Checked against primary sources 2026-09-05
County law, not state law
Florida County Journeyman Electrician Exams Explained
If you're looking for a Florida journeyman electrician exam, the state doesn't run one. Counties and cities do, each with its own vendor, its own fee and sometimes its own code edition. Section 489.5335 sets the floor they all sit above.
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On this page
There's no state journeyman exam
Florida licenses electrical contractors at the state level. The Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board issues certified and registered contractor licenses, and nothing it issues is a journeyman card.
Section 489.5335 is titled journeyman, reciprocity and standards, and it speaks only about journeyman licenses issued by counties and municipalities. That's the whole of the state's involvement.
So the answer to which exam you sit depends on which county you work in, and the answer changes at the county line.
The floor the statute sets
A county or municipality may issue a journeyman license in the electrical and alarm system trades to an applicant who does three things.
- Scores at least 70 percent, or at least 75 percent after October 1, 1997, on a proctored journeyman Block and Associates examination or another proctored examination approved by the board.
- Completes either a registered, state approved apprenticeship or at least 12,000 hours of on the job training.
- Completes building code coursework approved by the Florida Building Commission for that discipline, or shows proof of completing it within six months after certification.
The section carries no fee provisions and no listed exceptions. Fees, application forms and renewal terms are county business.
One card travels across the state
The same section requires that counties and municipalities recognize a person as a journeyman in the electrical and alarm system trades if that person was issued a journeyman license in the trade by a county or municipality in the state.
That's worth knowing before you sit a second exam. Broward's contractor packet says the county reciprocates with all Florida counties, with exam scores, testing agency name and county sent by sealed letter from the reciprocating county. Palm Beach County asks that the originating county's experience requirement be equal to or above its own, that the exam score be at least 75 percent, that the scope of work be substantially similar and that the license be current.
County by county, as the counties print it
Miami-Dade County
The Construction Trades Qualifying Board runs under Chapter 10 of the county code, in two divisions, with Division B covering electrical, mechanical and plumbing. Journeyman levels are Journeyman Electrician, Journeyman Sign Electrician, Journeyman Fire Alarm and Journeyman Burglar Alarm.
The county asks for three years of proven experience in the trade or craft, or education equivalent, or a combination, with no more than half of it education, plus a passing examination. The vendor is Prov, Inc. The Journeyman Electrician exam is described as 75 questions in three hours, referencing the 2017 National Electrical Code and the American Electrician's Handbook, sixteenth edition. Journeyman Sign Electrician is also 75 questions in three hours on the 2017 code.
Broward County
The Building Code Division processes certificates of competency at 2307 W. Broward Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale, and runs a license seminar the first Wednesday of each month at 9am. The journeyman packet lists nine classifications: electrical, electrical fire alarm systems, electrical limited energy systems, solar photovoltaic systems specialty, maintenance electrician, mechanical, plumbing, insulation and sheet metal.
Electrical and Maintenance Electrician applicants need at least four years of practical electrical maintenance experience; the specialty electrical routes need at least three. Applicants file notarized affidavits from licensed employers with W-2 forms covering the same period. Approved applicants are sent to the testing agency and a minimum passing grade of 75 percent is required. The packet still prints a $115 electrical fee; the county's notice of fee increases supersedes it with a $225.00 journeyman application and a $120.00 renewal, effective January 1, 2025.
Palm Beach County
The Construction Industry Licensing Board issues the Journeyman Certificate of Competency through the Contractors Certification Division at 2300 N Jog Road, West Palm Beach. Experience runs one of three ways: a four year apprentice program that includes four years of work experience; a two year apprenticeship plus three more years of supervised experience; or six years of full time practical work under the direct supervision of a certified electrical contractor.
Two testing vendors are named, GITS and Prov. A passing grade of 75 percent has to be achieved on each exam, and exams are taken in Palm Beach County within 60 days of board approval. The application fee is $100 in total, with $50 due at submission to start the review, and the applicant has thirteen months after approval to finish before the application goes void.
Hillsborough County
Development Services issues a Journeyman Electrician certificate of competency through HillsGovHub. The county is direct about what it is: the certificate doesn't permit the holder to perform work or enter contracts independently, and holders work under a licensed contractor's supervision.
The application references a four year apprenticeship and lets an applicant submit a test score from an approved agency where the exam is already taken. Required documents are the apprenticeship certificate of completion, the test score and the journeyman verification of construction experience form. Fees are $50 to start, $100 on acceptance and $70 one time registration, and the registration doesn't expire once issued. The county page names neither the testing vendor nor a passing score.
Pinellas County
The Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board certifies journeymen and says a person has to be certified by it to work in the county. Its journeyman application covers five classifications, and electricians need four years: a four year apprenticeship counts as four years, four years of full time employment at 2,000 hours a year counts, and part time and full time work can be combined to total 8,000 hours.
The board describes its examinations as open book, prepared by an independent testing agency, with multiple choice, fill in and true or false questions. Applicants bring their own references and no study aids. Most examinations take about six hours with a lunch break of about an hour. The application fee is $75 and is not refundable.
Lee County
Lee County's published list of available certificates of competency includes Journeyman Electrician, coded JE. Its own phase out FAQ says the certificate of competency local license expired September 30, 2022 while journeyman certificates continue and would be handled administratively. The county's testing codes document names Prometric and GITS.
Duval County and Jacksonville
The Construction Trades Qualifying Board of Jacksonville operates under Chapters 62 and 342 of the municipal ordinances, regulates twelve construction trade categories including electrical, and issues certificates of competency that include journeyman craftsman and master craftsman. Application fees run $10 to $75, renewal fees $50 to $160 biennially, and examination fees $65 to $150. The $180 on the same list is the alarm contractor registration fee rather than an application fee. The board meets the second Wednesday of each month at 5:00 PM.
Orange County and Orlando
Orange County's Division of Building Safety page describes permits, plan review, inspections and code enforcement, and it points readers at the DBPR database to verify a Florida license. We found no county journeyman card or competency certificate program described on it, so ask the division before you count on either answer. The City of Orlando registers state certified and state registered contractors rather than issuing its own electrician licenses.
Where the sources disagree
Three of these are worth knowing before you plan around a number.
The passing mark in Pinellas. The county's journeyman application says a passing grade is 70 percent. Section 489.5335 sets 75 percent for journeyman licenses issued after October 1, 1997. Both are published, neither page reconciles the other, and the county is the one taking your application.
Experience in Miami-Dade. The county's electrical license page asks for three years of proven experience or education equivalent. The statute floor is a registered apprenticeship or 12,000 hours of on the job training plus a proctored exam. The county page doesn't address the difference.
The code edition in Miami-Dade. The county's exam description document ties its Journeyman Electrician and Journeyman Sign Electrician exams to the 2017 National Electrical Code. The state contractor exam uses the 2023 edition. If you're preparing for both, you're preparing on two books.
What to ask before you apply
Call the county licensing office and get four answers in writing: which testing agency, which code edition the exam references, what the passing grade is, and what proof of experience they'll accept.
Then check the building code coursework requirement in section 489.5335, because it's the item candidates most often discover after they've passed.
Our own material is written on the National Electrical Code and is useful for the code half of any of these papers. It's not county material and we're not connected to any county board. The practice hub says which of our sets carry a section number that changed between editions.
We're not a training provider, an approved course or an examination vendor, and nothing here is endorsed by the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, the Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board or Pearson VUE. We're independent of all three.
Questions people ask
Is there a Florida state journeyman electrician exam?
No. Section 489.5335 leaves journeyman licensing to counties and municipalities, and the state board issues contractor licenses instead. The exam you sit depends on the county.
What score do I need on a county journeyman exam?
Section 489.5335 sets at least 75 percent for licenses issued after October 1, 1997. Broward and Palm Beach both print 75 percent, and the Pinellas application prints 70 percent.
How many hours do I need for a county journeyman card?
The statute asks for either a registered, state approved apprenticeship or at least 12,000 hours of on the job training. Individual counties then print their own year counts, which run from three to six years.
Does a journeyman card from one Florida county work in another?
Section 489.5335 requires counties and municipalities to recognize a person as a journeyman if a Florida county or municipality issued them a journeyman license in that trade. Counties still run their own paperwork for it.
Who writes the county exams?
It varies. Miami-Dade names Prov, Palm Beach names GITS and Prov, Broward names Global Independent Testing Services and Prov, and Lee County's testing document names Prometric and GITS.
Which code edition do county exams use?
That varies too. Miami-Dade's exam description document ties its journeyman electrician exams to the 2017 National Electrical Code, while the state contractor exam uses the 2023 edition.
Do I need a building code course as well?
Section 489.5335 asks for building code coursework approved by the Florida Building Commission for the discipline, or proof of completing it within six months after certification.
Does Orange County issue a journeyman card?
No. Orange County's Division of Building Safety verifies state licenses rather than issuing its own contractor certificates or journeyman cards.
Thirty free questions, timed, with the working shown
Every miss comes back with the arithmetic worked out and the code section named, so you learn the trap and not just the answer. No account.
All questions here are original. They are not actual exam questions, and no question bank can promise you a pass.
What this page cites
- Section 489.5335, Florida Statutes Journeyman licensing, which the statute leaves to counties and municipalities, with a 75 percent floor and an hours or apprenticeship requirement. Read 5 September 2026. source
- Miami-Dade exam descriptions The county's own exam description document, with the question count, time limit and referenced code edition for each electrical examination. Read 5 September 2026. source
- Broward County journeyman application The county's journeyman certificate of competency application, with the experience years by trade, the affidavit requirement, the passing grade and the fees. Read 5 September 2026. source
- Palm Beach County journeyman application The Construction Industry Licensing Board's journeyman application, with the three experience routes, the two testing vendors, the 75 percent mark and the 60 day window. Read 5 September 2026. source
- Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board journeyman application The application covering five classifications, with the hours rules, the open book description and the $75 fee. Read 5 September 2026. source
- Hillsborough County journeyman certificate The county page for the journeyman electrician or plumber certificate of competency, its documents and its fees. Read 5 September 2026. source
The 2023 to 2026 section crosswalk maps every section that moved, both directions, $29 once.