Colorado Electrician License Requirements

Colorado's State Electrical Board issues three statewide electrician licenses (residential wireman, journeyman and master), plus apprentice and electrical contractor registrations. Here's what each one requires now, including the 2025 law changes and the switch to the 2026 NEC on exams. Last verified October 1, 2026.

Requirements at a glance

Sources: Colorado State Electrical Board, Licensure Requirements; SB25-165 as enacted, amending C.R.S. 12-115-110.

If you've read other guides: a 2025 law (SB25-165) set the journeyman commercial/industrial requirement at 2,000 hours over at least two years and stretched the 288-hour training window from four years to eight. Older pages still show different numbers.

Which license fits where you are now

• Just starting out? Register as an electrical apprentice. Your hours only help you later if they're documented.
• Residential work only, 4,000 hours over 2+ years? You're working toward the residential wireman license.
• 8,000 hours over 4+ years, 2,000 of them commercial/industrial, plus the applicable 288 training hours? You're at the point to check the journeyman exam and application requirements.
• Licensed journeyman adding planning, layout and supervision experience? You're on the master path.
• Licensed in another state? Check journeyman reciprocity or endorsement before you assume you're starting over.
• Opening a business? The company needs an electrical contractor registration and a responsible master electrician.

Am I eligible yet? License-by-license checklists

Check off what you have. Every item comes from Colorado's published requirements. One unchecked box means you're not eligible yet.

Checklist clarification: These are descriptive task checklists, not a universal eligibility test: only requirements within the path that applies to you matter. The master rows are alternatives, not four mandatory paths. For residential wireman, the two-year minimum applies to the hours route; the separate accredited-training route is two years of training. These checkboxes do not determine eligibility; the Board decides whether an application qualifies. (C.R.S. 12-115-110; Colorado State Electrical Board requirements)

Residential wireman

• 4,000 hours of practical experience wiring one-, two-, three- and four-family dwellings, or two years of accredited training
• If using hours: earned over at least 2 years
• Hours documented on the Board's Affidavit of Experience, signed for the electrical contractor you worked under
• Passed the PSI Residential Wireman exam

Journeyman electrician

• 8,000 hours of apprenticeship or practical experience
• Earned over at least 4 years
• At least 2,000 of those hours were commercial, industrial or substantially similar work, earned over at least 2 years
• 288 hours of training in safety, the NEC and Board-required subjects, shown on a transcript or similar statement
• Those 288 hours fall within the last 8 years of your training, apprenticeship or experience (older training: see What changed)
• Hours documented on the Affidavit of Experience
• Passed the PSI Journeyman exam

The current statute requires the 288 training hours as part of journeyman qualification. The posted Board rule still contains older language tied to apprentice-registration dates and a four-year training window; where that older rule text conflicts with the later 2025 statute, this page uses the statute's current eight-year requirement. (C.R.S. 12-115-110; 3 CCR 710-1, Rule 1.7)

Current Board-rule clarification: The sentence immediately above describing a four-year Board-rule window is historical and superseded. The current official 3 CCR 710-1 rule PDF, version 12606, Rule 1.7(D)(1)(a), also specifies the eight-year lookback; that amendment took effect March 30, 2026.

Master electrician

Colorado's statute is structured around three master-qualification categories, while the Board's application guidance breaks the practical documentation into several paths. Use the path that matches your record, then pass the PSI Master exam when applying by examination:

• Board experience calculation: 10,000 hours earned over at least 5 years
• Engineering path: graduate electrical engineer from an accredited college or university, plus at least 1 year of practical electrical construction experience
• Trade-school/community-college path: graduate of an electrical trade school or community college, plus at least 4 years of practical electrical experience
• Beyond-journeyman path: at least 1 year of practical experience in planning, laying out, supervising and installing electrical wiring, apparatus and equipment beyond the practical experience required for journeyman licensure

Two details that trip up master applicants:

• The 10,000-hour figure is a Board experience calculation, not a fourth statutory category. Rule 1.7 calculates master practical experience as 10,000 hours over at least 5 years; C.R.S. 12-115-110(1) separately states the education and beyond-journeyman qualification categories.
• Don't double-count supervision time. The Board's experience-verification rules require the actual qualifying work and time to be documented; supervising people does not create a second set of hours for the same time worked.

(C.R.S. 12-115-110(1); 3 CCR 710-1, Rule 1.7; Board requirements)

The time floor: overtime can't shorten the wait

Each experience rule has two parts: an hour total and a minimum number of years. You need both.

At a planning pace of 2,000 hours a year (a full-time assumption, not a Board rule):

Worked example: An apprentice works heavy overtime and logs 8,300 hours in 3 years and 4 months. That includes 2,400 commercial hours spread over more than 2 years, plus a finished 288-hour program. The hour totals are met, but the 4-year floor isn't. They can't qualify for journeyman until the 4-year mark.

Part-time runs the other way. At 1,500 hours a year, 8,000 hours takes 8,000 ÷ 1,500 = 5.33 years, or about 5 years and 4 months.

What counts as experience, and how to prove it

Colorado doesn't take your word for your hours. You can't verify your own experience. The Board's Affidavit of Experience is completed for the electrical contractor that supervised your work, and a journeyman can't sign it as a company's signatory. (Board requirements; Board rules, 3 CCR 710-1)

Proof checklist

Collect this as you go, not the week you apply:

• Exact start and end dates for every employer
• Hours and months for each job, not just a job title
• Residential hours kept separate from commercial, industrial or substantially similar hours
• The name of the master electrician or company signatory who will sign for each employer
• Your apprentice registration number and the dates you were registered
• Training certificates or a transcript for your 288 hours, with dates
• An official transcript if you're claiming school credit
• Out-of-state license and exam records if you're applying by reciprocity or endorsement

Board rules tell contractors to keep apprentice records showing exact employment dates and the hours and months of residential and commercial/industrial work, and to hand those records over when you leave or ask for them. Ask for yours each time you change jobs. (3 CCR 710-1, Rule 1.6)

Direct supervision means on site

For apprentice hours, "direct supervision" means the supervising licensed master, journeyman or residential wireman (or a registered photovoltaic installer, for PV work) is physically present at the same address where the apprentice is working. (SB25-165, C.R.S. 12-115-103(2.5))

School and other training credit

• Approved school programs. A graduate electrical engineer, or a graduate of a Board-approved community college or trade school program, gets one year of work-experience credit toward the journeyman or residential wireman requirement. (SB25-165)
• Other training. For other academic, military or PV installation training, the Board may give credit. Since SB25-165, it no longer has to. Don't count on it until the Board approves it.
• What the Board counts as a school. Board rules say a community college degree must be in the electrical field, and apprenticeship training programs aren't the same as trade schools. Submit an official transcript. (3 CCR 710-1, Rule 1.7)
• Your 288 hours are separate. Board rules treat the 288 training hours as in addition to on-the-job experience. Their subjects include grounding and bonding, NEC changes, wiring methods, theory and calculations, and OSHA-based safety training.

Solar (PV) hours

SB25-165 lets some solar work count toward journeyman or residential wireman experience (C.R.S. 12-115-110(6)):

• 2,000 hours as a NABCEP PV installation professional working for, or as, a photovoltaic installer
• Up to 2,000 hours working under a NABCEP PV installation professional, with proof of employment and an affidavit
• Up to 4,000 hours as a NABCEP PV installation professional, if you send payroll records, work orders or similar documents and the Board decides how many qualify

For the second and third routes, every 2 hours worked earns 1 hour of credit.

How to get licensed in Colorado, step by step

1. Register as an apprentice. Create an apprentice account in DPO Online Services. Your electrical contractor must add you to its registration within 30 days of hiring you. Carry your registration card when you work.
2. Build and document your hours. Keep the right mix (for journeyman, 2,000 commercial/industrial hours) and finish your 288 training hours. Use the proof checklist above.
3. Book and pass the PSI exam. You register and pay directly through PSI's Colorado electrical page. PSI's bulletin tells candidates to file the license application after passing, and it warns that a passing score isn't a guarantee of a license.
4. Apply for the license. File the initial application in DPO Online Services with your Affidavit(s) of Experience and, for journeyman, your training transcript. The current license fee is shown in the application.

Also have ready: the identifying information required by the application, including a Social Security number or ITIN as described in the PSI bulletin, plus any additional disclosure form the Board requires for your circumstances. (PSI bulletin; Board homepage)

The Colorado electrical exam (PSI)

Exam facts

Source: PSI Colorado State Electrical Board Candidate Information Bulletin, updated June 18, 2026.

• Fee: $78 per attempt, $73 to retest. PSI fees aren't refundable or transferable and are good for one year from payment. The state license fee is separate.
• Scoring: compensatory. Your total counts, so a strong area can make up for a weaker one.
• Calculator: PSI provides an on-screen calculator.
• Results: shown right after you finish. You can't book a retake the same day, but you can call or go online the next day and retest when a seat opens.
• Rescheduling: cancel at least 2 days ahead or lose the fee.
• ID: one valid, unexpired government photo ID with your signature, matching your registered name.
• Where: PSI centers in Broomfield, Centennial, Colorado Springs, Durango, Englewood, Fort Collins, Grand Junction, Lakewood, Pueblo and Wheat Ridge.

What each exam covers

PSI's question counts per content area. Each exam totals 90 scored questions.

Grounding and bonding is the biggest single area on the journeyman and master exams (14 of 90). PSI also tells candidates to review electrical theory and common formulas, because the calculation questions expect you to use them.

For original, unofficial practice, try the free journeyman electrician practice test or the free master electrician practice test, and keep the electrician exam formula sheet nearby. For a full plan, see the journeyman exam study guide.

Open book, but not your book

PSI gives you the NEC and a Formula Page at the test center. You can't write in, highlight, underline or tab them, and you can't bring other materials. Your own tabbed code book stays home, so practice looking things up in a clean, unmarked 2026 NEC.

PSI's bulletin says the 2023 code book can be provided on request until December 1, 2026. Questions have followed the 2026 NEC since August 1, 2026, so study the 2026 edition either way.

Colorado's Board rules treat exam content and answers as proprietary. Licensees who share or sell exam content can be disciplined.

Apprentice rules you need to follow

• Registration is required. Your employer registers you within 30 days of hiring you and removes you within 30 days after you leave. Your registration number stays the same when you change employers. (Apprentice information)
• Direct supervision, always. Apprentices may do electrical wiring only under the direct supervision of a licensed electrician who is on site. (C.R.S. 12-115-115)
• The 3-to-1 ratio. One licensed electrician may directly supervise no more than three apprentices at a job site.
• Carry your card. Inspectors can ask anyone doing electrical work to show a current license or apprentice registration.
• Yearly hour reports. By January 1 each year, employers and registered apprenticeship programs report each apprentice's practical and classroom hours to the Board.
• The six-year rule has conditions. An apprentice who has been registered for at least six years and has completed 8,000 hours of practical training and meets the other journeyman-licensure requirements must take the journeyman exam at least once every three years until passing. The statute provides an exemption process after two consecutive three-year periods in which the apprentice took and failed the exam; failure to meet the testing duty can lead to suspension of the apprentice registration. (C.R.S. 12-115-115)
• Residential wiremen on commercial jobs. A residential wireman working on commercial or industrial jobs, or on residential buildings with more than four units, must be registered as an apprentice and supervised by a journeyman or master. (Apprentice information)

Licensed in another state? Reciprocity and endorsement

Moving to Colorado doesn't automatically mean starting over. But reciprocity is only one route, and it only covers journeyman.

Reciprocity: journeyman only. Colorado's current application guidance lists journeyman agreements with 14 states: Alaska, Arkansas, Idaho, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah and Wyoming. Board Rule 1.7 says the qualifying out-of-state license must be current, active and in good standing, allow the holder to work as a journeyman, and have been earned through a state examination rather than grandfathering. The Board's application guidance also states the license must have been held for at least one year.

If you qualify, the reciprocity route can lead to a Colorado journeyman license without the Colorado written exam. Colorado doesn't grant a master license by reciprocity. (Board requirements; 3 CCR 710-1, Rule 1.7(F))

Endorsement: all license levels. Board Rule 1.7(E) provides a separate endorsement route for a corresponding active out-of-state residential, journeyman or master license when the applicant also has the required apprenticeship or experience and passed a comparable written state electrical examination based on the NEC edition current when the Colorado application is submitted. Qualifying experience may have been accumulated in more than one state. Because Colorado's code edition changed in 2026 and older Board application text may lag that change, confirm how the Board is applying the exam-edition comparison before paying an endorsement fee.

No agreement with your state? Check endorsement first. If neither route fits, you can still use documented out-of-state experience when applying by examination.

For the current list and conditions, use the Colorado State Electrical Board's application requirements.

Electrical contractor registration

A worker's license and a business registration aren't the same thing. To do electrical contracting in Colorado, the business must register with the Board as an electrical contractor:

• A master is required. The owner holds a master license, or the company employs a licensed master who supervises all its electrical work. The master and the owner (if they're different people) sign an Acknowledgment of Responsibility.
• One company per master. A master can be the responsible master for only one contractor, must work there full time, and must tell the Board within 15 days of leaving that role.
• Losing your master. Board rules give a contractor 20 days to hire a new master. After that, the registration goes inactive until a master is hired.
• Workers' comp and unemployment. You must show you comply with Colorado's workers' compensation and unemployment insurance laws.
• Permits are separate. Board rules issue wiring permits in the name of a qualified homeowner or the registered contractor doing the work. A contractor can't buy a permit for another company or work under someone else's permit, except a subcontractor working under the prime contractor's permit.
• Local rules still apply. Cities and counties can add their own contractor licensing and permit steps.

(Board requirements; C.R.S. 12-115-110(5); 3 CCR 710-1, Rules 1.9 and 1.13)

Renewal, continuing education and lapsed licenses

• Cycle: electrician licenses and electrical contractor registrations renew every three years. The 2026 cycle expired September 30, 2026; the regular three-year cadence places the next cycle in 2029.
• Grace period: Board rules allow 60 days to renew late, with a delinquency fee. Colorado's 2026 legislative fiscal note states that this renewal window runs through November 30, 2026. (3 CCR 710-1, Rule 1.13; Colorado legislative fiscal note, SB26-093)
• Continuing education (CE): 24 hours per three-year period for active residential wiremen, journeymen and masters. (Board CE page)
  • At least 4 hours on NEC changes
  • No more than 4 hours of safety
  • Other hours in grounding and bonding, wiring methods, or theory and calculations
  • Courses from providers on the Board's attesting-provider list are the straightforward credit path; Rule 1.13 also gives the Board discretion to accept or reject credit from an unlisted provider
• First renewal after an exam: no CE is due for the first renewal of a license you got by passing the exam.
• Records: keep CE certificates for at least 7 years. Don't send them unless the Board asks.
• More than one license: CE for your highest license covers the lower ones.
• Lapsed more than 60 days: Board rules require 24 CE hours to reinstate a license expired under two years. After two years, you show competency by passing the state exam, holding an active license in a reciprocal state, holding an active license elsewhere plus 24 CE hours, or another Board-approved way. (3 CCR 710-1, Rule 1.13)

What changed in 2025–2026

Sources: SB25-165; Board news on SB25-165; Board rule history, 3 CCR 710-1; PSI bulletin.

Numbers you'll see elsewhere that are out of date

Common questions

Can I take the exam before I finish my hours? PSI registers candidates directly, with no Board approval step first. A passing score still isn't a license. You can't be licensed until you meet every requirement for your level, including the time floor.

Do residential hours count toward journeyman? Residential work can count toward the 8,000 hours. You still need 2,000 commercial/industrial hours over at least 2 years. A residential wireman who wants commercial hours works those jobs as a registered apprentice under a journeyman or master.

Does trade school replace hours? Colorado law allows one year of qualifying work-experience credit toward journeyman or residential-wireman requirements for specified electrical-engineering, community-college and trade-school graduates. Other academic, military or PV training may receive credit at the Board's discretion. For journeyman applicants, the 288-hour training requirement is separate from on-the-job experience.

Do I need a master license to start an electrical company? The company needs a master: either you hold the license or you employ a licensed master full time. The business then registers as an electrical contractor.

How do I check whether a Colorado electrician is licensed? Use the Division's free license lookup.

Your next step

• Starting out: register as an apprentice in DPO Online Services.
• Hours and training complete: book your exam with PSI, then apply in DPO Online Services.
• Moving to Colorado: check the Board's reciprocity and endorsement requirements.
• Studying now: start with the free journeyman electrician practice test and the load calculation practice problems.
• Choosing between levels: read journeyman vs. master electrician.

Sources and last verified

Historical verification statement (superseded where corrected below):

Last verified: October 1, 2026. We checked Colorado's current statute, the enacted text of SB25-165, the State Electrical Board rule text and rule history, the PSI Colorado Candidate Information Bulletin (updated June 18, 2026), and official 2026 renewal-cycle material. The posted Rule 1.7 text still contains older four-year training-window language; the later statute sets the current window at eight years.

• Colorado State Electrical Board: Applications, Forms and Licensure Requirements
• Colorado State Electrical Board: Homepage (notices, renewal, CE summary)
• Colorado State Electrical Board: News on SB25-165
• Colorado State Electrical Board: Apprentice Information
• Colorado State Electrical Board: Continuing Education
• Colorado Secretary of State: 3 CCR 710-1, State Electrical Board Rules and version history — 2026 NEC adoption tracked as filing 2026-00171, effective July 15, 2026

Current source-date clarification: The July 15 date in the retained source description above identifies the rule-version filing, not the NEC effective date. Rule 1.5(A) specifies August 1, 2026.

• Colorado Secretary of State: 3 CCR 710-1, official current rules PDF, version 12606 — Rule 1.7(D)(1)(a)'s eight-year amendment took effect March 30, 2026; Rule 1.5(A)'s 2026 NEC took effect August 1, 2026. July 15, 2026 is the rule-version filing date, not the NEC effective date.
• PSI Services: Colorado State Electrical Board Candidate Information Bulletin
• Colorado General Assembly: SB25-165 bill page and enrolled act text
• Colorado Office of Legislative Legal Services: 2026 Colorado Revised Statutes, Title 12
• Colorado General Assembly: SB26-093 fiscal note — 2026 electrical renewal window
• C.R.S. 12-115-110 and 12-115-115 (public reprints; 12-115-110 as amended by SB25-165)

The hours-per-year figures are planning math based on a 2,000-hour full-time year, not Board rules. This page summarizes Colorado's published requirements; the State Electrical Board decides your eligibility. It's general information, not legal advice. Castleport practice resources linked here are original and unofficial. For endorsement and reciprocity, use the Board's live application instructions because code-edition and agreement details can change.

AI-assisted research was used to prepare this page, and it has not had a professional legal review. Our editorial standards explain how we use sources and assistance.

By the Castleport Test Prep Editorial Team.

Castleport Test Prep is an independent exam prep publisher. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or approved by the Colorado State Electrical Board, the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies, PSI Services LLC, or the National Fire Protection Association. Exam, code and credential names identify their subjects; trademarks belong to their respective owners.