LicensedAnywhere

Transfer a Real Estate License to Maryland

Verified July 2026 · 40 official sources

Only PA and OK walk in, the rest sit the exam

Maryland runs three doors and your home state picks which one. Pennsylvania and Oklahoma licensees get a real reciprocal license, with no Maryland exam from Pennsylvania, the state portion only from Oklahoma, and no Maryland continuing education either way, as long as the home license stays active and your main office stays outside Maryland. Everyone else gets Out-of-State License Recognition, a case by case waiver where the Maryland Real Estate Commission (MREC) reads your education, usually waives the 60 hour course, then sends you to PSI for the exam. Waivers go only to Active licensees.

First year: $142 plus history feeRenewal: $78 / 2 yrsWait: 2 to 4 weeks, plus exam timeWork while waiting: No, no temporary permitTravel required: One exam trip, none from PA

What carries over to Maryland, and what does not

Comes with you

  • Prelicensing hours, if your state's rule meets Maryland's 60
  • Every year of active practice, toward the 3 year broker rule
  • Continuing education hours, as electives only
  • Your home state exam, on the PA or OK reciprocal door only

New for this state

  • The Maryland exam at PSI, $44, unless you come from PA
  • $20 Guaranty Fund payment, charged once in your life
  • License history from the state that licensed you FIRST
  • A Maryland broker's commitment to affiliate, wet signed

If you hold a broker license

Out-of-state years carry in full. COMAR 09.11.01.12F counts 3 years of active, lawful practice anywhere in the US toward the broker experience rule, and 3 years as a broker elsewhere waives the 135 hour course, though MREC wants those years consecutive and unbroken. The license runs $211 up front and $191 every 2 years, plus a credit report under six months old at every renewal, an auditable escrow account, Maryland SDAT registration, and proof you keep a real office in your other state.

Working in Maryland without a Maryland license

On a single deal Commercial only. Section 17-537 lets a nonresident broker work a commercial Maryland deal through a Maryland broker on a written cooperation agreement, with consents to service and discipline and a $45 fee, but only if your home state does the same for Maryland brokers. Residential has no equivalent, so one house deal means full licensure.
Referrals Yes, when your state returns the favor. Section 17-513 lets a Maryland licensee divide a fee earned here with a licensee in another state if that state allows the mirror split, and Section 17-604 carves that out of the ban on paying unlicensed people.

Your send-off checklist

YOUCheck the reciprocal door first. A Pennsylvania or Oklahoma license gets the Original Reciprocal Application instead, but it goes void if your home license lapses and your main office must stay outside Maryland.
STATE BOARDSOrder a certificate of full licensing history from the state that licensed you FIRST and from wherever you are licensed now. Dated within 120 days of submission, original mailed within 30 days of issue. varies
YOUSend it with a signed cover letter to the MREC Education Director, listing every state you hold a license in, in the order you got them. Your old board may email it to dlmrec-labor@maryland.gov. Do not fax.
STATE BOARDSMREC reviews education and experience one file at a time and answers in 10 to 12 business days, emailing a Letter of Qualification if you qualify.
YOURegister with PSI online using the original letter. Mail, fax, and email applications stopped March 31, 2025, and PSI takes up to a week. $44
YOUSit the exam at one of eight Maryland centers, or ask PSI about approved centers in other regions. Pass mark is 70 percent per portion. Whether your waiver covers one portion or both is confirming.
YOULine up a Maryland broker to sign your commitment to affiliate, or write inactive there and take up to 3 years to find one.
YOUFile the Original Salesperson application within 1 year of passing, by check or money order, with the nonresident consent to service initialed. No typed signatures. $98 Forms and fees
STATE BOARDSMREC publishes 5 days for a salesperson license. Do no Maryland work until you appear in License Search.

The money

Salesperson license$98, includes the $20 fund
PSI exam registration$44
60 hour prelicensing course$0 when waived
License history, old statevaries
Fingerprints$0, Maryland runs none
E&O insurance$0, not mandated
TOTAL First year, typical$142 plus your old state's history fee
Then: renewal every 2 years$78

Watch out in Maryland

  • Two one year clocks bite. One year from prelicensing to pass both portions, 1 year from passing to apply, and the $44 PSI fee lasts a year too.
  • The waiver certificate must come from the state that licensed you FIRST, not just the one you use today, and MREC waives nothing for an inactive licensee.
  • Reciprocal licenses stay conditional. Yours goes void if the PA or OK license lapses, and moving your main office into Maryland means telling MREC within 90 business days, then passing the state portion within 90 days.
  • Maryland ignores every state's post-licensing education and takes outside continuing education as electives only. Mandated topics need a Maryland approved provider, done 30 days before renewal or a $75 late fee lands.

Official links for Maryland

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