Checked against primary sources 2026-09-05

Twenty questions, answered

NC Electrical Contractor Exam Questions: Answered

The questions people actually type before a North Carolina electrical contractor examination, answered short and cited. Where two official sources disagree, both are named. Where we could not confirm something, the answer says so instead of guessing.

Test yourself: thirty free questions, timed

How many questions is the North Carolina electrical exam?

It depends on the classification. Limited, Intermediate and Unlimited are each one hundred multiple choice questions with a maximum of six hours.

Fire Alarm / Low-Voltage is fifty questions in three hours. The other special restricted classifications, which are SP-SFD, SP-PH, SP-ES, SP-EL and SP-WP, are forty questions in three hours. Swimming Pool Bonding is twenty five questions in one hour.

All of those numbers come from the Board's Examination Information Handbook.

What score do I need to pass?

A minimum grade of 70 out of a possible score of 100. The Board's rules in Title 21 NCAC 18B state it that way and the Board's examinations page repeats it.

The standard is the same for every qualifying examination the Board runs, from the twenty five question pool paper to the hundred question Unlimited paper.

Is the North Carolina electrical exam open book?

Yes. The Board states that its examinations are open book, and the handbook lists the references you may carry.

Open book is not the relief it sounds like. The questions are written on the assumption that you will look things up, so the paper tests how fast you find a rule rather than whether you memorized it.

Which NEC edition is the exam based on?

The 2020 edition. The handbook lists the National Electrical Code, 2020 edition, as required for all examinations.

That matches the code North Carolina enforces. The 2023 code is adopted but delayed and the 2026 code has not been adopted here. Read which edition is on the exam before you buy a book.

Which books can I take in?

Two books, and only two. The 2020 National Electrical Code, required on every examination, and the 2013 edition of NFPA 72 for Limited, Intermediate, Unlimited, SP-SFD and SP-FA/LV.

The Electrical Contractors Licensing Law in Chapter 87 Article 4, the Board's rules in Title 21 NCAC 18B and the NASCLA Contractors' Guide to Business, Law and Project Management, North Carolina Electrical Edition, are closed book study references. The Lighting and Power Plans are printed at the back of the handbook, for Limited, Intermediate and Unlimited only.

Can I tab my code book?

Not with temporary tabs. The handbook says temporary tabs such as post-it notes or stapled tabs are not allowed and must be removed before testing.

That rule catches people who flag their book the night before and then sit the paper with a book they have never used untabbed. If your tab set is not a permanent one, ask the Board before your date. Book rules has the detail.

Can I write in my book during the exam?

No. Writing during the examination is prohibited.

Highlighting, underlining and annotation are allowed, but they have to be done before the examination session. So every note you want in the margins goes in at home, weeks ahead.

Can I bring a printed or loose leaf code book?

No. References must be softbound, spiral or hardbound, and loose leaf references are not allowed.

A three ring binder of printed pages does not come in, and neither does a section torn out of a book.

What identification do I need at the test center?

Two forms of valid, non-expired, signature bearing identification, one of which must carry a photograph.

The handbook gives a state driver's license or a passport as primary identification, and a credit card or a birth certificate as secondary. Student identification and employment identification are named as not acceptable.

Check that both are signed and unexpired before you leave. See test day.

Where are the test centers in North Carolina?

Seven cities: Asheville, Charlotte, Fayetteville, Greenville, Raleigh, Wilmington and Winston-Salem. The addresses are in the handbook and on our test day page.

Greensboro, Durham and Cary have no site on that list. Greensboro and Durham candidates travel to Raleigh or Winston-Salem, and Cary candidates travel to Raleigh.

What does the exam cost?

The Board charges $125 for the application and examination together, in every classification, and that fee is not refundable.

An examination review is $25. If you go on to license a business, the annual license fee is $100 for Limited and for any special restricted classification, $150 for Intermediate and $200 for Unlimited.

How long do I wait to retake it?

Three months from the date of the failed examination before you can sit again in the same classification, as the handbook puts it. The Board's examinations page states the same rule as a 90 day wait.

Three months and 90 days are not the same period on a calendar, so count from the failure date and allow the longer of the two. You re-apply on the Board's separate re-apply form. Retakes walks the whole sequence.

How long is my approval to test good for?

Ninety days from the date of approval. The examination has to be taken inside that window.

PSI handles the scheduling once the Board approves the application.

Can I cancel or reschedule my appointment?

Yes, without losing the fee, if the cancellation notice is received two days before the scheduled examination date.

Missing an appointment forfeits the fee, and the application and examination fee is not refundable, so a no show costs the whole $125.

How many hours of experience do I need before I can sit?

Limited needs at least 3,000 hours with at least 2,000 of them primary experience. Intermediate needs at least 5,750 hours with at least 5,000 primary. Unlimited needs at least 9,000 hours with at least 8,000 primary.

The special restricted classifications need at least 3,000 hours with 2,000 primary, and SP-EL, SP-PH, SP-WP, SP-ES and SP-SP add verification of employment with a related business. The Board's rules count 2,000 hours as one creditable year. See hours and experience.

Is there a journeyman electrician exam in North Carolina?

Not at state level. The Board's classification list carries Limited, Intermediate, Unlimited and seven special restricted classifications, and none of them is a journeyman license.

The examinations the Board runs are qualifying examinations for those classifications. The City of Raleigh has its own Electrical Examining Board that examines applicants for a city journeyman certificate, which is a separate thing. See the journeyman page.

Which NEC edition does North Carolina enforce?

The 2020 edition. The North Carolina Electrical Code in force is the 2020 National Electrical Code with state amendments, effective 1 November 2021, and the Office of State Fire Marshal still marks it as the current code.

North Carolina runs a statewide code, and cities and counties enforce it rather than adopting their own editions.

Has North Carolina adopted the 2023 NEC?

It has been adopted but it is not in force. The Building Code Council accepted it on 12 December 2023 and the Rules Review Commission accepted it on 28 February 2024.

The Office of State Fire Marshal publishes its status as an indefinite delay, from an original adoption date of 1 January 2025, and cites Session Law 2025-2, House Bill 47, Section 5.12. That section, as we read it, names the 2024 North Carolina State Building Code rather than the electrical code, so we cannot confirm the exact statutory wording. See the next edition page.

Does North Carolina change the code it adopts?

Yes. The Office of State Fire Marshal publishes amendment documents that sit on top of the adopted edition, so the enforced code is the base edition plus those amendments.

For the 2020 edition there are two: a compact amendments document from the original adoption and an additional amendments document published afterwards. The second one revises the Article 100 definition of selective coordination, with a delayed effective date of 1 January 2024. See state amendments.

Does the Board run a prep class, and does passing give me a license?

The Board does not offer a preparation class and will not recommend one. Its published advice is to read the Examination Information Handbook cover to cover, work from the examination subject matter scope inside it, study about an hour a day and practice calculations.

Passing does not by itself give you a license. It makes you a qualified individual. The license belongs to the business, and it needs its own application, its own fee and, for Intermediate and Unlimited, a statement of bonding ability. See the contractor license page.

What this page cites

• NCBEEC Examination Information Handbook The Board's own candidate handbook. Source for the item counts, the time limits, the reference list, the marking rules, the identification rules and the retake wait. Read 5 September 2026. source
• NCBEEC examinations page The Board's page on the qualifying examination: open book, the minimum grade of 70, the seven test center cities and the 90 day wait after a failure. Read 5 September 2026. source
• Title 21 NCAC Chapter 18B, the Board's rules The rule set behind the experience hours, the definitions of primary and secondary experience and the minimum grade of 70. Read 5 September 2026. source
• NCBEEC fees and services The fee schedule as the Board prints it, including the $125 application and examination fee and the $25 examination review. Read 5 September 2026. source
• Office of State Fire Marshal, state electrical code and interpretations The page that marks the 2020 North Carolina Electrical Code as the current code effective 1 November 2021 and the 2023 code as an indefinite delay. Read 5 September 2026. source
• NCBEEC licensing classifications The Board's list of the Limited, Intermediate, Unlimited and seven special restricted classifications, with the annual license fee for each. Read 5 September 2026. source