• Change your address, pay renewal or reinstatement fee online.
• Change your address.
• Get a duplicate license.

About Becoming an Electrical Trainee

To learn to be an electrician, you need to begin as a trainee. An electrical trainee must have a trainee certificate and work under the supervision of a certified electrician.

An Electrical Trainee must renew their certificate every 2 years until they pass the exam to become a journeyman or master or specialty electrician.

Here's the process:

1. Make sure you meet the basic age and other requirements.
2. Apply to become an Electrical Trainee.
3. Work as an Electrical Trainee under the supervision of a general journey level or master or specialty electrician while you are gaining the required hours of experience to become certified as a general journey level or specialty electrician.
4. While you're working, you must take 16 hours of approved basic classroom instruction per year to renew — that's a total of at least 32 hours completed by the time your certificate expires.
   • NOTE: The number of hours required for renewal changed July, 2011 and will change again in July, 2013. (41 KB PDF)
   • More information regarding the changes that took effect July 1, 2011. (52 KB PDF)

More information

• Find out more about the Electrical Program.
• Read the Electrical law Revised Code of Washington (RCW) 19.28.
• Read the Electrical rules Washington Administrative Code (WAC) 296-46B.
• Join the Electrical Listserv to receive emails with the Electrical Currents Newsletter and other important information.

Apply for an Electrical Trainees' Certificate

What you have to do

1. Make sure you meet the minimum age requirements for working on a construction site. You must be 16 years or older. (Contact Employment Standards for more information regarding minors working on construction sites).
2. Register with the Apprenticeship program if you are enrolled in a formal apprenticeship program. You can contact them at Apprenticeship.
3. Contact the Electrical program before submitting a new application if you have ever had a trainee certificate before.
4. Be prepared to pay the application fee ($36.40 if applying online or $42.30 if applying in person or by mail).
   Note: Fees are nonrefundable after certificate has been issued. Refund requests must be made in writing to L&I before the certificate is issued. Mail to L&I Electrical Program, P.O. Box 44460, Olympia, Washington 98504-4460.
5. Submit your application and fee one of the following 3 ways:

• Save Money! Pay and apply online via L&I’s licensing/certification system (QuickCards).
  

  Before you apply online, you will need the following handy:

  • Your Social Security number.
  • Email address and phone number.
  • Your credit card (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express).

— OR —

• Mail your $42.30 fee and your application form to L&I's Electrical Program at the address indicated on the application form. You can pay by check or money order.
  — OR —
• Go to one of L&I's service locations where you can pay your $42.30 fee and submit your application form. You can pay by cash, check, money order, or credit card in our field service locations.
  

What L&I will do

• Mail your certificate in 1 – 2 weeks.

Classes Required for Electrical Trainees

An Electrical Trainee's certificate must be renewed every two (2) years.

Classes are good for three years from initial approval. Check the list and verify the course will not expire before you complete it. Approved basic trainee classes include:

Basic Trainee Classroom Education. (146 KB PDF). Check carefully, some classes may have expired.

Classroom instruction hours required for renewal

Electrical trainees must complete 32 hours of basic trainee classes in order to renew/activate. Effective July 1, 2013, electrical trainees will be required to complete 48 hours of basic trainee classes to renew/activate. See: The number of hours required for renewal will be changing in 2013. (41 KB PDF).

See more information regarding the changes for educational requirements for electrical trainees (130 KB PDF).

What type of courses?

The basic trainee classes approved for electrical trainee renewal are different from the continuing education courses approved for electricians, electrical administrators and master electricians. Make sure the classes you take for your electrical trainee renewal are approved as “Basic Trainee Classes.” No first aid or internet or correspondence-based courses will be credited toward renewal.

Note: Courses approved for electrician, electrical administrator and master electrician renewal requirements will not be credited to an electrical trainee certificate.

Avoid late renewal

You can renew up to 90 days before your training certificate expires. Even if you have not completed the required basic trainee classes as your renewal date approaches, you can submit your renewal application and fee to L&I.

Your certificate will become inactive. Inactive status allows you to avoid the late penalty that results from being late.

You cannot, however, work on any electrical job without an active training certificate on your person. You must complete the required hours of basic trainee classes and your class provider must post your credits to the L&I Trades Education Roster Reporting System before your active training certificate can be issued.

More information

Basic Trainee Class and instructor applications:

• Electrical Education Course Application. (185 KB PDF).
• Electrical-Continuing Education Instructor Application. (95 KB PDF).
• Washington Administrative Code 296-46B-970 rule regarding Electrical Continuing Education.

 Get Help Downloading Files (files open in a new window).

Renew online here

Renew your Electrical Trainee's certificate

Electrical Training certificates must be renewed every 2 years. Currently 32 hours of approved Basic Classroom Instruction is required for renewal. The number of hours required for renewal changed July, 2011 and will change again in July, 2013. (41 KB PDF). Get answers to questions regarding the number of hours required to renew your training certificate and the changes that took effect July 1, 2011.

What you need to renew

1. Renew before your card expires so you don't get caught on the job without a current card. If you are found on the job without a current card, you will be subject to a citation. If you don’t renew on or before your expiration date, a late renewal fee will be charged.
2. Contact the Electrical program directly before attempting to renew online:
   • If your trainee certificate has been expired more than 90 days.
   • If you have ever had a trainee certificate before.
   • If your certificate has been suspended for any reason.
3. Make sure you don't have any outstanding, unpaid citations with L&I.
4. Make sure that the basic classroom education credits required for renewal are on record with L&I.
   
   • If you’ve completed courses that are not on your record, contact your course provider. Course providers are required to notify the department of course completion information within 7 days.
   • If you do not meet the basic classroom education renewal requirements, you will be classified as inactive and cannot work as an electrical trainee until your course completion information is submitted to the department.
5. Be prepared to submit documentation of your work experience, if you have it, when you apply for renewal. If you apply in person or by mail, submit any Affidavits of Experience with your application. Mail them within 30 days if you apply online. Send them to the L&I Electrical Program, P.O. Box 44460, Olympia, Washington 98504-4460.
   Note: Any Affidavits of Experience received after 30 days will require an additional processing fee of $51.20
6. Be prepared to pay the renewal fee:
   • $44.70 if renewing online.
   • $51.20 if renewing in person or by mail.
7. If you do not renew on or before your expiration date you will be charged a late renewal fee:
• $62.50 if renewing online.
• $71.80 if renewing in person or by mail.
8. Submit your renewal application, fee, and experience documentation one of the following 3 ways:

• Save Money! Pay and apply online via L&I’s Renew a License system (QuickCards).
  

  Before you apply online, you will need to have the following:

  • Your 12-digit license number.
  • Email address and phone number.
  • An active license (not suspended or expired for more than 90 days).
  • Your credit card (Visa, MasterCard, Discover or American Express).
• Then mail your Affidavits of Experience to L&I's Electrical Program at the address indicated on the form.
  — OR —
• Mail your fee, your application/renewal form and any Affidavits of Experience to L&I's Electrical Program at the address indicated on the form. Payment can by made by check or money order.
  — OR —
• Go to one of L&I's service locations where you can pay your fee and submit your application/renewal form and any Affidavits of Experience. You can pay by Cash, Check, Money order or Credit Card in our field service locations)

Note: Fees are nonrefundable after certificate has been issued. Refund requests must be made in writing to L&I before that time. Mail to L&I Electrical Program, P.O. Box 44460, Olympia, Washington 98504-4460.

What L&I will do

• Mail your certificate in 1 – 2 weeks.

Experience and Training for Trainees

Electrical Trainees working for licensed electrical contractors in Washington State, must submit affidavits of experience from the employers they have worked for during the prior 2-year period. Affidavits submitted at the time of renewal will be processed with the renewal fee. Affidavits for time frames outside of the prior 2-year period will require an addtional update fee of $51.20.

Affidavits of experience must include the following to be reviewed by the department:

• Name of employer, license number and UBI number.
• Name of Trainee, license number or SSN.
• Time frame that the work was performed in (not to exceed 2 years).
• Supervision level checked.
• Amount of hours being reported in specific category(ies).
• Notarized signatures of the employer representative and trainee.

Keep a training log to assist your employer and you when preparing your affidavit of experience. Use the suggested training log sheet to keep track of your hours.

If experience is obtained in the State of Washington, while not employed by a licensed electrical contractor, the experience still must be under the direct supervision of a certified electrician. The affidavit is completed by the employer and supervising electrician.

• In addition to the affidavit, a supervising questionnaire must be completed by the certified electrician providing supervision. This form is available by contacting the electrical program licensing staff at 360-902-5269 or email the electrical program.

If experience was obtained in another state or in the military, contact the electrical program for submittal requirements at 360-902-5269 or email the electrical program.

Trainees may choose to be enrolled in an approved electrical construction training school. Approved schools are listed below in the following links. If a trainee is enrolled in an approved school/program the affidavit of experience will be completed by the training director.

• List of accepted RCW 49.04 APPRENTICESHIPS IN THE ELECTRICAL CONSTRUCTION TRADE (260 KB PDF).
• List of APPROVED ELECTRICAL CONSTRUCTION TRADE TRAINING SCHOOLS (269 KB PDF).

Electrical training certificates must be renewed every 2 years. Currently 32 hours of approved Basic Classroom Instruction is required for renewal. The number of hours required for renewal changed July 2011, and will change again in 2013 (41 KB PDF). Get answers to questions regarding the number of hours required to renew your training certificate and the changes that took effect July 1, 2011.