Arizona PE License Requirements: Exams, Experience, and Application

To earn a Professional Engineer license in Arizona, you need an engineering degree (ideally one accredited by ABET), passing scores on two national exams, and a combined 96 months of education and qualifying work experience, all submitted to the Arizona State Board of Technical Registration (BTR) with $445 in fees as of January 1, 2026. The core Arizona PE license requirements break down into four moving pieces: education, exams, experience, and the application package itself. Everything else, from the professional seal to three-year renewals, follows after the Board approves your registration.

Education

The shortest route starts with a bachelor’s degree or higher in engineering from a program accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET). That degree satisfies the educational portion of Arizona’s 96-month qualification threshold, and graduates can register for the Fundamentals of Engineering exam directly with NCEES without seeking separate BTR approval first.¹

Applicants without an ABET-accredited degree take a longer path. The BTR must authorize you before you sit for either national exam, and your education is evaluated to determine how many months of the 96-month total it earns. A degree in a related science or technology field can receive partial credit, but the gap between that credit and the full 96 months must be filled with additional qualifying work experience.¹

Exams

Arizona requires every applicant to pass two exams administered by the National Council of Examiners for Engineering and Surveying (NCEES): the Fundamentals of Engineering (FE) exam and the Principles and Practice of Engineering (PE) exam. Both are computer-based.¹

The FE Exam

The FE tests broad engineering knowledge and is usually taken in the final year of an engineering program or shortly after graduation. NCEES allows one attempt per testing window and no more than three attempts in any 12-month period.² Passing earns the Engineer-in-Training (EIT) designation, which starts your professional clock. If your degree is not ABET-accredited, you must apply to the BTR for FE exam authorization before registering with NCEES.¹

The PE Exam

The PE exam is discipline-specific and considerably harder. You select the branch of engineering that matches your practice area, and the questions assume several years of professional judgment that classroom learning alone will not supply. Most applicants take it after accumulating their required work experience. Non-ABET graduates again need separate BTR authorization to sit for it.¹

The BTR does offer FE and PE exam waivers for applicants who meet alternative statutory criteria, including graduates of board-approved programs. Waiver requests are separate from standard exam authorization and require direct coordination with BTR licensing staff.¹

Qualifying Experience

Arizona requires 96 months, eight years, of combined education and experience in the branch of engineering where you are seeking registration.¹ A four-year ABET-accredited degree typically covers 48 of those months, leaving roughly four years of qualifying work experience to complete the total. Your work must be directly related to your engineering branch and of a character satisfactory to the Board.³

The Board looks for progressive, responsible engineering work performed under the supervision of a licensed PE. “Responsible charge” means active involvement in the engineering process from start to finish: personally making engineering decisions or directly supervising those who did. Reviewing someone else’s completed drawings without involvement in the design will not count.

Documenting It

Current and former supervisors who hold engineering registrations must complete the BTR’s Engineer Certificate of Experience Form and submit it directly to the Board.⁴ This is where applications tend to slow down. Supervisors retire, change firms, and sometimes disappear from your professional contacts entirely, so start early. If a supervisor is unavailable, you must provide a sworn written statement explaining why, along with professional references for the Board’s review.

You also need at least three professional references, with at least two from licensed Professional Engineers. These should be people who can speak to the quality and scope of your engineering work, not character witnesses.

The Application Package

Once education, exams, and experience are in place, you submit a formal application to the BTR. Arizona Administrative Code R4-30-201 lists what the package must contain.⁵

Official transcripts sent directly to the BTR from every college or university you attended.
Passing exam scores for the FE and PE transmitted directly from NCEES or your original licensing jurisdiction.
Employment history with names, dates, titles, and descriptions of work performed for every employer in your engineering branch.
A detailed disclosure covering any disciplinary action, suspension, revocation, or pending investigation on any professional license in any state.
Documentation of any felony or misdemeanor conviction other than minor traffic violations.

Citizenship and Photo ID

Under Arizona Revised Statute 1-501, every applicant submits a completed Arizona Statement of Citizenship form with a document proving lawful presence in the United States. Separately, ARS 41-1080 requires a government-issued photo ID such as an Arizona driver’s license issued after 1996 or a U.S. passport. An exemption exists for applicants who are citizens of foreign countries and do not need to reside in Arizona to use the license.⁶

Fees

As of January 1, 2026, the one-time professional application fee is $145 and the initial three-year registration fee is $300, for a total of $445.⁷ Older guides quoting $325 reflect the previous rates of $100 and $225.

If You Are Already Licensed in Another State

Engineers already licensed elsewhere in the United States can apply through endorsement rather than starting over. The pathway requires an NCEES Model Law Engineer (MLE) designation, which pre-verifies that your original licensing met national standards for education, exams, and experience.¹ You will need your NCEES record transmitted directly to the BTR, verification of good standing from your current licensing board, and the same citizenship and photo ID documentation required of every applicant. The BTR recommends calling licensing staff at 602-364-4930 before submitting an endorsement application to confirm you are on the correct pathway.

One hard disqualifier: under ARS 32-4302, you cannot obtain registration through endorsement if you have had a license revoked, or voluntarily surrendered a license, in any other state while under investigation for unprofessional conduct.¹ If you expect to practice in multiple states over your career, an NCEES Record consolidates your transcripts, employment history, references, and exam results so you are not reassembling the file each time.⁸

After the License Issues

Two things come due immediately once you are registered. First, you must obtain a professional seal that meets Arizona’s specifications and file an imprint with your signature at the BTR before using it. The seal is 1½ inches in diameter and names your branch of engineering; engineers registered in more than one branch need a separate seal for each.⁹ You seal and sign every sheet of engineering drawings, the cover of specifications, addenda, change orders, reports, and professional documents prepared by you or your employees, with the date of sealing on each.¹⁰

Second, mark your renewal date. Arizona PE licenses renew every three years from the original date of registration, with a $300 renewal fee under the 2026 schedule.⁷ Arizona is one of the few states with no continuing education or professional development hour requirement for PEs, though the Board retains authority to discipline engineers for incompetence regardless of PDH status. Renewal requires the same citizenship documentation and government-issued photo ID as the initial application, plus disclosure of any new disciplinary actions or criminal convictions since the last renewal.⁵

1
State Board of Technical Registration. Engineer Applicants
2
NCEES. FE Exam
3
State Board of Technical Registration. R4-30-224 Engineer Registration
4
State Board of Technical Registration. Engineer Certificate of Experience Form
5
Arizona Administrative Code. Section R4-30-201 – Registration as an Architect, Assayer, Engineer, Geologist, Landscape Architect, or Land Surveyor
6
State Board of Technical Registration. Engineer Professional Exam Waiver Application
7
State Board of Technical Registration. Fee Increase Notice
8
NCEES Knowledge Base. What Is an NCEES Record
9
Arizona Secretary of State. Arizona Administrative Code Title 4 Chapter 30
10
State Board of Technical Registration. R4-30-304 Use of Seals