Arizona Electrical Contractor Licenses
Arizona has no statewide journeyman electrician license. The state licenses electrical contractors through the Arizona Registrar of Contractors.
Source: Arizona Registrar of Contractors, checked 2026-10-07
Page last reviewed 2026-10-05 against official sources. Confirm with the issuing authority before applying.
How electrical licensing works in Arizona
Arizona licenses electrical contractors through the Arizona Registrar of Contractors (ROC). ROC issues separate residential, commercial, and dual licenses for each trade. For electrical contracting, this page covers R-11 Electrical, C-11 Electrical, and CR-11 Electrical. The license belongs to the sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company, or corporation, not to the qualifying party. The qualifying party is the person named on the license who supplies the required experience, knowledge, skills, and exams. Everyone listed on an application must be at least 18.
Credential-specific requirements
Requirements differ by credential. Expand any credential for the work or business activity you plan to perform. Issued by Arizona Registrar of Contractors unless noted.
Arizona R-11 Electrical Contractor License State specialty residential contractor-business license
- Issuing authority
- Arizona Registrar of Contractors →
- Scope of work
- Install and repair residential electrical systems.
- Experience or qualification
- The qualifying party must have at least four years of practical or management trade experience, at least two of them within the last ten years. Technical training at an accredited college or university, or in a manufacturer's accredited training program, may substitute for no more than two of the four years. ROC may reduce the four-year requirement when custom and usage in the craft show it is excessive, and it waives work-experience documentation for a person who is or was a qualifying party in Arizona in the same classification.
- Examination
- The qualifying party must pass the Arizona Statutes and Rules Training Course and Exam (SRE) and the classification's trade exam with at least 70 percent, unless a waiver applies. Instead of the Arizona ROC trade exam, the qualifying party may take the NASCLA Electrical Examination Program. Arizona has no direct reciprocity, but ROC accepts an out-of-state request to waive the trade exam and experience when the qualifying party held a comparable license obtained by trade examination in another state within the past five years; ROC reviews the request with the completed license application and does not pre-approve waivers. ROC sources word the SRE waiver differently: one passage says the SRE cannot be waived, another says it can be waived only for a person who was the qualifying party on an Arizona license within the past five years, and A.R.S. 32-1122(F) requires the examination waiver for a person who was the qualifying party for an Arizona licensee in the same classification within the preceding five years.
- Initial fee
- ROC's standard two-year specialty residential new-license total is $720: an $80 application fee, $270 license fee, and $370 Recovery Fund assessment. A residential contractor must either pay into the Residential Contractors' Recovery Fund or post a second $200,000 bond, in addition to a residential license bond of $4,250 to $100,000. The total does not include exam fees: $61 for the online SRE (paid to Gmetrix), $66 for the trade exam (paid to PSI), or $116 for the NASCLA electrical exam.
- Renewal
- Renew every two years. ROC's specialty residential renewal total is $540: a $270 license fee and $270 Recovery Fund assessment. A $50 late-renewal fee applies. A license not renewed is suspended by law the next business day after its renewal date; it may be reactivated within one year by filing the renewal application and fee plus $50, and after more than one year a new application and new license are required. To renew, an LLC or corporation must be active and in good standing with the Arizona Corporation Commission, the license bond must be active and cover the annual volume, and workers' compensation information or an exemption is required. Renewal is online through the ROC portal, or by mail or in person.
- Official application
- Apply / forms →
Arizona C-11 Electrical Contractor License State specialty commercial contractor-business license
- Issuing authority
- Arizona Registrar of Contractors →
- Scope of work
- Install, alter, and repair wiring, related electrical material, and equipment used to generate, transmit, or use electrical energy at less than 600 volts. The classification includes overhead electrical wiring on public rights-of-way for signs and street decorations and underground distribution systems below 600 volts serving private property. It also covers outside, overhead, underground, and building electrical construction below 600 volts, but otherwise does not permit work in public rights-of-way.
- Experience or qualification
- The qualifying party must have at least four years of practical or management trade experience, at least two of them within the last ten years. Technical training at an accredited college or university, or in a manufacturer's accredited training program, may substitute for no more than two of the four years. ROC may reduce the four-year requirement when custom and usage in the craft show it is excessive, and it waives work-experience documentation for a person who is or was a qualifying party in Arizona in the same classification.
- Examination
- The qualifying party must pass the Arizona Statutes and Rules Training Course and Exam (SRE) and the classification's trade exam with at least 70 percent, unless a waiver applies. Instead of the Arizona ROC trade exam, the qualifying party may take the NASCLA Electrical Examination Program. Arizona has no direct reciprocity, but ROC accepts an out-of-state request to waive the trade exam and experience when the qualifying party held a comparable license obtained by trade examination in another state within the past five years; ROC reviews the request with the completed license application and does not pre-approve waivers. ROC sources word the SRE waiver differently: one passage says the SRE cannot be waived, another says it can be waived only for a person who was the qualifying party on an Arizona license within the past five years, and A.R.S. 32-1122(F) requires the examination waiver for a person who was the qualifying party for an Arizona licensee in the same classification within the preceding five years.
- Initial fee
- ROC's standard two-year specialty commercial new-license total is $580: a $100 application fee, $480 license fee, and $0 Recovery Fund assessment. The total does not include exam fees: $61 for the online SRE (paid to Gmetrix), $66 for the trade exam (paid to PSI), or $116 for the NASCLA electrical exam.
- Renewal
- Renew every two years. ROC's specialty commercial renewal total is $480, with a $0 Recovery Fund assessment. A $50 late-renewal fee applies. A license not renewed is suspended by law the next business day after its renewal date; it may be reactivated within one year by filing the renewal application and fee plus $50, and after more than one year a new application and new license are required. To renew, an LLC or corporation must be active and in good standing with the Arizona Corporation Commission, the license bond must be active and cover the annual volume, and workers' compensation information or an exemption is required. Renewal is online through the ROC portal, or by mail or in person.
- Official application
- Apply / forms →
Arizona CR-11 Electrical Contractor License State specialty dual residential-and-commercial contractor-business license
- Issuing authority
- Arizona Registrar of Contractors →
- Scope of work
- Perform the complete commercial C-11 Electrical and residential R-11 Electrical scopes under one dual classification.
- Experience or qualification
- The qualifying party must have at least four years of practical or management trade experience, at least two of them within the last ten years. Technical training at an accredited college or university, or in a manufacturer's accredited training program, may substitute for no more than two of the four years. ROC may reduce the four-year requirement when custom and usage in the craft show it is excessive, and it waives work-experience documentation for a person who is or was a qualifying party in Arizona in the same classification.
- Examination
- The qualifying party must pass the Arizona Statutes and Rules Training Course and Exam (SRE) and the classification's trade exam with at least 70 percent, unless a waiver applies. Instead of the Arizona ROC trade exam, the qualifying party may take the NASCLA Electrical Examination Program. Arizona has no direct reciprocity, but ROC accepts an out-of-state request to waive the trade exam and experience when the qualifying party held a comparable license obtained by trade examination in another state within the past five years; ROC reviews the request with the completed license application and does not pre-approve waivers. ROC sources word the SRE waiver differently: one passage says the SRE cannot be waived, another says it can be waived only for a person who was the qualifying party on an Arizona license within the past five years, and A.R.S. 32-1122(F) requires the examination waiver for a person who was the qualifying party for an Arizona licensee in the same classification within the preceding five years.
- Initial fee
- ROC's standard two-year specialty dual new-license total is $850: a $100 application fee, $380 license fee, and $370 Recovery Fund assessment. A residential contractor must either pay into the Residential Contractors' Recovery Fund or post a second $200,000 bond, in addition to a residential license bond of $4,250 to $100,000. The total does not include exam fees: $61 for the online SRE (paid to Gmetrix), $66 for the trade exam (paid to PSI), or $116 for the NASCLA electrical exam.
- Renewal
- Renew every two years. ROC's specialty dual renewal total is $650: a $380 license fee and $270 Recovery Fund assessment. A $50 late-renewal fee applies. A license not renewed is suspended by law the next business day after its renewal date; it may be reactivated within one year by filing the renewal application and fee plus $50, and after more than one year a new application and new license are required. To renew, an LLC or corporation must be active and in good standing with the Arizona Corporation Commission, the license bond must be active and cover the annual volume, and workers' compensation information or an exemption is required. Renewal is online through the ROC portal, or by mail or in person.
- Official application
- Apply / forms →
Licensed in another state?
No reviewed route into Arizona is listed yet. Ask Arizona Registrar of Contractors how it treats a license from another state.
Choose the electrical classification by project scope
R-11 covers installing and repairing residential electrical systems. C-11 covers commercial electrical work below 600 volts, including overhead sign and street-decoration wiring on public rights-of-way and underground distribution serving private property, but otherwise no work in public rights-of-way. CR-11 combines the C-11 and R-11 scopes in one dual classification.
Qualifying party, experience, and examinations
The qualifying party ordinarily needs four years of practical or management trade experience, two of them within the last ten years. Accredited technical training may substitute for no more than two years, and ROC may reduce the four-year requirement when custom and usage show it is excessive. A licensee with five years of valid, active contracting authority may apply for an exemption from the qualifying-party requirement if it meets the statute's ownership-transfer and violation conditions.
The qualifying party must pass the Arizona Statutes and Rules Training Course and Exam (SRE) and the trade exam with at least 70 percent unless a waiver applies. R-11, C-11, and CR-11 applicants may take the NASCLA Electrical Examination Program instead of the Arizona ROC trade exam. Arizona has no direct reciprocity with any state, but ROC accepts out-of-state requests to waive the trade exam and experience for a comparable license obtained by examination within the past five years.
Fees and the Residential Contractors' Recovery Fund
ROC's published standard fees are for a two-year license. New-license totals are $720 for R-11, $580 for C-11, and $850 for CR-11; renewal totals are $540, $480, and $650. R-11 and CR-11 totals include a Recovery Fund assessment; C-11 has none. A residential contractor must either pay into the Recovery Fund or post a second $200,000 bond, so confirm the assessment-or-bond treatment that applies. Exam fees are separate: $61 for the online SRE, $66 for a trade exam, and $116 for the NASCLA electrical exam.
Statewide contractor and local worker boundary
These are contractor-business licenses, not statewide apprentice, journeyman, or master-electrician worker licenses. Phoenix separately licenses journeymen and apprentices for plumbing and mechanical work, including plumber, mechanical, and gas-fitter apprentices. Check the relevant municipality for local worker requirements.
Apply, renew, and verify
Apply and renew through ROC's Online Customer Portal; applications may also be mailed to P.O. Box 6748, Phoenix, AZ 85005-6748 or delivered to 1700 W. Washington Street, Suite 105, Phoenix. Use ROC Contractor Search to check a license and classification before hiring. Confirm the classification, current fees, bond or Recovery Fund treatment, and qualifying-party route with ROC before relying on this summary.
View Application Information → License Lookup →
Cite this page
- Title
- Arizona Electrical Contractor Licenses
- URL
- https://tradesdir.com/electrical/licensing/arizona
- Information checked
- 2026-10-05
Suggested citation: Arizona Electrical Contractor Licenses. Trades Directory. https://tradesdir.com/electrical/licensing/arizona (information checked 2026-10-05).