state’s license. What reciprocity actually buys you is a waived exam, and only sometimes.

At a glance

1. No state board lets you work on another state’s license. Tennessee puts it flatly: “You cannot operate in Tennessee with a license from another state.”
2. What agreements waive is the trade exam. The state business and law exam is almost never waived.
3. California names five partner agencies, North Carolina names seven, Tennessee names eight.
4. Arizona holds no reciprocity agreement with anyone, yet California honors an Arizona license. Direction matters.
5. One exam travels: 20 agencies across 18 jurisdictions accept the NASCLA Commercial General Building Contractor exam.
6. California opened that route in March 2025, so a NASCLA pass now reaches California from any state.

## What contractor license reciprocity actually means

Contractor license reciprocity sounds like a license that travels. No license does. Every board still issues its own, still runs its own background and financial review, and still collects its own fee. The Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors says the quiet part out loud: “You cannot operate in Tennessee with a license from another state.”

So what does an agreement do? It waives an exam. Usually the trade exam, the technical one tied to your classification. The business and law exam stays on your plate almost everywhere. That one covers the new state’s contract law, lien rules, and board discipline. Framing does not change at a state line. Lien deadlines do.

## Which states honor which licenses

Every row below comes from the board’s own page, checked August 22, 2026. Boards revise these lists without notice.

| State | What it waives | Still required | Partner states it names |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| California (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/california-contractor-license/) | Trade portion of the exam | Business law portion | Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina |
| North Carolina (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/north-carolina-general-contractor-license/) | Qualification exam | NC Business and Law | South Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida |
| Tennessee (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/tennessee-contractor-license/) | Trade exam only | Business and Law, under every waiver | Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, South Carolina, West Virginia |
| Georgia (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/georgia-general-contractor-license/) | Exam, under a written board agreement | Georgia Business and Law | Named inside each agreement, not in the rule |
| Virginia (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/virginia-dpor-contractor-license/) | Electrical, HVAC and some plumbing exams | Everything else on the Virginia application | Alabama, District of Columbia, Kentucky, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, West Virginia |
| Arizona (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/arizona-contractor-license/) | Trade exam and experience, by request | Statutes and Rules exam | None. No direct reciprocity with any state |
| Florida (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/florida-general-contractor-license/) | Trade exam, under a reciprocity agreement | Florida Business and Finance exam | Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina |

Read down the third column and the pattern lands. Six of seven boards keep their own law exam no matter who licensed you first. Read the last column and a second pattern lands: these are not handshakes between equals. Arizona grants nobody reciprocity, yet sits at the top of California’s list. North Carolina and Florida, by contrast, name each other. Check the board you are entering, not the one you left.

## The one exam that does travel

There is a real shortcut to contractor license reciprocity, and it is not a state agreement. The National Association of State Contractors Licensing Agencies runs an Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors. Boards accept that single result in place of their own trade exam. NASCLA lists 20 participating agencies covering 18 jurisdictions: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

California is the most instructive. At its March 2025 board meeting the Contractors State License Board approved the NASCLA exam for reciprocity purposes. In the board’s own words, that means “licensed contractors, regardless of state of licensure, can apply for the CSLB General Building Contractor license if they have passed the NASCLA Commercial General Building Contractor examination.” Before that, California waived trade exams only for licensees out of Arizona, Nevada, and Louisiana.

## Bid the out-of-state job before the license clears

Licensing takes months. Bidding cannot wait for it. SimplyWise Cost Estimator turns a photo into an itemized, branded estimate in about 6 seconds, with material, labor, and fee lines broken out. Pricing is $29.99/mo or $239.99/yr, about $20/mo on annual, with a 7-day free trial.

## How to move your license into a new state

1. Read the target board first, not your own Reciprocity is granted by the state you are entering. Start on the target board’s reciprocity page and find your exact classification on it.
2. Check the standing rules before the exam rules California wants five years in good standing at home. Arizona wants a comparable license held within the last five years. Fail the standing test and the exam question never comes up.
3. Ask what is waived, in writing Most boards waive the trade exam and nothing else. Get the license verification form completed by your home board and file it with the application, since most boards do not pre-approve one.
4. Sit the NASCLA exam if you plan on three or more states One sitting covers 18 jurisdictions. Below three states, individual trade exams usually cost less time than the national one.

## Keep reading

- Contractor License Cost by State (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/contractor-license-cost-by-state/)
- How to Get a General Contractor License (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/how-to-get-general-contractor-license/)
- South Carolina Contractor License (https://www.simplywise.com/blog/south-carolina-contractor-license/)

## Sources

- NASCLA, Commercial Exam Participating State Agencies (https://www.nascla.org/nascla-commercial-exam-participating-state-agencies) (the 20 agencies and 18 jurisdictions; verified 2026-08-22).
- CSLB, General Information on Reciprocity (https://www.cslb.ca.gov/Contractors/Applicants/Reciprocity/General_Reciprocity_Information.aspx) (California’s five partner agencies; verified 2026-08-22).
- CSLB Industry Bulletin 25-02, April 25, 2025 (https://www.cslb.ca.gov/Resources/IndustryBulletins/2025/Reciprocity%20Bulletin.FINAL.pdf) (the March 2025 NASCLA approval and the prior three-state list; verified 2026-08-22).
- NCLBGC, FAQ for Contractors (https://nclbgc.org/faq-contractors/) (North Carolina’s seven waiver states; verified 2026-08-22).
- Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (https://www.tn.gov/commerce/regboards/contractors/license/get/contractor.html) (the eight waiver states and the Business and Law rule; verified 2026-08-22).
- Virginia DPOR, Reciprocal Licensing and Examination Agreements (https://www.dpor.virginia.gov/sites/default/files/boards/Tradesman/Tradesmen%20reciprocal%20agreements.pdf) (Virginia’s seven tradesman agreements; verified 2026-08-22).
- Georgia Rules and Regulations, Chapter 553-2 (https://rules.sos.ga.gov/gac/553-2) (Rule 553-2-.13 reciprocity conditions; verified 2026-08-22).
- Ariz. Admin. Code R4-9-106, Examinations (https://azrules.elaws.us/rule/r4-9-106) (the Registrar’s trade exam waiver turns on the applicant’s own five-year history, and the rule names no partner state; verified 2026-08-22).
- DBPR CILB 32, Application for Certification by Reciprocity (https://www2.myfloridalicense.com/pro/cilb/documents/CILB32_Reciprocity.pdf) (Eff. July 2024, Rule 61-35.010; Florida’s three partner states and its Business and Finance exam; verified 2026-08-22).

## Contractor license reciprocity: common questions

**Can I work in another state on my current license?**

No. Every state issues its own license. Reciprocity waives part of the exam for a new application in that state, and nothing more.

**Which exam gets waived?**

The trade or technical exam tied to your classification. The state’s business and law exam is almost never waived. California, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Georgia all keep theirs.

**What is the NASCLA exam?**

The NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors. Twenty agencies across 18 jurisdictions accept the result in place of their own trade exam.

**Does California accept my out-of-state license?**

CSLB names Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, and North Carolina. Since March 2025 it also accepts a NASCLA pass from a licensee in any state.

**Is reciprocity mutual between two states?**

Not reliably. Arizona says it has no direct reciprocity with any state, while California lists Arizona as a partner. Check the board you are entering, not the one you left.

**Can SimplyWise price a job in a state I am not licensed in yet?**

Yes. SimplyWise Cost Estimator turns a photo into an itemized, branded estimate in about 6 seconds. Free to try, at $29.99/mo or $239.99/yr.

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