How to get an electrician license in Maine

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

Licensing office Electricians' Examining Board, Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation · (207) 624-8457 [21]

The license pathway in Maine

1. 1

   Helper electrician

   • $25 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $25

   Your first license if an electrical employer hires you. You work for a master electrician, limited electrician or electrical company, under the direct supervision of a master, journeyman or limited electrician. [2][3]

2. 2

   Apprentice electrician

   • $25 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $25

   For people enrolled in a registered apprenticeship approved by the U.S. Department of Labor or Maine's state apprenticeship agency. You work under the direct supervision of a master, journeyman or limited electrician. [2][4]

3. 3

   Journeyman-in-training electrician

   • 2,000 hours on the job
   • 576-hour community college program (or another qualifying route)
   • Yes, the journeyman exam
   • $150 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $150

   A step for school graduates and some apprentices. Routes include a 576-hour community college program plus 2,000 hours as a licensed helper, 6,000 hours as a licensed apprentice plus the course of study, or a two-year high school CTE electrical program plus 6,000 helper hours. You must pass the journeyman exam and finish a 45-hour NEC course. You may not supervise others. [2][23]

4. 4

   Journeyman electrician

   • 8,000 hours on the job
   • 576-hour course of study (or an approved apprenticeship curriculum) plus a 45-hour NEC course
   • Yes, 80 questions in 3 hours, closed book, 70% to pass, at Prov ($90)
   • $150 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $150; 15-hour NEC update course

   Works for a master electrician, limited electrician or electrical company and may supervise helpers and apprentices. You need 8,000 work hours and the 576-hour course. Apprentices who finish the course can take the exam after 4,000 hours but must finish all 8,000 before they're licensed. [2][5][10][13]

5. 5

   Master electrician

   • 4,000 hours on the job
   • 576-hour course of study plus a 45-hour NEC course
   • Yes, 100 questions in 4 hours, 70% to pass, at Prov ($90)
   • $150 license, $21 background check
   • Every 2 years; $150; 15-hour NEC update course

   May make electrical installations without limitation, pulls electrical permits and is responsible for the work of the electricians they supervise. Qualify with 4,000 hours as a journeyman (or 6,000 as a journeyman-in-training, or 12,000 as a helper or apprentice) plus the course. [2][5][10][14]

How to get your first electrical job in Maine

In Maine you need a license from your first day doing electrical work. There are two beginner licenses, and neither needs a test.

• Helper electrician. For anyone hired by a master electrician, limited electrician or electrical company. Apply right after you start the job or start school in an electrical program.
• Apprentice electrician. For people registered in an apprenticeship program approved by the U.S. Department of Labor or Maine's state apprenticeship agency. Send a copy of your apprenticeship agreement with the application.

Both cost $25 plus a $21 background check and last two years. You always work under the direct supervision of a licensed master, journeyman or limited electrician, who must be on the same jobsite at all times. See also helper jobs and how to get an apprenticeship. [2][3][4][5][6]

Who needs a license

State law says an electrical installation "may not be made unless by an electrician licensed by the board," with listed exceptions. Exceptions include regular employees of industrial and manufacturing plants working in their plant, telephone, cable, data and sound installers, and a person working on the existing single-family home they own and live in. The work must still meet the National Electrical Code.

Cities and towns can't require licensed electricians to hold a municipal license. Since July 1, 2026, new installations must follow the 2026 National Electrical Code (NEC, the national wiring rulebook) as adopted by the board. [1][7][8][9]

The license ladder

• Helper or apprentice. Your starting license (see above).
• Journeyman-in-training. An optional step for school graduates and some apprentices: pass the journeyman exam, then work under a journeyman, master or limited electrician. Routes include a 576-hour community college program plus 2,000 helper hours, or 6,000 apprentice hours plus the course of study.
• Journeyman. 8,000 work hours plus the 576-hour course, the exam and a 45-hour NEC course. A journeyman works for a master, limited electrician or electrical company.
• Master. 4,000 hours as a journeyman (or 6,000 as a journeyman-in-training, or 12,000 as a helper or apprentice), plus the course and the master exam. Masters can do any electrical work and get the electrical permits.
• Limited electrician. Licenses for one kind of work, such as house wiring (one- and two-family homes), refrigeration, low-energy electronics and fire alarms, water pumps or signs, each with its own education and hours.

More on the levels: journeyman vs. master and what is a journeyman. [2][5]

Shortcuts for school graduates

The law gives credit for electrical schooling:

• High school CTE program. Finish a state-approved secondary career and technical education electrical program and you can take the journeyman exam when you graduate, with 1,000 of the 8,000 hours credited. You finish the rest before you're licensed.
• Community college. Finish a 576-hour electrical program at an accredited community college and you can take the exam on completion, with 4,000 hours credited.
• Apprentices. Once you've completed the course of study and at least 4,000 of your 8,000 hours, you can take the exam early.

[2]

The exam

The board contracts with Prov to run its exams. You apply to the board first; once approved, you get an email with scheduling instructions.

• Journeyman: 80 questions in 3 hours. Topics include electrical theory, wiring and protection, wiring methods, motors and controls, and special occupancies.
• Master: 100 questions in 4 hours.
• Electrician exams are closed book unless the bulletin marks a reference as permitted. Each costs $90. You need 70% to pass.

Your exam approval lasts two years. If you don't pass within two years, you reapply as a new applicant. [5][10][11][12]

Fees and renewal

• Helper or apprentice: $25 every two years.
• Journeyman, journeyman-in-training or master: $150 every two years.
• First license: add a $21 criminal background check fee.
• Exam: $90 to Prov.

To renew a journeyman, journeyman-in-training, master or limited license, you certify a 15-hour NEC update course in the years the board's schedule requires (for example, the 2026 code update for 2026 and 2027 renewals). Renewing late costs a $50 late fee; more than 90 days late adds more fees, and after two years you must requalify. [3][4][10][12][13][14]

Union and open-shop apprenticeships

Two main routes (see union vs. non-union):

• Union. IBEW Local 567 and NECA (National Electrical Contractors Association) run a four-year apprenticeship through the Portland JATC (Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee), with classes in Lewiston. As of October 2026, applications reopen November 2, 2026.
• Open shop. ABC Maine runs an 8,000-hour electrical apprenticeship with its member employers.

The Maine Apprenticeship Program lists every registered program in a searchable map. Registered programs must include at least 144 hours of classroom instruction a year. More: electrician apprenticeships. [15][16][17][18][19]

If you're licensed in another state

The law lets the board license an electrician from another state that has equivalent standards and gives Maine electricians the same privileges, if you've been licensed and worked at least 8,000 hours. The board may waive the 576-hour course for these applicants.

The board's own pages don't agree on the list of partner states. The journeyman page lists New Hampshire, Vermont, North Dakota, Idaho, Oregon and Wyoming; the FAQ (frequently asked questions) adds Connecticut, Indiana, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey and Rhode Island. Confirm with the board at (207) 624-8457.

Electricians from any other state can apply by endorsement if their state has substantially equivalent requirements (a 576-hour course or electrical program, an exam, and 8,000 hours for journeyman or 10,000 for master). See license reciprocity. [5][13][20][21][22]

Steps to get licensed in Maine

1. Get a helper or apprentice license

   Once you're hired by an electrical employer or registered in an apprenticeship, apply through the board's online licensing system: $25 plus a $21 background check. [3][4][5]

2. Complete the 576-hour course of study

   Take it through your apprenticeship, a community college, or board-approved courses. Outside an apprenticeship or school program, the board's rule spells out 225 hours of core courses (Electricity I and II, Math I, Controls I, and a National Electrical Code course) plus 351 hours of electives. [2][12]

3. Log 8,000 work hours

   Your supervising electrician signs an affidavit of your hours. The board won't credit more than 40 hours a week unless overtime is verified. [2][12]

4. Apply for the exam and get approval

   Send the exam application with your transcripts and hours. You must get board approval before scheduling; scores from an unapproved exam are void. Approval lasts two years. [11][12]

5. Pass the Prov exam

   Schedule with Prov: 80 questions in 3 hours, closed book, 70% to pass, $90. [5][10]

6. Apply for your journeyman license

   Send the license application with proof of your hours and a 45-hour National Electrical Code course taken within the past two years. Pay $150 plus the $21 background check. Apply within two years of passing or you must retest. [2][12][13]

Where to get the hours

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

• Union

  IBEW Local 567 / Portland JATC

  The union apprenticeship run by IBEW Local 567 and NECA through the Portland Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee (JATC). It takes four years, with classes at the union hall in Lewiston. [15][16][25]

• Open shop

  ABC Maine electrical apprenticeship

  Associated Builders and Contractors of Maine runs an 8,000-hour electrical apprenticeship with its member employers, using the NCCER (National Center for Construction Education and Research) curriculum for classroom training. [17]

• State program

  Maine Apprenticeship Program

  The Maine Department of Labor's registered apprenticeship office. Its site has a searchable map of active apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs. [18][26]

Licensed in another state?

Questions people ask