LicensebyState

Moving to Minnesota as a master electrician: every state's rule

Minnesota has reciprocity agreements with 4 states. Everyone else follows its standard out-of-state path: experience credit.

Minnesota master electrician · “Class A Master Electrician”

Statewide license

Verified September 15, 2026· 4 sources

Issued by Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI), Board of Electricity

Minnesota issues a statewide, person-held Class A Master Electrician license through DLI; the separate electrical contractor license is a business license that must employ a master, and is not covered here. A new master applicant qualifies under Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subd. 1 with a four-year electrical engineering degree, one year of experience as a licensed journeyworker, or five years of experience planning, laying out, supervising and installing electrical systems (60 months under Minn. R. 3800.3520), pays the $50 application and examination fee, and passes the DLI-administered written exam. Reciprocity agreements under subd. 20 waive the exam for master electricians from Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. Master licenses expire on the last day of February of each odd-numbered year and renewal requires 16 hours of continuing education, 12 of them on the NEC.

States Minnesota reciprocates with

Every origin state

Reciprocity 4Experience credit 35No credit 11
Every state's path into Minnesota
StateMechanismNoteVerified
AlabamaExperience credit2026-09-15
AlaskaExperience credit2026-09-15
ArizonaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
ArkansasExperience credit2026-09-15
CaliforniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
ColoradoExperience credit2026-09-15
ConnecticutExperience credit2026-09-15
DelawareExperience credit2026-09-15
District of ColumbiaExperience credit2026-09-15
FloridaExperience credit2026-09-15
GeorgiaExperience credit2026-09-15
HawaiiExperience credit2026-09-15
IdahoExperience credit2026-09-15
IllinoisNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
IndianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
IowaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
KansasNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
KentuckyExperience credit2026-09-15
LouisianaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
MaineExperience credit2026-09-15
MarylandExperience credit2026-09-15
MassachusettsExperience credit2026-09-15
MichiganExperience credit2026-09-15
MississippiNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
MissouriExperience credit2026-09-15
MontanaExperience credit2026-09-15
NebraskaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
NevadaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
New HampshireExperience credit2026-09-15
New JerseyExperience credit2026-09-15
New MexicoExperience credit2026-09-15
New YorkNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
North CarolinaExperience credit2026-09-15
North DakotaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
OhioExperience credit2026-09-15
OklahomaExperience credit2026-09-15
OregonExperience credit2026-09-15
PennsylvaniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
Rhode IslandExperience credit2026-09-15
South CarolinaExperience credit2026-09-15
South DakotaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-15
TennesseeNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-15
TexasExperience credit2026-09-15
UtahExperience credit2026-09-15
VermontExperience credit2026-09-15
VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-15
WashingtonExperience credit2026-09-15
West VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-15
WisconsinExperience credit2026-09-15
WyomingExperience credit2026-09-15

Getting licensed in Minnesota from scratch

No license yet, or nothing that transfers? This is how Minnesota issues a master electrician license to a first-time applicant.

Verified September 23, 2026· 8 sources

Class A Master Electrician by examination

A Minnesota Class A journeyworker electrician qualifies for the Class A Master exam after at least one year of experience as a licensed journeyworker. Minnesota also allows entry without the journeyworker license: five years of experience planning, laying out, supervising and installing electrical systems, or a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, qualifies an applicant for the same exam. You apply to DLI with a $50 application and examination fee and pass an 80-question exam given by DLI on the 2026 National Electrical Code, with the code book and a laws and rules booklet provided and 70% required to pass. The license fee is paid after you pass.

The exam allows 5.5 hours and is given at DLI's St. Paul office and at regional sites; DLI supplies a soft-cover National Electrical Code without tabs, a Laws and Rules Booklet and a basic calculator, and no other materials are allowed. There is no separate law or business exam. Results are emailed, generally within two weeks, and a failed applicant may reapply 30 days after notice with a new application and fee. Minn. R. 3800.3520 sets a 60-month (10,000-hour) experience schedule for master applicants that includes at least two months each of planning, laying out and supervising; ask DLI (651-284-5034) how your journeyworker experience is counted against it. The master license lets you serve as the responsible master for an electrical contractor, which holds its own separate license.

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

  • Hold a Minnesota Class A Journeyworker Electrician license for at least 1 year first.At least one year of experience, acceptable to the commissioner, as a licensed journeyworker (Minn. Stat. 326B.33, subd. 1).

Other ways to qualify

Each of these replaces the requirements above. You only need one.

Five years of planning, layout, supervision and installation experience

An applicant without a journeyworker license qualifies with at least five years of experience planning for, laying out, supervising and installing electrical wiring, apparatus or equipment. Under Minn. R. 3800.3520 that is 60 months (10,000 hours), including at least 2 months each of planning, laying out and supervising and at least 12 months of wiring and installing, documented on a Work Experience Verification form from each employer.

  • You must document at least 10,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Minimums of 2 months each in planning, laying out and supervising and 12 months in wiring and installing; credit is capped at 160 hours per month or 2,000 hours per year.

Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering

A graduate of a four-year electrical engineering program at an accredited college or university qualifies for the Class A Master exam without any practical installation experience. Attach the original transcript or a copy of the diploma to the exam application.

  • Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from an accredited college or university

Steps to get licensed

  1. 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).
  2. 2Other. Electrical Work Experience Verification form from each employer, or the original engineering transcript for the degree route.
  3. 3Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Minnesota Class A Master Electrician exam given by DLI: 80 questions, 5.5 hours, 2026 NEC and laws and rules booklet provided, 70% to pass.
  4. 4License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee. Master license fee paid after passing the exam, based on the time left until the next odd-year expiration: $44 for a term of one year or less, $88 for a longer term ($40 per year base plus $4 per year board fee, Minn. Stat. 326B.092, subd. 7).

Published fees on this path total $50, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.

Keeping it active

Every 2 years with 16 hours of continuing education per cycle and a $93 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. No continuing education is required for the first, shortened master term.

All master licenses expire together at the end of February of each odd-numbered year. A late renewal adds a $40 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

  1. Minnesota DLI - Residential Contractor, Remodeler, Roofer, Manufactured Home Installer Examination Application · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Form · verified September 23, 2026
  2. 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
  3. Minnesota DLI - License exam schedule · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  4. 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
  5. Minnesota DLI - Electrical licensing basics · Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
  6. 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
  7. 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
  8. 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

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