Mississippi · Electrical licensing · official-source guide
Mississippi licenses electrical contracting through the Mississippi State Board of Contractors, the same board that covers every other trade. It licenses the business rather than the individual, with no state journeyman or master electrician grade. Commercial work runs on a certificate of responsibility above $50,000, and residential electrical needs a license at any dollar amount.
Verified against agency sources on 2026-09-12. Rules and fees change; confirm with the named authority before relying on this guide.
Mississippi does not have an electrical licensing board. Electrical contracting is licensed by the Mississippi State Board of Contractors, the same body that licenses building, heavy, highway, mechanical and municipal work, and the same body that licenses residential builders and remodelers. The board states on its own site that commercial and residential contractors and roofers are required to be licensed by the Mississippi State Board of Contractors. It was established in 1952 to protect the health, safety and welfare of persons dealing with those engaged in the vocation of contracting, and it is made up of ten members appointed to staggered terms by the governor, who select the executive director and set licensing policy. The offices are at 2679 Crane Ridge Drive, Suite C, Jackson, Mississippi 39216, with mail to P.O. Box 320279, Jackson, Mississippi 39232, on 601-354-6161 or 800-880-6161. Two separate bodies of law run through the same agency. Commercial licensing sits in Miss. Code Ann. Sections 31-3-1 through 31-3-23, and the licence it issues is called a certificate of responsibility. Residential licensing sits in Miss. Code Ann. Sections 73-59-1 and following, and the licence it issues is called a residential licence. The board publishes both statute sets with its own administrative rules as the Mississippi Commercial Laws and Rules and the Mississippi Residential Laws and Rules. An electrical contractor working both sides of the market in Mississippi needs to read both, because the thresholds, the fees and the continuing education obligations are not the same.
This is the structural point that separates Mississippi from most states. There is no state journeyman electrician licence and no state master electrician licence. The state does not grade individual electricians at all. What the state licenses is the contracting entity, through a person the statute calls the qualifying party. The board defines the qualifying party as the individual responsible for taking any required examinations, who must be an owner, officer or responsible managing employee. Commercial Rule 1.1(2)(l) expands on it: the qualifying party is the person who holds the examination scores, must be regularly employed by the certificate holder, must be actively engaged in the classification of work for which the person qualifies on behalf of the certificate holder, and must have the experience, knowledge and skills to supervise or perform the contracting work in that classification. Proof of employment of the qualifying party is required at application and at renewal. If the qualifying party leaves, the board must be notified in writing immediately by both the qualifying party and the certificate holder, or the certificate holder is subject to suspension or revocation, and another party must qualify within 90 days. So the answer to whether Mississippi licenses the individual or the business is the business, with one named individual carrying the examination credit behind it. There is no state licence an electrician can hold in their own name and carry from employer to employer the way a Michigan journeyman or a Minnesota journeyworker can.
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Mississippi licenses by classification, and the board publishes the definition and scope of each one. Electrical Work is one of the seven commercial major classifications, alongside Building Construction, Highway Street and Bridge Construction, Heavy Construction, Municipal and Public Works Construction, Mechanical Work and Specialty. The board defines the Electrical major classification as installation, repair, alteration, addition to or design of electrical wiring, fixtures, appliances, apparatus, raceways, conduit or any part thereof, which generates, transmits, transforms or utilises electrical energy in any form, including the electrical installations and systems within plants and substations. It requires a test, and the board accepts either a trade exam or a NASCLA accredited exam for it. Holding the major classification entitles the holder to perform the specialty classifications inside that category, and the board lists nine electrical specialties: alarm systems, access systems and security equipment; communication systems and low voltage electrical, limited to energy limited systems not exceeding 91 volts; installation of automated meter reading equipment; instrumentation electrical; telecommunications; traffic control; transmission and distribution lines; turbine generation; and one further category in the same group. On the residential side the board publishes a Residential Electrical classification, defined as installation, maintenance and repair of residential electrical systems, with the holder limited to residential electrical work only, and a test is required. An applicant who does not want a major classification may take an unlimited number of specialties, with one included in the application fee and $100 for each additional selection.
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Mississippi's residential licensing law sets dollar thresholds for general residential work and then removes them for the trades. Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-59-1 defines a residential builder as someone undertaking construction of a structure not more than three floors high to be used as a residence where the total cost of the undertaking exceeds $50,000.00, and a remodeler as someone undertaking improvements to an existing residence where the total cost exceeds $10,000.00. Those are the numbers people quote. But Section 73-59-3(1)(d) requires a licence of any subcontractor, of any tier, performing work in four listed trades on any residential construction or residential improvement project, and it adds the phrase that matters: no matter the dollar amount of the construction or improvements. The four trades listed are electrical, plumbing, mechanical, and heating, ventilation and air conditioning. Electrical is first on the list. So a Mississippi residential electrical subcontractor needs a residential licence for a $400 service call as surely as for a $40,000 rewire, and cannot rely on the $10,000 remodeler floor. The same subsection also requires licences of residential builders, remodelers, construction managers contracting directly with the owner, and residential solar contractors. The prerequisites in subsection (2) are proof of workers compensation insurance where applicable and a federal employer identification number or social security number, and subsection (3) lets the board require liability insurance, reflected on the certificate of licensure, except for inactive licensees.
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The commercial side runs on a dollar threshold. Miss. Code Ann. Section 31-3-1 excludes from the definition of contractor any contract or undertaking on a public or private project by a prime contractor, subcontractor or sub-subcontractor of any tier where the contract is less than $50,000.00. The same section carves out federal aid highway projects, residential projects occupied by 50 or fewer families and not more than three stories, a residential subdivision where the contractor is developing single family or multifamily lots, a new commercial construction project not exceeding 7,500 square feet and not more than two stories undertaken by an entity licensed under the residential chapter, microwave towers for telecommunication transmissions, and fire protection system work below stated dollar figures. Two enforcement provisions sit on top of the threshold. Section 31-3-15 provides that no contract for a public or private project shall be issued or awarded to a contractor who did not hold a current certificate of responsibility at the time the bid was submitted, and that any contract issued in violation is null and void. Section 31-3-21(2) requires every bid above $50,000.00, public or private, to carry the contractor's current certificate number on the outside of the bid envelope or container, or a statement that the bid does not exceed $50,000.00, and forbids the bid from being opened or considered otherwise. Commercial Rule 1.2 tells public agencies awarding contracts of $50,000.00 or more to return unopened any bid from a contractor without a certificate.
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Every applicant takes the Mississippi Law and Business Management examination, and most classifications also require a trade examination. The board's testing page sets out the sequence: apply first, the board reviews the application and notifies PSI of your eligibility, PSI emails a confirmation notice, and you cannot schedule until you receive it. All examinations are administered by PSI and the board states that they are open book. Commercial Rule 1.1(9) fixes the passing score for the examination requirement in Miss. Code Ann. Section 31-3-13(a) at a grade of at least 70 percent, and allows the board to administer an oral examination on request to an applicant unable to take a written exam. There is a $50.00 fee for a request for an oral examination and a $50.00 fee for a request for waiver of an examination. The board accepts the NASCLA Accredited Master Electrical Examination in place of the Mississippi electrical trade examination, and accepts the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building in place of the Mississippi Building Construction examination. It notes that NASCLA exams are used across multiple states, which matters for an electrical contractor planning to work outside Mississippi. After you pass, completed applications go to the board weekly on Fridays and approved licences are issued the following Wednesday, at which point the board says the licence appears in the Search Contractor tool after noon that day. Applicants have 180 days to finish the application process before an incomplete application is destroyed.
The board publishes a single fee schedule in Commercial Rule 3.4, sourced to Miss. Code Ann. Sections 31-3-13(g) and 73-59-11(f). Commercial application with one classification is $400.00, and each additional commercial classification is $100.00. Commercial licence renewal is $200.00, with a $50.00 late fee. A commercial name change is $50.00. Making a commercial licence inactive is $25.00 and reactivating it is $25.00. A duplicate commercial licence is $50.00. Reciprocity or verification of a licence is $25.00. Residential application is $50.00 and residential licence renewal is $100.00, with a $10.00 late fee. Making a residential licence inactive is $25.00 and reactivating it is $25.00, and a duplicate residential licence is $50.00. A request for waiver of an exam is $50.00, a request for an oral examination is $50.00, and a request for a change in qualifying party is $25.00. Public information requests are charged at 50 cents a page plus $25.00 for administrative time, shipping and handling. The mailing list of all active contractors is $500.00 and a returned check costs $40.00. Behind the application fee sits a statutory tax: Miss. Code Ann. Section 31-3-17 levies a special privilege licence tax of $200.00 on each contractor applying for a certificate of responsibility, plus up to $100.00 for each additional classification the contractor is found qualified for. The board's application video repeats the headline numbers: $400.00 with a commercial application and $50.00 with a residential application, non refundable.
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Mississippi runs a financial test on commercial applicants that most states do not. Commercial Rule 1.1(2)(i) requires an applicant for a new certificate of responsibility to furnish at minimum a reviewed financial statement completed within the prior twelve months, prepared and signed by a certified public accountant, stating assets, liabilities and net worth. The board uses it to decide whether the applicant is financially able to perform work of $50,000.00 or more. Applicants for a major classification, which includes Electrical Work, must show a net worth of at least $50,000.00. Applicants for anything else must show a net worth of at least $20,000.00. The statement is confidential and an audited statement is not required. Renewal applicants furnish a balance sheet prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Rule 1.1(2)(j) sets the insurance floor: a certificate of insurance evidencing current minimum coverage of $300,000.00 per occurrence and $600,000.00 aggregate for general liability, with the Mississippi State Board of Contractors listed as certificate holder so it is notified of cancellation, and with the insured name on the certificate matching exactly the name the licence is issued in. A certificate of current workers compensation coverage is also required where state law requires that coverage. On the residential side, Residential Rule 1.1 requires a certificate of insurance evidencing workers compensation where applicable and a liability certificate naming the board so it is notified of cancellation, and Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-59-3(3) exempts inactive licensees from the liability insurance requirement.
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Both licences run annually. Commercial Rule 1.1(2)(h) states that the privilege tax is an annual tax, that the certificate holder has a duty to renew annually, and that the board's failure to send a renewal notice does not excuse the holder. Original commercial certificates expire one year from the date of issuance. Rule 1.1(2)(m) requires an applicant for renewal of a certificate that has been expired at least 180 days to submit a new application with everything required for a new certificate. On the residential side, Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-59-3(5) makes the licence expire on the last day of the twelfth month following issuance or renewal, allows renewal within 180 days after expiration on payment of the licence fee plus a penalty of ten percent of the licence fee, and caps the charge for a replacement licence at $50.00. Continuing education applies to the residential licence only. The board states that each qualifying party for a residential licence must complete two credit hours of continuing education taught by a board approved provider or instructor to maintain the licence, under Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-59-11, and that the requirement applies to all residential licences issued on or after July 1, 2015. A continuing education credit is a 50 minute credit hour. Proof of the two hours must be submitted each year with the renewal application, and no carryover from one licensure period to another is allowed. Section 73-59-11(g) caps what the board may require at two hours per licensure period. The board publishes a searchable list of approved providers, instructors and courses.
The board keeps reciprocity agreements with a number of states and publishes the list, with a warning at the top that matters: reciprocity applies to waiver of a trade exam requirement only, each agreement varies and may not cover all classifications, application by reciprocity does not waive any other application requirement or board review, and all applicants are required to take the Mississippi Business and Law exam. For an electrical contractor the useful entries are narrow. The Alabama Electrical Board is listed, requiring a current licence and that the Alabama exam was taken. The North Carolina Electrical Contractors Board is listed as waiving the Electrical and Alarm Systems exams only, requiring a current licence held for one year and that the exam was taken. The Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board is listed as waiving exams for Electrical, HVAC, Plumbing and Refrigeration, requiring a current licence, the exam taken, and no disciplinary action for a year. The South Carolina Contractors Licensing Board is listed as waiving Building and Electrical exams only. The South Carolina Residential Builders Commission is listed as waiving Residential Builder, Residential Electrical, Residential HVAC and Residential Plumbing. The Tennessee board waives all exams. The Arkansas board expressly does not waive electrical work. The board also notes that it no longer maintains an agreement with Louisiana but will still recognise passing Louisiana examination scores and waive the otherwise required trade examination for qualifying applicants. Military applicants and their families come in under Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-50-1, and the Universal Recognition of Occupational Licensure Act route is Section 73-50-2.
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The two chapters carry different penalties, and both can reach an unlicensed electrical contractor. On the commercial side, Miss. Code Ann. Section 31-3-21(1) makes it unlawful for a person without a certificate of responsibility to submit a bid, enter into a contract, or otherwise engage or continue in the business of a contractor as defined in the chapter. Knowingly and wilfully submitting a bid without a certificate is a misdemeanor punishable on conviction by a fine of not more than $1,000.00, imprisonment of not more than six months, or both. The same penalty attaches under Section 31-3-21(2) to submitting a bid above $50,000.00 without the certificate number on the outside of the envelope. Section 31-3-21(4) adds a civil route: on a finding of a violation, after notice and hearing, the board may issue an order of abatement directing the contractor to cease all actions constituting violations until it complies with Mississippi law, and may order payment of a civil penalty of not more than three percent of the total contract being performed, with a public or private reprimand available in addition or instead. Three percent of a contract is a number that scales, which makes it the one to watch on a large job. On the residential side, Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-59-9(1) makes undertaking residential construction without a valid licence, or knowingly filing false information to obtain one, a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less than $100.00 and not more than $5,000.00, or 30 to 60 days in the county jail, or both. Section 73-59-9(2) then removes your contract rights: an unlicensed person cannot bring any action at law or in equity to enforce the contract, and may recover only actual documented expenses for labour and materials shown by clear and convincing evidence. Section 73-59-9(3) lets the board issue a citation and stop the work.
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Mississippi has two display rules an electrical contractor should know, and both are specific enough to fail an inspection or a complaint. Residential Rule 1.2, Display of Building Permit, provides that once a building permit is issued by a municipal or county building official or other local permitting authority to a residential builder, remodeler or holder of a certificate of responsibility, that licensee shall exhibit a sign at the permitted jobsite which includes, prominently displayed in lettering at least two inches high and twelve inches wide, the licence or certificate of responsibility number and the state issuing it. Number and issuing state, two inch lettering, on the jobsite. The second rule is about what goes on the contract. Residential Rule 1.3 requires the holder of a valid residential licence to give written disclosure at the time of contracting as to whether the licensee carries general liability insurance, placed on the contracting document immediately before the space reserved for the purchaser's signature, in bold and conspicuous type with a font size larger than the rest of the contract, and in the words the rule prescribes, naming the insurer and the policy number. The commercial chapter carries the same duty in statute at Miss. Code Ann. Section 31-3-13: the holder of a valid certificate of responsibility shall disclose in writing to the owner or other person with whom the holder is contracting, at the signing of the contract or the initial agreement to perform work, whether the holder carries general liability insurance, in boldfaced and conspicuous type immediately before the signature space. Neither chapter requires the licence number in advertising the way Minnesota does, but both make it a printed part of the contract and the jobsite.
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An electrical contractor who sells alarm, access control or camera work in Mississippi runs into a second regulator. The State Fire Marshal's office at the Mississippi Insurance Department administers the Mississippi Electronic Protection Licensing Act, Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-69-1 and following, with an Electronic Protection Systems Board. The board's classifications page flags it, noting beside the alarm systems, access systems and security equipment specialty that a contractor should also contact the Mississippi Department of Insurance for possible additional requirements. The act sets a company licence with documentation that the company holds a general liability and errors and omissions insurance policy, or a surety bond, in an amount not less than $300,000.00, plus a current workers compensation policy and a named designated agent. Annual renewal is $200.00 for a Class A licence and $50.00 for a Class B, C, D or H licence, a class change fee is $50.00 and a duplicate licence is $20.00. New individual licences carry a $200.00 fee. There is an exemption that matters to electrical contractors and it is narrow. The licensure requirement does not apply to any company or natural person licensed to perform electrical work by the Mississippi State Board of Contractors, but the exception applies only to the installation of wire, conduit or other wire raceways and their associated boxes or fittings, and extends to the employees of the excepted company only for work performed on behalf of that employer. The act also provides that no person licensed under that chapter may install primary power sources of 60 volts or greater when the source is being installed to operate low voltage systems.
Mississippi does not enforce a single statewide electrical code the way Michigan and Minnesota do, and the state sources do not publish one. What the state does publish is narrower. The State Fire Marshal's office posts a notice on its fire code enforcement page that as of July 1, 2024 the State of Mississippi, Office of the State Fire Marshal has adopted the 2024 edition of the International Fire Code and the International Building Code. The authority is Miss. Code Ann. Sections 45-11-101 through 45-11-111, and Section 45-11-101 limits the Mississippi Fire Prevention Code to buildings owned by the state or state agencies, buildings used for public assembly, and buildings at least 75 feet in height, with the express carve out that in any county or municipality that has adopted a code with standards not less stringent, the local code and its enforcement mechanism apply instead. The State Fire Marshal annually examines the local fire prevention codes and publishes a list of which are not less stringent. The practical consequence for an electrical contractor is that the National Electrical Code edition governing your job is the edition the permitting jurisdiction has adopted, not one the state has set for you, and it can change when you cross a city or county line. Confirm it with the building code office that will issue the permit and inspect the work, in writing, before you price the job. That is the difference between Mississippi and a single state code state, and it is the single biggest scheduling risk on a multi-county contract here.
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The local layer in Mississippi is real, and Gulfport shows what it looks like. The city's Urban Development Building Code Services division, at 1410 24th Avenue, Gulfport, Mississippi 39501, issues its own contractor licence. Its application requires the form completed and notarised in the name of the qualifying party who took the test, a copy of any current Mississippi State Board of Contractors licence and registration numbers, five letters of reference addressed to the Building Official from businesses or homeowners with the writers' names, titles, addresses and phone numbers, a certificate of insurance showing public liability insurance of $100,000 single occurrence and $300,000 aggregate with completed operations coverage naming the City of Gulfport as certificate holder, a copy of a current business privilege licence from the jurisdiction where your headquarters is, photo identification of the qualifying party, and a $100.00 contractor licensing fee. Two of those drop away if you already hold the state credential: the reference letters are not required if the applicant holds a Mississippi State Board of Contractors licence, and the $100.00 fee is waived if you hold a Mississippi certificate of responsibility. Gulfport issues its own electrical permit, on its own application, with a base permit fee of $30.00 plus service entrance, feeder circuit, distribution panel, branch circuit and appliance charges from its published electrical permit fee schedule. Jackson, the largest city, runs permitting through its own office and lists electrical permits among the common residential permit types, alongside building, roofing, plumbing and mechanical, with inspections at stages and final approval required before a project is complete.
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The board runs a free public search. Its Search Contractor tool at search.msboc.us returns the licence number, the expiration date and the licence status for the name searched, and the board tells new licensees to use it to confirm their own licence after noon on the Wednesday their licence is issued. Three things are worth checking. First, the classification. A Mississippi licence is only good for the classifications on it, and Commercial Rule 1.1(3)(a) states plainly that the applicant will not be classified or permitted to bid on or perform a type of work not included on the application form. An electrical job needs an electrical classification, not a building classification. Second, whether the licence is commercial, residential or both, because the two chapters are separate and a residential electrical licence limits the holder to residential electrical work only. Third, the name. The board's own application guidance says you must conduct business under the exact name shown on the application, that this is the name printed on the certificate of licensure, and that conducting business under any other name is equivalent to unlicensed construction and may subject you to a penalty. That is a warning to contractors and a check for customers at the same time. The board also publishes a violators list and an enforcement procedures page, and takes complaints online, so a pattern of orders is visible to anyone who looks. Put your licence number and classification on the estimate and save the customer the search.
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These are common details other guides publish about Mississippi, but we could not verify them from the agency source. Confirm them directly before relying on them.
Yes, but it licenses the contracting business rather than the individual electrician. The Mississippi State Board of Contractors issues a commercial certificate of responsibility under Miss. Code Ann. Sections 31-3-1 to 31-3-23 and a residential license under Sections 73-59-1 and following. There is no state journeyman or master electrician license and no separate electrical board.
Yes. Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-59-3(1)(d)(i) requires a license of any subcontractor, of any tier, performing electrical work on any residential construction or residential improvement project, no matter the dollar amount. The $50,000 residential builder threshold and the $10,000 remodeler threshold in Section 73-59-1 do not apply to the listed trades.
Miss. Code Ann. Section 31-3-1 excludes contracts of less than $50,000.00 from the definition of contractor. Section 31-3-21(2) also requires every bid over $50,000.00, public or private, to carry the contractor's certificate number on the outside of the bid envelope, or a statement that the bid does not exceed $50,000.00.
The board's fee schedule sets the commercial application at $400.00 for one classification, $100.00 for each additional classification, and $200.00 for commercial renewal with a $50.00 late fee. A residential application is $50.00 and residential renewal is $100.00 with a $10.00 late fee. A change of qualifying party is $25.00.
Commercial Rule 1.1(2)(i) requires a reviewed financial statement prepared and signed by a certified public accountant within the prior twelve months. Applicants for a major classification, which includes Electrical Work, must show a net worth of at least $50,000.00. Applicants for a specialty classification must show at least $20,000.00.
Commercial Rule 1.1(2)(j) requires a certificate of insurance showing at least $300,000.00 per occurrence and $600,000.00 aggregate general liability, with the board listed as certificate holder and the insured name matching the license name exactly, plus workers compensation coverage where state law requires it. Residential applicants file workers compensation and liability certificates naming the board.
Commercial Rule 1.1(9) sets the passing score at a grade of at least 70 percent. All exams are administered by PSI and the board states they are open book. Every applicant takes the Mississippi Law and Business Management exam, and most classifications also require a trade exam. The NASCLA Accredited Master Electrical Examination is accepted in place of the Mississippi electrical trade exam.
Two credit hours a year, and only on the residential side. The board requires each qualifying party for a residential license to complete two credit hours from a board approved provider or instructor under Miss. Code Ann. Section 73-59-11, for licenses issued on or after July 1, 2015. A credit is a 50 minute hour, proof goes in with the renewal, and no hours carry over.
The board publishes agreements that waive the trade exam only, never the Mississippi Business and Law exam. For electrical work the listed sources include the Alabama Electrical Board, the North Carolina Electrical Contractors Board for Electrical and Alarm Systems, the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board, and both South Carolina boards. Arkansas expressly does not waive electrical.
On the commercial side, Miss. Code Ann. Section 31-3-21 makes it a misdemeanor with a fine up to $1,000.00 or six months, and lets the board order abatement and a civil penalty up to three percent of the total contract. On the residential side, Section 73-59-9 sets a fine of $100.00 to $5,000.00 or 30 to 60 days, and bars an unlicensed contractor from suing to enforce the contract.
On a permitted jobsite, yes. Residential Rule 1.2 requires a sign at the permitted jobsite showing the license or certificate of responsibility number and the issuing state, in lettering at least two inches high and twelve inches wide. Both chapters also require a written general liability insurance disclosure in bold type immediately before the signature space on the contract.
Mississippi does not publish a single statewide electrical code edition. The State Fire Marshal adopted the 2024 International Fire Code and International Building Code effective July 1, 2024, and Miss. Code Ann. Section 45-11-101 gives way to any county or municipal code that is not less stringent. Confirm the NEC edition with the permit office for the jurisdiction before pricing the job.
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