Which board licenses electricians in North Carolina?
The North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, in Garner. It is a separate board from the plumbing board and operates under G.S. Chapter 87, Article 4.
North Carolina · Electrical licensing · official-source guide
North Carolina electrical license requirements.
North Carolina licenses both. The State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors, a separate board from the plumbing board, issues the electrical contracting license to the business and certifies the qualified individual who must be listed on it. There are 10 classifications. Limited, Intermediate and Unlimited are set by project value, and seven special restricted classes cover a single phase of work.
State-level license
Yes
Public lookup
Verify a licenseVerified against agency sources on 2026-09-12. Rules and fees change; confirm with the named authority before relying on this guide.
One board, one license, and the person who has to be on it
Electrical contracting in North Carolina is licensed by the State Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors at 505 N. Greenfield Parkway, Suite 100, Garner, NC 27529. It is a different board from the one that licenses plumbers. Its statutory mission, under G.S. Chapter 87 Article 4, is to protect life, health and property through examination of applicants, education of licensees and discipline of individuals. The structure has two halves. Section 87-43 says no person, partnership, firm or corporation shall engage or offer to engage in the business of electrical contracting without a license in the applicable classification, regardless of whether the offer was made or the work was performed by a qualified individual. The license goes to the business. The individual half is the qualified individual. Section 87-41.1 defines a qualified individual as someone who has passed the qualifying examination for a classification and been certified by the Board, and a listed qualified individual as one whose name is listed on a license. That listed person has the specific duty and authority to supervise and direct electrical contracting done by or in the name of the licensee. Two consequences follow. Section 87-43 requires at least one listed qualified individual regularly on active duty in each separate place of business. And Section 87-43.2(b) cancels the license automatically if at any time no listed qualified individual is regularly employed, with no new work to be bid for, contracted for or initiated until the license is reinstated. Board membership is set by Section 87-39: seven members serving staggered seven-year terms, and no consecutive complete terms.
Sourcesncbeec.org 1ncbeec.org 2
The three limitation classes, and what each one lets you bid
North Carolina sorts the main licenses by the dollar value of a single project, not by the type of building. The Board publishes 10 classifications in total. The Limited (L) license allows a single electrical contracting project of a value not in excess of sixty thousand dollars ($60,000). The Board's licensing page adds that the equipment or installation in the contract must be rated at not more than 600 volts. The statute, G.S. 87-43.3(a)(1), states the same class with a maximum value of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000) and a rating of not more than 1,000 volts, and the Board's own annotation notes that the actual amount is $60,000 by Rule .0303(4). Both figures are published by primary sources and both appear here. The Intermediate (I) license allows a single project not in excess of one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000). The statute sets the ceiling the Board may use at two hundred thousand dollars ($200,000), and the Board's annotation again points to the $150,000 figure set by rule. The Unlimited (U) license allows any electrical contracting project regardless of value. Rule .0303(4) turns those into bidding rules. Above $60,000, only an intermediate or unlimited licensee may submit a proposal or engage in the project. Above $150,000, only an unlimited licensee may. The statute lets the Board move the limited and intermediate ceilings up to the statutory maximums no more than once every three years, based on the project cost index for electrical projects in the state.
What counts as one project, and the subdivision trap
If you hold a Limited or Intermediate license, Rule .0303 is the rule that decides whether a job is inside your class. It is worth reading before you price anything near the line. An electrical installation counts as a separate project only if every one of five conditions is met. It must be separately and independently supplied by its own service, feeder or feeder system. It must be for an individual building separated from others by a lot line or by open space or an area separation fire wall, or an individual townhouse unit with property lines, or an individual tenant space in a mall-type shopping center, or an addition, or an existing building, or an outdoor area. Negotiations or bidding must be carried out totally separately from any other installation. No electrical interconnection may exist between it and any other installation, except for additions and repairs to pre-existing work. And a separate permit must be obtained for each building or outdoor area from the governmental agency having jurisdiction. Subparagraph (3) closes the obvious escape. Even where the five conditions are not all met, the entire electrical work covered by one set of plans or specifications is construed to be a single project. Value is calculated broadly. The total known or reasonably estimated cost of all electrical wiring materials, equipment, fixtures, devices and installation must be included, regardless of who furnishes them and regardless of the form of contract or subcontract. And if a project is subdivided into two or more contracts for any reason, the combined value awarded to any one licensee must still sit inside that licensee's class. Board staff make the determination, with a right of appeal to the Board.
Sourcesncbeec.org
The seven special restricted classes, and what each one covers
Alongside the three limitation classes the Board issues special restricted licenses. The Board's licensing page lists seven: Residential Dwelling (SP-SFD), Fire Alarm/Low-Voltage (SP-FA/LV), Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning (SP-PH), Swimming Pool (SP-SP), Groundwater Pump (SP-WP), Electric Sign (SP-ES) and Elevator (SP-EL). Rule .0801 sets three things straight. A special restricted license does not authorize electrical contracting in general, only the limited phase described in the rule that specifies its scope. The project value limits that bind limited and intermediate licensees do not apply to special restricted licensees, so a special restricted holder may take any project authorized by the license regardless of value. And any regular licensee, limited, intermediate or unlimited, may already do anything a special restricted license authorizes, subject to its own value limit, without holding the special license. The scopes are narrow and specific. SP-SFD under Rule .0803 covers wiring in or on a single-family residential dwelling and its ancillaries, defined to include a detached garage, storage shed, barn, pump house, electric fence or yard lighting. SP-FA/LV under Rule .0804 covers systems of 50 volts or less, power-limited Class II or Class III circuits, paging systems up to 70 volts, and line voltage wiring not exceeding 300 volts to ground installed from a disconnecting means or junction box installed by others. SP-EL under Rule .0806 covers wiring integral to an elevator, dumbwaiter, escalator, moving walk or personnel hoist, beyond the disconnecting means. SP-PH under Rule .0807 covers wiring incidental to a plumbing, heating or air conditioning business.
Sourcesncbeec.org 1ncbeec.org 2
The experience: hours, primary versus secondary, and the percentage table
North Carolina counts hours, not years, and then converts. Rule .0202 says 2,000 hours equals one creditable year for both primary and secondary experience. Rule .0201(b) sets the thresholds. Limited: at least 3,000 hours, of which at least 2,000 must be primary. Intermediate: at least 5,750 hours, of which at least 5,000 must be primary. Unlimited: at least 9,000 hours, of which at least 8,000 must be primary. SP-SFD and each of the special restricted classes: at least 3,000 hours with at least 2,000 primary. The balance in every case may be primary, secondary or both. G.S. 87-43.3 states the same hour figures. Primary experience means working experience gained while engaged directly in installing electrical wiring and equipment governed by the National Electrical Code, or work directly related to it. Rule .0202(a) credits at 100 percent a journeyman electrician, electrical foreman, general foreman, superintendent, general superintendent, estimator for a licensed electrical contractor, electrical inspector recognized by the State Department of Insurance, maintenance journeyman, fire alarm and low voltage installation time, NICET NFPA 72 certification time, and a military person holding an electrician rating at E-4 or above on land-based installations. A full-time instructor teaching the NEC and NFPA 72 is credited at 80 percent. Secondary experience is credited far lower. An apprentice in a program approved by the NC Community College System counts at 100 percent, other apprentice or helper time at 80 percent, NEC coursework at 50 percent, a wholesaler's sales representative at 20 percent, appliance service and repair at 20 percent, and an electric utility lineman at 10 percent. Unlimited applicants must also file two written statements attesting to their ability to supervise.
Sourcesncbeec.org 1ncbeec.org 2
The examination: $125, open book, and a 90 day wait if you fail
Every applicant must be at least 18, file a duly filed application, and submit written statements from at least two persons attesting to good character. The application and exam fee is $125.00 for all classifications, and the statute caps it there, with a specially arranged examination capped at $200.00. Approval comes first: the Board sends a Notice of Approval letter naming the classification and a 90 day authorization period in which the exam must be both scheduled and taken. PSI emails an eligibility notice 48 to 72 hours after the authorization period starts, and the exam is booked from there. The formats differ by class. Limited, Intermediate and Unlimited exams are 100 multiple-choice questions with six hours to complete. Fire Alarm/Low Voltage is 50 questions in three hours. The Single Family Detached, Plumbing Heating, Electric Sign, Elevator and Groundwater Pump exams are 40 questions in three hours. The Swimming Pool exam is 25 questions in one hour. The exam is computer based, scored the same day, and open book. Candidates may refer to any part of the NEC, the NFPA book and the NASCLA business book during the exam. The Board lists the study materials as the NC Electrical Contractors Licensing Law and Title 21-18B, the 2020 edition of the NEC, the 2013 edition of NFPA 72, and the NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management, North Carolina Electrical Edition. A minimum grade of 70 passes. Fail, and you may not retake the same classification for three months, though you may apply immediately for a different classification if you meet its experience requirement. A one-time supervised review of a failed exam costs $25.00 and runs about four hours as a monthly group session at the Board's office.
Fees, a one year term, and the automatic revocation at expiry
The Board publishes its full schedule. The application and exam fee is $125.00 for all classifications and the examination review is $25.00. Annual license fees, set identically in Rule .0404 and on the Board's fee page, are $100.00 for Limited, $150.00 for Intermediate, $200.00 for Unlimited, $100.00 for Single Family Dwelling (SP-SFD) and $100.00 for each of the other special restricted classifications. G.S. 87-44 frames those as maximums and adds a detail the fee page does not: the annual fee applies for each principal and each branch place of business. Rule .0403 says a separate license certificate and license fee is required for each separate place of business, each with at least one listed qualified individual named on it. Late license renewal is $25.00, and a bad check is $25.00. Verification of a license is $25.00, a duplicate license $15.00, a licensee listing as a csv file $50.00, a permanent decorative certificate $15.00 and a qualified individual patch $6.00. All licenses expire one year after the date of issuance, and renewal applications and fees are due 30 days before the expiration date. The Board sends renewal notices about 60 days out, by email where an address is on file. Miss it and the consequence is sharp. G.S. 87-44 says that upon failure to renew by the expiration date the license shall be automatically revoked. It may be reinstated on payment of the license fee, the $25.00 administrative fee, and all fees for the lapsed period during which the business engaged in electrical contracting. Rule .0406 adds that a renewal filed more than 12 months after expiry needs 500 hours of recent primary experience.
Bonding ability, which is not the same as a bond
North Carolina does not make an electrical contractor post a licensing bond. It makes the contractor prove it could get one. G.S. 87-43.2(a)(4) requires the applicant, on the initial application, to furnish a bonding ability statement completed by a bonding company licensed to do business in North Carolina, verifying the applicant's ability to furnish performance bonds for electrical contracting projects having a value in excess of the project value limit for the classification applied for. In lieu of the bonding ability statement, an applicant may submit other information certifying the adequacy of its financial ability, for evaluation and specific approval by the Board. Rule .0401(c) repeats the requirement for the intermediate and unlimited classifications and adds a second acceptable document: a line of credit letter issued by a bank, savings bank, or savings and loan association. The Board's licensing page states it plainly, that a statement of bonding ability is required to activate a license in both the Intermediate and Unlimited classifications, and publishes the forms. The statement or financial information must be submitted in the same name as the license to be issued. Where the firm is owned by a sole proprietor it may be furnished in either the firm name or the proprietor's name, and an application in a sole proprietor's name must include information verifying that person really is the sole proprietor. The application itself must contain a statement of ownership and the names and official positions of all employees who are listed qualified individuals, and the applicant must agree in writing to report any addition or loss of a listed qualified individual to the Board within five days.
Continuing education: eight hours, four hours, and half in a classroom
Every listed qualified individual must complete continuing education for each annual license period in order to renew the license they are listed on. The hours depend on the classification. Qualified individuals listed on a license in the Unlimited, Intermediate, Limited or SP-SFD classification must complete at least eight hours of approved continuing education. Qualified individuals listed on any of the other special restricted licenses, EL, ES, FALV, PH, SP and WP, must complete four hours. Half of it has to be in a room. Effective for renewals on or after July 1, 2008, all persons seeking to renew qualification must demonstrate that a minimum of one-half the hours for each annual license period were obtained by in-person classroom or seminar attendance. The Board frames that as eight classroom hours or four classroom plus four online for the higher group, and four classroom or two plus two for the special restricted group. New qualified individuals owe an extra course. Rule .1101(a) requires every new qualifier to complete a free four-hour Laws and Rules Course conducted by Board staff, either within 12 months after becoming a qualified individual or in the 90 days before it. That course satisfies four of the contact hours required for the initial renewal. Extra hours carry forward. G.S. 87-44.1 caps the requirement at 10 hours per 12 months, allows a carry forward of not more than two additional years of the annual requirement, and lets the Board waive the requirement for certified illness or undue hardship. Rule .1104(a) governs the carry forward. No credit is given for courses attended before qualifying by examination.
Reciprocity, and the two Board lists that do not match
G.S. 87-50 lets the Board grant licenses of the same or equivalent classification to electrical contractors licensed by other states without written examination, to the extent those states provide for similar action, on satisfactory proof that the applicant's qualifications are equal to those of a North Carolina holder and on payment of the required fee. The Board's reciprocity page names ten states with formal agreements: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. Rule .0701 prints a list of state reciprocal agreements currently in effect that names eleven: the same ten plus Louisiana. Both are published by the Board and this page reports both rather than picking one. The conditions are in Rule .0701(a). The applicant must furnish a written statement from the other state's licensing board certifying a current license. The proposed qualified individual must be the same individual who is duly qualified on that out-of-state license. The application must be made on the Board's reciprocity form. Except for the written examination, the applicant must satisfy everything in Rule Sections .0200, .0300 and .0400 for the classification requested. The annual license fee must be paid. And the classification applied for must be one the agreement treats as equivalent. Subsection (e) is the line that catches people: in the absence of a current reciprocity agreement between the other state's board and this Board, there is no waiver of examination. Expiration and renewal for a reciprocal license work exactly as for any other, under G.S. 87-44 and Rule .0405.
The neighboring states route that opened in October 2025
There is a second, newer door, and it is not a reciprocity agreement. G.S. 93B-15.3, which the Board publishes among its laws, requires occupational licensing boards to issue a license to an applicant who establishes residence in North Carolina and satisfies a list of conditions. The first condition names five states. The applicant must currently be licensed, certified or registered in Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia or West Virginia in the discipline applied for, at the same or substantially equivalent practice level as determined by the board. The rest of the list runs: licensed in one or more of those states for at least one year; passed an examination required for that license where an examination was required; in good standing in every United States jurisdiction where the applicant holds or has ever held a license; has never voluntarily surrendered or had revoked a license in any United States jurisdiction as a result of unprofessional conduct in the profession; demonstrates competency through methods determined by the board, which may include the education or work experience minimums in force in the originating state at the time; has no active or pending disciplinary actions elsewhere; has no disqualifying criminal history under G.S. 93B-8.1; and has paid all applicable fees. Subsection (f) limits the result: a license granted this way is valid only in North Carolina. Subsection (h) preserves the ordinary route, and subsection (e) preserves existing reciprocity agreements, so this sits alongside the ten or eleven state agreements rather than replacing them. The act became effective October 1, 2025 and applies to applications received on or after that date. Subsection (d) requires each board to publish its specific criteria on its website.
Sourcesncbeec.org
Penalties: a Class 2 misdemeanor, $1,000, and the Board's attorney fee
G.S. 87-48(a) is the criminal provision. Any person, partnership, firm or corporation who violates any provision of Article 4 or any Board rule, or who engages or offers to engage in the business of installing, maintaining, altering or repairing electric wiring, devices, appliances or equipment in North Carolina without first having obtained a license, shall be guilty of a Class 2 misdemeanor. The Board can also go to court. Subsection (b) lets it apply for a restraining order and injunction, and says relief may be granted regardless of whether criminal prosecution is instituted. Subsection (c) is the expensive part: when the Board prevails, the court shall award it its reasonable attorney's fee not to exceed five thousand dollars ($5,000) plus the costs of obtaining relief and of the investigation and prosecution. Subsection (d) bars an examination applicant who has not paid such an award from taking any Board examination until it is satisfied. G.S. 87-47(a1) lists the prohibited activities: offering to engage or engaging in electrical contracting without being licensed; selling, transferring or assigning a license, whether or not for a fee; aiding or abetting an unlicensed person to engage in electrical contracting; conviction of a crime involving fraud or moral turpitude; fraud or misrepresentation to obtain certification, obtain or renew a license, or practise; false or misleading advertising; and malpractice, unethical conduct, fraud, deceit, gross negligence, gross incompetence or gross misconduct. Subsection (a2) gives the Board nine penalties from reprimand to revocation. Subsection (a3) adds a civil penalty of not more than one thousand dollars ($1,000). A hearing must be requested within 20 days of the notice of violation. Reinstatement after revocation needs one year and a majority vote.
Sourcesncbeec.org 1ncbeec.org 2
Advertising, the exact name rule, and the certificate on your wall
This is where North Carolina is stricter than most contractors realize, and the rule is one sentence long. Rule .0402(b) governs the name in which business must be conducted: all electrical contracting business, including all business advertising and the submission of all documents and papers, conducted in North Carolina by a licensee of the Board shall be conducted in the exact name in which the electrical contracting license is issued. Not a shortened version, not a marketing name, the exact name. Rule .0402(a) explains why the Board cares. The name a license is issued in must be distinguishable on the Board's records from any name already licensed, tested by deleting spaces, punctuation, articles, prepositions, conjunctions and the words corporation, incorporated, company or limited. Substituting a numeral for the word representing the same numeral does not make a name distinguishable. Changing the company name means a reissuance, which changes the expiration and renewal date. G.S. 87-47(a1)(6) makes engaging in false or misleading advertising a prohibited activity, carrying the same nine penalties and the same $1,000 civil penalty as unlicensed contracting. Display is statutory. G.S. 87-43 requires every person, partnership, firm or corporation engaging in the business of electrical contracting to display a current certificate of license in its principal place of business and in each branch place of business it operates. The Board's licensing page repeats it and sells a $15.00 duplicate for the ones that go missing. Rule .0407 explains the suffix a customer sees on your number: L, I, U, SP-SFD, or SP with further letters for each special restricted class.
Permits, the license number rule, and the ten day inspection duty
Two rules in Section .0900 turn permit handling into a licensing question rather than a paperwork question. Rule .0909(a) requires a licensee to ensure that a permit is obtained from the local Code Enforcement official before commencing any work for which a Board license is required, and to ensure that a request for final inspection is made by the licensee, the general contractor or the owner within 10 days of completion, absent agreement with both the owner and the local official. The licensee is not relieved of responsibility to arrange inspection until a certificate of compliance or the equivalent is obtained, or the licensee has clear and convincing evidence of the effort to obtain one. Rule .0909(b) is the one to read before lending your number. A licensed contractor shall not allow a permit to be obtained, or the license number to appear upon a permit, except for work which the licensee or the licensee's employees perform, over which the licensee will provide general supervision until completion, for which the licensee holds an executed contract with the licensed general contractor or property owner, and for which the licensee receives all contractual payments. Subsection (c) states the consequence: failing to comply with those permit and inspection obligations is treated by the Board as evidence of malpractice, gross incompetence or gross misconduct. Rule .0907(c) defines the supervision that sits behind all of it. Supervision within the meaning of G.S. 87-43 means the degree of attendance, participation and oversight necessary to ensure the project is carried out in a workmanlike manner, and means active onsite review of the work by a qualified individual while the work is in progress.
Sourcesncbeec.org
Which NEC edition North Carolina actually enforces
The North Carolina State Electrical Code is an adopted edition of the National Electrical Code supplemented by state amendments, published by the Office of State Fire Marshal. The current code is the 2020 State Electrical Code, the 2020 NEC with state amendments, effective November 1, 2021. It was accepted by the Building Code Council on June 8, 2021 and by the Rules Review Commission on October 21, 2021. It excludes one- and two-family dwellings, by way of Amendments 10.1 and 10.2. The Board explained the split when it happened. Because the Rules Review Commission accepted the Building Code Council's modification, the 2020 State Electrical Code took effect on November 1, 2021 and is not applicable to one- and two-family dwellings, and the 2017 State Electrical Code, the 2017 NEC with 2017 state amendments, remains effective for one- and two-family dwellings including accessory structures such as swimming pools and photovoltaic equipment. The Board warned against calling the 2017 NEC the residential code and the 2020 NEC the commercial code, because condominiums and apartments are regulated by the 2020 State Electrical Code. The next edition is written but not in force. The Office of State Fire Marshal lists the 2023 State Electrical Code, the 2023 NEC with state amendments, as accepted by the Building Code Council on December 12, 2023 and by the Rules Review Commission on February 28, 2024, with an effective date of indefinite delay, delayed from an original adoption date of January 1, 2025 by Session Law 2025-2, House Bill 47, Section 5.12. When it does take effect it applies to all occupancies including single-family dwellings. The licensing exam still tests the 2020 NEC.
Charlotte, Raleigh, and how a customer checks you
The license is statewide. The permit and the inspector are local, and the two largest metros run different systems. In Charlotte, Mecklenburg County Code Enforcement handles permitting and inspection from LUESA at 2145 Suttle Ave. Its Trade Internet Permitting system lets the primary contractor submit, pay for and print a permit for work that does not require a building permit, 24 hours a day, and request inspections as soon as the work is done. The county sets out who the primary contractor is: the mechanical contractor where a project needs mechanical, electrical and plumbing work; the plumbing contractor for electric water heater change-outs; and the electrical contractor only on projects needing no mechanical or plumbing work, such as a service upgrade. Sub-permit fees on equipment change-outs at one and two family dwellings are reduced to 50 percent of the primary trade fee. In Raleigh, the Planning and Development department requires registration in the permit portal before you can manage a project, pay fees or schedule inspections, and requires all general contractor and subcontractor information to be entered in the portal at submission. A homeowner acting as their own contractor must file an Owner Exemption Affidavit. Electrical service upgrades, added circuits or outlets, switches, lights and interior vehicle charging stations are named as permit work. Verification is easy to point customers at. The Board runs a public license search at arls-public.ncbeec.org, and G.S. 87-43 requires the registry of all licenses to be kept open for public inspection during ordinary business hours. Complaints go to the Board in writing, and a field investigator is assigned to each case.
Sourcescode.mecknc.gov 1code.mecknc.gov 2raleighnc.gov 3arls-public.ncbeec.org 4ncbeec.org 5ncbeec.org 6
What we could not confirm
These are common details other guides publish about North Carolina, but we could not verify them from the agency source. Confirm them directly before relying on them.
- Any requirement to carry general liability insurance or workers compensation as a condition of a North Carolina electrical contracting license. G.S. Chapter 87 Article 4 and 21 NCAC 18B require a bonding ability statement and state no insurance minimum, so none is published here.
- Any requirement to put the electrical contracting license number on vehicles, signage, written estimates or a website. Rule .0402(b) governs the name used in advertising and G.S. 87-43 governs display of the certificate at the place of business, but no rule naming vehicles, estimates or websites was found in the Board's published law and rules.
- Mecklenburg County and City of Raleigh electrical permit fee amounts. Both jurisdictions publish fee schedules as separate downloads that could not be retrieved for this page, so no city or county figure is stated.
- A current count of licensed North Carolina electrical contractors or certified qualified individuals. The Board publishes no total, and sells a licensee listing as a csv file for $50.00 instead.
- The number of hours of the free Laws and Rules Course that count toward renewals after the first. Rule .1101(a) states only that the course satisfies four of the required contact hours for the initial renewal of the individual's qualification.
- Whether the 2017 or the 2020 State Electrical Code currently governs one- and two-family dwellings. The Office of State Fire Marshal lists the 2017 State Electrical Code as effective June 12, 2018 through October 31, 2021, while the Board's status notice states the 2017 code remains effective for one- and two-family dwellings because the 2020 code excludes them, so both positions are reported and no single answer is stated.
North Carolina electrical licensing questions
Is the license issued to me or to my company?
To the business. The individual credential is the qualified individual certification, and at least one qualified individual must be listed on the license and regularly on active duty at each separate place of business.
What are the license classifications?
Ten. Limited, Intermediate and Unlimited, which are set by project value, plus seven special restricted classes: SP-SFD, SP-FA/LV, SP-PH, SP-SP, SP-WP, SP-ES and SP-EL.
What project value can a Limited license take?
The Board's licensing page sets a single project at not more than $60,000 with equipment rated at not more than 600 volts. G.S. 87-43.3 sets the statutory ceiling at $100,000 and states 1,000 volts, and the Board notes the $60,000 figure comes from Rule .0303(4).
How many hours of experience does an Unlimited license need?
At least 9,000 hours, of which at least 8,000 must be primary experience gained by direct installation of electrical wiring and equipment governed by the NEC. Two thousand hours equals one creditable year.
What does the exam cost and what is a passing grade?
The application and exam fee is $125.00 for all classifications and a minimum grade of 70 passes. The exam is computer based, open book, and scored the same day.
What happens if I fail?
You must wait three months before retaking the same classification. You may apply immediately for a different classification if you meet its experience requirement. A one-time supervised review of the failed exam costs $25.00.
Do I have to post a bond?
No. Intermediate and Unlimited applicants furnish a bonding ability statement from a bonding company licensed in North Carolina, or a line of credit letter from a bank, or other financial information the Board specifically approves.
How much continuing education do I need?
Eight hours a year for a qualified individual listed on an Unlimited, Intermediate, Limited or SP-SFD license, and four hours for the other special restricted classes. At least half must be in-person classroom or seminar attendance.
Which states does North Carolina reciprocate with?
The Board's reciprocity page lists Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia. Rule .0701 lists the same ten plus Louisiana. Separately, G.S. 93B-15.3 opened a residence-based route for licensees from Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia or West Virginia on October 1, 2025.
Can I advertise under a trading name?
No. Rule .0402(b) requires all electrical contracting business, including all business advertising and the submission of all documents and papers, to be conducted in the exact name in which the license is issued. False or misleading advertising is a separately prohibited activity under G.S. 87-47(a1)(6).
Which NEC edition applies?
The 2020 State Electrical Code, the 2020 NEC with state amendments, effective November 1, 2021, excluding one- and two-family dwellings, for which the 2017 State Electrical Code remains. The 2023 State Electrical Code is accepted but its effective date is an indefinite delay.
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