How Do I Become a Licensed Electrician? What Six States Require

You become a licensed electrician by climbing a ladder: you start as a trainee or apprentice who works under supervision, you log documented hours, you pass a journey level exam, and then, if you want to run electrical work yourself, you earn a master license and tie it to an electrical contractor license. The names, hours and agencies change from state to state, and North Carolina, for one, licenses the contracting side and shows no journeyman card in the pages we read.

This page follows the individual path in six states where we opened the official source: Texas, Washington, Oregon, Minnesota, Colorado and North Carolina. Our founders, Marshall Schofield and Jeremiah Jaskulski, are master electricians as well as licensed general contractors, so we explain both the card in your wallet and the company license behind it. For the whole business, start with our contractor license guide.

At a glance

• Texas: the journeyman exam opens at 7,000 hours under a Texas master, and licensure takes 8,000 hours (TDLR).
• Washington: the journey level exam needs 8,000 hours and 96 hours of classroom instruction (L&I).
• Oregon: a supervising electrician signs permits and must be on the contractor's regular payroll (OAR 918-282-0140).
• Minnesota: DLI's schedule asks for 48 months for a journeyworker and 60 months for a master.
• Colorado and North Carolina: Colorado lets a master who is a registered contractor, or directly employed by one, apply for permits (HB22-1346), and North Carolina licenses the contractor's qualified individual by class (G.S. 87-43.3).

The ladder, in plain words

In the six states we read, the steps run the same way, even where the names change.

1. Entry level. You register as an apprentice, trainee or unlicensed electrician so you can work under supervision.
2. Journey level. After the required hours, and sometimes classroom training, you pass an exam.
3. Master. After more time as a journeyman, you pass a master or supervising exam.
4. Contractor or company license. To sell electrical work to the public, the business needs its own license or registration, and that license names a master or supervising electrician behind it.

For what each card allows, see journeyman vs master electrician. For the company step, see how to get an electrical contractor license. For permits, read can a journeyman electrician pull permits.

State by state: entry, journey level and master

The table gives the short version. The notes below it carry the citations, and every figure is the one the official source gave when we read it on October 12, 2026. Boards change hours and fees, so confirm with the board before you apply.

Texas

Texas licenses every rung through the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR). The apprentice page says an apprentice works under the general supervision of a Master Electrician, Journeyman Electrician or Residential Wireman, and that there are no experience qualifications and no examination. TDLR's FAQ adds that there is no grace period to work while a license is pending.

For the journeyman license you must complete at least 7,000 hours of on-the-job training under a Texas master electrician to apply for the exam, and the page says the license itself requires 8,000 hours. Each supervising master signs an Experience Verification Form. The application carries a non-refundable $30 fee, and licenses are valid for one year.

For the master license you must have held a journeyman license for at least two years, and journeyman industrial experience does not count. You also need 12,000 hours of on-the-job training under a Texas master, and the application fee is $45. Our Texas electrician license guide goes deeper.

On the company side, TDLR's FAQ says an electrical contractor must either obtain and assign its own master electrician license to the company or employ a licensed master electrician to assign their license number to it. Our Texas qualifying agent guide covers that role.

Washington

Washington certifies the electrician and licenses the company separately. Electrical trainees must be 16 or older, hold a training certificate and work on the same jobsite as the supervising electrician. The certificate renews every two years and requires 48 hours of basic classroom instruction.

Hours matter here. RCW 19.28.161 requires the electrical contractor to verify and attest to the trainee's hours, and L&I warns that you lose credit for hours if your affidavit is late. For the general journey level (01) exam, L&I's page lists 8,000 hours and 96 hours of classroom instruction. Under RCW 19.28.191, the routes include an approved 8,000 hour apprenticeship with 4,000 hours in new industrial or commercial installations, plus out-of-state and military routes.

The master journey level exam opens to someone who has held a valid journey level certificate for four years (RCW 19.28.191). To contract for electrical work, the business needs an electrical contractor license under RCW 19.28.041, with a $4,000 bond and a designated individual who holds a master journey level or master specialty certificate or an administrator's certificate. See our Washington electrician license guide and the Washington electrical contractor guide.

Oregon

Oregon's license directory describes the apprentice path as an approved program of 8,000 hours (approximately four years), open to applicants at least 17 to apply and 18 to begin. That entry was last updated in 2022, so confirm today's rules with the program.

The General Journeyman (J) license requires one of three routes: completing an approved apprenticeship in Oregon, or 576 hours of classroom training plus 8,000 hours of experience gained outside Oregon with at least 1,000 hours each in residential, commercial and industrial work, or 16,000 hours outside Oregon with at least 2,000 hours in each category. The exam is 52 questions over three hours, open book, and the license fee is $100.

The General Supervising Electrician (S) license requires an Oregon journeyman license plus 8,000 more hours of journeyman experience, and a 4 hour exam. The directory says this license can sign all permits.

For a company, OAR 918-282-0000 says the electrical contractor license is in addition to Construction Contractors Board licensing and bonding, and that the contractor generally needs a full-time general supervising electrician. The word generally matters, because ORS 479.540 carries statutory exemptions. Under OAR 918-282-0140, the signing supervisor must be continuously employed on the contractor's regular payroll and may not act as supervising electrician for more than one employer. See our Oregon electrician license guide.

Minnesota

Minnesota uses the word journeyworker. A registered unlicensed electrician must be at least 17 and directly supervised at all times by a licensed journeyworker or master, and a licensed electrician may not supervise more than two unlicensed individuals. DLI counts experience in months.

Its schedule asks for at least 48 months for a Class A journeyworker, with at least 24 months in wiring and installing. The journeyworker exam fee is $50. For a master, DLI lists three routes to the exam: an electrical engineering degree, one year of experience as a journeyworker, or five years in planning, laying out, supervising and installing wiring. Its schedule shows a minimum total of 60 months.

For the company, DLI requires a master electrician who is an owner, officer or member of the business. A W-2 employee who is actively engaged in the company's electrical work can also qualify, provided that person is not employed as an electrician by another contractor. The contractor needs a $25,000 surety bond and pays a $188 fee. See our Minnesota electrician license guide.

Colorado

Colorado states the ladder in its statute. We read the official C.R.S. 2024 printout from the General Assembly. Section 12-115-115 lets any person work as an apprentice under the direct supervision of a licensed electrician, with no more than three apprentices to a licensed electrician at a job site. The contractor registers the apprentice within thirty days of employment.

For the journeyman license, section 12-115-110 requires at least four years of apprenticeship or practical experience, with at least two of those years in commercial, industrial or substantially similar work. It also requires at least 288 hours of safety and National Electrical Code training in the last four years. A master applicant needs, in one route, at least one year of practical experience beyond the journeyman requirement in planning, laying out, supervising and installing; two other routes combine a degree with practical experience. The statute counts years, so ask the State Electrical Board how it converts them to hours.

To be an electrical contractor, section 12-115-110(5) requires registration with the board. An owner who is a licensed master can qualify the company, and otherwise the company employs a licensed master who supervises all of its electrical work. That master may not be named for more than one contractor and must work full time with that company. Under HB22-1346, only a qualified applicant may apply for a permit: a licensed master who is a registered electrical contractor, a master directly employed by one, or a homeowner working on their own home. See our Colorado electrician license guide.

North Carolina

North Carolina works differently. The State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors licenses contractors, and the license is held by a qualified individual who passes the Board's exam. G.S. 87-43.1 lists an exception for a person working as a bona fide employee of a licensee. We found no apprentice or journeyman license in the pages we read, so ask the Board what applies to you.

The Board's classes are Limited, Intermediate, Unlimited and Special Restricted, and G.S. 87-43.3 defines the first three. Under the Board's Rule .0201(b), Limited needs two years of experience with one year primary, Intermediate four years with two and a half primary, and Unlimited five years with four primary. Rule .0202 counts 2,000 hours as one creditable year and journeyman time as primary experience at 100 percent. Time in an approved apprentice program counts as secondary experience at 100 percent. The qualified individual must be at least 18 (G.S. For the company, G.S. 87-43.2 requires at least one listed qualified individual to be regularly employed by the applicant at each separate place of business, and the Board's FAQ says no listed qualified individual may be indicated on more than one license certificate at the same time, with a narrow exception. Read our North Carolina electrician license guide before you apply.

What the pattern means for you

Two things repeat across these six states. First, someone who supervised you documents your hours: Texas uses a form signed by each master, Washington has the contractor attest, and North Carolina uses Employer Statement Forms. Second, the master step is where the company step begins, because the contractor license in Texas, Oregon, Minnesota and Colorado points to a master or supervising electrician.

Practical steps if you are starting today

1. Find your state board and the right first rung. Look up the board's license types and find the entry step. Do not start work first: Texas says there is no grace period while a license is pending, except that an online apprentice applicant who reports no criminal convictions is issued a temporary license automatically.
2. Get the supervision right. Texas, Washington and Colorado all describe supervision for the entry rung. Work for a licensed electrician or contractor who can document your hours.
3. Decide early if you want your own company. Running jobs under your own name means a master license plus the contractor license in states like Texas, Oregon and Minnesota.

Questions people ask

How long does it take to become a licensed electrician? It depends on the state. Texas asks for 8,000 hours for a journeyman, Washington lists 8,000 hours, Colorado's statute asks for four years, and Minnesota's schedule shows 48 months. The master step adds more time.

Do I need trade school? Some states require training. Washington lists 96 hours of classroom instruction for the 01 journey level exam, and Colorado's statute requires at least 288 hours of safety and National Electrical Code training in the last four years. The Texas journeyman page we read asks for on-the-job hours under a master.

Can a journeyman start an electrical company on the journeyman card? In the six states we read, no. Texas needs a master assigned to the contractor, Oregon needs a supervising electrician on the payroll, Minnesota needs a master as owner, officer, member or qualifying employee, and Colorado needs a registered contractor with a master.

Can I use my license in another state? Sometimes. Colorado's C.R.S. 12-115-113 directs the board to issue a license by endorsement when credentials are substantially equivalent. Washington's L&I page describes Oregon reciprocity routes. Ask the board before you assume.

Are there jobs I can do without a license? Some states have exemptions. Oregon's ORS 479.540 and North Carolina's G.S. 87-43.1 carry exemptions, and Colorado's permit rule names homeowners working on their own home. Read the exemption language for your state and job first.

If you want to run an electrical company without being the master

Some electricians buy, inherit or start a business without the master or contractor credential the state wants behind it. A qualifying agent solves that: this person qualifies the company as an owner or a full-time W-2 employee who supervises the work, and the company then holds the license that permits and contracts attach to. The state rules differ, from Oregon's payroll requirement to Colorado's one-company rule. Read what a qualifying agent is, see how to hire a qualifying agent, and review our contractor qualifier services for how it works. For titles and replacement rules by state, see electrical contractor qualifying agent, and for multi-state work see our licensing services in all 50 states.

Next step

If you are an electrician ready to run your own jobs, or a company that needs a qualifier behind an electrical license, call 615-219-2110 or start at Hire a Qualifying Agent. Tell us the state and the work you do, and we will tell you plainly what the board expects.

Sources

Retrieved October 12, 2026.

• Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Journeyman Electrician
• Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Master Electrician
• Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Apprentice Electrician
• TDLR, Electrical Safety and Licensing Frequently Asked Questions
• Washington L&I, Electrician
• Washington L&I, Electrical Trainee
• Revised Code of Washington, RCW 19.28.041
• Revised Code of Washington, RCW 19.28.161
• Revised Code of Washington, RCW 19.28.191
• Oregon License Directory, General Journeyman Electrician (J)
• Oregon License Directory, General Supervising Electrician (S)
• Oregon License Directory, Electrician, General Journeyman Apprentice (Inside)
• Oregon Administrative Rules, Division 282, Electrical and Elevator Licensing
• Oregon Revised Statutes, Chapter 479
• Minnesota DLI, Electrical licensing basics
• Minnesota DLI, Experience requirements for electrical licenses
• Minnesota DLI, Electrical contractor licensing basics
• Colorado Revised Statutes 2024, Title 12, Article 115 (Colorado General Assembly)
• Colorado General Assembly, House Bill 22-1346, Session Laws Chapter 483 (2022)
• North Carolina Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, Licensing
• North Carolina Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, FAQ
• North Carolina Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, Section .0200 Rules
• North Carolina General Statutes, Chapter 87, Article 4, Electrical Contractors
• North Carolina General Statutes, G.S. 87-43.3