Massachusetts electrical license requirements and insurance
To work for yourself as an electrician in Massachusetts, you need the Master Electrician, Certificate A license. Massachusetts has 4 electrical license types, and which one you need depends on the work you take on. The state sets no minimum liability insurance, and workers' comp is required. There is a credit check: no credit score, net worth or financial statement is named anywhere in the licensing law or the board's own pages for an electrical license. The state does not ask for a bond.
1Who needs an electrical license in Massachusetts? What is this?
Systems Contractor, Certificate C, and Systems Technician, Certificate D: anyone whose work is limited to low-voltage systems such as fire warning, security and similar systems. The contractor license runs the business. The technician license is for the worker
| License | Who needs it | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| Journeyman Electrician, Certificate B | Anyone doing electrical work who is not an apprentice. It does not let you run an electrical business | Installing, repairing and maintaining wiring, conduit, fixtures and other equipment for light, heat, power, fire warning and security systems |
| Master Electrician, Certificate A | The license you need to run an electrical business with a regular place of business, employ journeymen and apprentices, and pull permits | The same electrical work as a journeyman, plus running the business |
| Systems Contractor, Certificate C, and Systems Technician, Certificate D | Anyone whose work is limited to low-voltage systems such as fire warning, security and similar systems. The contractor license runs the business. The technician license is for the worker | Systems work only. A systems technician cannot file a permit in their own name, only for the master or systems contractor who employs them |
| Electrical or Systems Business License | Any company doing electrical or systems work. A person working under their own name does not need it | The company license. One licensed master electrician or systems contractor is named on it as the Licensee of Record |
2Who issues electrician licenses in Massachusetts? What is this?
Board of State Examiners of Electricians, part of the Division of Occupational Licensure issues electrical licenses in Massachusetts.
See how this compares in every state: How to check a contractor's license, state by state
| Name | Board of State Examiners of Electricians, part of the Division of Occupational Licensure |
|---|---|
| Website | mass.gov |
| Look up a license | mass.gov |
| The law | Massachusetts General Laws chapter 141 |
| The rulebook | 237 CMR, mainly 237 CMR 13.00 for who can sit the exam, 16.00 for renewal, 17.00 for training hours and 18.00 for how you must practice |
| Who runs the exam | PSI Exams runs the electrical exams for the board |
| About the exam provider | From June 1, 2025 every exam application goes to PSI online. Anything mailed or emailed is sent back |
3How to become an electrician in Massachusetts What is this?
Massachusetts has 4 licenses that matter to an electrician: Journeyman Electrician, Certificate B, Master Electrician, Certificate A, Systems Contractor, Certificate C, and Systems Technician, Certificate D, Electrical or Systems Business License. Each is below, with what you need before you apply.
| License | Experience required | Training required | Exam |
|---|---|---|---|
| Journeyman Electrician, Certificate B | 8,000 hours of electrical work over at least four years under a Massachusetts licensed journeyman. Up to 4,000 of those hours, over at least two years, can be systems work. Hours older than 20 years do not count | 600 hours of classroom instruction from an approved program. No more than 300 of those can come from a public vocational school | Yes, a board exam |
| Master Electrician, Certificate A | At least one year holding a Massachusetts journeyman license while actively doing electrical work | 150 hours of classroom instruction, completed without a substantial break | Yes, a board exam |
| Systems Contractor, Certificate C, and Systems Technician, Certificate D | For the technician license, 4,000 hours of work over at least two years under a Massachusetts systems technician or journeyman electrician. For the contractor license, a Massachusetts systems technician license and at least one year of work | 300 hours of board-approved education and a 15 hour code update class for the technician. 75 hours of board-approved education for the contractor | — |
| Electrical or Systems Business License | — | — | — |
4How much does an electrical license cost in Massachusetts? What is this?
The government fees on this page add up to about $761 in Massachusetts. Add insurance, tools, and a vehicle to get the real number.
| License | Application | Retaking the exam | First license | Renewal | Late renewal | Exam application, total | Exam processing | Law and rules exam | Trade exam (paid to PSI) | Applying with another state's license |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Journeyman Electrician, Certificate B | $31 | $135 | $104 | $78 | $57 | $226 | $60 | $55 | $80 | $104 |
| Master Electrician, Certificate A | $66 | $135 | $155 | $117 | $57 | $276 | $75 | $55 | $80 | $155 |
| Systems Contractor, Certificate C, and Systems Technician, Certificate D | $66 | $135 | $155 | $117 | $57 | $276 | — | — | — | — |
| Electrical or Systems Business License | $221 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Added up
| Government fees, added up | $761 |
|---|---|
| Plus the two exam fees | $502 |
Journeyman license $104 and master license $155, plus $226 to PSI for the journeyman exam and $276 for the master exam. The $31 and $66 state application fees already sit inside those two exam totals. A veteran or active military member pays $195 and $210 instead, which brings the path down to $664. Does not include the classroom hours, insurance, tools, a vehicle, permits, or the $221 business license
5How much electrical contractor insurance do you need in Massachusetts? What is this?
Massachusetts sets no minimum liability insurance for this license. Customers and general contractors usually ask for $1,000,000 anyway. Workers' comp is required.
| Minimum liability insurance | None required by the state |
|---|---|
| Type of policy | Liability insurance that includes completed operations cover, from an insurer licensed in the state, or an equivalent bond. The law sets no dollar amount |
| Who this applies to | Every licensee who asks a city or town for an electrical permit. A city may not issue one without proof of the policy, except that the law makes it accept the signature of the owner, or the owner's agent, on the permit application instead |
| Who must be named on the certificate | Not named in the law |
| Minimum liability insurance for an LLC | $50,000 |
| About LLC insurance | An LLC or LLP that runs an electrical business must also carry professional liability insurance. At least $50,000 per claim for each licensed person it employs or has as an officer or partner, or $150,000 in total for each of them |
| Workers' comp required? | Yes. Every employer in Massachusetts must carry it for their employees, whatever the hours or the head count |
| Who can opt out |
|
| Workers' comp: what to know | If you want cover for yourself, ask an insurance broker for it. The state does not sell it |
| Workers' comp: if you skip it |
|
·7 official pages
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXX/Chapter141/Section8
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXX/Chapter141/Section8
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/massachusetts/237-CMR-23-01
- mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-an-electricalsystems-business-license
- mass.gov/info-details/workers-compensation-insurance-requirements
- mass.gov/info-details/corporate-officers-and-sole-proprietors
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/152/25A.html
6Does Massachusetts check your credit for an electrician license? What is this?
Massachusetts checks your finances before it trusts you with a license. The rule: no credit score, net worth or financial statement is named anywhere in the licensing law or the board's own pages for an electrical license.
| Credit score you need | No credit score, net worth or financial statement is named anywhere in the licensing law or the board's own pages for an electrical license |
|---|---|
| If your score is lower | None is asked for |
| How we know | The electrical law runs to 15 sections and the board rules to 11 chapters. Not one is about credit, net worth, a financial statement or a surety |
7Does an electrician need a bond in Massachusetts? What is this?
Massachusetts does not require a state bond for this license. Some cities ask for one before they issue permits.
| Does the state require a bond? | No |
|---|---|
| Amount | None required by the state |
The state does not ask for a bond (a promise, backed by an insurance company, that customers can be paid if you do not finish the job) to hold an electrical license. The permit law lets a city accept an equivalent bond in place of the liability policy. Cities may also ask for their own bond before a permit, so check with your city.
8Where must a Massachusetts electrician show the license number? What is this?
In Massachusetts: an invoice or a quote is a business communication, so the type of license and the license number go on it.
| On ads | Every sign, advertisement and other business communication of a master electrician, journeyman electrician or systems contractor must show the type of license and the license number. A phone directory listing with only your name and number is let off |
|---|---|
| On quotes, contracts, and invoices | An invoice or a quote is a business communication, so the type of license and the license number go on it |
| On your vehicles | No separate vehicle rule was found. A lettered truck is an advertisement, so the safe reading is to put the license type and number on it |
| What the number looks like | Masters and systems contractors keep the certificate on display at the place of business. Journeymen and systems technicians carry a card and show it on request |
| If you forget | Discipline against the license. No fixed fine was found |
9Does an electrician charge sales tax on labor in Massachusetts? What is this?
In Massachusetts, no sales tax on your labor. The only services the state taxes are telecommunications services. The rest of the rules are below.
See how this compares in every state: Can you charge sales tax on labor? The rule in 25 states
| Tax rate | 6.25 percent statewide. Massachusetts has no city or county sales tax |
|---|---|
| Labor | No sales tax on your labor. The only services the state taxes are telecommunications services |
| Who pays tax on materials |
|
| Materials, when you quote one total price | One price for the whole job means no tax on the bill, as long as the work repairs or improves the building. You already paid the tax when you bought the parts |
| When you are selling equipment, not improving the building |
|
| Materials, when you list them separately | If you show the part and the labor as separate prices, you are selling the part. Charge the customer 6.25 percent on the part |
| Resale certificate | Only use a resale certificate, Form ST-4, for parts you are reselling as a separate priced item. Never for parts going into a job you price as one figure |
| Working for a tax exempt customer | A job for a government body, a public school or a 501(c)(3) charity. Buy the building materials with a Contractor's Exempt Use Certificate, Form ST-5C, and Form ST-2 where it applies |
·6 official pages
- mass.gov/guides/sales-tax-guide-for-electricians
- mass.gov/guides/sales-tax-guide-for-electricians
- mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-sales-tax-guide-for-plumbers
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIX/Chapter64H/Section2
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/64h/1.html
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/64h/6.html
10Getting paid: lien and notice deadlines for a Massachusetts electrician What is this?
If you are not paid in Massachusetts, a lien on the property is your backstop, but only if your notice goes out on time: if you have no contract with the general contractor, for example you supply a subcontractor, send a written notice of identification within 30 days of starting. Without it your lien is capped at what is still owed to the subcontractor above you.
- Day 0Your first day on the job
The clock starts here.
- Day 30Send your notice
If you have no contract with the general contractor, for example you supply a subcontractor, send a written notice of identification within 30 days of starting. Without it your lien is capped at what is still owed to the subcontractor above you
- Day 90File your lien
File your Statement of Account by the earliest of 90 days after a notice of substantial completion, 120 days after a notice of termination, or 120 days after the last day of work. With last work on June 1 and no other notices, file by September 29
Each day count is counted from the day the rule beside it names, which is not always the same day. Read the sentence under each one.
| What to do |
|
|---|---|
| Who has to send a notice | Everyone who wants a lien, including the general contractor. A subcontractor or supplier files a Notice of Contract and must also give the owner actual notice of it |
| Notice when you are a subcontractor |
|
| Send your notice by | If you have no contract with the general contractor, for example you supply a subcontractor, send a written notice of identification within 30 days of starting. Without it your lien is capped at what is still owed to the subcontractor above you |
| File your lien by | File your Statement of Account by the earliest of 90 days after a notice of substantial completion, 120 days after a notice of termination, or 120 days after the last day of work. With last work on June 1 and no other notices, file by September 29 |
| File a lawsuit by | Start a lawsuit within 90 days after you file the Statement of Account, and record an attested copy of the complaint at the registry within 30 days of starting it. Miss either and the lien is dissolved |
| Copy to the owner | The lien only takes effect once you have filed the Notice of Contract and given the owner actual notice of it |
·5 official pages
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section4
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section2
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section8
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section11
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section5
11How do you renew an electrical license in Massachusetts? What is this?
The Systems Contractor, Certificate C, and Systems Technician, Certificate D renews every three years, ending July 31. You need 21 hours of training each renewal.
| License | Renewal | Training hours each renewal |
|---|---|---|
| Journeyman Electrician, Certificate B | Every three years. Every license in the state runs out on July 31 of the same year | — |
| Master Electrician, Certificate A | Every three years. Every license in the state runs out on July 31 of the same year | — |
| Systems Contractor, Certificate C, and Systems Technician, Certificate D | Every three years, ending July 31 | — |
Renewal fees are in what the license costs. The official page for each license is linked under how you get it.
12What catches people out in Massachusetts What is this?
The things people get wrong or do not expect about Massachusetts, in a few sentences.
- The renewal cycle is three years, and every electrical license in the state runs out on July 31 of the same year, whatever day you were licensed.
- Journeyman takes 8,000 hours over at least four years plus 600 classroom hours. Master takes one more year as a journeyman and 150 more classroom hours.
- A journeyman may supervise only one apprentice. That one-to-one rule sets how fast a small electrical shop can grow.
- No dollar amount for liability insurance appears in the electrical law. A city asks for proof of a policy with completed operations cover, or an equivalent bond, before it issues a permit, but the law lets it take the owner's signature instead, so a permit can be issued when there is no policy at all.
- An LLC or LLP doing electrical work must carry professional liability cover of at least $50,000 per claim for every licensed person it employs or has as an officer.
- Every business communication, not just an ad, must show your license type and number. The only exception is a phone directory listing with nothing but your name and number.
- The exam costs more than the license. PSI charges $226 to sit the journeyman exam and $276 for the master exam, and the license fee comes on top. Veterans and active military pay $31 or $66 less.
- A company doing electrical work needs its own $221 business license, with one master or systems contractor named on it as the Licensee of Record.
·6 official pages
13Where these numbers come from
The labels under each table are explained on how to read a page.
- mass.gov/orgs/board-of-state-examiners-of-electricians
- mass.gov/how-to/check-an-occupational-board-license
- mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-an-individual-electrical-or-systems-license
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/massachusetts/department-237-CMR
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/141/index.html
- mass.gov/how-to/renew-your-electrician-systems-technician-or-systems-contractor-license
- licensing.reg.state.ma.us/public/dpl_fees/dpl_fees_results.asp?board_code=EL
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/massachusetts/237-CMR-13-03
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/massachusetts/237-CMR-17-01
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/massachusetts/237-CMR-18-01
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/massachusetts/801-CMR-4-02
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/141/3.html
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/massachusetts/237-CMR-13-01
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/141/1.html
- mass.gov/how-to/apply-for-an-electricalsystems-business-license
- sec.state.ma.us/reg_pub/pdf/800/801004.pdf
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleXX/Chapter141/Section8
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/massachusetts/237-CMR-23-01
- mass.gov/info-details/workers-compensation-insurance-requirements
- mass.gov/info-details/corporate-officers-and-sole-proprietors
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/152/25A.html
- mass.gov/guides/sales-tax-guide-for-electricians
- mass.gov/info-details/massachusetts-sales-tax-guide-for-plumbers
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleIX/Chapter64H/Section2
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/64h/1.html
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/64h/6.html
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section4
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section2
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section8
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section11
- malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartIII/TitleIV/Chapter254/Section5
- law.onecle.com/massachusetts/141/8.html