Idaho Electrician License Fees: Every Cost From Apprentice to Contractor

Initial Licensing Costs

Every Idaho electrical credential has a two-part initial cost: a $15 application processing fee paid to DOPL plus a license-specific fee. Here is the full breakdown:

These are DOPL fees only. Add the $75 PSI exam fee for each trade exam you take — the Journeyman, Master, and Contractor exams each cost $75 separately.

Exam Fees

PSI administers all Idaho electrical trade exams. The fee structure is simple: $75 per exam attempt. If you fail and need to retake, you pay another $75.

You can cancel or reschedule an exam without penalty up to two business days before your appointment. Less than two business days before the appointment, check PSI's current cancellation policy for any applicable penalty.

The exam fee is paid directly to PSI when you schedule through their testing portal — it is separate from the DOPL application fees.

Renewal Fees (and the Fee Holiday)

DOPL is transitioning all licenses to a biennial (two-year) renewal cycle. During the transition, a temporary fee holiday waives renewal fees for active licensees who renew on time. New applicants do not qualify for the fee holiday.

Once the fee holiday ends, biennial renewal fees will roughly double the old rates:

The Provisional Journeyman is a special case — it has a fixed six-month term with one possible renewal at $45 if you can prove you attempted the exam or were prevented from testing by documented circumstances.

Reinstatement Fees

Let your license lapse and you pay more to get it back:

For apprentices, reinstatement is not just a fee issue — OJT hours logged during the lapsed period cannot be counted toward your Journeyman qualification. That can cost months or years of progress toward your Journeyman qualification.

Total Cost Estimates by Career Stage

Apprentice to Journeyman (schooling pathway): $15 apprentice registration + $15 renewals for years 2–4 ($45) + $75 PSI exam + $70 Journeyman application = roughly $205, assuming the initial one-year registration covers year one and not counting tuition for approved classroom instruction.

Journeyman to Master: $75 PSI exam + $80 Master application = $155, after holding a Journeyman license for four years.

Starting a contracting business: $75 Contractor exam + $140 Contractor license + insurance premiums (the $300,000 general-liability coverage requirement still carries a premium). The state fees are the smallest part of contractor startup costs.

What Is Not Included in These Fees

DOPL fees do not cover local permit costs (which vary by city and county), insurance premiums, study materials for the PSI exam, or tuition at approved trade schools. They also do not include the cost of having your NEC code book printed, hole-punched, and bound in a 3-ring binder for the exam — a requirement that trips up candidates who show up with a paperback.

The Idaho Electrician License Guide includes a fee budgeting worksheet that totals your expected costs across the full pathway, from apprentice registration through contractor licensing.

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