Maryland · Electrical licensing · official-source guide
Maryland licenses electricians at state level through the board in the Department of Labor's Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing. It licenses the individual as master, journeyperson or apprentice and issues no separate business licence. A master needs seven years of supervised experience plus $300,000 general liability and $100,000 property damage cover, and many counties still require local registration on top.
Verified against agency sources on 2026-09-12. Rules and fees change; confirm with the named authority before relying on this guide.
Maryland licenses electricians at state level through a board inside the Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing, at 100 S. Charles Street, Tower I, Baltimore, MD 21201, phone 410-230-6163. The board's own home page heads itself Maryland State Board of Electricians. Its licensing FAQ calls the same body the Maryland State Board of Master Electricians. The Code of Maryland Regulations files its rules under Title 09, Subtitle 09, headed Maryland Board of Electricians. All three names point at the same board, and applications, fee schedules and licence records use them interchangeably, so do not assume a mismatch means a different agency. The governing statute is Title 6 of the Business Occupations and Professions Article of the Annotated Code of Maryland, and the regulations are COMAR 09.09, split into three chapters covering fees and deadlines, continuing education, and general regulations. Section 6-702 attaches a sunset to the whole title: subject to the Maryland Program Evaluation Act, Title 6 and every regulation adopted under it terminate and are of no effect after July 1, 2033. The board states its position on unlicensed work on its front page without qualification. All electrical work in Maryland must be performed by a licensed master, journeyperson or apprentice electrician, apprentices must be supervised at all times by a licensed master or journeyperson, and violations may result in fines of up to $5,000, imprisonment, or both.
Sourcesdllr.state.md.us 1labor.maryland.gov 2dllr.state.md.us 3mgaleg.maryland.gov 4regs.maryland.gov 5
The board issues three individual licences: master electrician, journeyperson electrician and apprentice electrician. It began accepting applications for the apprentice and journeyperson licences on July 1, 2021, so those two grades are recent additions to a board that previously issued the master licence alone. There is no separate state electrical contractor or business licence. What carries a business is the master licence, held either by an individual master who provides his or her own insurance, or assigned to a company by a qualified agent. Scope is set by section 6-605: no person may employ an individual to provide or assist in providing electrical services unless the individual holds a master, journeyperson or apprentice licence and works within its scope, and at least one licensed master or journeyperson must be present at each job site where electrical services are provided. Section 6-607 lists the prohibited acts, and they reach further than working without a licence. An individual may not provide, attempt to provide or offer to provide electrical services for compensation without the appropriate licence, may not assist without the required licence or registration, may not provide electrical services for compensation without obtaining a permit where the local jurisdiction requires one, and may not work beyond the scope of the licence issued. Out-of-state firms get no pass. The board's FAQ states that each contractor who offers or provides electrical services in Maryland must hold a Maryland electrical licence regardless of any licence held elsewhere, and a contractor who does not reside or have a principal place of business in Maryland must designate a Maryland resident agent.
Sourcesdllr.state.md.us 1labor.maryland.gov 2mgaleg.maryland.gov 3mgaleg.maryland.gov 4
Maryland is the state where contractors most often get this wrong, so take it from the board rather than from assumption. Section 6-301 gives every county a choice. A county shall either adopt regulations with qualifications at least as stringent as section 6-304 and register master, journeyperson or apprentice electricians itself, or require a state licence and enforce Title 6. Municipal corporations have the same two options plus a third: adopt the electrical rules and regulations of the county they sit in. So local registration has not been abolished. It has been made a county-by-county election, floored by the state qualifications. Section 6-601 then says that in a local jurisdiction authorized to offer local master or journeyperson registration, an individual shall register locally within 60 days after the state licence is issued, in the jurisdiction where the individual resides, has a principal business office, or has a resident agent. Section 6-602 blunts the cost: a local jurisdiction shall waive its examination for a state licensee who pays the local registration fee and shows an active state licence and, in place of any local bond requirement, the insurance required by section 6-604, and it shall issue the local registration within 10 working days. The board says the same thing in plain words on its own application page. If you hold a current state master electrician licence you do not need to do anything else, some local jurisdictions are charging an additional registration fee in order to obtain a permit, and you should check with the local jurisdiction about registration requirements.
Sourcesmgaleg.maryland.gov 1mgaleg.maryland.gov 2mgaleg.maryland.gov 3dllr.state.md.us 4labor.maryland.gov 5
Most states count clock hours. Maryland counts years of regular and principal employment. For a master electrician licence, section 6-304(b) requires an applicant to have been engaged or employed regularly and principally in providing electrical services for all types of electrical equipment and apparatuses for at least 7 years under the direction and supervision of a master electrician or a similarly qualified employee of a governmental unit. The board may allow up to 3 years of credit toward that 7 if it determines the applicant completed a formal course of study or professional training in electrical installation comparable to the required experience, and it shall credit work done as part of a successfully completed electrician apprenticeship program approved by the Division of Workforce Development and Adult Learning or the federal Office of Apprenticeship. For a journeyperson licence, section 6-304(c) requires 4 years on the same terms, again with apprenticeship work credited. There is a second journeyperson route that skips both the experience proof and the examination. The board shall waive them if the applicant provides written proof of completing an electrician apprenticeship program approved by the Maryland Apprenticeship and Training Council or the federal Office of Apprenticeship consisting of at least 576 classroom hours and 8,000 hours of work experience, and receives the certificate within two years of applying to the board. Apprentice is the entry point and the board states there are no pre-qualifications for it. One limit on apprentices carries over from the local system: the state does not renew or reciprocate apprentice licences obtained in local jurisdictions.
Getting a master or journeyperson licence in Maryland is a two step process, and the board describes it that way. Step one is applying for and passing the examination given by PSI Examination Services. Step two is applying to the board for the licence itself once you pass. You apply to PSI directly rather than to the board, by registering online or by calling PSI, and on the PSI homepage you select Government and State Licensing Agencies, then Maryland as the jurisdiction, then MD Electrician as the account, then download the Candidate Information Bulletin. The examination fee is $65.00. PSI runs testing centres in Baltimore, College Park, Hagerstown, Lanham and Salisbury, and specific testing dates come from PSI rather than the board. There is no set processing time for an examination application, because PSI processes it. Once approved, the applicant's information is updated at PSI and an email or letter goes out with examination approval. No preparation course is required to sit, and the board states the examination is based on the current National Electrical Code. Failing has a waiting period built in. If you do not pass you must wait 30 days before reapplying, and any subsequent request to retest cannot be made until 60 days have passed. You pay the examination fee each time. An applicant may also sit a licence examination in a local jurisdiction instead of through the state board, which matters for the reciprocity trap covered further down this page.
Sourcesdllr.state.md.us 1labor.maryland.gov 2dllr.state.md.us 3
Maryland publishes its electrician fees as the text of COMAR 09.09.01.03, effective July 1, 2025, and the amounts are among the lowest of any state electrical board. Original licences: master $25.00, journeyperson $18.50, apprentice $12.00. Licence renewal: master $31.50, journeyperson $18.50, apprentice $12.00. Uninsured status certificate: $63.00 initial and $63.00 to renew. Reapplication after expiration of inactive status: $126.00. Reactivation: $63.00. Reinstatement runs on a ladder, at $28 up to and including 30 days after licence expiration, $63.00 from 31 through 60 days, and $126.00 at 61 or more days. Local registration assignment identification: $63.00. Status change: $63.00. Letter of good standing: $50. All fees of the board are non-refundable, and the regulation states the Secretary and the mechanical boards agreed to average their direct and indirect costs to arrive at these figures. Examination fees sit outside this schedule. The regulation says an applicant for an examination or reexamination shall pay the fee directly to the testing service chosen by the board, as established by that testing service, and the board's examination page puts that figure at $65.00. Local registration fees are set by each county or municipal corporation and are not in the state schedule, which is the main reason two Maryland electricians with identical state licences can face different total costs.
Sourcesdllr.state.md.us 1dllr.state.md.us 2dllr.state.md.us 3mgaleg.maryland.gov 4
Maryland puts a hard insurance figure in statute, and the board enforces it at issue and at renewal. Section 6-604 says a licensed master electrician, a person to whom a master assigns a local registration, or another person who engages in the business of providing electrical services may not contract to provide electrical services unless the electrical work, including completed operations, is covered by liability insurance for general liability in the amount of at least $300,000 and for property damage in the amount of at least $100,000. The insurance may be bought by the master electrician, or bought for the master by the business that employs the master. A licensed apprentice or journeyperson working under the control and supervision of a licensed master does not need separate insurance. The board's home page adds the operational detail. Umbrella coverage is not acceptable. The certificate holder must read State of Maryland, State Board of Electricians, 100 S. Charles St, Tower I, Baltimore, MD 21201. The policy must list the licensee's name and registration number. The insurer must notify the board 10 days before cancellation, which section 6-604(g) also requires. An applicant must submit proof with the licence application, and the board may not issue or renew a licence to an applicant the requirement applies to without that proof. The board must specify on each licence whether the holder meets the insurance requirement, so the requirement is visible to anyone reading your licence record.
Sourcesmgaleg.maryland.gov 1dllr.state.md.us 2mgaleg.maryland.gov 3
Maryland runs a formal uninsured status for licensees who are not contracting on their own account. Under section 6-311 the board shall place a state licensee on uninsured status and issue an uninsured status certificate if the licensee applies on the board's form, pays the fee, otherwise qualifies for an active licence apart from the insurance requirement of section 6-604, and returns the state licence. The cost is $63.00 initial and $63.00 to renew, for a two year term. What it takes away is the ability to contract. A master on uninsured status may not use the state licence to obtain a local registration as a master, and in a county that requires a state master licence such a licensee may only provide electrical services as a journeyperson. Continuing education still applies, and COMAR 09.09.02.01 says a licensee on uninsured status who completes it is issued a licence designated authorized to work, while one who has not is designated not authorized to work. There is no state surety bond for a Maryland electrician licence, and Title 6 sets no bond amount. Maryland legislates a substitution instead. Section 6-604(h) says that if a local jurisdiction requires a bond, the applicant may satisfy that requirement by submitting proof of the insurance required under section 6-604, and section 6-602 repeats it from the registration side. Section 6-603 then lets an electrician obtain a local permit on proof of the state licence, active local registration where required, the permit fee, and proof of that same insurance.
Sourcesmgaleg.maryland.gov 1regs.maryland.gov 2mgaleg.maryland.gov 3mgaleg.maryland.gov 4mgaleg.maryland.gov 5dllr.state.md.us 6
A Maryland electrician licence runs a two year term. Section 6-310 sets the default expiry as the first June 30 that comes after the effective date of the licence and falls in an odd-numbered year, and allows the Secretary to determine that licences expire on a staggered basis. The board's renewal page confirms the staggering is in effect: a licence is valid for two years from the date it was issued and renewal currently expires on a staggered basis. The board automatically mails renewal instructions and applications roughly 60 days before expiry, and the law requires you to tell the board in writing when your residence changes. If a renewal application has not arrived within a month of expiry, call the board and request one. Renewal requires payment of the renewal fee, compliance with the continuing education requirements set by regulation, and evidence of completion submitted with the application. The hours are in COMAR 09.09.02.01. To renew a master licence or uninsured status you need 10 hours of qualifying continuing education completed during the prior licence term. To renew a journeyperson licence or uninsured status you need 5 hours. The hours must have been obtained during the 24 months immediately preceding renewal, and hours earned before the immediately preceding term do not count. Only participation hours count, not preparation. Teaching qualifying subject matter counts, but no more than 5 hours of the minimum, with no carry-over, and a repeated presentation of substantially the same material counts only once per reporting cycle.
Sourcesmgaleg.maryland.gov 1dllr.state.md.us 2regs.maryland.gov 3
Maryland ties electrician continuing education to the code rather than to a generic professional development list, and COMAR 09.09.02.02 states the three qualifying grounds. A course or training satisfies the requirement if it is based on any article of or update to the National Electrical Code, or any local variants adopted by a local board under section 6-205(b)(1), as incorporated by reference in COMAR 09.12.50.02-1B(3). It also qualifies if it is based on any code or standard of the National Fire Protection Association relating to the provision of electrical services as defined in section 6-101(k), again as incorporated by reference in COMAR 09.12.50.02-1B(3). The third ground is compliance with the requirements set out in section 6-205(b). That cross-reference is the reason the code edition the state has incorporated matters to your renewal and not only to your installations. The board maintains a published list of approved continuing education providers on its own site, running to dozens of national and Maryland-based providers with addresses and phone numbers, and it is the list to check before you buy a course. The continuing education chapter has been amended repeatedly in recent years. Its regulation .01 was amended by emergency provision effective July 15, 2021, permanently effective December 27, 2021, again by emergency provision effective August 31, 2023 and adopted permanently effective November 27, 2023, with regulation .01B amended effective September 2, 2024 and regulation .02A and .02B amended effective July 21, 2025.
Sourcesregs.maryland.gov 1regs.maryland.gov 2dllr.state.md.us 3regs.maryland.gov 4
For master electricians the board reciprocates with Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia, and also issues licences by reciprocity to individuals holding a current master electrician licence in one of the Maryland counties or Baltimore City. The terms differ by state. An individual licensed by the West Virginia State Fire Marshal may apply without taking the Maryland written examination if the applicant passed the West Virginia examination and has held the licence at least two years in good standing. Individuals holding a licence in good standing in Virginia or the District of Columbia who passed the written examination there may apply without the Maryland written examination. Delaware licensees need the licence in good standing for at least five years plus a Delaware examination pass. For journeypersons the board is much narrower: the state currently reciprocates a journeyperson licence only with Virginia, and the board states there are otherwise no provisions to reciprocate a journeyperson licence obtained out of state. A valid journeyperson registration obtained by examination in a Maryland local jurisdiction can be reciprocated to a state licence if it is valid, obtained by examination, held for at least one year, and states that it is a journeyperson level licence. Here is the trap the board flags itself. If you take a licence examination in a local jurisdiction and reciprocate that local registration into a state licence, you will not be able to use your state licence to obtain a reciprocal licence in another state or the District of Columbia, because Maryland's reciprocal agreements require the licence to have been obtained by examination rather than by reciprocity.
Sourceslabor.maryland.gov 1dllr.state.md.us 2mgaleg.maryland.gov 3
Maryland splits business practice into two shapes and the board asks you to pick one at application. A qualified agent is an individual who assigns his or her licence to a single company, and that company provides the required insurance. A master electrician provides his or her own insurance and may subcontract work from different entities. That single distinction decides whether your certificate of insurance is written by you or by the firm, and whether you can take work from more than one entity. The statute supports it. Section 6-604(c) says the insurance may be bought by a master electrician, or bought for a master electrician by a person who engages in the business of providing electrical services and employs that master, and it states the insurance is not meant to cover services the master provides outside the scope of employment for the person carrying the insurance. Section 6-309(b) covers the assignment mechanics at application: if the applicant intends to assign to another person a local licence obtained by use of a state licence, the applicant must identify that person on the application, and the board shall include on each state licence the licensee's name and, where a local licence is assigned to another person who engages in the business of providing electrical services, that person's name. Once you pass, there is an administrative step people miss. The board says an applicant must register the licence number with the Maryland Department of Labor, and a letter with instructions should arrive within 10 business days after passing the examination.
Sourceslabor.maryland.gov 1mgaleg.maryland.gov 2mgaleg.maryland.gov 3
Maryland's electrical code question has two answers and a contractor needs both. The statewide floor is in the Public Safety Article. Section 12-603 says each electrical installation in the State shall conform to the National Electrical Code, or the electrical code and amendments adopted by the county in which the installation is done. That wording is why the county matters as much as the state. The edition the State itself has incorporated by reference is the 2020 National Electrical Code, at COMAR 09.12.50.02-1B(3), with one Maryland amendment: in Article 210.8(F) on ground-fault circuit interrupter protection for personnel at outdoor outlets, the exception is expanded to include heating, air-conditioning and refrigeration equipment that serves the dwelling. That regulation was last amended effective May 29, 2023. The same provision is the anchor for continuing education, because COMAR 09.09.02.02 sends qualifying course content back to whatever is incorporated at COMAR 09.12.50.02-1B(3). The Maryland Building Performance Standards at COMAR 09.12.51.04 incorporate the 2021 International Building Code, the 2021 International Residential Code and the 2021 International Energy Conservation Code, and do not separately name an electrical edition. Baltimore City shows how the county layer works in practice. Its Building, Fire, and Related Codes Article, 2024 Edition, adopts the 2020 National Electrical Code at Part III, subject to city modifications running from Article 90 through Article 702, alongside the March 2023 Maryland Building Performance Standards and the 2021 International codes.
Sourcesmgaleg.maryland.gov 1regs.maryland.gov 2regs.maryland.gov 3regs.maryland.gov 4codes.baltimorecity.gov 5
Section 6-608 carries the penalties and it defines officer broadly, to include a superintendent, manager or agent of a business entity, whether or not the entity itself engages in the business of providing electrical services. Any person, including an officer, who violates any provision of the subtitle is guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction is subject to a fine not exceeding $1,000 on a first conviction and a fine not exceeding $5,000 on a second or subsequent conviction. Violating the insurance section, 6-604, is separately a misdemeanor carrying a fine not exceeding $1,000. On top of the criminal penalties, the board may impose a civil penalty not exceeding $5,000 for each violation. In setting that amount the board must consider the seriousness of the violation, the good faith of the violator, any previous violations, the harmful effect of the violation, and any other relevant factors. Civil penalties the board collects are paid into the General Fund of the State. The board summarises all of this on its own front page for consumers: unlicensed electrical work is illegal, and violations may result in fines of up to $5,000, imprisonment, or both. Remember that section 6-607 makes offering to provide electrical services for compensation without a licence a violation in itself, and makes providing electrical services without a permit where the local jurisdiction requires one a violation as well. Advertising work you are not licensed to take, and doing permitted work without pulling the permit, are both inside the penalty section.
Sourcesmgaleg.maryland.gov 1mgaleg.maryland.gov 2mgaleg.maryland.gov 3dllr.state.md.us 4
Maryland is unusually specific here, and the rules are worth reading before you buy vehicle lettering or run an advertisement. Section 6-301(c) says each licensed or registered master electrician shall display the state licence number, the county registration number, or the municipal corporation registration number on each vehicle used on the job for providing electrical services. Section 6-301(d) then protects you from stacking: a county or municipal corporation may not adopt a resolution or enact a law requiring a person who complies with subsection (c) to display additional licence or registration numbers on each vehicle. One number on the truck satisfies the state, and no local jurisdiction can demand a second. Section 6-606 covers the office and the advertisement. A master electrician shall display the master electrician's licence and the licence number conspicuously in the principal place of business. Each electrician advertisement in the name of a person who engages in the business of providing electrical services shall contain the licence number and the name of a master electrician, or of a journeyperson electrician whom the master employs and designates to direct and control the provision of electrical services through the business. That is a named individual plus a number in the advertisement, not just a company name. Section 6-606(c) adds a notice duty that catches growing firms: a licensee shall give the board written notice of any change of name, address or employment from what appears on the current licence at least 10 working days before the change takes effect.
Montgomery County is the largest jurisdiction in the state and its position is published plainly. An electrical permit is required for all electrical work to be performed, and the applicant must have a valid master licence issued by the Maryland State Board of Electricians. Once the applicant completes the online electrical permit application and pays the fee, the permit is issued automatically by the Department of Permitting Services, provided no violations are present at the property. An electrical licence is not required to apply for a low voltage permit, where low voltage means systems designed to operate at 50 volts or less, including fire alarm wiring, cable television, telephone, audio and video and computer network wiring. Any work above 50 volts must be performed by a master electrician holding a valid state licence. Baltimore City adopts the 2020 National Electrical Code with city modifications in Part III of its Building, Fire, and Related Codes Article, 2024 Edition. Because section 6-301 lets each county pick between local registration and the state licence, confirm the choice with the jurisdiction you are working in before you bid, and expect a registration fee where local registration applies. Verification for customers runs through the board's public licence search, reached from every page of the board's site. The board also offers a Letter of Good Standing for $50, used for verification in another state or for employment, and each licence record shows whether the holder meets the insurance requirement.
Sourcesassets.montgomerycountymd.gov 1montgomerycountymd.gov 2codes.baltimorecity.gov 3mgaleg.maryland.gov 4dllr.state.md.us 5dllr.state.md.us 6mgaleg.maryland.gov 7
These are common details other guides publish about Maryland, but we could not verify them from the agency source. Confirm them directly before relying on them.
Yes. The board in the Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing, issues master, journeyperson and apprentice electrician licences under Title 6 of the Business Occupations and Professions Article. It began accepting apprentice and journeyperson applications on July 1, 2021.
Sometimes. Section 6-301 lets each county either register electricians itself or require the state licence. Section 6-601 requires local registration within 60 days in jurisdictions that offer it. The board says some local jurisdictions charge a registration fee to obtain a permit.
No separate state business licence exists. A business operates through a licensed master who carries his or her own insurance, or through a qualified agent who assigns the licence to a single company that provides the insurance.
Seven years of regular and principal employment providing electrical services for all types of electrical equipment, under a master electrician or a similarly qualified governmental employee. The board may credit up to three of those years for a comparable formal course of study or professional training.
General liability of at least $300,000 and property damage of at least $100,000, covering completed operations, under section 6-604. The board states umbrella coverage is not acceptable, the policy must name the licensee and registration number, and the insurer must notify the board 10 days before cancellation.
Not at state level. Section 6-604(h) goes further and lets proof of the required insurance satisfy a bond requirement imposed by a local jurisdiction, and section 6-602 says a local jurisdiction must accept it in place of a bond.
The examination fee is $65.00, paid directly to PSI Examination Services rather than to the board. PSI runs centres in Baltimore, College Park, Hagerstown, Lanham and Salisbury. You must wait 30 days to retake, and 60 days for any subsequent retest.
Under COMAR 09.09.01.03, effective July 1, 2025, an original master licence is $25.00, journeyperson $18.50 and apprentice $12.00. Renewal is $31.50 for master, $18.50 for journeyperson and $12.00 for apprentice. All board fees are non-refundable.
Ten hours for a master licence or uninsured status and five hours for a journeyperson licence or uninsured status, completed during the prior licence term and obtained in the 24 months immediately preceding renewal. Hours from an earlier term do not count.
The State incorporates the 2020 National Electrical Code by reference at COMAR 09.12.50.02-1B(3), with an amendment to Article 210.8(F), last amended effective May 29, 2023. Public Safety section 12-603 also allows conformity to the electrical code adopted by the county.
For master electricians, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia and the District of Columbia, plus master licences held in a Maryland county or Baltimore City. For journeypersons, only Virginia out of state, plus local Maryland journeyperson registrations obtained by examination and held at least one year.
A misdemeanor under section 6-608, carrying a fine not exceeding $1,000 on a first conviction and not exceeding $5,000 on a second or subsequent conviction, plus a board civil penalty not exceeding $5,000 for each violation. The board also cites possible imprisonment.
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