Checked against primary sources 2026-09-07

The fee table, as printed

Minnesota Electrical License Fees and Renewal Dates in Full

Minnesota publishes one fee schedule that covers every electrical credential, and it splits each price into a license fee, a board fee and a continuing education fee that lands at renewal. The renewal dates are less tidy, because the statute and DLI do not word two of them the same way.

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Every fee, as the state prints it

From the CCLD licensing fee schedule, updated July 1, 2025. The columns run exam, license, board, continuing education, late, new, renew and renew plus late.

• AM Class A master. Exam $50, license $80, board $8, CE $5, late $40. New $88, renew $93, renew plus late $133.
• AJ Class A journeyworker. Exam $50, license $40, board $8, CE $5, late $20. New $48, renew $53, renew plus late $73.
• MN maintenance electrician, PL power limited technician, IB installer B, SI satellite installer. Identical to AJ on every column.
• LN lineman. Exam $50, license $40, board $8, CE NA, late $20. New $48, renew $48, renew plus late $68.
• RE and RT registered unlicensed. Exam NA, license $10, board $4, CE $5, late $5. New $14, renew $19, renew plus late $24.
• EA, TS and SC contractor licenses. License $180, board $8, late $90. New $188, renew $188, renew plus late $278.
• BM Class B master. Exam NA, but renew $93 and renew plus late $133, because holders from before August 1, 1985 still renew.
• BJ Class B journeyworker. Exam NA and new NA. Renew $53, renew plus late $73.
• EB Class B electrical contractor. New NA, renew $188, renew plus late $278.
• ER employer registration and SB sign contractor bond. $100 new, $100 renew, $100 renew plus late.

Where those numbers come from

Minnesota Statutes 326B.092, subdivision 7(d) prints the base license fees by classification and duration. Entry level is $10 for one year and $20 for two. Journeyworker is $20 for one year and $40 for two. Master is $40 for one year and $80 for two. Business is $180 for two years.

Subdivision 7(e) adds the board fee: $4 if the license duration is one year and $8 if it is two. Subdivision 1(a) sets an application and examination fee of $50 for initial applications requiring examination.

So the $48 you pay for a new journeyworker license is the $40 license fee plus the $8 board fee. The $5 continuing education fee lands at renewal, which is why renewal is $53.

The $50, and what it does not buy

One flat examination fee covers every license type. The application form prints it as $50.00, says the paid application fee is not refundable, and says cash is not accepted by mail or walk-in.

The Licensing Examination Guide adds that application and examination fees for applicants who do not qualify for examination are not refundable. So a rejected application costs you the $50.

The fee also does not carry across a failure. Applicants who fail must submit a new application and examination fee before being approved for reexamination.

The renewal dates, printed both ways

Two state sources word several of these differently and we do not resolve it here.

Master. Minnesota Statutes 326B.33, subdivision 19(a) says master licenses expire March 1 of each odd numbered year. DLI says they expire on the last day of February of each odd numbered year.

Electrical contractor. The statute says March 1 of each even numbered year. DLI says the last day of February in even numbered years.

Technology systems contractor. The statute says August 1 of each even numbered year. The elicense entry says two years, expires on the last of July of even numbered years.

Journeyworker and the other personal licenses. The statute says all other personal licenses expire two years from the date of original issuance. DLI says the journeyworker license expires every two years at the end of the original issue month. The elicense entries for journeyworker, maintenance electrician and power limited technician all say two years, expiring on the anniversary date of initial issue.

We could not confirm which form DLI enforces. Renew early enough that the difference cannot reach you.

The registration cycle

Registrations run on their own clock. The statute says unlicensed individual registrations expire one year from the date of original issuance, and DLI says the registration is valid for one year from the end of the registration month.

The registration form prints the money as new $14.00, renew a registration that has not expired $19.00, renew an expired one including the late fee $24.00, and reinstate a registration expired over 12 months, again including the late fee, $24.00.

What lapsing costs

The late fee is $40 on a master license, $20 on the other personal licenses, $90 on a contractor license and $5 on a registration. There is no late fee column figure for ER and SB, which renew at $100 either way.

Continuing education is the other lapse risk. DLI states that licenses are not renewed unless continuing education credit are completed within the license term immediately preceding the license expiration date, and warns that renewing without completing it may result in license suspension and a fine of $1,000.

Renewals and applications run through the DLI iMS portal. The paper electrical license renewal form is on the forms page.

Questions people ask

How much is a Minnesota electrician license?

Forty eight dollars for a new Class A journeyworker, maintenance electrician, power limited technician, lineman, Class B installer or satellite installer license, and $88 for a Class A master. Add $50 for the examination application before any of those.

How much is the Minnesota electrician exam fee?

Fifty dollars, and it is the same for every license type. It is not refundable, including for applicants who turn out not to qualify, and a retake needs a new application and a new fee.

How often do Minnesota electrical licenses renew?

Personal licenses run on a two year cycle and registrations on a one year cycle. The exact expiration wording differs between the statute and DLI for master, contractor and technology systems contractor licenses, and both versions are printed on this page.

What is the late fee on a Minnesota electrician license?

Forty dollars on a master license, $20 on the other personal licenses, $90 on a contractor license and $5 on a registration. Those figures are the LATE column of the CCLD fee schedule.

Why is the lineman renewal cheaper?

Because there is no continuing education fee on it. The fee schedule prints NA in the CE column for LN, so renewal is $48 rather than the $53 the other personal licenses pay.

What happens if I renew without doing my continuing education?

DLI states that renewing without completing continuing education may result in license suspension and a fine of $1,000, and that licenses are not renewed unless the credit was completed within the license term immediately before expiration.

What this page cites

• CCLD licensing fee schedule The full fee table, updated July 1, 2025, with every column and every license code. source
• Minnesota Statutes 326B.092 The statutory fee base by classification and duration, the $4 and $8 board fees and the $50 application and examination fee. source
• Minnesota Statutes 326B.33 Subdivision 19(a), which sets the expiration dates the statute uses. source
• DLI electrical licensing basics The DLI wording of the same expirations, which differs on master, contractor and journeyworker. source
• DLI continuing education The suspension warning, the $1,000 fine and the rule that credit must fall inside the preceding term. source
• DLI unlicensed individual registration form The $14, $19 and $24 registration figures. source