How to Become an Electrician in Idaho

Posted by Martins in how to become an electrician

If you want to work as an electrician in Idaho, you will have to get the appropriate license, as it is required in most states. The licensing options are the following:

You can read the definition of each of these licenses, here .
These electrician licenses are provided by Division of Building Safety (DBS), Idaho . Their contact information can found here .

Electrician Training in Idaho, ID

Idaho Apprentice Electrician License

If you are just starting your career as an electrician, you have to apply and register first as an apprentice electrician. In order to be approved you have to be older than 16 years old. This registration is active for 5 years and it is mandatory in order to proceed and receive the higher electrician licenses.

Note: If after 4 years, you apply for the electrician journeyman license and you receive it, the 1 year left from the apprenticeship (it is active for 5 years) will be credited to your new license.

During your apprenticeship, you will have to acquire 4 years (8000 hours) of on the job experience, while supervised by a journeyman electrician. Experience prior to your registration won’t count towards this requirement.

Note: Failing to obtain the journeyman license in a period of 2 years (after you have obtained the 4 years experience) will result in you having to register again and receive some continuing education from the official providers, before moving further. The continuing education providers can be found here .

You will have to fill out the application and submit it, accompanied with a 50$ registration fee and a copy of your current picture identification. The fee must be paid in personal check, money order or cashier’s check. We recommend paying with a money order, since checks need 10 business days to be cleared. On the application you can also find useful telephone numbers at the end of it and other relevant information to your apprenticeship.

Note: You might also need 576 hours of vocational education, before applying for the journeyman license.

The work hour verification form can be found here .

Idaho Journeyman Electrician License

To apply for journeyman’s license, you must have finished first the required working hours as an apprentice, as stated above, plus 576 hours of classroom education.

As long as these requirements are filled you can proceed and apply for this license.

First, you will have to fill the application form and send it with an attachment of 15$ fee. This amount can be paid in personal check, money order or cashier’s check.

After your approval, you will have to take the test in 60 days, or you will have to apply again.

When you are eligible to take the test, click here (link sto exams, internal) for more information regarding the exams. If you are a registered apprentice and have passed the exams, contact DBS for the required license fee.

After you pass the exams, you will have to apply for your license to be issued. The cost of this is 55$.

The license will be active for 3 years after it is issued and must be renewed every 3 years. Each renewal costs 45$. Online renewal is not active yet, so you will have to either contact their office at 1-800-955-3044 or email them at [email protected] .

Statutes, rules, renewal information, inactive licenses and more information can be found here .

When you become a journeyman electrician, you will be subject to 24 hours of continuing education for every 3 years of holding this license. You can check the continuing education providers and a FAQ . These 24 hours must be divided in the following:

  • 16 hours of code update
  • 8 hours of an industry related course

You must provide proof of these continuing education hours before applying for renewal. The form which will confirm your attended course, can be found here .

Idaho has a reciprocal journeyman license agreement with the following states:

  • Colorado
  • North Dakota
  • Maine
  • Oklahoma
  • Montana
  • Oregon
  • Nebraska
  • Texas
  • New Hampshire
  • Utah
  • New Mexico
  • Wyoming

For more info and useful telephone numbers on reciprocate states, you can check here (mind there is information for both electricians and plumbers on it).

Idaho Master Electrician License

To apply for master electrician’s license, you must have 4 years (or more) of hands-on experience as a journeyman.

As long as this requirement is filled you can proceed and apply for this license.

First, you will have to fill the application form and send it with an attachment of 15$ fee. This amount can be paid in personal check, money order or cashier’s check.

After your approval, you will have to take the test in 60 days, or you will have to apply again.

When you are eligible to take the test, click here (internal link sto exams) for more information regarding the exams. Mind that the required passing score is 75% at this license.

After you pass the exams, you will have to apply for your license to be issued. The cost of this is 65$.

The license will be active for 3 years after it is issued and must be renewed every 3 years. Each renewal costs 45$. Online renewal is not active yet, so you will have to either contact their office at 1-800-955-3044 or email them at [email protected] .

Statutes, rules, renewal information, inactive licenses and more information can be found here .

When you become a master electrician, you will be subject to 24 hours of continuing education for every 3 years of holding this license. You can check the continuing education providers and a FAQ . These 24 hours must be divided in the following:

  • 16 hours of code update
  • 8 hours of an industry related course

You must provide proof of these continuing education hours before applying for renewal. The form which will confirm your attended course, can be found here .

Idaho has a reciprocal master electrician license agreement with the following states:

  • Utah
  • Wyoming

For more info and useful telephone numbers on reciprocate states, you can check here (mind there is information for both electricians and plumbers on it).

Idaho Electrical Contractor License

The requirements for the electrical contractor’s license are all laid out in the application form , so we will not go into more detail.

For more information, you can always read the statuses .

The active period after the license is issued, is 1 year. So, the renewal period is annually at the cost of 100$ per year.

You must either employ a master electrician, or be one yourself.

Idaho Specialty Trainee Electrician License

Like apprenticeship, in order to apply for a specialty electrician license, you will have to register first, as a trainee and accumulate experience.

The required experience is 2 years (4000 hours) under the supervision of a licensed specialty electrician. The registration as a trainee, will be active for 3 years. The practical experience will have to be on the type of license you are interested in applying for. For example, if you want to apply for elevator license, you will have to accumulate 2 years of experience under an elevator technician.

You will have to fill and submit this application form with an attachment of 30$ as registration fee. The fee must be paid in personal check, money order or cashier’s check. We recommend paying with a money order, since checks need 10 business days to be cleared.

At the end of that application form, you can find the definitions and the scope of work that can be done under each license.

The work hour verification form can be found here .

Idaho Specialty Electrician Application

This application involves all the subcategories (elevator, sign, lineman etc) mentioned at the start of the guide.

After you have acquired the minimum experienced as a trainee, mentioned above, you can then apply for a specific specialty electrical license.

First, you will have to fill the application form , choose the specific specialty in which you are interested and send it with an attachment of 15$ fee. This amount can be paid in personal check, money order or cashier’s check.

After your approval, you will have to take the test in 60 days, or you will have to apply again.

When you are eligible to take the test, click here (link sto exams, internal) for more information regarding the exams.

After you pass the exams, you will have to apply for your license to be issued. The cost of this is 55$.

The license will be active for 3 years after it is issued and must be renewed every 3 years. Each renewal costs 45$. Online renewal is not active yet, so you will have to either contact their office at 1-800-955-3044 or email them at [email protected] .

Statutes, rules, renewal information, inactive licenses and more information can be found here .

Idaho Specialty Electrical Contractor License

The requirements for the specialty electrical contractor’s license are all laid out in the application form , so we will not go into more detail.

For more information, you can always read the statuses .

The active period after the license is issued, is 1 year. So, the renewal period is annually at the cost of 100$ per year.

You must either employ a specialty electrician, or be one yourself.

Idaho Electrician License Exams

After you have been approved to take the necessary exams for your license, you will be mailed the documents you will need. The exam provider is Pearson and more information about electrician exams, like the candidate bulletin, can be found at International Code Council (ICC) .

In order to arrange an exam or special accommodations, you should contact Pearson VUE at 1-800-466-0450. For special accommodations, you might also want to read the guidelines .

The first thing you should do is read the candidate bulletin . It has all the information you will need for your exams, like what to bring with you etc.

After your approval, you have 60 days to sit for the test.

The test is open book and it is a multiple choice among 4 options. The results are handed to you right after completion (if the test is PC based). You can arrange a PC based test by calling Pearson VUE at 1-877-234-6082.

There is an examination fee, which can be paid by credit or debit card (Visa or Mastercard), through an electronic check or even by buying a voucher . The fee must be paid when the reservation is made and it can’t be paid at the test center.

The day of the exam varies, depending on the test center. You will have to contact specific centers or the exam provider to find out exact dates.

For most of the exams you will need to score 70%, in order to pass. Exceptions are Master Electrician license and Electrician Contractor.

Regarding each electrician license in Idaho:

Journeyman Electrician: The test consists of 80 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 4 hours.
The cost is 100$.

Master Electrician: The test consists of 100 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 5 hours. You will need a 75% score in order to pass.
The cost is 100$.

Electrical Contractor: The test consists of 50 multiple choice questions, its reference is “Idaho Contractors Reference Manual” and the maximum time allowed is 2 hours.
The cost is 100$.

Elevator Technician: The test consists of 50 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 3 hours.
The cost is 100$.

Irrigation Sprinkler: The test consists of 40 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 2 hours.
The cost is 100$.

Limited Energy: The test consists of 50 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 3 hours.
The cost is 100$.

Manufacturing/Assembling Equipment: The test consists of 40 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 2 hours.
The cost is 100$.

Refrigeration, Heating and Air Conditioning: The test consists of 40 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 2 hours.
The cost is 100$.

Sign: The test consists of 50 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 3 hours.
The cost is 100$.

Well Driller/Pump Installer: The test consists of 40 multiple choice questions, its reference is “National Electrical Code (NEC) 2008 by NFPA” and the maximum time allowed is 2 hours.
The cost is 100$.