1.3 Eligibility, Application & Scheduling

Eligibility — The 8,000-Hour Requirement

Quick Answer: To sit the Texas Journeyman exam you must document 8,000 hours of on-the-job training (OJT) under a Texas-licensed Master Electrician, submit TDLR form ELC017 signed by each supervising Master, pay a $30 non-refundable application fee plus the $78 PSI exam fee, pass a criminal history check, and meet every requirement within a 12-month window. An early-exam option lets you sit the exam at 7,000 hours, but the license is not issued until the full 8,000 are complete.

The 8,000-Hour OJT Rule

Texas requires 8,000 hours of documented on-the-job training under the direct supervision of a Texas-licensed Master Electrician. This is roughly four years of full-time work at 2,000 hours per year. The hours must be gained while holding a valid Texas Apprentice Electrician license (available starting at age 16), and they must be verified by the Master or Masters who supervised you during each period of employment.

The 8,000 hours need not all be under a single Master. If you worked for multiple contractors, each supervising Master must sign the portion of your ELC017 experience form that corresponds to the hours they supervised. Gaps between employers are acceptable as long as the cumulative total reaches 8,000 and each block is attested.

The 7,000-Hour Early-Exam Option

TDLR permits candidates to sit the exam at 7,000 hours — roughly six months before completing the full 8,000. This lets you get the exam out of the way while you finish the remaining hours on the job. The catch: the license is not issued until the full 8,000 hours are documented and verified. Passing the exam early does not grant you journeyman status; it just banks a passing score so you can be licensed the moment your hours close.

Practically, the early-exam option is a good idea if you are confident in your preparation and want to avoid a gap between finishing hours and getting licensed. It is a bad idea if you are still weak on calculations, because failing the Calculations portion at 7,000 hours costs you another $78 retake and the 12-month eligibility window keeps ticking.

Documenting Experience on ELC017

The ELC017 form is TDLR's official experience verification document. You can download it from the TDLR electricians program page. The form requires:

• Your name, apprentice license number, and contact information
• The name, license number, and signature of each supervising Master Electrician
• The start and end dates of employment under each Master
• The type of electrical work performed (residential, commercial, industrial, etc.)
• A breakdown of hours by work category, where applicable

Each supervising Master must sign the form. A form missing a signature, or with hours attested by someone who was not the licensed Master of record during that period, will be rejected. Do not wait until you hit 8,000 hours to start collecting signatures — track and sign incrementally as you change employers.

The 12-Month Window

Once TDLR approves your application, you have 12 months to meet all remaining requirements and pass the exam. This includes completing any outstanding hours, passing the criminal history check, and sitting the exam with PSI. If the 12-month window expires before you pass, you must reapply and pay the $30 application fee again. Plan your application timing so the window covers your expected exam date plus at least one retake buffer.

Fees

The $78 exam fee covers both portions of the exam in a single sitting. If you fail only one portion, you retake just that portion — TDLR's rule is that only the failed portion must be retaken, and the passing portion is banked. PSI's retake fee is $78 whether you re-sit one portion or both, so there is no half-price single-portion retake.

Criminal History Check

TDLR runs a criminal history check on every applicant. A criminal record does not automatically disqualify you, but TDLR reviews the nature, recency, and relevance of any offense. Crimes involving fraud, theft, or moral turpitude receive closer scrutiny than unrelated offenses. If you have a record, submit a written explanation with your application; TDLR's licensing staff will review it and may request additional documentation. Being upfront is far better than letting the background check surface something you did not disclose.

Scheduling with PSI

Once TDLR approves your eligibility, PSI sends an authorization email with instructions for scheduling. You schedule directly with PSI, not TDLR:

• Website: test-takers.psiexams.com/tdlnrp
• Phone: 833-333-4741
• Test centers: 16 locations across Texas (Austin, Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, Fort Worth, El Paso, and others)
• Languages: English and Spanish (select when scheduling)
• Results: Immediate — the PSI proctor hands you a printed score report before you leave the test center; that copy is for your records only, and PSI reports the official result to TDLR electronically

When scheduling, book the earliest date that gives you enough study time — but not so far out that you lose urgency. Most successful candidates book 4–8 weeks out and treat the date as a hard deadline driving daily practice.

A Step-by-Step Study Timeline

The table below maps a realistic 12-week timeline from eligibility approval to exam day. Adjust to your own starting score and schedule, but keep the shape: diagnose early, build calculation fluency as a separate block, and ramp practice exams in the final weeks.

The most common timeline mistake is starting full practice exams too late. By week 7 you should be sitting at least one timed mock per week. Candidates who delay mock exams until the final week consistently report running out of time on the Calculations part.

The Upcoming September 1, 2026 NEC 2026 Republish

TDLR has announced that exam items are being re-referenced to the 2026 NEC and that the updated exams will republish September 1, 2026. If you are testing before that date, the 2023 NEC is your reference and this guide applies directly. If you are testing on or after September 1, 2026, confirm the reference edition with PSI when scheduling and use a guide written to the 2026 NEC. The NEC's three-year cycle typically changes conductor ampacity tables, GFCI coverage, and special-occupancy rules, so do not assume 2023 content maps cleanly to a 2026 exam.

A Note on Apprentice Licensing at Age 16

Texas allows individuals as young as 16 years old to hold an Apprentice Electrician license, which is the prerequisite for accruing the 8,000 hours of OJT. Starting the apprenticeship at 16 means a candidate can, in theory, reach journeyman eligibility by age 20 with steady full-time work. The apprentice license is separate from the journeyman application — it registers you in the TDLR system and lets your supervising Master legally count your hours toward the 8,000 requirement.