Electrician License in New Jersey — Requirements, Fees & Exam

Q: How often do you renew an electrician license in New Jersey?

Triennial (every three years) for all four credentials -- electrical contractor licenses and business permits and the licenses issued to Class A journeymen electricians, Class A electrical apprentices and Class B wiremen are issued for three years and are triennially renewable (N.J.S.A. 45:1-7, as amended by P.L.2021, c.479, section 1). Electrical contractor licenses and business permits carry a March 31 expiration date; the current triennial period ends March 31, 2027. The Board sends a renewal notice at least 60 days before expiration. A license not renewed by its expiration date may still be renewed within the following 30 days with a $50 late fee, and remains valid during that 30-day window; a licensee who fails to submit a renewal application within 30 days after expiration has the license suspended without a hearing (N.J.A.C. 13:31-2.4 for electrical contractors, 13:31-5.2 for Class A journeymen, 13:31-6.2 for Class B wiremen, 13:31-7.2 for Class A electrical apprentices; N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6 for the fees). Each credential may instead be renewed on inactive status, in which case the holder may not perform electrical work.

How to get licensed as an electrician in New Jersey: triennial renewal — verified from official sources.

Source-verified

Requirements below are drawn from New Jersey Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors (Division of Consumer Affairs, Office of the Attorney General) (official site) and last verified July 22, 2026. Boards change fees and rules often — confirm before acting.

Requirements at a glance

Everyone who performs electrical work must be licensed: Since the first day of the thirteenth month after P.L.2021, c.479 was enacted (enacted January 18, 2022, so from February 2023), "no person shall perform electrical work who is not licensed as an electrical contractor, Class A journeyman electrician, Class A electrical apprentice, or Class B wireman" (P.L.2021, c.479, section 13(c), codified at N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.9). New Jersey no longer has a single electrical license category: the Board now issues four.
CONFLICT between official sources -- read this before relying on the Board's FAQ: The Board's own Frequently Asked Questions page still answers, "No. The electrical contractor license is the only category of electrical license available in New Jersey," and the Board's home page still describes itself as licensing electrical contractors and merely "registering" qualified journeyman electricians. Those pages have not been updated for P.L.2021, c.479. The operative law and the Board's own current rules say otherwise: N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.9 requires every person performing electrical work to hold one of four licenses, N.J.A.C. 13:31 subchapters 5, 6 and 7 (effective June 2, 2025) set out the Class A journeyman, Class B wireman and Class A electrical apprentice licenses, and the Board's Applications and Forms page (last modified October 1, 2025) offers the online "Application for a Class A Journeyman License," "Application for Class A Electrical Apprentice" and "Application for Class B Wireman." Where the statute and the adopted rules conflict with the FAQ, the statute and the rules govern. LicensingAtlas states both and attributes each.
Which license applies to you: Electrical Contractor -- required to advertise, enter into, engage in or work in the business of electrical contracting, and the licensee assumes responsibility for supervising the permittee's electrical work (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-9(a)). Class A Journeyman Electrician -- required to perform the in-house and public-employee work described at N.J.S.A. 45:5A-18(k) and (l) and, if you are not a licensed electrical contractor, to supervise electrical work (N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.1(a)). Class A Electrical Apprentice -- for anyone enrolled in a USDOL-accredited four-year apprenticeship working under supervision. Class B Wireman -- for every other employee performing electrical work for an electrical contractor business permit holder.
Transition deadline (historical): Individuals registered as qualified journeyman electricians or as electrical apprentices had until the first day of the thirteenth month after enactment to exchange the registration for the corresponding license, and existing employees who held neither had until the same date to become licensed as Class B wiremen (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.9(a)-(c)). That window has closed.
Business Permit to operate: To engage in electrical contracting, a licensed electrical contractor must hold a valid Business Permit, renewed every three years. The current triennial period ends March 31, 2027. Fee: $150.00 if the permit issues in year 1 of the period, $100.00 in year 2, $50.00 in year 3 (N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6; Application for an Initial Business Permit).
Surety bond: $1,000 surety bond in favor of the State of New Jersey, executed by a surety company authorized to transact business in New Jersey. The bond runs for a 36-month term and must be renewed upon expiration for the ensuing 36 months (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-19). Bonds submitted with a current initial business permit application must carry terms expiring March 31, 2027 (Application for an Initial Business Permit).
General liability insurance: Certificate of general liability insurance of at least $300,000, or a bank letter of credit of at least $300,000, listing the Board as certificate holder (Application for an Initial Business Permit).
Pressure seal: Every state-licensed electrical contractor holding a Business Permit must secure a pocket pressure seal ($25) impressed on all applications for electrical inspections (N.J.A.C. 13:31-3.3; N.J.S.A. 45:5A-6). Licensed electrical contractors who do not hold a Business Permit are not required to secure a seal.
Exempt work (business-permit exemptions): N.J.S.A. 45:5A-18 lists work that is not "included within the business of electrical contracting so as to require the securing of a business permit" -- including, at (j), "any work with a potential of less than 10 volts." Generally, electrical work with a potential of 10 or more volts is not exempt. Note two things: these are exemptions from the electrical-contracting/business-permit requirement, and the (k) and (l) exemptions for in-house and State/municipal/county/school-district employees are now available only to workers who hold a Class A journeyman electrician license (or, at (l), a qualifying civil-service title or State-authority apprenticeship).
Reciprocity -- official sources conflict: The Board's FAQ still says: "No. New Jersey does not have reciprocity with any other state." But N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.8 (effective June 2, 2025) provides that the Board MAY grant a Class A journeyman electrician license to an applicant licensed in good standing in another jurisdiction, provided that jurisdiction gives equal reciprocity to New Jersey Class A journeymen and the Board finds its qualifications substantially equivalent. The applicant must have practised as an equivalent journeyman for at least two of the last five years, have a clean disciplinary record, have satisfied the other jurisdiction's continuing education, and have completed a 15-hour course on the most recent National Electrical Code from a Board-approved provider. P.L.2021, c.479, section 12 likewise lets the Board grant licenses without examination to out-of-State licensees where equal reciprocity exists. A discretionary power to grant reciprocal licenses is not the same as a standing reciprocity agreement -- both statements are reproduced here and attributed.
Temporary 30-day license for out-of-State workers: The Board may issue a temporary 30-day Class A journeyman electrician license to a qualifying out-of-State individual; the holder must work under the supervision of a licensed electrical contractor and may not supervise electrical work. Only one such license per triennial period; work beyond 30 days requires a full license. Fee: $75.00 (N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.9 and 13:31-1.6(a)22; N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.7).
One entity per qualifier: A licensed electrical contractor shall not be entitled to qualify more than one person for a business permit (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-9(a)); the Board states a licensed New Jersey electrical contractor may be the license qualifier for only one electrical contracting entity (Board FAQ).

Legal basis

New Jersey Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors (Division of Consumer Affairs, Office of the Attorney General) administers electrician licensing in New Jersey. Every figure below is verified against the board’s own official pages and dated. Who must personally hold a credential — the contractor, the business, or the individual worker — is set out under Requirements.

What it’s called

New Jersey licenses individual electricians — the state electrician license is issued by the New Jersey Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors and held by the electrician personally (not only by the contractor, as in some states). “Electrician license,” “journeyman electrician license,” “master electrician license” and “electrician certification” are common informal names for the individual credential. The exact license tiers, fees, and any separate electrical-contractor license are set out in the license types and requirements below.

License types & fees

Type	Experience	Exam	Fee
Electrical Contractor License	Five years immediately preceding the application employed or engaged in electrical construction and installation, comprising (1) successful completion of a four-year electrical apprenticeship program accredited and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor while actively engaged or employed as an electrical apprentice (a USDOL Certificate of Completion must be submitted), and (2) at least one further year of practical hands-on experience as a journeyman electrician, obtained AFTER the apprenticeship. One year = 2,000 hours of practical hands-on experience; time spent supervising, engineering, estimating or on managerial tasks does not count (N.J.A.C. 13:31-2.3, effective October 3, 2022).	Required. Three-part examination: (1) electrical contractor [trade], (2) alarm systems, and (3) business and law. The Board reviews and approves the examination application before the applicant receives exam registration, content and reference-material information (Board FAQ). An applicant who fails may not retake the examination until six months from the date of failure (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-9(b)).	Examination fee $25.00; re-examination $15.00, non-refundable (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-9(c)). Non-refundable application fee for all licenses $100.00; triennial electrical contractor license renewal $225.00 (N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6(a)1 and (a)3, effective June 2, 2025). Separately, a Business Permit is required to engage in electrical contracting: $150.00 / $100.00 / $50.00 depending on the year of the triennial period in which it issues (current period ends March 31, 2027), plus a $1,000 surety bond, $300,000 general liability insurance or bank letter of credit, and a $25.00 pressure seal.
Class A Journeyman Electrician License	The Board licenses an applicant who either (a) holds a current valid New Jersey electrical contractor license; or (b) has acquired sufficient practical experience working with tools in the installation, alteration or repair of wiring for electric light, heat or power, as determined by the Board, and has completed an appropriate number of classroom hours of related instruction, as determined by the Board -- practical experience excludes time spent supervising, engineering, estimating and other managerial tasks; or (c) has demonstrated to the Board's satisfaction that the (b) requirements were met through alternative means (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.1). Experience is documented on the Board's Work-Experience Certification for Class A Journeyman Electrician, signed by a reference who states exact employment dates and average hours per week (N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.1).	No examination is imposed by N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.1 or N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.1; the applicant submits an application, the fee, and proof of qualifying experience/instruction. (An examination or skills assessment may be required by the Board only when reactivating a long-inactive license -- N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.3.)	Initial license fee $150.00 if paid in the first year of a triennial period, $100.00 in the second year, $50.00 in the third; triennial renewal $150.00; plus the $100.00 non-refundable application fee charged for all licenses (N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6(a)1, (a)13 and (a)14, effective June 2, 2025).
Class A Electrical Apprentice License	Must be enrolled and in good standing in a four-year electrical apprenticeship program accredited and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor, and must perform electrical work only within the scope of the apprenticeship under the supervision of a licensed electrical contractor or Class A journeyman electrician. The application requires proof of enrollment and good standing plus the name and business address of the supervising electrical contractor or Class A journeyman electrician (N.J.A.C. 13:31-7.1; N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.2(b)). Working as an electrical apprentice without this license is practicing without a license (N.J.A.C. 13:31-7.1(c)).	None. N.J.A.C. 13:31-7.1 requires an application, the fee, proof of apprenticeship enrollment and the supervisor's details -- no examination.	Initial license fee $150.00 if paid in the first year of a triennial period, $100.00 in the second year, $50.00 in the third; triennial renewal $150.00; plus the $100.00 non-refundable application fee charged for all licenses (N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6(a)1, (a)19 and (a)20, effective June 2, 2025).
Class B Wireman License	The catch-all credential: "Any person employed to engage in electrical work in the State who is not licensed as an electrical contractor, Class A journeyman electrician, or Class A electrical apprentice must be licensed as a Class B wireman" (N.J.A.C. 13:31-6.1(a)). No minimum prior experience is set by rule. The applicant must submit proof of current employment by an electrical contractor business permit holder and that permit holder's certification that the applicant will perform electrical work corresponding to the wireman's training and experience under the supervision of a licensed electrical contractor or Class A journeyman electrician. The Board's Class B Wireman Work Experience Certification form states the applicant must be a W-2 employee: "an employee CAN NOT be a 1099 employee to apply for this license." A Class B wireman works under supervision and may not supervise any other employees (N.J.A.C. 13:31-6.1(c)).	None. N.J.A.C. 13:31-6.1 requires an application, the fee, proof of employment and the employer's supervision certification -- no examination.	Initial license fee $75.00 if paid in the first year of a triennial period, $50.00 in the second year, $25.00 in the third; triennial renewal $75.00; plus the $100.00 non-refundable application fee charged for all licenses (N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6(a)1, (a)17 and (a)18, effective June 2, 2025).

Who does NOT need this license — exemptions

New Jersey’s exemption section, N.J.S.A. 45:5A-18 (‘Exempt work or construction’), removes listed work from ’the business of electrical contracting’ so that no electrical contractor business permit is required for it — it is the exemption from the electrical contractor licensing scheme administered by the Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors. As last amended by P.L.2021, c.479, s.10 (the same law that created the Class A journeyman, Class A apprentice, and Class B wireman licenses), the exempt classes are: (a) minor repair work such as the replacement of lamps and fuses; (b) connecting portable electrical appliances to suitable permanently installed receptacles; (c) testing, servicing, or repairing electrical equipment or apparatus; (d) electrical work in mines, on ships, railway cars, elevators, escalators, or automotive equipment; (e) municipal plants and public utilities (as defined in R.S.48:2-13) organized for generating, supplying, transmitting, and distributing electricity; (f) federally or state-regulated public utilities furnishing communication or signal service, and affiliated communications R&D agencies; (g) railway utilities exercising utility functions on their own premises; (h) commercial radio and television transmission equipment; (i) construction by any branch of the federal government; (j) any work with a potential of less than 10 volts; (k) in-plant work — repair, manufacturing, and maintenance work on premises occupied by a firm or corporation, plus installation work there when performed by a regular employee who is a licensed Class A journeyman electrician (the 2021 amendment upgraded this from the old ‘registered qualified journeyman electrician’); (l) government-employee work — installation, repair, or maintenance by regular employees of the State, a municipality, county, or school district on government-owned or -occupied premises, provided the employee is a licensed Class A journeyman electrician, holds a civil service title whose job description includes electrical work, or (for State authority employees) completed a U.S. DOL-approved electrical apprenticeship of at least three years; (m) maintaining, installing, or connecting automatic oil, gas, or coal burning equipment and gasoline or diesel dispensing equipment, and its lighting, at the load side of the distribution board; (n) the homeowner/family exemption — work performed by a person on a dwelling occupied solely as a residence for himself or for members of his immediate family; (p) landscape irrigation system work at not more than 30 volts by a landscape irrigation contractor (still subject to Uniform Construction Code inspection); (q) work by certified fire protection contractors that is not branch circuit wiring; and (r) work by licensed alarm businesses that is not branch circuit wiring — for both (q) and (r), ‘branch circuit wiring’ means the circuit conductors between the final overcurrent device protecting the circuit and one or more outlets, and doing branch circuit wiring under these carve-outs is professional misconduct. Subsection (o) was deleted by P.L.1997, c.305. The Board may exempt other electrical activities of like character by rule; its rules also create a limited telecommunications wiring exemption (N.J.A.C. 13:31-4.1) confined to voice/data transmission wiring — the Board’s FAQ warns it ‘should never be construed as authorization to perform what is often erroneously referred to as low voltage electrical work.’ The Board’s FAQ states the general rule: unless work falls within 45:5A-18, an electrical contractor’s license is required, and ’electrical work with a potential of 10 or more volts is not exempt from licensing requirements.’

Fees

Fee schedule N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6 as amended effective June 2, 2025 (R.2025 d.071, 57 N.J.R. 1146(a)): application fee for ALL licenses (non-refundable) $100.00; triennial electrical contractor license renewal $225.00; late renewal fee for all licenses (within 30 days) $50.00; reinstatement fee for all licenses $100.00; Class A journeyman electrician initial license $150.00 / $100.00 / $50.00 depending on whether it is paid in the first, second or third year of the triennial period, triennial renewal $150.00; Class A electrical apprentice initial license $150.00 / $100.00 / $50.00 on the same sliding scale, triennial renewal $150.00; Class B wireman initial license $75.00 / $50.00 / $25.00 on the same sliding scale, triennial renewal $75.00; 30-day temporary license $75.00. Electrical contractor examination fee $25.00, re-examination $15.00, non-refundable (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-9(c)). Business Permit (required to engage in electrical contracting, triennial, current period ending March 31, 2027): $150.00 if issued in year 1 of the period, $100.00 in year 2, $50.00 in year 3, plus a $1,000 surety bond, $300,000 general liability insurance or bank letter of credit, and a $25.00 pressure seal (Application for an Initial Business Permit). NOT SOURCED: the initial electrical contractor LICENSE fee itself (N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6(a)2i-iii) – the 2025 adoption carried those three amounts forward as “(No change)” without reprinting them, and no live Board page publishes them, so this page does not state them.

Exam

Only the Electrical Contractor license requires an examination. It is a three-part examination – (1) electrical contractor [trade], (2) alarm systems, and (3) business and law. The Board reviews and approves the examination application before the applicant receives exam registration, content and reference-material information (Board FAQ); an applicant who fails may not retake it for six months (N.J.S.A. 45:5A-9(b)). The three individual licenses created by P.L.2021, c.479 – Class A Journeyman Electrician, Class A Electrical Apprentice and Class B Wireman – carry NO examination: N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.1, 7.1 and 6.1 require an application, the fee, and proof of the qualifying experience, apprenticeship enrollment or employment respectively.

Renewal & continuing education

Triennial (every three years) for all four credentials – electrical contractor licenses and business permits and the licenses issued to Class A journeymen electricians, Class A electrical apprentices and Class B wiremen are issued for three years and are triennially renewable (N.J.S.A. 45:1-7, as amended by P.L.2021, c.479, section 1). Electrical contractor licenses and business permits carry a March 31 expiration date; the current triennial period ends March 31, 2027. The Board sends a renewal notice at least 60 days before expiration. A license not renewed by its expiration date may still be renewed within the following 30 days with a $50 late fee, and remains valid during that 30-day window; a licensee who fails to submit a renewal application within 30 days after expiration has the license suspended without a hearing (N.J.A.C. 13:31-2.4 for electrical contractors, 13:31-5.2 for Class A journeymen, 13:31-6.2 for Class B wiremen, 13:31-7.2 for Class A electrical apprentices; N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.6 for the fees). Each credential may instead be renewed on inactive status, in which case the holder may not perform electrical work. Continuing education differs by license. ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR: 34 credit hours per triennial period, which must include a minimum 10-hour IN-PERSON course of study on the most recent edition of the National Electrical Code – nine hours on the Code and one hour on applicable New Jersey statutes and rules; webinars and electronic-media distance-learning courses do not satisfy that 10-hour course. No more than eight surplus credits may be carried into the next triennial period, and CE is not required for the triennial period in which the contractor was first licensed (N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.7). CLASS A JOURNEYMAN ELECTRICIAN: 15 credit hours of continuing education on the most recent edition of the National Electrical Code, attested at each triennial renewal; a licensed electrical contractor who satisfies N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.7 is deemed to satisfy this requirement (N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.5). CLASS B WIREMAN: a 15-hour course of study on the most recent edition of the National Electrical Code, one hour of which must pertain to applicable State statutes and rules, from a Board-approved continuing education sponsor, attested at renewal (N.J.A.C. 13:31-6.1(d)). CLASS A ELECTRICAL APPRENTICE: no continuing education requirement – the statutory CE mandate at N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.4 names only Class A journeyman electricians and Class B wiremen, and the apprentice renewal rule (N.J.A.C. 13:31-7.2) imposes none.

How to apply

Applications are handled by New Jersey Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors (Division of Consumer Affairs, Office of the Attorney General). Start at the official application page .

Frequently asked questions

Who issues electrician licenses in New Jersey?

New Jersey Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors (Division of Consumer Affairs, Office of the Attorney General) issues electrician licenses in New Jersey. You apply through the board’s official application page (linked above).

How much does an electrician license cost in New Jersey?

What exam do you need to pass for an electrician license in New Jersey?

How often do you renew an electrician license in New Jersey?

Is continuing education required to renew an electrician license in New Jersey?

Continuing education differs by license. ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR: 34 credit hours per triennial period, which must include a minimum 10-hour IN-PERSON course of study on the most recent edition of the National Electrical Code – nine hours on the Code and one hour on applicable New Jersey statutes and rules; webinars and electronic-media distance-learning courses do not satisfy that 10-hour course. No more than eight surplus credits may be carried into the next triennial period, and CE is not required for the triennial period in which the contractor was first licensed (N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.7). CLASS A JOURNEYMAN ELECTRICIAN: 15 credit hours of continuing education on the most recent edition of the National Electrical Code, attested at each triennial renewal; a licensed electrical contractor who satisfies N.J.A.C. 13:31-1.7 is deemed to satisfy this requirement (N.J.A.C. 13:31-5.5). CLASS B WIREMAN: a 15-hour course of study on the most recent edition of the National Electrical Code, one hour of which must pertain to applicable State statutes and rules, from a Board-approved continuing education sponsor, attested at renewal (N.J.A.C. 13:31-6.1(d)). CLASS A ELECTRICAL APPRENTICE: no continuing education requirement – the statutory CE mandate at N.J.S.A. 45:5A-11.4 names only Class A journeyman electricians and Class B wiremen, and the apprentice renewal rule (N.J.A.C. 13:31-7.2) imposes none.

See every license and certification LicensingAtlas covers in New Jersey.

Sources & verification

Last verified against these sources: July 22, 2026.

LicensingAtlas states licensing and certification requirements categorically from official sources. It is a reference, not legal or career advice, and requirements change frequently — confirm details with the issuing board before you act.