Engineering License from Illinois to Vermont: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Last verified: 2026-07-21 · source: Vermont Board of Professional Engineering (Office of Professional Regulation, Vermont Secretary of State) ↗
A PE license transfers from Illinois to Vermont by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Vermont Board of Professional Engineering (Office of Professional Regulation, Vermont Secretary of State), verify your Illinois license, and meet Vermont's endorsement requirements. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record (or NCEES verification) and are not retaken; Vermont has no state-specific seismic, surveying, or jurisprudence exam for comity applicants.
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Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
Vermont grants PE licensure by comity, so a Professional Engineer licensed in Illinois does not start over — but does file a full Vermont application. Your Illinois license, ABET degree, qualifying experience, and FE and PE results reach the Vermont Board of Professional Engineering (Office of Professional Regulation, Vermont Secretary of State) through your NCEES Record; the board's task is to confirm they meet Vermont's practice act, not to re-test you. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record (or NCEES verification) and are not retaken; Vermont has no state-specific seismic, surveying, or jurisprudence exam for comity applicants. Two things govern your timeline: keeping your Illinois license active and unencumbered while the Vermont application is pending, and clearing any Vermont-specific exam or statutes review before the license issues.
What changes, Illinois → Vermont
| Illinois (current) | Vermont (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| Application fee | $100 ($100 Professional Engineer license application fee (68 Ill. Adm. Code 1380.275; the same single application fee applies to endorsement); renewal is $30 per year. Request that NCEES transmit your Record to Illinois — NCEES charges $175 first board / $100 each additional, paid separately) | $115 (Vermont PE application fee is $115 (one application fee covers multiple specialty disciplines applied for together); biennial renewal is $175. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES.) |
| Processing time | IDFPR does not publish a guaranteed endorsement turnaround; the board's PE FAQ states that using an NCEES Record may shorten processing time | Vermont OPR publishes no comity turnaround; applications are processed by the Office once complete, subject to OPR's 90-day initial licensing policy. NCEES Record completion itself typically takes a few weeks. |
| Licensing authority | Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR), Division of Professional Regulation — Board of Professional Engineers | Vermont Board of Professional Engineering (Office of Professional Regulation, Vermont Secretary of State) |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Vermont sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Vermont's current requirements on the Vermont Board of Professional Engineering (Office of Professional Regulation, Vermont Secretary of State) website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Vermont Board of Professional Engineering (Office of Professional Regulation, Vermont Secretary of State) (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
- Hold an active PE license in another U.S. jurisdiction whose requirements the Board deems substantially equivalent to Vermont's (26 V.S.A. 1182b).
- Submit an NCEES Record, or complete the education, experience, and reference sections of the application directly.
- Provide technical references, at least two of whom are professional engineers licensed in good standing in any jurisdiction.
- Meet the underlying standard: an ABET-accredited engineering degree (or Board-recognized equivalent) plus progressive engineering experience.
- Pay the fees ($115 (Vermont PE application fee is $115 (one application fee covers multiple specialty disciplines applied for together); biennial renewal is $175. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES.)) and allow Vermont OPR publishes no comity turnaround; applications are processed by the Office once complete, subject to OPR's 90-day initial licensing policy. NCEES Record completion itself typically takes a few weeks..
Official links
Related guides
Frequently asked questions
Does Vermont accept a Illinois PE license?
A PE license transfers from Illinois to Vermont by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Vermont Board of Professional Engineering (Office of Professional Regulation, Vermont Secretary of State), verify your Illinois license, and meet Vermont's endorsement requirements. FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record (or NCEES verification) and are not retaken; Vermont has no state-specific seismic, surveying, or jurisprudence exam for comity applicants.
Do I retake the FE or PE exam moving from Illinois to Vermont?
FE and PE exam results transfer through your NCEES Record (or NCEES verification) and are not retaken; Vermont has no state-specific seismic, surveying, or jurisprudence exam for comity applicants.
What does the Illinois-to-Vermont comity application cost?
$115 (Vermont PE application fee is $115 (one application fee covers multiple specialty disciplines applied for together); biennial renewal is $175. Transmitting an NCEES Record costs $175 for the first board and $100 for each additional board, paid separately to NCEES.).
Can I keep my Illinois PE license after I'm licensed in Vermont?
Yes — PE licenses stack. Keep the Illinois license active (its renewal and continuing-education/PDH clock run separately) and you hold both. Engineers working near state lines or nationally routinely carry several PE licenses at once, all sourced from a single NCEES Record.
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-07-21.
- Vermont SOS/OPR — Engineering Forms & Instructions ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Vermont OPR — Initial Licensing/Renewal Fees & Dates (Professional Engineer #018: $115 application, $175 renewal) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Vermont Board of Professional Engineers — Administrative Rules (Aug 1 2017) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- NCEES — Records Program (comity licensure; $175 first board / $100 each additional) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- IDFPR — Professional Engineering Frequently Asked Questions (endorsement pathway, FE/PE requirement, NCEES Record, PE vs SE) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- Ill. Admin. Code tit. 68, § 1380.275 — Fees (Professional Engineer license $100) ↗ (accessed 2026-07-21)
- IDFPR — Professional Engineering (Practice Act, rules, application forms) ↗ (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
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