The Electricians' Board licenses or registers those who are performing electrical installations, as defined in RSA 319-C:2,III, for heat, light and power purposes regardless of the voltage. Therefore, it is not the voltage of the circuit that determines the requirements of licensure, it is the type of circuit. For example, no license is currently required for fire alarm installations as these are signaling circuits. Signaling circuits by definition are not considered circuits for heat, light or power purposes.
Electrical License Requirements
The primary mission of the Board is to protect the citizens of Massachusetts by establishing standards for persons performing electrical installations. We examine and license candidates and enforce the regulations and general laws relative to electrical installations in Massachusetts. 'Journeyman electrician' means a holder of a Class B license and a person qualified to do the work of installing, repairing, or maintaining wires, conduits, apparatus, devices, fixtures, or other appliances used for heat, light, power, fire warning or security system purposes.
The categories for licensing are Master, Journeyman and High/Medium Voltage electricians. The Electricians' Board registers apprentice electricians and high/medium voltage trainees.
Reciprocal Licensing
The Electricians' Board currently has two types of reciprocal agreements in place. There are long standing agreements with the states of Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont and the Electrical Safety Section also participates in the National Electrical Reciprocal Alliance (NERA) formally known as the Multi-State Electrical Reciprocal Licensing Group.
Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont Reciprocal Agreements
Electrical License Requirements By State
The Electricians' Board currently has active reciprocal agreements for the master and journeyman license with the states of Maine, and Vermont and Massachusetts. These are long standing agreements that recognize the master and journeyman licenses of these areas as being substantially equal to those of New Hampshire.
New Hampshire Electricians wishing to reciprocate their license with any of these states should contact the reciprocating agency directly for the necessary application and fees. A certified letter can be obtained from the Electricians' Board which will be necessary at the time of application as verification of licensure and the applicant is in good standing with the State of New Hampshire.
Applicants applying to Massachusetts for a reciprocal master license will be required to reciprocate their journeyman license as well as the masters. If you have let your journeyman license lapse due licensure as a master electrician, it can be reinstated for reciprocity purposes by filing the proper application and paying the normal fee for licensure.
National Electrical Reciprocal Alliance (NERA)
In the Fall of 2005 the State of New Hampshire became a member of the Multi-State Reciprocal Licensing Group, now known as National Electrical Reciprocal Alliance (NERA) and therefore has reciprocal licensing agreements, for the journeyman license only, with the States of: Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Montana, Utah, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
New Hampshire electricians wishing to apply for a reciprocal license with a participating state under the NERA agreement must contact that state for the specific requirements, applications and fees. Applicants applying for a reciprocal license with a participating state must:
- Hold a current journeyman license from the State of New Hampshire for at least one year.
- Be active and in good standing with the State of New Hampshire.
- Have passed the New Hampshire journeyman examination with a minimum grade of 70%.
- Have successfully completed a minimum of 8000 hours of practical experience in an apprenticeship program or equivalent.
- Have successfully completed a minimum of 600 hours of electrical schooling.
Applicants holding 'grandfather' licenses or who have not passed the New Hampshire journeyman examination are not eligible for reciprocity under the NERA agreement.
Once the application is submitted to the reciprocating state with all applicable forms and fees, the reciprocating state will contact the State of New Hampshire electronically for verification of Items 1-4 above. Once the verification process has taken place, the reciprocating state should issue the journeyman license