How to become a licensed electrician in Oklahoma

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

Licensing office Oklahoma Construction Industries Board (CIB), Electrical · (405) 521-6550 [1][28]

The license pathway in Oklahoma

1. 1

   Electrical Apprentice

   • $25 first registration ($20 plus $5 application fee)
   • Yearly; 3 hours CE a year (unless a student apprentice or enrolled in an approved course)

   Your entry registration. You work under the direct on-the-job supervision of a licensed journeyman or contractor, no more than three apprentices per licensed electrician. A licensed contractor (or an approved school or training instructor) signs your application every year. [2][3][9][10][24][26]

2. 2

   Residential Electrical Journeyman

   • 4,000 hours on the job
   • 2 years of experience
   • Up to 1,000 approved classroom hours can replace experience
   • Yes: 80 questions, 210 minutes, 70% to pass, open book (PSI)
   • $75 ($25 application plus $50 license)
   • Yearly, $75; 12 hours CE every 3 years

   Limited to one- and two-family dwellings. You need 4,000 hours (2 years) as an apprentice under an unlimited or residential journeyman or contractor, and must be at least 18. [3][4][6][8]

3. 3

   Unlimited Electrical Journeyman

   • 8,000 hours on the job
   • 4 years of experience
   • Up to 2,000 approved classroom hours can replace experience
   • Yes: 100 questions, 240 minutes, 70% to pass, open book (PSI)
   • $75 ($25 application plus $50 license)
   • Yearly, $75; 12 hours CE every 3 years

   Lets you do electrical work for a licensed electrical contractor and supervise up to three apprentices. You need 8,000 hours (4 years) of verified experience while employed by a licensed electrical contractor, at least 4,000 of them in commercial/industrial work, and must be at least 18. [2][3][4][6][8]

4. 4

   Residential Electrical Contractor

   • 8,000 hours on the job
   • Up to 1,000 approved classroom hours can count
   • Yes: business/law and trade portions; trade portion 80 questions, 210 minutes, 70% to pass (PSI)
   • $330 ($30 application plus $300 license)
   • Yearly, $200; 12 hours CE every 3 years

   Contracts for wiring one- and two-family dwellings. You need two years as a licensed journeyman with 4,000 hours as a residential or unlimited journeyman under an electrical contractor, on top of your apprentice hours (8,000 hours total). [3][5][6][8]

5. 5

   Unlimited Electrical Contractor

   • 12,000 hours on the job
   • 2 years of experience
   • Up to 2,000 approved classroom hours can count
   • Yes: business/law and trade portions; trade portion 100 questions, 240 minutes, 70% to pass (PSI)
   • $330 ($30 application plus $300 license)
   • Yearly, $200; 12 hours CE every 3 years

   The highest electrical license in Oklahoma. You need 12,000 hours (6 years) of experience, 6,000 of them commercial/industrial, plus two years as a licensed unlimited journeyman. The contractor must be an owner, partner or officer of the electrical firm and carry bond and insurance. [1][3][5][6][8]

How to get your first job or apprenticeship in Oklahoma

The CIB's own advice for beginners is short: apply to work for a contractor in the trade, register with the CIB as an apprentice once you're hired, then "go to work and start earning money." Formal education is optional, but approved classes can earn you hours toward a license.

You can be as young as 16. The Electrical License Act defines an apprentice as someone 16 or older learning electrical work "under the direct supervision of a licensed journeyman electrician or electrical contractor."

Registration matters more than it looks. The CIB won't count experience gained in Oklahoma while you weren't registered, so a year of unregistered helper work can count for nothing. See our helper jobs guide and how to get an apprenticeship. [2][3][7]

Who needs a license in Oklahoma

Oklahoma licenses electricians statewide through the Construction Industries Board. State rules say no person may "engage or offer to engage in" electrical work without a valid CIB license or registration, and it's a misdemeanor to do journeyman work without a journeyman or contractor license.

The law has exemptions, including minor repairs such as replacing outlets, work by a public utility, telephone and data systems work by telecommunications companies, and work on your own property or residence (unless a local ordinance says otherwise). Class 2 and Class 3 low-voltage circuits are also exempt. Check the full list in the Electrical License Act before relying on one. [1][2][3]

The license ladder: apprentice to contractor

Oklahoma's ladder has no master electrician license. The contractor license is the top level.

• Electrical Apprentice: registration at 16 or older; no exam.
• Residential Journeyman: 4,000 hours as an apprentice plus an exam; limited to one- and two-family dwellings.
• Unlimited Journeyman: 8,000 hours (4 years), 4,000 of them commercial/industrial, plus an exam.
• Residential Contractor: two years and 4,000 hours as a licensed journeyman, plus an exam.
• Unlimited Contractor: 12,000 hours, 6,000 of them commercial/industrial, plus two years as a licensed unlimited journeyman.

Experience must be gained while employed by a licensed electrical contractor. A licensed residential electrician can work as an apprentice on commercial jobs to build hours for the unlimited license. Other licenses include the limited electrical contractor (for firm owners or officers with an electrical engineering degree or estimating and project-management experience; no field work), refinery electrical journeyman and poultry house contractor. Compare states on the electrician hub and in journeyman vs. master. [3][4][5][8]

The journeyman and contractor exams

PSI runs the exams. After the CIB approves your application, schedule online at PSI's Oklahoma page or by phone at (855) 834-8750. The fee is $92 per exam portion.

The bulletin effective September 11, 2026 lists the unlimited journeyman exam at 100 scored questions in 240 minutes and the residential journeyman exam at 80 questions in 210 minutes, both 70% to pass. They're open book: you bring the 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC) as adopted in Oklahoma. NEC Handbooks and spiral-bound copies aren't allowed.

Contractor applicants take two portions, business/law and trade, and need 70% on each. A 2024 law (HB 3215) cut the passing score from 75% to 70% for exams taken on or after November 1, 2024, and let you retest after 30 days instead of 90. [2][3][6][9]

Fees, renewal and continuing education

CIB fees: apprentice $20 registration plus a $5 application fee; journeyman $25 application plus $50 initial license; contractor $30 application plus $300 initial license. Renewals are $75 a year for a journeyman and $200 for a contractor, more if late. PSI exam fees are separate.

Every license expires on the last day of your birth month and renews yearly. Journeymen and contractors need 12 hours of approved CE every three years, six of them on the state-adopted codes. Apprentices need 3 hours a year before reregistering, a requirement that started January 1, 2026.

Two changes are coming. Starting November 1, 2026, a license expired more than a year can't be renewed, but it can be reinstated by retesting, or by paying the renewal fee plus a $200 penalty, completing the required CE and meeting the law's other conditions. A 2026 law (SB 1732) raises CIB fees starting July 1, 2028; the CIB's rule filing lists the apprentice fee going from $20 to $32 and the initial journeyman license from $50 to $80. [3][9][10][11][12][13]

Union and open-shop apprenticeships in Oklahoma

You can earn your hours with any licensed electrical contractor. A formal apprenticeship adds classroom training to paid work.

Union programs. In Oklahoma City, the electrical training ALLIANCE of Western Oklahoma, run by NECA and IBEW Local 1141, asks for a high school diploma or GED, a year of Algebra I, a driver's license and age 18 to start. It runs 8,000 on-the-job hours and 756 classroom hours. In Tulsa, apply to the Tulsa Electrical JATC (a joint apprenticeship and training committee of NECA and IBEW).

Open-shop programs. IEC and ABC electrical programs are on the CIB's approved list. IEC says applicants generally must be at least 18 with a high school diploma or GED.

Schools. Many CareerTech technology centers and colleges have CIB-approved electrical programs. More: electrician apprenticeships, union vs. non-union and the aptitude test. [7][14][15][16][17][18]

If you're licensed in another state

The CIB lists journeyman reciprocity agreements with Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Montana, Nebraska, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming. You need a current license held at least one year, obtained by exam (not grandfathered), and a completed application with your work history.

From a state without an agreement, you may still qualify for "exam equivalency" if the Board has approved that jurisdiction's exam: you skip the Oklahoma journeyman exam but meet every other requirement. Military service members, veterans and spouses have their own credit and expedited-license rules.

Oklahoma's Universal Licensing Recognition Act (2021) is for people who move to and live in Oklahoma, but it applies only where Oklahoma law gives no reciprocity authority for the trade. The CIB has that authority under its own law (59 O.S. 1000.5a), so the act doesn't add a separate route for CIB licenses; the reciprocity and exam-equivalency routes above are the ones to ask the CIB about. See our reciprocity guide. [3][19][20][21][22]

City rules in Oklahoma

Cities can require permits and inspections for electrical work. In Oklahoma City, electrical contractors must hold the state CIB license and also register with the city, which charges $100 for the initial registration and each year after.

If you'll work in a town that hasn't adopted a code or appointed an electrical inspector, the law says the contractor must notify the CIB before the work. [2][23]

Career changers: age, background and timing

There's no upper age limit in the law. You must be 16 to register and 18 to test. The fastest route to an unlimited journeyman license is 8,000 hours, about four years full time, and up to 2,000 of those hours can come from approved classroom training.

If past employers won't sign for your hours, the CIB says to send a written request first, and you can use tax records or a Social Security work history report when a company is out of business. Alarm work needs a separate alarm endorsement that includes a criminal history check. [1][2][3][24]

Steps to get licensed in Oklahoma

1. Get hired and register as an apprentice

   Find a job with a licensed electrical contractor or a spot in a recognized training program, then mail the CIB's apprentice application signed by the contractor, with $25. [7][25][26]

2. Work under supervision and keep your own hour records

   Work under a licensed journeyman or contractor and track your hours by type (residential, commercial, industrial). The CIB doesn't track them; you and your contractor do. [3][24]

3. Reregister every year

   Your registration lasts one year. Since January 1, 2026, you need 3 hours of approved apprentice CE before reregistering, unless you're a student apprentice or enrolled in an approved course. [9][10][11][24]

4. Apply for the journeyman exam

   With 8,000 hours (4,000 for residential), send the electrical license application with your work history, experience affidavits signed by your employers and $75. Add transcripts if you're counting approved classroom hours. [3][4][8]

5. Schedule and pass the PSI exam

   Once approved, schedule with PSI ($92 per exam portion). The exam is open book with the 2023 National Electrical Code as adopted in Oklahoma; you need 70%, and you can retest after 30 days. [2][4][6]

6. Work toward the contractor license

   After two years and 4,000 hours as a licensed unlimited journeyman (12,000 hours total), you can apply for the unlimited electrical contractor exam. [3][5]

Where to get the hours

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

• Union

  electrical training ALLIANCE of Western Oklahoma (IBEW Local 1141 / NECA)

  The union joint apprenticeship program for the Oklahoma City area: a paid, tuition-free program with 8,000 hours of on-the-job training and 756 hours of classroom education. Selection includes an aptitude test and an interview. [14][15]

• Union

  Tulsa Electrical JATC (IBEW / NECA)

  The union joint apprenticeship and training committee for the Tulsa metro area, a partnership of NECA and IBEW. Its inside wireman apprenticeship runs five years; apply through its online portal. [16][29]

• Union

  IBEW/NECA training center locator

  Use the Electrical Training Alliance's locator to find the union electrical training center for your area. [30]

• Open shop

  Independent Electrical Contractors (IEC) and Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC)

  Non-union apprenticeship programs. The CIB's list of Committee-approved electrical programs includes IEC and ABC electrical programs. IEC describes a four-year program with daytime work for an IEC contractor and evening classes. [17][18]

• School

  CareerTech technology centers and colleges on the CIB approved list

  Technology centers, community colleges and OSU Institute of Technology run electrical programs the CIB's Electrical Committee has approved to substitute for part of the experience requirement. Confirm the approval and substitution rate with the CIB before enrolling. [17]

• State program

  Apprenticeship Oklahoma (Oklahoma CareerTech)

  CareerTech calls itself the state's hub for registered apprenticeships. Its apprentice page explains how to search for openings through technology centers, employers and the federal Apprenticeship Finder. [31][32]

Licensed in another state?

Questions people ask