Electrician License in Michigan: Fees, Requirements & Startup Costs

By Muhammet Çay

Quick answer: Electrical contracting in Michigan is licensed by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), Bureau of Construction Codes. A new business needs an Electrical Contractor license, and that license must be tied to a Michigan Master Electrician who may qualify only one contractor at a time. The initial electrical contractor application fee is $300 for a three-year term, and the Master Electrician application fee is $50 with a $100 PSI exam fee per attempt, per the LARA contractor application.

Two credentials, two roles

Michigan splits electrical licensing between a business credential and an individual qualifier. The Electrical Contractor license is the business license required to do business as an electrician. The Master Electrician license is the individual credential that carries responsibility for code compliance of electrical installations. A contractor license cannot stand alone: the business must employ or be a licensed Master Electrician, and that master may associate with only one electrical contractor at a time.

That one-contractor rule shapes hiring and ownership. If the plan is for the owner to qualify the business personally, the owner needs the Master Electrician license before the contractor license can function. If the plan is to hire a master, confirm the master is not already qualifying another contractor. The electrician business guide covers how the qualifier relationship affects entity setup.

License classes and the path to each

The reviewed LARA pages describe the Electrical Contractor and Master Electrician credentials. No electrical contractor examination is required. The contractor application is filed with LARA, and the license runs for three years.

The Master Electrician path is the individual route. An applicant must be at least age 22, have at least 4,000 hours as a licensed journey electrician over at least two years, and have 12,000 total hours over at least six years. The master exam is administered by PSI and must be passed at 75%. The exam fee is $100 for each attempt. Registered apprentices must participate in an approved apprenticeship training program. The reviewed LARA pages do not list a separate Master Electrician classroom requirement.

Licensing in Michigan

Jurisdiction: state

Authority: Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), Bureau of Construction Codes

LARA Bureau of Construction Codes licenses electrical contractors and master electricians statewide; Detroit residents obtain electrical licenses and registrations from the City of Detroit instead.

Electrical Contractor

BUSINESS Required to do business as an electrician; must be associated with a Michigan Master Electrician, who may qualify only one contractor at a time.

Fee	Amount	Period (years)
Initial electrical contractor license	$300 OFFICIAL FEE Source — www.michigan.gov	3
Electrical contractor license, every three years	$300 OFFICIAL FEE Source — www.michigan.gov	3

Exam: Source

Experience: Must employ or be a licensed Master Electrician.

Renewal and CE: Renewal period: 3 years · Continuing education: 0 hours · Source

Master Electrician

INDIVIDUAL Individual qualifier responsible for code compliance of electrical installations; can associate with one electrical contractor at a time.

Fee	Amount	Period (years)
Initial Master Electrician license/examination application	$50 OFFICIAL FEE Source — www.michigan.gov	1
PSI Master Electrician examination, each attempt	$100 VERIFIED DATA Source — test-takers.psiexams.com	—
Annual Master Electrician renewal	$50 OFFICIAL FEE Source — www.michigan.gov	1

Exam: Provider: PSI · Fee: 100 · Source

Experience: At least age 22; 4,000 hours as a licensed journey electrician over at least two years, and 12,000 total hours over at least six years; pass master exam at 75%.

Education: No separate Master Electrician classroom requirement stated; registered apprentices must participate in an approved apprenticeship training program.

Renewal and CE: Renewal period: 1 year · Source

Local note: Detroit issues its own electrical licenses and registrations to city residents; local electrical permits may also apply.

Data notes

An electrical contractor exam is not required. Master electricians must take a code update course within one year after a new code is adopted.

Verified: 2026-09-25

Fees a new business pays in year one

The initial Electrical Contractor application fee is $300, covering a three-year license term. The Master Electrician application fee is $50, and the PSI master exam fee is $100 per attempt. If the owner is not yet a master, the exam may be taken more than once, so budget for repeat attempts rather than a single sitting.

Renewal fees are not starting costs. The contractor license renews at $300 every three years, and the Master Electrician license renews at $50 annually. Those amounts belong in the ongoing operating budget, not the launch total. The startup costs page explains how to separate one-time licensing from recurring fees.

Startup Cost Calculator

TradeStateLicense class/pathStructureEmployeesVehicleVehicle paymentTools already owned (%)Tool kit levelSoftware tierMonthly marketing budgetMarketing launch monthsWorking-capital monthsBusiness miles per monthMonthly phone and adminPermits and complianceAverage ticket (default — replace with your number)Gross margin % (default — replace with your number)

Estimated startup cost: $7,750–$10,100

Estimated startup cost: $7,750–$10,100. Break-even at about 7 jobs per month.

Licensing & exam fees	$300 OFFICIALLicense details
Business formation (state filing)	$50 OFFICIAL
Insurance (first year)	$730–$940 MARKET ESTIMATEGeneral liability Coverage sources General Liability: Insureon General Liability: NEXT Workers Comp: Insureon Workers Comp: NEXT Commercial Auto: Insureon
Vehicle acquisition	$0 YOUR INPUTYour existing vehicle; acquisition cost $0 Vehicle price sources 2026 Ram ProMaster cargo van (base): $45,300 2026 Ford F-150 XL (base): $40,100 2026 Ford Transit-150 cargo van (base, T-150 130in low roof RWD): $48,400 Used vehicle average listing price (all segments, not cargo-van specific): $27,200
Tools & equipment	$30 MARKET ESTIMATE Starter kit items Multimeter: $300 Wire strippers: $20 Insulated hand tools: $100 Ladder: $330 Safety gear: $10 Fluke 117/323 multimeter + clamp meter kit: $470 Fluke 323 true-RMS clamp meter: $210 Circuit tracer: $300
Software (first year)	$590–$2,250 MARKET ESTIMATEPublished monthly list price × 12 Software price sources Jobber core: $50/month Jobber connect: $140/month Jobber grow: $200/month Jobber plus: $500/month Housecall Pro basic: $80/month Housecall Pro essentials: $190/month Housecall Pro max: $330/month QuickBooks Online simple start: $40/month QuickBooks Online essentials: $90/month QuickBooks Online plus: $140/month QuickBooks Online advanced: $340/month
Launch marketing	$1,500 YOUR INPUTYour input — default: 3 months × $500
Payroll reserve	$0 CALCULATEDBLS median wage × 173 hours/month × employees × employer taxes and ECEC benefits × working-capital months
Working capital	$4,550–$5,050 CALCULATEDMonthly overhead excluding payroll (shown separately) × working-capital months
Permits & compliance	$0 YOUR INPUTYour input — default $0; local requirements may apply

Monthly overhead: $1,500–$1,700 · Annual operating: $18,200–$20,100 · Break-even: 7 jobs/month

Vehicle operating per month: $760 CALCULATED

Phone and admin per month: $150 YOUR INPUT

Show formula

Startup total is the sum of available first-year cost lines. Monthly overhead includes insurance, software, marketing, vehicle operating, phone and admin, and payroll. Break-even jobs = monthly overhead ÷ (average ticket × gross margin).

Bond, insurance, and background checks

The LARA pages reviewed for this page do not list a bond requirement, an insurance requirement, or a background check for either the Electrical Contractor or the Master Electrician license. That does not remove the need for general liability and commercial auto coverage as a matter of business practice, and general contractors or property owners may impose their own insurance conditions in a contract. Confirm current requirements with LARA before filing, because the reviewed pages did not state them.

Renewal and continuing education

The Electrical Contractor license renews every three years at $300. The Master Electrician license renews annually at $50. Master renewal requires a code update course within one year of adoption of a new code, rather than a fixed annual continuing education hour count. The reviewed renewal guidance does not state a set number of CE hours for the contractor license. Put both renewal dates and the code-adoption trigger on the operating calendar so the qualifier credential does not lapse while work is under contract.

The local layer

Detroit issues its own electrical licenses and registrations to city residents instead of the state credentials described above. A business based in Detroit should confirm which authority applies before filing. Local electrical permits may also apply to job sites regardless of where the license was issued. Ask the city with jurisdiction over each job address which work needs a permit, who may apply, and how inspections are scheduled.

For a side-by-side view of how other states structure electrical licensing, see the electrician license requirements by state page, including Ohio and Georgia.

Last updated: September 25, 2026