Applying, approval and booking the exam

In many states a master candidate books a national exam with a testing company and then sends the score to a licensing office. North Dakota works the other way around. The State Electrical Board runs its own examination, and a candidate cannot choose a date until the board has approved the application and sent an exam invitation. This lesson follows Kari's application from the forms on her kitchen table in August 2026 to the exam session she signed up for in December, and it sets out the rules on deadlines, cancellations and retests that can cost a candidate months if they are ignored.

The order of steps

The board's rule, N.D. Admin. Code 24.1-03-01-01, describes the process in one sentence: after the board approves the applicant's employment verification of electrical construction experience, it sends an exam invitation listing test dates, and the applicant contacts the board with the chosen date. The board's exam page adds the details. A candidate must apply and be approved before signing up for a date. The invitation lists the dates available at the time of approval. The candidate must test within six months of receiving the invitation. And any cancellation or no-show requires a new application and a new fee.

Section 43-09-12 of the Century Code sets the statutory floor. Each applicant pays the examination fee, takes an oath and submits written proof of the required experience. Section 43-09-09 requires that applicants pass a technical and practical examination that tests knowledge of electrical skills and of the law. The board signs and seals each license.

The application packet

The board publishes the application forms on its licensing pages. For a master candidate, the packet usually contains four things: the application itself, the employment verification of electrical construction experience signed by each employer, the application fee and any supporting documents the form asks for. The application fee for the master license in N.D. Admin. Code 24.1-03-01-01 is 50 dollars. The annual license fee, also 50 dollars for a master, is paid when the license is issued and at each renewal. The application form itself sets out the current details, and the board's office can answer questions by phone in Bismarck.

Kari filled out her application in late August. Dale signed the employment verification for her seven years as a journeyman with Souris Bend, and Arlo attached a short summary of her hours drawn from payroll. She double-checked three things before mailing it: that her name matched her journeyman license exactly, that the dates on the verification matched the date her journeyman license was issued, and that the form named Dale as the contracting master she worked under. Mismatched names and dates are the most common reason an application comes back for more information.

Approval and the exam invitation

The board reviews the experience claimed and compares it with its records. If the hours or the supervision are unclear, the office asks for more information. If the experience meets the rule, the board approves the application and sends the invitation. Kari's approval came in October 2026, and her invitation listed the remaining 2026 sessions and the 2027 sessions open at the time.

The board's published schedule for the coming year shows sessions roughly once a month, each over two consecutive days: November 16 to 17 and December 14 to 15 in 2026, then sessions from January through December 2027. The page also gives a timing note that every candidate should read. Exams conducted in December 2026 are based on the 2026 NEC and the 2026 North Dakota laws, rules, wiring and conveyance standards. A candidate who had been studying from the 2023 code would need to move to the new edition before sitting a December exam.

Kari chose the December 14 to 15, 2026 session. It gave her eight weeks of study after approval, it uses the 2026 code she had already started learning for her continuing education, and if she needed a retest, a score in the 60s would let her sit again in January or February with time to spare before Dale's April 30 deadline. She called the board's office with her choice, as the rule requires, and wrote the confirmation in her calendar.

The six-month window

The invitation is not open-ended. A candidate must test within six months of receiving it. If the window passes, the candidate files a new application and fee. The same is true of a cancellation or a no-show. There is no free reschedule: a candidate who signs up for a date and does not appear has to start again with a new application. Choose a date you can keep, and keep it.

If the result is not a pass

The passing grade on the board's exams is 70. The exam page sets a waiting period before a retest that depends on the score. A candidate who scores from 60 to 69 may retest with no waiting period. A score from 50 to 59 means a three-month wait, and a score of 49 or below means a six-month wait. After the wait, the candidate files the re-exam application for an electrical license with the fee, receives a new invitation and signs up for a date. The board stopped giving exam reviews in 2012, so a candidate does not see the questions missed. The only feedback is the score.

# When could a candidate retest after a December 14, 2026 exam? (illustrative)
from datetime import date
exam = date(2026, 12, 14)
def wait_months(score):
    if score >= 70: return None
    if score >= 60: return 0
    if score >= 50: return 3
    return 6
for score in (72, 66, 55, 41):
    w = wait_months(score)
    if w is None:
        print(f"score {score}: pass")
        continue
    m = exam.month - 1 + w
    yr, mo = divmod(m, 12)
    earliest = date(exam.year + yr, mo + 1, 1)
    names = ["January", "February", "March", "April", "May", "June", "July", "August", "September", "October", "November", "December"]
    print(f"score {score}: wait {w} months, re-exam application from about {names[earliest.month - 1]} {earliest.year}")

score 72: pass
score 66: wait 0 months, re-exam application from about December 2026
score 55: wait 3 months, re-exam application from about March 2027
score 41: wait 6 months, re-exam application from about June 2027

The waiting rule shapes the study plan. A candidate who sits the exam unprepared and scores in the 40s loses six months, which for Kari would have meant missing Dale's deadline. A candidate who is close but not quite there can retest at the next session. The lesson is not to take the exam as a practice run.

After a pass

When a candidate passes, the board issues the license after the license fee is paid. The board's rule requires licensed electricians to carry the board's identification card and a government photo identification while working, and section 43-09-09 requires licensees to report their licensing and renewals to the local electrical inspector where one exists. A new master who will contract must also give the board proof of liability insurance before contracting, as Lesson 8 explains, and must tell the board immediately about any change in the status of the business the master qualifies.

For Souris Bend, a pass in December would let the company plan the change from Dale to Kari well before April 30. Arlo has already listed what will change: the contracting master named on the company's records with the board, the insurance certificate filed with the board, the Secretary of State contractor license file and the name on the e-cert account the company uses to file wiring certificates.

Exam accommodations and special cases

Candidates who need testing accommodations should ask the board in writing with the application, so that the request can be handled before a date is chosen. Military spouses and military members moving to North Dakota may qualify for provisional licensing under section 43-51-11.1, which the board's rules adopt by reference. Candidates licensed in a reciprocal state apply for a reciprocal license instead and do not take the written exam, as Lesson 2 explains.

Common reasons an application is delayed

Arlo has helped six Souris Bend electricians apply for licenses over the years, and the delays have always come from the same few problems. The first is a name that does not match the board's records, often a married name or a middle initial. The second is a verification signed by the wrong person, such as a foreman rather than the contracting master or an authorized officer of the company. The third is hours that do not add up, usually because a candidate counted apprentice hours toward the master. The fourth is a missing fee or an outdated form downloaded long ago. Each one sends the application back for correction and pushes the invitation later.

The fix is a careful final check before mailing. Download the current form from the board's site the week you apply, compare every name and date against your license card, have the contracting master sign the verification, attach a short hours summary that ties to payroll, and keep a copy of everything you send. If you are unsure whether experience will be accepted, call the board first; a five-minute call can save a month.

Choosing a session

Because the board offers sessions about once a month and the invitation is good for six months, most candidates have several dates to choose from. Pick a session that leaves enough time to study but not so much that motivation fades, avoid dates that clash with the company's busiest weeks, and leave room for a retest before any deadline that matters, such as a retiring master's last renewal. Remember the edition change too: a candidate approved in the fall of 2026 who sits in December or later is tested on the 2026 code and the 2026 North Dakota standards, so all study material should be on that edition.