Illinois does not license electricians at the state level.
Illinois does NOT license electricians at the state level. There is no statewide electrician or electrical-contractor license and no state licensing board for the electrical trade. The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) is the state’s professional-licensing authority (100+ regulated professions), but its complete A-through-W list of regulated professions contains NO ‘Electrician’ or ‘Electrical Contractor’ entry — the only similarly named entry is ‘Electrologist’ (electrolysis / hair removal), which is unrelated to the electrical trade (idfpr.illinois.gov/profs/proflist.html, verified live). Instead, electricians and electrical contractors are licensed at the LOCAL (municipal, and in some places county) level: each city, village, or county that adopts an electrical code sets its own licensing, examination, and permit rules. Chicago is the largest and best-documented example. Under the Municipal Code of Chicago, two credentials apply: (1) a SUPERVISING ELECTRICIAN license — an individual credential (Ch. 4-292); to sit for the written exam an applicant must be at least 21 years old and have at least 2 years’ experience installing, altering, repairing, and maintaining electrical wires/equipment (verified by supervisor letters) under the direct supervision of a supervising electrician; there are two exam types (general and low voltage); an applicant who fails must wait 6 months to reapply; the license is valid for one year and cannot be renewed if expired 3+ years; fees are $150 per exam, $150 initial license, and $150/year renewal. (2) an ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR license — a business credential (Ch. 4-290) required to install, alter, or maintain wiring or equipment regulated by the Chicago Electrical Code; it is issued to businesses (including sole proprietorships) that employ at least one licensed supervising electrician, is classified as General or Low Voltage based on the exam the supervising electrician passed, and is automatically inactivated if no valid supervising-electrician license is associated with it; fees are $150 initial and $150 renewal for both the General and Low Voltage classifications. Both Chicago credentials are processed by Continental Testing Services on behalf of the Chicago Department of Buildings. Chicago’s specific requirements, exams, and fees apply ONLY within Chicago; other Illinois municipalities and counties each maintain their own separate electrical-licensing and permit requirements. Note that a handful of narrow, non-general electrical activities are touched by state law (e.g., utility work under the Illinois Commerce Commission, and private-alarm work licensed by the State under the Private Detective, Private Alarm, Private Security, Fingerprint Vendor, and Locksmith Act of 2004), but none of these is a general-electrician trade license.
What it’s called
Illinois does not license electricians at the state level — there is no statewide electrician or electrical-contractor license and no state electrical board. A search for an “Illinois electrician license” maps to a LOCAL license issued by the city, village, or county where the work is done (Chicago’s is the best known). “Electrician license,” “journeyman electrician license” and “electrician certification” are common informal names for that local license.
Who does NOT need a license — exemptions
Illinois has no state electrician license, but one state statute does reach into the local landscape: 65 ILCS 5/11-33-1 of the Illinois Municipal Code. It authorizes municipalities to require REGISTRATION of electrical contractors, caps the annual registration fee at $25, and provides that a contractor registered in one municipality “shall not be required by any other municipality to be registered or to pay a registration fee.” The same section carves three activities out of the statutory definition of “electrical contractor”: installing or altering radio apparatus for wireless reception, work performed for or by public utilities under Illinois Commerce Commission jurisdiction, and the employees an electrical contractor employs to do or supervise the work. In Chicago - the flagship local jurisdiction - the Municipal Code’s electrical contractor licensing (Chapter 4-290) carries its own exemptions: under section 4-290-010, a person may work either by holding an electrical contractor license or by being “employed by a person holding a valid electrical contractor license” (employees need no license of their own); no Chicago license is required for work “for or by a public utility under the jurisdiction of the Illinois Commerce Commission”; and a private alarm contractor licensed by the State of Illinois under the Private Detective, Private Alarm, Private Security, Fingerprint Vendor, and Locksmith Act of 2004 needs no Chicago electrical contractor license to install, alter or maintain an alarm system while acting within the scope of that state license. Chicago’s exemptions apply only within Chicago; other Illinois municipalities set their own.
Where to get licensed
Because Illinois has no state electrician license, verify requirements with the LOCAL authority for the exact city, village, or county where the electrical work will be performed — typically that jurisdiction’s building, buildings-and-inspections, or development-services department, which issues electrical licenses/registrations and permits and adopts the local electrical code. For work in the City of Chicago, use the Chicago Department of Buildings: the Supervising Electrician License page (chicago.gov/city/en/depts/bldgs/supp_info/TLdetails/SupvEL.html) and the Electrical Contractor License page (chicago.gov/city/en/depts/bldgs/supp_info/TLdetails/ELcontractor.html); Chicago applications and the written examinations are handled by Continental Testing Services. For statewide context on which professions Illinois does and does not regulate, see IDFPR (idfpr.illinois.gov) — electricians are not among them.