Maine bar exam: Legacy or current exam until July 2028; NextGen afterward.
| July exam | May 20 |
| February exam | Dec. 20 |
| Fees | First-time $800; attorney $900 + C&F; repeater $800 / $900 + applicable C&F; laptop $90 |
| MPRE minimum | 80 |
Dates can change. Check the board’s site before you pay.
Before filing in Maine, check the current NCBE profile ↗.
| Rule | No dedicated military-spouse rule identified |
| Accommodation | Standard Rule 11A admission by motion applies: 3 of the last 5 years' active practice plus 15 hours of Maine-specific CLE within a year; no spouse-specific waiver found |
| Duration | N/A |
| Supervision | N/A |
| Adopted | No dedicated rule |
Maine publishes no dedicated military-spouse admission rule as of this review. Confirm current status directly with Maine's bar admission authority ↗: this area of law shifted federally in December 2024 and states are still catching up.
The February 2027 Maine exam is in person on February 23 and 24, 2027 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in South Portland. The Board receives applications through its portal from October 15, 2026 until 5:00 p.m. on December 20, 2026, and there is no option to pay a late fee and file after that date. That rule, Maine Bar Admission Rule 6(3)(b), applies to exam applications and to testing accommodation applications alike.
The Board has suspended courtesy seating for all future Maine exams, so every applicant must be seeking admission to the Maine bar. Maine does accept concurrent applications from examinees sitting for the UBE in another jurisdiction in the same administration: they apply as if taking the Maine exam but do not have to sit in Maine. The Board posted the February 2027 applicant list on September 11, 2026.
Source: Upcoming Exam (February 2027) ↗
Since March 15, 2025 the Maine exam fee is $800 for applicants never admitted anywhere or admitted elsewhere for less than a year, and $900 for applicants admitted in another jurisdiction for a year or more, who also pay an NCBE character application fee, listed as $105 to $550 depending on the NCBE application required. A motion application under Rule 11A is $1,000 plus the NCBE fee. A UBE score transfer is $900 for applicants not admitted elsewhere for a year, and $1,000 plus the NCBE fee for those who are.
Since October 4, 2022, Rule 11 has required a passing MPRE score obtained within 15 years before the date the applicant is admitted, and the Board says an MPRE score is no longer needed to apply and sit for the exam.
Source: Exam Information ↗
A Rule 11A applicant must be admitted in another state, territory or the District of Columbia and be an active member in good standing, and must have been primarily engaged in the active practice of law in one or more U.S. jurisdictions for at least three of the five years before applying. The applicant must have completed the MPRE before filing, must not have failed the Maine exam within five years of applying, and must not be disbarred or currently suspended, though an administrative suspension elsewhere for registration, dues or CLE lapses does not automatically bar certification.
Before certification, the applicant must show good character and fitness under Rule 9 and complete at least 15 hours of continuing legal education in Maine practice and procedure in courses approved by the Maine Board of Overseers of the Bar. That CLE must be completed within one year of the application date.
Rule 11B applicants pay $900 if not admitted in another jurisdiction for a year or more, and $1,000 (plus the NCBE character and fitness fee paid directly to NCBE) if admitted elsewhere for a year or more. These fee levels took effect for exam applications on March 15, 2025, and the Board's page says fees may be paid by personal check, cashier's check, treasurer's check or money order payable to the Board of Bar Examiners.
The Board's approximate schedule for the MBE day has registration and seating from 8:30 to 9:00 a.m., a morning session from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and an afternoon session from 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. The elapsed time for each session is exact, but start and end times may vary, and schedules for applicants with ADA accommodations may differ. Forms are available from March to May for the July exam and October to December for the February exam. The Board does not take telephone requests for forms or rules and mails them only on written request.
The Maine Supreme Judicial Court and the Board announced that Maine will begin administering the NCBE NextGen Bar Exam in July 2028, with rule changes to be posted when available.
Maine has one law school, and its ABA report shows how its graduates do on the Maine exam. For the class of 2024, 58 of 69 first-time Maine takers passed (84.06 percent) against 74.23 percent for all ABA-school graduates taking Maine for the first time. Across all jurisdictions the school's rate was 84.42 percent (65 of 77), against an ABA weighted average of 75.15 percent.
The 2023 class did better still on the Maine exam, at 62 of 70 (88.57 percent) against 71.78 percent, and the 2022 class went 52 of 69 (75.36 percent) against 71.43 percent. Maine Law was above the state figure all three years.
Source: ABA Required Disclosures: University of Maine bar passage report ↗
Few do. In 2024, 69 of the school's 77 first-time takers sat in Maine and the other eight sat in four other jurisdictions, passing 7 of 8. In 2023 it was 70 of 76 in Maine, and in 2022 69 of 76.
The two-year ultimate rate for the classes of 2020, 2021 and 2022 was 95.59, 79.49 and 88.57 percent. For the class of 2021, 78 graduates sat within two years and 62 passed.
5:00 p.m. on December 20, 2026. The window opens October 15, 2026, and Maine allows no late fee filing after the deadline.
No. The Board has suspended courtesy seating for all future Maine exams, so applicants must be seeking admission to the Maine bar. Concurrent applications from examinees sitting elsewhere in the same administration are accepted.
$800 for applicants never admitted or admitted elsewhere under a year, and $900 for those admitted a year or more, plus an NCBE character fee for that group.
No. Since Rule 11 was amended in 2022, you need a passing MPRE score obtained within 15 years before the date you are admitted, not before you apply or sit.
Primary engagement in the active practice of law for at least three of the five years before you apply (Rule 11A), plus the MPRE and 15 hours of Maine CLE within a year of applying.
$1,000 to Maine plus an NCBE application fee of $105 to $550, depending on the NCBE application required.
Anyone who failed the Maine exam within five years of applying, anyone disbarred, and anyone currently suspended, subject to the rule's exception for some administrative suspensions elsewhere.
In person at the DoubleTree by Hilton in South Portland, Maine, on February 23 and 24, 2027.
In July 2028, according to the Maine Supreme Judicial Court and the Board of Bar Examiners.
No. The Board takes no telephone requests for forms or rules; you download them or write to the Board, and forms are available March to May for July and October to December for February.
Well above the state figure for ABA-school graduates. The class of 2024 passed at 84.06 percent on the Maine exam (58 of 69) against 74.23 percent, per the ABA's 2025 report for the school.
Yes. In 2024, 69 of the school's 77 first-time takers sat in Maine; the other eight sat in four other jurisdictions.
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Source: NCBE Comprehensive Guide: Maine ↗ · reviewed August 21, 2026.