How to get an electrician license in Delaware

Journeyman level 8,000 hours on the job + state exam What's a journeyman?

Licensing office Delaware Board of Electrical Examiners (Division of Professional Regulation) · (302) 744-4500 [1]

The license pathway in Delaware

1. 1

   Apprentice electrician

   • Through your approved program; 144 hours a year is the standard for a 4-year program
   • $100
   • Licenses issued on or after July 1, 2026 expire after 5 years (extensions for good cause)

   Minimum age 18 and enrollment in a Board-approved apprenticeship program. You work under the direct onsite supervision of a licensed electrician, who is responsible for your work. [2][4][9][13][16][17]

2. 2

   Journeyperson electrician

   • 8,000 hours on the job
   • Part of the approved apprenticeship; DPR's flyer also asks exam applicants for proof of a related technical instruction program
   • ProV: 70 questions, 3 hours, 75% to pass; waived for DOL- or IBEW-registered apprenticeship graduates
   • $105 license; $100 exam
   • Every 2 years (June 30, even years); 5 hours CE

   Minimum age 20. Qualify by finishing a Board-approved apprenticeship that includes a final exam, or with more than 8,000 hours of full-time electrical work under licensed supervision (at least 4,000 under a master electrician) plus the exam. You work under supervision. [2][5][6][15][16][17][18][19][22]

3. 3

   Residential electrician

   • 4,000 hours on the job
   • Yes, residential exam (ProV: 60 questions, 3 hours, 75% to pass)
   • $105 license; $100 exam
   • Every 2 years; 5 hours CE

   More than 4,000 hours of full-time experience under a master or limited electrician, or a Board-approved residential apprenticeship, plus the exam. Lets you do residential work without direct onsite supervision, limited to homes not yet connected to the electric grid and work to or beyond the breaker panel or fuse box. [2][10][15][17][25]

4. 4

   Limited electrician

   • 4,000 hours on the job
   • 3 years of experience
   • 288 hours of related instruction on the apprenticeship route
   • Yes (ProV: 70 questions, 3 hours, 75% to pass)
   • $127 license; $100 exam
   • Every 2 years; 10 hours CE; $300,000 liability insurance

   Three years full-time under a master or limited electrician, or 4,000 hours plus 288 hours of related instruction with an apprenticeship certificate. Covers structures with 4 or fewer dwelling units. [2][11][15][16][17][19]

5. 5

   Master electrician

   • 8,000 hours on the job
   • 6 years of experience
   • 576 hours of related instruction on the apprenticeship route
   • Yes (ProV: 80 questions, 3 hours, 75% to pass)
   • $203 license; $100 exam
   • Every 2 years; 10 hours CE; $300,000 liability insurance

   Six years full-time under a master electrician; or 8,000 hours plus 576 hours of related instruction shown by an apprenticeship certificate; or 4 years plus 2 years of technical training. Lets you plan, lay out, perform or supervise electrical work in any structure. [2][11][15][16][17][19]

Who needs a license in Delaware

State law says no one may provide electrical services in Delaware without a license from the Board. The Board defines electrical work as anything covered by the National Electrical Code (NEC), the national wiring rulebook, as adopted in Delaware. Its flyer says you need a license even if you're a registered apprentice, and that electrical is currently the only construction trade in Delaware with apprentice and journeyperson licenses.

Business owners and supervisors must check that each worker has the proper license before letting them do electrical work, and must report unlicensed workers to the Board within 10 days. Exceptions include homeowners with a homeowner's permit, utilities, and people servicing heating, air conditioning, refrigeration or appliance equipment. [3][4][6][7][8]

The license ladder

• Apprentice electrician: age 18 and enrolled in a Board-approved apprenticeship program. Works under direct onsite supervision.
• School apprentice electrician: for students in a Board-approved program at a Delaware vocational high school.
• Journeyperson electrician: age 20, plus a completed Board-approved apprenticeship or more than 8,000 hours of supervised experience and the exam. Works under supervision.
• Residential electrician: more than 4,000 hours or a residential apprenticeship, plus the residential exam. Works on homes without direct onsite supervision, within limits.
• Limited electrician: 3 years, or 4,000 hours plus 288 hours of related instruction; structures with 4 or fewer dwelling units.
• Master electrician: 6 years, or 8,000 hours plus 576 hours of related instruction, or 4 years plus 2 years of technical training; any structure.
• Master special and limited special: specialty licenses for areas such as elevators, signs, HVAC, pools, refrigeration and primary distribution.

To get credit for Delaware experience gained after June 30, 2012, you must have held an apprentice or journeyperson license at the time. [2][9][10][11][12]

The 2026 apprentice license change

Senate Bill 102, approved September 25, 2025 and effective July 1, 2026, ended renewals of apprentice electrician licenses. A license issued on or after July 1, 2026 expires after 5 years. Apprentices licensed 5 or more years before that date can't renew past their current expiration, and those licensed less than 5 years have their license extended to 5 years from its issue date. In every case the Board may allow 1-year extensions for good cause, if you ask at least 60 days before expiration. School apprentice licenses don't need renewal. [11][13]

The exams

The Board must approve your application first; then ProV contacts you within 1-2 weeks. You can test at ProV sites in Wilmington, Newark and Dover or online, and each exam costs $100. You need 75% to pass. The journeyperson exam has 70 questions in 3 hours; the residential exam has 60; the master exam has 80.

ProV's candidate bulletin (March 2022) says all exams are open book and lists the American Electrician's Handbook and the NEC as allowed references, but the Board's rule says "Only the NEC Book can be used during the test as a reference." Check the bulletin ProV sends you before test day. [14][15][16]

Fees, insurance and renewal

Application fees are $100 (apprentice), $105 (journeyperson or residential), $127 (limited or limited special), $200 (master special) and $203 (master). Licenses expire June 30 of even-numbered years; a late renewal within one year costs an extra 50%. After a full renewal period, journeyperson, residential and apprentice licensees need 5 hours of approved continuing education (CE), and master and limited licensees need 10. Master, limited and specialty licensees must carry $300,000 in general liability insurance; journeypersons and apprentices are exempt. [16][17][18][19]

If you're licensed in another state

The Board grants a license by reciprocity when your state's standards are substantially similar to Delaware's; otherwise you need at least 5 years of practice after licensure. For master and limited licenses the Board lists Maryland and New Jersey as substantially similar and 18 jurisdictions as not similar. Pennsylvania has no state electrical license, so holders of only a Pennsylvania municipal license must apply by examination. Apprentices from other states must still enroll in a Delaware-approved program. See our guide to license reciprocity.

Delaware has no general universal license recognition law. Governor Meyer's Executive Order #27 (August 20, 2026) asked the Department of State to propose licensing changes, which may include universal license recognition, but the order doesn't change licensing law. [4][5][12][20][21]

Steps to get licensed in Delaware

1. Enroll in an approved apprenticeship program

   Get hired by an electrical employer that sponsors registered apprentices, or apply to IBEW Local 313, and enroll in a program on the Board's approved list. [22][23][24]

2. Get your apprentice electrician license

   Apply in DELPROS with proof of enrollment and pay $100. You must be 18. Work only under the direct onsite supervision of a licensed electrician. [2][4][9][17]

3. Log your hours and classes

   The Board's standard for apprentice progress is 144 hours of classroom instruction a year for 4 years and 2,000 hours of on-the-job training a year, 8,000 in total. At least 4,000 hours must be under a master electrician if you go the experience route. [16]

4. Apply for a journeyperson license

   At 20 or older, apply by certificate (if you finished a DOL- or IBEW-registered apprenticeship, no exam) or by examination with Verification of Employment forms showing at least 8,000 hours. The license fee is $105. [2][5][17][22]

5. Pass the ProV exam if required

   After Board approval, ProV emails you to schedule. Exams are $100, given at Delaware test sites or online, and you need 75% to pass. [14][15][16]

Where to get the hours

Programs that train electricians in or for Delaware, from their own official pages. Listed by type, not ranked.

• Union

  IBEW Local 313 / NECA JATC (Inside Wireman)

  A five-year program covering Delaware and Cecil County, Maryland: 8,000 hours of on-the-job training and at least 900 hours of related study, with night school mainly at Delcastle High School and the Local 313 training center in New Castle. [24][26]

• School

  Vo-tech adult education apprenticeship programs

  The Board-approved programs at New Castle County Vo-Tech (Delcastle, Hodgson, St. Georges, Howard), Polytech in Kent County and Sussex Tech give the classroom part of an apprenticeship at night; you work days for an electrical employer. Polytech's Electrical Construction program is four years. [22][23][27][28]

• State program

  Delaware Department of Labor registered apprenticeship

  The Office of Apprenticeship and Training registers employers (sponsors) and apprentices. Finishing a registered program earns journeyperson papers that let you get a journeyperson license without the exam. [6][22][29]

Licensed in another state?

Questions people ask