Licensing

Electrician Licensing in Michigan

Michigan licenses electricians statewide. The journeyman-level credential is the Electrical Journeyman License, issued by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes. Its standard route requires 8,000 hours of experience; other routes can differ.

Source: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Construction Codes, checked 2026-10-07 · Standard-route hours: Michigan Compiled Laws § 339.5715

Before you start: In Michigan, registration is due after you are hired rather than before you start. Deadline: within 30 days after employment.

Credential: Apprentice Electrician registration
Issued by: Michigan LARA Bureau of Construction Codes (Electrical Administrative Board)
Fee: $15.00 (initial registration; annual, expires August 31)
How to apply: Register with the board on the form the board provides.

Official source · Checked 2026-10-07

Page last reviewed 2026-10-05 against official sources. Confirm with the issuing authority before applying.

How Michigan's system works

The licenses covered on this page include nine permanent registrations or licenses and two temporary-license types. Worker credentials are separate from contractor licenses because they authorize different work and carry different qualification, examination, fee, renewal, and business requirements.

The permanent credentials are Apprentice Electrician, Electrical Journeyman, Master Electrician, Fire Alarm Specialty Apprentice Technician, Fire Alarm Specialty Technician, Sign Specialist, Electrical Contractor, Fire Alarm Contractor, and Sign Specialty Contractor.

Credential-specific requirements

Requirements differ by credential. Expand any credential for the work or business activity you plan to perform. Issued by Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes unless noted.

Apprentice Electrician Registration Supervised apprentice registration

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: May learn and assist with electrical wiring or equipment only under direct personal supervision by an Electrical Journeyman or Master Electrician. One supervisor may oversee no more than three registered apprentices on a jobsite.
Experience or qualification: Register within 30 days after employment and provide proof of participation in a board-approved apprenticeship training program. Article 7 states no minimum age or pre-registration experience requirement.
Examination: No examination.
Initial fee: $15 initial registration.
Renewal: Renew annually by August 31 for $15 with a sponsoring employer and completed or current apprenticeship participation. Statute describes a 30-day renewal window; LARA operational guidance says older records should be renewed and lists a $100 late fee, so confirm late handling with BCC.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Electrical Journeyman License Individual installer license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: Authorizes practical electrical installation or alteration as the holder's principal occupation when working through a licensed Electrical Contractor. May directly supervise no more than three registered electrical apprentices per jobsite.
Experience or qualification: Be at least age 20 and document 8,000 hours over at least four years in qualifying electrical work under direct supervision. A specific recent military-electrician route and discretionary partial military-experience credit also exist.
Examination: PSI open-book examination: 80 questions, 150 minutes, 75% required. After two failures within two years, wait one year after the second failure and complete an approved Michigan-code, fundamentals, or theory course before retesting. MCL 339.5715(3) still requires a one-year wait after a second failure within two years and a board-approved code, fundamentals, or theory course. The PSI bulletin effective August 20, 2026 says master, journeyman, and sign specialist candidates are limited to 2 attempts within 1 year and must reapply with the state after that limit, and the same bulletin also says a failed candidate may retest an unlimited number of times, paying the examination fee for each attempt.
Initial fee: $40 initial license plus the $100 examination fee.
Renewal: Renew annually by December 31. Complete a board-approved code-update course within 12 months after an applicable code update; this is event-triggered, not annual continuing education. LARA lists a $50 late fee, while current Rule 116 states a default $100 fee after 60 days unless otherwise specified; confirm the current late fee with BCC. Renewal fee: $40.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Master Electrician License Individual supervisor and contractor qualifier license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: May supervise electrical wiring and equipment installations and may perform Journeyman work. One Master Electrician license may qualify one Electrical Contractor.
Experience or qualification: Be at least age 22; document 12,000 hours over at least six years under a Master Electrician; and have held an Electrical Journeyman license for at least two years. The current LARA exam page also says the applicant needs 4,000 hours as an electrical journeyman and to have held that license for at least 2 years. MCL 339.5713 requires the 12,000 hours over at least six years and a journeyman license for at least two years. It does not state a separate 4,000-hour block.
Examination: PSI open-book examination: 76 questions, 180 minutes, 75% required. After two failures within two years, wait one year after the second failure and complete an approved Michigan-code, fundamentals, or theory course before retesting. MCL 339.5713(2) still requires a one-year wait after a second failure within two years and a board-approved code, fundamentals, or theory course. The PSI bulletin effective August 20, 2026 says master, journeyman, and sign specialist candidates are limited to 2 attempts within 1 year and must reapply with the state after that limit, and the same bulletin also says a failed candidate may retest an unlimited number of times, paying the examination fee for each attempt.
Initial fee: $50 initial license plus the $100 examination fee.
Renewal: Renew annually by December 31. Complete a board-approved code-update course within 12 months after an applicable code update; this is event-triggered, not annual continuing education. LARA lists a $50 late fee, while current Rule 116 states a default $100 fee after 60 days unless otherwise specified; confirm the current late fee with BCC. Renewal fee: $50.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Electrical Contractor License Contractor and business license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: Authorizes a person or business to engage in electrical contracting. The contractor license does not replace the individual licenses of workers or the qualifying Master Electrician.
Experience or qualification: An individual applicant must personally hold a Michigan Master Electrician license, or the applicant must employ at least one full-time Master Electrician who resides in Michigan and is actively responsible for Michigan-code compliance. A Master may qualify only one Electrical Contractor. Loss of the qualifier requires immediate notice and may place the contractor license on hold or suspension until replacement.
Examination: No contractor examination is currently required; LARA's current notice controls over stale form titles and historical contractor-examination language.
Initial fee: $300 full-cycle initial license, prorated outside the renewal window.
Renewal: Renew every three years by December 31 for $300. No contractor-level code-update course; the qualifying Master must remain current. A qualifying municipal contractor license is recognized statewide, although permit jurisdictions may require reciprocal local registration. BCC registration of a locally issued contractor license for state-enforced territory is $25; transfer instead produces the corresponding ordinary state contractor license.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Fire Alarm Specialty Apprentice Technician Registration Supervised specialty apprentice registration

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: May learn and assist with fire-alarm wiring or equipment only under direct personal supervision by a Fire Alarm Specialty Technician. One technician may oversee no more than two registered apprentices per jobsite.
Experience or qualification: Register within 30 days after employment and provide proof of participation in a bona fide board-approved apprenticeship program. Article 7 states no minimum age or pre-registration experience requirement.
Examination: No examination.
Initial fee: $15 initial registration.
Renewal: Renew annually by August 31 for $15 with the employer FAST and Fire Alarm Contractor information and completed or current related technical instruction. Statutory and operational late-renewal guidance conflict; confirm late handling with BCC.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Fire Alarm Specialty Technician License Individual fire-alarm specialty and qualifier license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: Authorizes design and practical installation or alteration of fire-alarm systems as the holder's principal occupation. May supervise two registered FAST apprentices and may qualify one Fire Alarm Contractor.
Experience or qualification: Be at least age 20 and hold NICET Associate Engineering Technician Level II in fire alarm systems technology or a board-approved equivalent. LARA currently identifies ESA Certified Fire Alarm Technician (CFAT) Level II or higher as an accepted equivalent.
Examination: PSI open-book examination: 36 questions, 90 minutes, 75% required. Article 7 has no FAST-specific two-failure lockout.
Initial fee: $50 initial license plus the $100 examination fee.
Renewal: Renew annually by December 31. Complete a board-approved code-update course within 12 months after an applicable code update; this is event-triggered, not annual continuing education. LARA lists a $50 late fee, while current Rule 116 states a default $100 fee after 60 days unless otherwise specified; confirm the current late fee with BCC. Renewal fee: $50; the update course must cover applicable fire-alarm changes.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Sign Specialist License Individual electric-sign specialty and qualifier license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: Authorizes installation, alteration, or repair of electric signs and statutorily defined related wiring as the holder's principal occupation. May directly supervise no more than two unlicensed sign workers and may serve as a Sign Specialty Contractor qualifier.
Experience or qualification: Be at least age 18; document 4,000 hours over at least two years in qualifying electric-sign work; and complete the specified American Technical Publishers sign-electrician workbook course or another board-approved course. Equivalent education may receive board-determined experience credit, but no fixed conversion is stated. The current LARA exam page says those 4,000 hours and two years are under a Sign Specialist. MCL 339.5729(1)(c) requires the hours to be verified by a contractor licensed under the article that is the applicant's current employer, allows more than one employer, and allows board-determined equivalent-education credit.
Examination: PSI open-book examination: 32 questions, 60 minutes, 75% required. After two failures within two years, complete an approved course covering the Michigan electrical code and electrical fundamentals before retesting; the statute does not add a one-year wait. MCL 339.5729(2) still requires only the approved Michigan-code and fundamentals course after two failures within two years, and it does not add a one-year wait. The PSI bulletin effective August 20, 2026 says master, journeyman, and sign specialist candidates are limited to 2 attempts within 1 year and must reapply with the state after that limit, and the same bulletin also says a failed candidate may retest an unlimited number of times, paying the examination fee for each attempt.
Initial fee: $40 initial license plus the $100 examination fee.
Renewal: Renew annually by December 31. Complete a board-approved code-update course within 12 months after an applicable code update; this is event-triggered, not annual continuing education. LARA lists a $50 late fee, while current Rule 116 states a default $100 fee after 60 days unless otherwise specified; confirm the current late fee with BCC. Renewal fee: $40; the update course covers applicable sign-related code sections.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Fire Alarm Contractor License Specialty contractor and business license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: Authorizes a person or business to engage in fire-alarm-system contracting. The contractor license does not replace individual FAST licenses.
Experience or qualification: An individual applicant must personally hold a Michigan Fire Alarm Specialty Technician license, or the applicant must employ at least one full-time Fire Alarm Specialty Technician who resides in Michigan and is actively responsible for Michigan-code compliance. A FAST may qualify only one Fire Alarm Contractor. Loss of the qualifier requires immediate notice and may place the contractor license on hold or suspension until replacement.
Examination: No contractor examination is currently required; LARA's current notice controls over stale form titles and historical contractor-examination language.
Initial fee: $300 full-cycle initial license, prorated outside the renewal window.
Renewal: Renew every three years by December 31 for $300. No contractor-level code-update course; the qualifying FAST must remain current. A qualifying municipal contractor license is recognized statewide, although permit jurisdictions may require reciprocal local registration. BCC registration of a locally issued contractor license for state-enforced territory is $25; transfer instead produces the corresponding ordinary state contractor license.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Sign Specialty Contractor License Specialty contractor and business license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: Authorizes a person or business to manufacture, install, maintain, connect, or repair electric signs, sign wiring or devices, and dedicated related wiring. An Electrical Contractor does not need this additional license.
Experience or qualification: An individual applicant must personally hold a Michigan Sign Specialist license, or the applicant must employ at least one full-time Sign Specialist who resides in Michigan and is actively responsible for code compliance. Evidence of public-liability insurance is required, but a current official minimum amount is not stated. LARA's one-contractor limit for a Sign Specialist is operational guidance; current MCL 339.5727 and .5729 do not contain the parallel express limit imposed on Master and FAST qualifiers.
Examination: No contractor examination is currently required; use MCL 339.5727 rather than LARA's erroneous FAST/fire-alarm copy in the sign-contractor section.
Initial fee: $200 full-cycle initial license, prorated outside the renewal window.
Renewal: Renew every three years by December 31 for $200 under MCL 339.5707; LARA's combined renewal heading incorrectly says $300. No contractor-level code-update course; the qualifying Sign Specialist must remain current. A qualifying municipal contractor license is recognized statewide, although permit jurisdictions may require reciprocal local registration. BCC registration of a locally issued contractor license for state-enforced territory is $25; transfer instead produces the corresponding ordinary state contractor license.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Temporary License—Out-of-Jurisdiction Applicant Temporary classification-bound license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: Temporarily authorizes only the occupation and limits specified by the department while the individual pursues the corresponding Michigan credential.
Experience or qualification: The department may grant this license to an individual who holds a current equivalent license or registration in another jurisdiction in good standing and has not previously had a license denied, revoked, or suspended. MCL 339.5219(1)(b) says license, not registration. Subsection (1)(a) does cover a current out-of-jurisdiction license or registration in good standing. The individual must apply for the corresponding Michigan credential and meet the statutory conditions.
Examination: No separate examination creates the temporary license. Its end events include examination results, failure to appear, regular issuance, failure to qualify, or change in employment.
Initial fee: No Article 7 temporary-license fee was identified in the reviewed current sources.
Renewal: Nonrenewable. An individual may receive no more than two subsection (1) temporary licenses under a specific article within a four-year period. Each expires on the earliest event listed in MCL 339.5219(2), not on a fixed generic term.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Temporary License—Military Dependent Temporary classification-bound military-dependent license

Issuing authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes →
Scope of work: Temporarily authorizes only the occupation and limits specified by the department for a qualifying military dependent.
Experience or qualification: Available to a dependent of a member of the armed forces—including a reserve component—a dependent of a member of the uniformed services, or a dependent of a veteran, when the applicant holds a current equivalent out-of-jurisdiction credential in good standing.
Examination: No separate examination creates the temporary license; the underlying Michigan credential may have examination requirements unless another statutory waiver applies.
Initial fee: No Article 7 temporary-license fee was identified in the reviewed current sources.
Renewal: Valid for six months and may be renewed once for one additional six-month term when more time is needed to complete Michigan's initial requirements.
Official application: Apply / forms →

Licensed in another state?

No reviewed route into Michigan is listed yet. Ask Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) — Bureau of Construction Codes how it treats a license from another state.

Reviewed and found no reciprocity or exam-waiver agreement for licenses from these states. You can still apply through the standard route:

Utah (source, checked 2026-09-17)

State and municipal licensing coexist

Michigan is a state-and-local system. Qualifying municipalities may issue electrical credentials, and state and qualifying municipal credentials are recognized across municipalities under state law. A permit jurisdiction may still require local registration before issuing permits.

A locally licensed contractor that needs permits where the Bureau of Construction Codes enforces the code may register the local contractor license with the state. That permit-access registration does not create another occupational level.

Specialty licenses have limited scopes

Fire Alarm Specialty Technician and Sign Specialist licenses cover narrower work than general electrical licenses. General electrical contractors, Masters, Journeymen, and registered apprentices may perform specialty installations within the lawful scope of their existing roles without obtaining a duplicate specialty license.

Temporary and out-of-state pathways

Michigan law provides one nonrenewable temporary license for qualifying out-of-jurisdiction applicants and a separate six-month temporary license for qualifying dependents of armed-forces members, uniformed-services members, or veterans. The military-dependent license may be renewed once for another six months when additional time is needed to complete Michigan's initial requirements. The ordinary temporary route is limited to no more than two temporary licenses under the same article in a four-year period. Requirements and available target license classes should be confirmed with LARA because electrician-specific forms, fees, and lookup labels may not be available for every temporary route.

Michigan does not have a general interstate electrical reciprocity agreement. Municipal-to-state transfer, military no-exam issuance, and sign-equivalency routes lead to an existing permanent credential rather than creating additional license levels.

Before you apply

Current LARA materials and older forms do not always agree about contractor examinations, sign-contractor wording, fees, and renewal requirements. Confirm the exact credential, current form, payable fee, permit registration, and examination requirement with LARA or the qualifying municipality before filing. This page was re-verified on October 5, 2026 against Article 7, the LARA exam and renewal pages, the administrative rules, the PSI bulletin effective August 20, 2026, and BCC-801. The PSI bulletin limits master, journeyman, and sign specialist candidates to two attempts within one year and also says a failed candidate may retest without a limit. MCL 339.5713, 339.5715, and 339.5729 still state the two-failures-within-two-years rules.

View Application Information → Michigan LARA License Search →

Cite this page

Title: Electrician Licensing in Michigan
URL: https://tradesdir.com/electrical/licensing/michigan
Information checked: 2026-10-05

Suggested citation: Electrician Licensing in Michigan. Trades Directory. https://tradesdir.com/electrical/licensing/michigan (information checked 2026-10-05).

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