How to get an electrician license in North Dakota

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

Licensing office North Dakota State Electrical Board (NDSEB) · (701) 328-9522 [1][12]

The license pathway in North Dakota

1. 1

   Apprentice electrician

   • 576 hours of board-approved training classes (or a 2-year electrical degree, or a PEAP program) before the journeyman exam
   • $10 application; $10 a year
   • Yearly; expires January 31

   You learn the trade under the direct, constant supervision of a North Dakota licensed electrician working with you at the job site. You must register with the board within your first six months of employment; one licensed electrician may supervise no more than three apprentices. [1][2][3][10]

2. 2

   Class B electrician

   • 3,000 hours on the job
   • 1.5 years of experience
   • Yes: board exam, 1-hour closed-book and 3.5-hour open-book parts, 70% to pass
   • $40 application; $40 a year
   • Yearly; expires April 30; 8 hours CE

   A limited license for farmstead and residential wiring in one- and two-family homes. It needs 18 months and 3,000 hours of that kind of experience; a class B can only contract for farmstead work or homes in cities of 2,500 people or fewer. [1][2][4][5][9]

3. 3

   Journeyman electrician

   • 8,000 hours on the job
   • 3 years of experience
   • 576 hours of board-approved training, a 2-year board-approved electrical degree, or a recognized PEAP program
   • Yes: board exam on fundamental electricity, North Dakota laws and rules and the current NEC; 1-hour closed-book and 3.5-hour open-book parts; 70% to pass
   • $25 application; $25 a year
   • Yearly; expires March 31; 8 hours CE

   Lets you wire, install and repair electrical equipment, working under a contracting master. You need 8,000 hours of experience over at least three years as a registered apprentice, plus finished board-approved training. [1][2][3][4][6][9]

4. 4

   Master electrician

   • 2,000 hours on the job
   • 1 year of experience
   • Yes: board exam, 1-hour closed-book and 3.5-hour open-book parts, 70% to pass
   • $50 application; $50 a year
   • Yearly; expires April 30; 8 hours CE

   Lets you plan, lay out and supervise electrical work. You need one year as a licensed journeyman and at least 2,000 hours as a journeyman under a contracting master or master of record. A master chooses a status: contracting master, master of record for one company, or non-contracting master. [1][2][4][5][9]

5. 5

   Contracting master (electrical contractor)

   • $50 license (if a new license is issued), plus a Secretary of State contractor license
   • Yearly

   Only a master (or a power limited electrician for that work) may contract for electrical work. You register the business and get a contractor license from the Secretary of State, then file the board's contracting application with proof of at least $500,000 of liability insurance. [1][22][23]

Who needs a license in North Dakota

State law says a person may not plan, lay out, supervise, install, add to, alter or repair wiring or equipment "for electric light, heat, or power or for a power limited system, unless licensed by the board." The board's rule puts the duty on contractors: everyone doing electrical work for them must be "either be licensed electricians or registered apprentices with the board."

Exemptions include utility workers on the utility side of the service point, telecom and cable workers, appliance dealers plugging appliances into existing outlets, and some low-voltage (nonelectrical and residential power limited) systems. Maintenance staff of a building owner may make minor repairs but may not extend or change circuits.

Cities may set stricter rules by ordinance, but only for people licensed by the board, and each licensee must report licensing to the city electrical inspector where there is one. [1][2]

How to get your first job or apprenticeship here

You need two things from day one: a job with someone who will supervise you, and a registration with the board. The rule says "any individual over sixteen years of age may work as an apprentice" under a licensed master, class B or power limited electrician, with a North Dakota licensed electrician working with you at the job site.

Register within your first six months of employment ($10). But don't wait: the board says "any hours worked while unregistered/not renewed will be lost."

Pick a training route early, because without board-approved education "you will not be eligible for licensure." The routes are 576 hours of related training classes, a two-year approved electrical degree (with 6,000 hours of practical experience), or a PEAP program (372 class hours, for people who already have 8,000 hours, plus 4,000 more hours while in it).

More on getting in: how to get an apprenticeship and helper jobs. [1][2][3]

The license ladder: apprentice to master

• Apprentice: registered with the board, $10 a year, working under constant supervision.
• Class B electrician: 3,000 hours (18 months) of farmstead or residential wiring in one- and two-family homes. Commercial work doesn't count. Graduates of an approved two-year electrical school get 1,000 hours of credit.
• Journeyman: 8,000 hours over at least three years as a registered apprentice under a contracting master or master of record, plus finished apprentice training. At least 4,000 hours must be wiring and installing; the rest can include repair (up to 1,000), fire alarm (up to 1,000), process control or power limited work (up to 2,000) and military electrical work (up to 2,000).
• Master: the law asks for one year as a licensed journeyman; the board's rule asks for at least 2,000 hours as a journeyman under a contracting master or master of record. The exam application lists 10,000 hours in total (one year and 2,000 hours if you're a North Dakota journeyman).
• Power limited electrician: a separate track for low-voltage systems, with 6,000 hours over at least two and a half years as a registered power limited apprentice. Hours under a power limited electrician don't count toward the master, journeyman or class B licenses.

See journeyman vs. master for what the two levels mean in general. [1][2][5][6]

The exam

The board writes and gives its own exams, based on fundamental electricity, North Dakota's laws, rules and wiring standards, and the current National Electrical Code (NEC). The board's 2026 rules adopt the 2026 NEC.

• Format: each exam has a closed-book part (1 hour) and an open-book part (3.5 hours). The board provides code books, calculators and pencils.
• Passing score: 70%.
• Dates: the board lists two exam days a month from September 2026 through December 2027. You apply and must be approved first; the invitation lists dates, and you must test within six months.
• Retakes: a score of 60-69 has no waiting period, 50-59 means 3 months and 0-49 means 6 months. A cancellation or no-show means a new application and fee. The board no longer gives exam reviews.

[2][4][7][8]

Fees, renewal and continuing education

Fees from the board's rule (application fee, then the same amount each year for the license):

• Apprentice registration: $10, expires January 31
• Journeyman: $25, expires March 31
• Class B: $40, expires April 30
• Master or power limited: $50, expires April 30

Expired licenses need a reinstatement fee equal to the annual fee. To renew you need 8 hours of board-approved continuing education (CE), at least 4 of them code-related, reported by the class provider. If you don't renew for three years in a row, the law requires you to retest.

As of October 2026, the board is moving to a new online system: the old system shuts down January 29, 2027, and the new one opens February 3, 2027. The board says licenses and apprentice registrations due during the switch stay valid, with no late fees, and should be renewed after February 3. [1][2][9][10][11][12]

Union and open-shop apprenticeships in North Dakota

The board keeps a list of approved training programs:

• Union: the Dakotas Electrical Apprenticeship (Dakotas JATC, the joint apprenticeship and training committee of the IBEW electricians' union and NECA contractors), with centers in Fargo, Grand Forks, Bismarck, Minot and Williston. Call (701) 297-5934.
• Open shop: IEC Dakotas and ABC of Minnesota and North Dakota, where an employer hires you first, plus the Electrical Association and Magnum Electric programs on the board's list.
• Colleges: NDSCS in Wahpeton and Bismarck State College, plus several Minnesota, Montana and South Dakota colleges the board accepts.

More: electrician apprenticeships and union vs. non-union. [13][14][15][16][17]

If you're licensed in another state

North Dakota belongs to a multi-state reciprocal licensing group (the National Electrical Reciprocal Alliance). Journeyman agreements cover Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming; master agreements cover Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota.

To qualify you must have passed the other state's written exam, hold a current license in good standing, have held it for the year before you apply, and list 8,000 hours (journeyman) or 10,000 hours (master) under a contracting master. If your home state doesn't require CE, you also need a North Dakota approved 8-hour code class. You can't reciprocate into a state whose exam you failed, and if you trained mostly in North Dakota without related training you aren't eligible. The fee is $25 to apply plus $25 for the license (journeyman), or $50 plus $50 (master).

From a state without an agreement, the board can grant a license of the same grade only where the other state does the same and your qualifications are equal, per state law; otherwise you apply for the exam. North Dakota's general license-recognition chapter (NDCC 43-51) excludes the State Electrical Board, except for its military-member and military-spouse rules. See the reciprocity guide. [1][6][18][19]

Steps to get licensed in North Dakota

1. Get hired and register as an apprentice

   Get hired by an electrical contractor or accepted into an approved program, then file the apprentice registration application with the $10 fee within your first six months of work. Renew it every January 31. [1][3][20]

2. Finish approved training and log 8,000 hours

   Complete 576 hours of board-approved classes (or a two-year approved electrical degree, or a PEAP program) while you build 8,000 hours of supervised experience over at least three years. [1][2][3]

3. Apply for the journeyman exam

   Send the exam application ($25) with a notarized employment verification form from each employer and your training completion certificate. Once approved, the board emails an invitation listing exam dates; you must test within six months. [4][6][7]

4. Pass the exam and get your license

   Score 70% on the board's exam. After passing, pay the separate $25 license fee. If you score 60-69 you can reapply right away; 50-59 means a 3-month wait and below 50 a 6-month wait. [4][6]

5. Renew every year

   Journeyman licenses expire March 31 each year ($25). Have 8 hours of approved CE, at least 4 on the code, on file before you renew. [9][11]

Where to get the hours

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

• Union

  Dakotas Electrical Apprenticeship (Dakotas JATC, IBEW/NECA)

  A four-year paid apprenticeship with training centers in Fargo, Grand Forks, Bismarck, Minot and Williston (and Sioux Falls and Rapid City, South Dakota). It is on the board's approved training list. [13][14][21]

• Open shop

  IEC Dakotas

  A four-year registered apprenticeship: you work full time for an electrical contractor and attend class one night a week, September through April, in Fargo, Grand Forks, Sioux Falls or Rapid City or online. It is on the board's approved list for related training and PEAP. [13][15][24]

• Open shop

  ABC of Minnesota and North Dakota

  A participating contractor hires you and enrolls you in ABC's apprenticeship, registered with the U.S. Department of Labor in North Dakota. Its electrical program is on the board's approved list. [13][16]

• School

  North Dakota State College of Science (NDSCS) Electrical Technology

  Two-year electrical programs in Wahpeton (Electrical Construction, Industrial Electrical, Electrical Master Technician) that the board accepts; Bismarck State College's Electrical Technician program is also on the list. [13][17]

• State program

  Job Service North Dakota apprenticeship help

  North Dakota's workforce agency explains registered apprenticeship and points job seekers to local workforce centers to find openings. [25]

Licensed in another state?

Questions people ask