Transfer Your Engineering License to District of Columbia: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)
Last verified: 2026-07-21 · source: District of Columbia Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection) ↗
Yes — District of Columbia issues a new Professional Engineer license by comity to an engineer already licensed in another state. You apply to the District of Columbia Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection), which verifies your ABET-accredited degree, experience, exam record, and good standing against District of Columbia's own statute rather than re-testing you. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; the District has no separate jurisprudence exam, but it will not waive the Fundamentals of Engineering exam requirement in lieu of experience, even for long-licensed comity applicants. Application fee: $65 (Application fee; a separate license fee of $120 (valid up to two years) is due on approval. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES).
Moving to District of Columbia from a specific state?
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Comity is District of Columbia's normal route for an already-licensed engineer, and the word describes what the District of Columbia Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection) actually does: it extends professional courtesy to your existing PE license after confirming your record meets District of Columbia's practice act, rather than re-examining you. The lever that makes this smooth is your NCEES Record — NCEES compiles your transcripts, experience, references, and FE/PE results and transmits them straight to District of Columbia, and a Model Law Engineer designation speeds many boards further. One prerequisite is absolute: your current license must be active and unencumbered, so clear any open disciplinary matter before you file.
Read the exam line on this page closely before you assume the move is exam-free. Most boards add nothing to the FE and PE, but a few require a state-specific examination — seismic, surveying, or a statutes-and-rules review — that comity does not waive, and where District of Columbia requires one it is listed above rather than folded silently into the process.
Licensure by endorsement: the Board accepts NCEES-compiled and verified records and issues a new District PE license after confirming comparable qualifications. Underlying standard is a 4-year ABET-accredited degree plus four years of qualifying experience. DLCP navigation labels the body variously as 'Board of Professional Engineers'/'Board of Professional Engineering'; its own establishing text names it the Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors.
District of Columbia requirements at a glance
| Exam | FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; the District has no separate jurisprudence exam, but it will not waive the Fundamentals of Engineering exam requirement in lieu of experience, even for long-licensed comity applicants |
|---|---|
| Additional requirements |
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| Fees | $65 (Application fee; a separate license fee of $120 (valid up to two years) is due on approval. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES) |
| Processing time | DLCP publishes no endorsement turnaround; the Board accepts the NCEES Record and reviews applications filed through the online Occupational and Professional licensing system (Access DC) |
Step by step
- Confirm District of Columbia's current requirements on the District of Columbia Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection) website — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the District of Columbia Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection) (application linked on this page).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold an active PE license in another U.S. jurisdiction based on comparable qualifications.
- Have NCEES transmit your Credentialing (NCEES) Record to the Board and file the online Occupational and Professional application.
- Provide five professional references, at least three of them licensed PEs familiar with your work.
- Document a 4-year ABET-accredited engineering degree and four years of qualifying experience (foreign degrees require an approved evaluation).
- Pay the fees ($65 (Application fee; a separate license fee of $120 (valid up to two years) is due on approval. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES)) and allow DLCP publishes no endorsement turnaround; the Board accepts the NCEES Record and reviews applications filed through the online Occupational and Professional licensing system (Access DC).
Official links
Coming from a specific state?
Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into District of Columbia:
Frequently asked questions
Does my PE license transfer to District of Columbia?
Yes — District of Columbia issues a new Professional Engineer license by comity to an engineer already licensed in another state. You apply to the District of Columbia Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection), which verifies your ABET-accredited degree, experience, exam record, and good standing against District of Columbia's own statute rather than re-testing you. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; the District has no separate jurisprudence exam, but it will not waive the Fundamentals of Engineering exam requirement in lieu of experience, even for long-licensed comity applicants. Application fee: $65 (Application fee; a separate license fee of $120 (valid up to two years) is due on approval. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES).
Do I retake the FE or PE exam to get licensed in District of Columbia?
FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record and are not retaken; the District has no separate jurisprudence exam, but it will not waive the Fundamentals of Engineering exam requirement in lieu of experience, even for long-licensed comity applicants.
What does PE licensure in District of Columbia cost an out-of-state applicant?
$65 (Application fee; a separate license fee of $120 (valid up to two years) is due on approval. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES).
How long does the District of Columbia Board of Professional Engineers and Land Surveyors (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection) take to act on a comity application?
DLCP publishes no endorsement turnaround; the Board accepts the NCEES Record and reviews applications filed through the online Occupational and Professional licensing system (Access DC).
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-07-21.
- DC DLCP - Board of Professional Engineers (endorsement requirements and fees) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NCEES - Records Program (comity licensure) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21
How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]