Moving to Minnesota as a journeyman electrician: every state's rule
Minnesota has reciprocity agreements with 0 states. Everyone else follows its standard out-of-state path: see below.
Minnesota journeyman electrician · “Class A Journeyworker Electrician”
Statewide license
Issued by Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI), Board of Electricity
Minnesota issues a statewide Class A Journeyworker Electrician license through the Department of Labor and Industry (DLI); there is no municipal electrician licensing. A new applicant documents at least 48 months of qualifying experience (Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subd. 2 and Minn. R. 3800.3520), pays the $50 application and examination fee, and passes the DLI-administered written exam. Under Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subd. 20 the commissioner, with Board of Electricity approval, has reciprocity agreements with nine states whose journeyworker licensees are licensed without the Minnesota exam. Licenses expire every two years and renewal requires 16 hours of continuing education, 12 of them on the NEC.
Every origin state
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Getting licensed in Minnesota from scratch
No license yet, or nothing that transfers? This is how Minnesota issues a journeyman electrician license to a first-time applicant.
Class A Journeyworker Electrician by examination
Minnesota's Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) issues the Class A Journeyworker Electrician license to an applicant who documents at least 48 months (8,000 hours) of qualifying electrical experience and passes the DLI journeyworker exam. At least 24 of those months must be in wiring for and installing electrical wiring, apparatus and equipment. You apply for the exam online in iMS or on the Personal Electrical License Examination Application, with a $50 application and examination fee and a Work Experience Verification form from each employer. The exam is given by DLI itself on the 2026 National Electrical Code; the code book and a laws and rules booklet are provided in the exam room, and the passing score is 70%. The license fee is paid after you pass.
The exam has 80 multiple-choice questions with 5.5 hours allowed, and is given at DLI's St. Paul office and at regional sites around the state. DLI supplies a soft-cover National Electrical Code without tabs, a Laws and Rules Booklet and a basic calculator; you may not bring your own materials. There is no separate law or business exam. Results are emailed, generally within two weeks, and an applicant who fails may reapply to retest 30 days after notice, with a new application and fee. Anyone doing electrical work in Minnesota without a license must be registered with DLI as a registered unlicensed electrician ($14) and work under the direct supervision of a licensed electrician; hours verified at each annual registration renewal count toward the exam. Experience is credited at no more than 160 hours per month or 2,000 hours per year, and no credit is given for work before age 17. DLI may also credit electrical work in the armed forces (attach a DD214) and substantially equivalent work in another state, verified by the employer.
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Exam given by
- Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry
- Exam format
- Open book
- Passing score
- 70%
- Renewal
- Every 2 years
- Continuing education
- 16 hours per cycle
Who can apply
- You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.48 months of qualifying experience under Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subd. 2 and Minn. R. 3800.3520, including at least 24 months of wiring for and installing electrical wiring, apparatus and equipment. Up to 24 months may come from maintenance and repair, and smaller amounts from line work, elevators, technology circuits and process control circuits.
Other ways to qualify
Each of these replaces the requirements above. You only need one.
Approved two-year electrical program plus 36 months of experience
Successful completion of a two-year, post-high-school electrical program approved by DLI earns 12 months of experience credit, so a graduate needs 36 more months of qualifying experience, still including at least 24 months of wiring and installing. Credit is given only for programs on DLI's approved list, not on an individual basis, and hours worked during the school term of a full-time day program do not count.
- Completion of a two-year, post-high-school electrical program approved by DLI (12 months of experience credit)
- You must document at least 36 months of qualifying work experience.
Steps to get licensed
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($50). Application and examination fee, paid with the exam application; non-refundable, and a retest requires a new application and fee (Minn. Stat. 326B.092, subd. 1).
- 2Other. Electrical Work Experience Verification form signed by each employer's responsible licensed person, one form per year of employment.
- 3Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Minnesota Class A Journeyworker Electrician exam given by DLI: 80 questions, 5.5 hours, 2026 NEC and laws and rules booklet provided, 70% to pass.
- 4License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($48). Two-year journeyworker license fee ($40 base plus $8 board fee, Minn. Stat. 326B.092, subd. 7), paid after passing the exam.
Published fees on this path total $98, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
Keeping it active
Every 2 years with 16 hours of continuing education per cycle and a $53 renewal fee.
16 hours of DLI-approved continuing education per two-year term, at least 12 of them on the National Electrical Code; up to 4 may cover related technical subjects or the Minnesota Electrical Act and Minnesota Rules chapters 3800 and 3801.
Journeyworker licenses expire every two years at the end of the month in which the license was first issued. A late renewal adds a $20 fee.
Exam preparation
Most boards contract PSI, Prov, or ICC for exams. Check which code edition the exam is written to before buying a prep course.
- Trade exam
Continuing education
Renewals usually need approved CE hours, often on the latest NEC. Reciprocal licensees are rarely exempt.
- Continuing education
Sources for this section
- Minnesota DLI - Residential Contractor, Remodeler, Roofer, Manufactured Home Installer Examination Application · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Form · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota DLI - Residential Building Contractor, Remodeler, Roofer and Manufactured Home Installer License Examination Guide · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Other · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota DLI - License exam schedule · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota DLI - Experience requirements for an electrical license · Minn. R. 3800.3520; Minn. Stat. 326B.33 · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota DLI - Electrical licensing basics · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota Rules 3800.3520 - Experience requirements for electrical licenses · Minn. R. 3800.3520 · Minnesota Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota Statutes 326B.092 - Fees (application, examination and license fees) · Minn. Stat. 326B.092, subds. 1, 3, 6, 7 · Minnesota Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
- Minnesota Statutes 326B.33 - Electrical licenses and registration · Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subds. 1, 2, 20 · Minnesota Legislature, Office of the Revisor of Statutes · Statute · verified September 23, 2026