Michigan Journeyman Electrician License

What It Takes to Qualify

The Michigan journeyman electrician license requires three things before LARA will let you sit for the exam: 8,000 hours of supervised practical experience over at least four years, 576 hours of Related Technical Instruction from a USDOL-approved provider, and a clean BCC-341 application with notarized documentation supporting every claimed hour.

You must be at least 20 years old to apply.

The Application Process

Submit LARA Form BCC-341 with these attachments:

• Notarized employer verification letters on company letterhead for every employer where you accumulated hours. Each letter must list exact employment dates, a description of the electrical work performed, and the supervising journeyman or master electrician's state license number.
• Official RTI transcripts showing completion of 576 hours (including 450 hours of electrical core subjects), distributed at a minimum of 144 hours per year.
• The application processing fee -- this is nonrefundable, so get your documentation right before submitting.

LARA reviews the packet against your apprentice registration records, your supervisors' license statuses during the claimed periods, and your W-2 tax records. Discrepancies between your claimed hours and your tax documentation are the most common reason applications stall.

Detroit residents can apply through BSEED instead of or in addition to the state, but BSEED enforces stricter documentation standards -- they explicitly reject paycheck stubs as proof and cross-reference your hours against your active apprentice registration periods down to the month.

The PSI Exam

Once LARA approves your application, you receive an exam eligibility notice and schedule through PSI's testing portal.

Format: 80 multiple-choice questions, 150-minute time limit, open-book.

Passing score: 75% (60 out of 80).

Approved references (the only materials allowed in the testing room):

• 2023 National Electrical Code (NEC) -- must be soft-bound with factory-installed tabs only
• Michigan Electrical Code Rules Part 8 -- must be bound with exactly three staples on the left edge
• Skilled Trades Regulation Act (PA 407 of 2016) -- same three-staple binding

Prohibited items: The NEC Handbook (it contains commentary and illustrations, which makes it a different publication from the code itself), custom tabs, loose papers, hand-written notes inside your references. Bringing any of these results in immediate dismissal, forfeiture of the exam fee, and a report to LARA.

What Happens If You Fail

A single failure is a setback but not a disaster -- you reschedule through PSI and pay another $100 exam fee.

Two failures within a two-year window triggers a serious penalty: you're locked out of the exam for one full year. To regain eligibility after the lockout, you must complete a board-approved remedial course covering Michigan electrical code, electrical fundamentals, or electrical theory. Only then can you reapply and schedule a new exam attempt.

This lockout provision makes preparation strategy important. Rushing into the exam before you're comfortable navigating the approved references under time pressure costs you far more than the $100 fee.

After You Pass

Pay the $40 license fee to LARA and you'll receive your journeyman credential. The license renews annually by December 31, with continuing education required whenever LARA adopts a new electrical code cycle (currently a 15-hour code update course).

With an active journeyman license, you can perform electrical work independently under the umbrella of a licensed contractor -- but you cannot pull permits or operate your own contracting business. That requires a contractor license, which requires either holding a master license yourself or employing a full-time master electrician.

The Michigan Electrician License Guide covers the full journeyman application process, including how to handle gaps in your documentation, what to do when a former employer has gone out of business, and how to prepare your reference materials for exam day.

See more Michigan guides →