Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

West Virginia State Board of
Registration for Professional Engineers

Web Site

General



Q1. Where is the Professional Engineers Board office? Q2. What are the office hours? Q3. What is the office telephone number? Q4. How do I notify the Board of an address change? Q5. How do I notify the Board that my name has changed? Q6. How do I get a verification of my West Virginia exam score or West Virginia license sent to another state or to NCEES? Q7. Does West Virginia license Professional Engineers by discipline? Q8. How can I locate an engineer who specializes in a specific engineering discipline? Q9. Can you recommend an engineer?

Certificate of Authorization



Q1. What is the Certificate of Authorization (COA) issued by the West Virginia Professional Engineers Board? Q2. How can I get a replacement COA certificate if I can’t locate the actual certificate, or get a duplicate certificate, or need a new COA certificate to reflect a change in the company name or engineer in responsible charge? Q3. If I just want to keep my PE registration active in West Virginia but I am not offering engineering services in West Virginia at this time and do not intend to make such offers, am I still required to have a COA? Q4. Is anyone exempt from the COA requirement? Q5. If a firm with a COA wants to offer engineering in West Virginia, is it required to also register with the Secretary of State’s Office? Q6. If I am an individual with an active West Virginia PE license and I offer engineering services in West Virginia as an individual, do I also need a COA? Q7. Why does the Secretary of State’s Office refer businesses to the PE Board for a COA when they apply to do business in West Virginia? Q8. What is the difference between a Certificate of Authorization (COA) from the PE Board and a Certificate of Authority from the Secretary of State’s Office? Q9. If a firm engineers products but is not offering engineering services, does it still need a COA? Q10. How do I find out if my company already has a COA? Q11. Where can I get an application for a Certificate of Authorization (COA) from the West Virginia PE Board? Q12. Can I apply for a COA online? Q13. How much does it cost to apply for a COA? Q14. Can I pay the COA application filing fee by credit card? Q15. Do you accept cash? Q16. To whom do I make the check payable? Q17. Does our company need a COA for each branch office? Q18. What is the FEIN number that must be listed on the COA application form? Q19. Who should be named as the engineer in responsible charge on the COA application form? Q20. Can I be the engineer in responsible charge for more than one COA? Q21. When and how will I find out if our COA application was approved? Q22. How do I change the address or contact information for our COA? Q23. How do I change the name of our company on our COA? Q24. How do I change the name of the engineer in responsible charge on our COA? Q25. Does the COA expire? Q26. How do we renew a COA? Q27. How do we reinstate an inactive, invalidated or lapsed COA?

Comity



Q1. If I am registered as a PE in another state, what do I need to do to get registered as a PE in West Virginia? Q2. If I am an engineer in another country, can I apply for comity? Q3. What are the educational requirements I need to meet to be eligible to apply for comity? Q4. What are the work experience requirements I need to meet to be eligible to apply for comity? Q5. Where can I get a comity application? Q6. How much does it cost to apply for comity? Q7. Can I pay by credit card? Q8. Do you accept cash? Q9. To whom do I make my check payable? Q10. What does a complete comity application include? Q11. What is an NCEES Record? Q12. How long does the comity application process take? Q13. How will I find out if my comity application was approved? Q14. Do I have to get a West Virginia seal made if I don’t intend to stamp drawings in West Virginia? Q15. Can I get a temporary permit rather than getting full PE registration through comity?

Complaints / Enforcement



Q1. How can I find out whether a specific action I have taken or am considering taking might make me subject to disciplinary action? Q2. What disciplinary action may be taken against a non-licensee? Q3. What should I do if I have information about an engineering firm or a Professional Engineer that perhaps should be investigated by the Board? Q4. How do I find out if a PE or engineering firm has been disciplined in the past? Q5. How do I file a complaint with the West Virginia Professional Engineers Board against an engineer or an engineering firm? Q6. If I am aware of an engineer or an engineering firm offering engineering services in West Virginia, but I can’t find them on the roster of registered PEs or companies with COAs on the West Virginia PE Board’s website, what should I do? Q7. What happens after the Board receives a complaint? Q8. What disciplinary action may be taken again a licensee?

Fundamentals of Engineering Exam (FE) / Engineering Intern (EI) Certification



Q1. How do I register for the FE exam? Q2. Do I have to apply to get approval from the West Virginia State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers before I register with NCEES for the FE exam? Q3. How often is the FE exam offered? Q4. Where is the FE exam given? Q5. Can the WV PE Board waive the FE exam if I have an advanced degree or extensive experience? Q6. How much does it cost to take the FE exam? Q7. Where can I get study materials? Q8. How do I find out about review courses? Q9. What items should I take to the exam? Q10. What types of calculators are allowed in the exam room? Q11. How long does it take to complete the FE exam? Q12. How long does it take to get exam results and how do I get them? Q13. If I fail the exam, how many times can I retake the FE? Q14. After passing the exam, how do I get my Engineer Intern or EI certificate from West Virginia? Q15. How do I get the EI certificate application form notarized? Q16. How long do I have to apply for my EI certificate after passing the FE exam? Q17. When and how will I find out if my West Virginia EI certificate application was approved? Q18. When will my EI certificate expire? Q19. Is my EI certification valid in other states or just West Virginia? Q20. What are the educational requirements I need to meet to be eligible to apply for the West Virginia EI certificate?

Principles and Practice Exam (PE) / Initial PE Registration and Licensure



Q1. When can I register to take the PE exam if I want to become a West Virginia Professional Engineer? Q2. If I don’t have the required amount of work experience but have passed the NCEES FE and PE Exam, can I still apply for initial PE licensure in WV? Q3. What are the educational requirements I need to meet to be eligible to apply for the PE exam? Q4. How often is the Principles and Practice or PE exam offered in West Virginia? Q5. How much does it cost to take the PE exam? Q6. Where is the PE exam given? Q7. Are all exam disciplines offered at every exam administration? Q8. To whom do I make the check for my West Virginia Initial Licensure application filing fee payable? Q9. Can I pay by credit card? Q10. Do you accept cash? Q11. If I am applying for Initial Licensure in West Virginia, can I sit for the exam in a different state? Q12. If I decide not to take the exam that I applied for, can I get a refund? Q13. If I decide not to take the exam I applied for, can I transfer to the next exam? Q14. Where can I get study materials? Q15. How do I find out about review courses? Q16. How will I find out when and where to report for the exam? Q17. What items should I take to the exam? Q18. What types of calculators are allowed in the exam room? Q19. How will I get my PE exam results? Q20. If I fail the exam, how many times can I retake the PE? Q21. Where can I get an application for initial PE registration in West Virginia? Q22. What does a complete PE registration application packet include? Q23. After passing the FE and PE exams, and submitting my application for Initial PE Licensure in West Virginia, when and how will I find out if my license was approved? Q24. When will my active PE registration expire?

Reinstatement

For PE Reinstatement



Q1. If my West Virginia PE license status is inactive, lapsed or retired, what do I need to do to make it active again? Q2. Where do I get a PE reinstatement application? Q3. How much does it cost to apply for PE reinstatement? Q4. Can I pay by credit card? Q5. Do you accept cash? Q6. To whom do I make my check payable? Q7. What does a complete PE Reinstatement Application packet include? Q8. Can I use my NCEES record rather than getting five reference forms filled out? Q9. How many PDHs do I need to reinstate my PE license? Q10. How long does the PE reinstatement application process take? Q11. How will I find out if my PE reinstatement was approved? Q12. Do I have to get a new West Virginia PE seal made? Q13. Will I have the same PE number? Q14. After my license is reinstated and active again, when will my registration expire?

For COA Reinstatement



Q1. If a West Virginia Certificate of Authorization or COA is inactive, invalidated or lapsed, what do I need to do to make it active again? Q2. Where do I get a COA Reinstatement Application? Q3. How much does it cost to apply for COA reinstatement? Q4. Can I pay by credit card? Q5. Do you accept cash? Q6. To whom do I make my check payable? Q7. How long does the COA reinstatement application process take? Q8. How will I find out if my COA reinstatement was approved? Q9. Once reinstated, will the company have the same COA number? Q10. After the COA is reinstated and active again, when will the COA registration expire?

Renewal / Continuing Education

For PE Renewals



Q1. How do I renew my PE license? Q2. How often does a PE license need to be renewed? Q3. How much does it cost to renew my PE license? Q4. Can I pay renewal fees by credit card? Q5. Can I pay renewal fees by check? Q6. To whom do I make my check payable? Q7. Can I pay renewal fees by cash? Q8. How can I get a paper renewal form if I don’t want to renew online or don’t want to pay by credit card? Q9. If I run into problems as I do the PE renewal online, what should I do? Q10. How many PDHs do I have to report? Q11. Are new registrants required to report PDHs during their first renewal? Q12. What common mistakes occur on a renewal that could lead to an audit for cause? When an audit occurs, what kind of PDH reporting issue may lead to problems during an audit? Q13. Do I need to provide certificates or proof of attendance for the PDHs I report for renewal? Q14. How can I confirm whether a seminar I want to attend will count toward my PDH requirement? Q15. Can I maintain a tracking record of my PDHs as I attain them? Q16. If I haven’t finished my PDHs by December 31, can I still renew? Q17. How do I change my status from Active to Inactive? Q18. Do PEs who request Inactive status need to report PDHs? Q19. How do I change my status from Active to Retired? Q20. Do PEs who request Retired status or who have been on Retired status during the past year need to report PDHs? Q21. Do I have to have a COA number to renew my PE license? Q22. How can I find out my company’s COA number? Q23. How do I know if my online PE renewal went through successfully? Q24. What happens if I don’t renew?

For COA Renewals



Q1. How do we renew a COA? Q2. How long is the COA certificate good for? Q3. How much does it cost to renew a COA? Q4. Can I pay renewal fees by credit card? Q5. Can I pay renewal fees by check? Q6. To whom do I make my check payable? Q7. Can I pay renewal fees by cash? Q8. How do we get a paper renewal form if we don’t want to renew online or pay by credit card? Q9. If I run into problems as I do the COA renewal online, what should I do? Q10. How do we know if our online COA renewal went through successfully? Q11. What happens if my sole proprietor COA or my company’s COA is not renewed? Q12. How can I change my COA status to Inactive?

Renewal Audit



Q1. What is the audit? Q2. When does the audit occur? Q3. Who gets audited? Q4. Can I report PDHs that I plan to take on my renewal before I have actually completed the PDHs so that I can still meet the renewal deadline? Q5. What information do I need to provide in response to an audit? Q6. What happens if I fail the PE audit? Q7. What happens if I do not respond to an audit? Q8. If I have questions about the audit, who should I contact?

Signing and Sealing



Q1. Where can I find information about the types of documents that do or do not require a PE seal? Q2. Where can I get a West Virginia PE seal made? Q3. Can I use an electronic seal? Q4. Does the West Virginia PE Board need a copy of my West Virginia seal to keep on file? Q5. Where do I sign the seal? Q6. Does each sheet of a drawing need to be signed and sealed? Q7. Does each photocopy of the original drawing need to be originally signed and sealed? Q8. Does the seal have to be a specific size? Q9. What color ink should be used on the seal?

West Virginia State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers
300 Capitol Street - Suite 910, Charleston, West Virginia 25301
(304) 558-3554 | info@wvpebd.gov

Site Last Updated 9/27/2023