Checked against primary sources 2026-09-05

The license that lets you contract

C-10 Contractor License California: Experience and Exams

A certification card lets you do the work. A C-10 Electrical license lets you take the contract, hire the crew and pull the permit in your own name. It comes from the Contractors State License Board, on a track of its own.

Test yourself: thirty free questions, timed

What the C-10 classification covers

The Board's classification page describes an electrical contractor as one who places, installs, erects or connects electrical wires, fixtures, appliances, apparatus, raceways, conduits, solar photovoltaic cells or any part of them, which generate, carry, convert or use electrical energy in any form or for any purpose.

The authority cited is Business and Professions Code sections 7008 and 7059, with reference to 7058 and 7059. The classification is one of many; C-7 low voltage and C-45 sign work are separate ones, and their holders are exempt from the certification program inside their own scope.

Four years of experience

The Board asks for at least four years of experience in the classification you apply for. Credit is given only for experience at a journey level or as a foreman, supervising employee, contractor or owner-builder, so helper time does not count.

Education can stand in for up to three of the four years: a maximum of a year and a half for an associate degree in building or construction management, up to two years for a four year degree in a field such as architecture or engineering, and up to three years for an apprenticeship certificate or a four year degree in construction technology or management. At least one year has to be practical experience.

Every claim needs verification by a qualified and responsible person with firsthand knowledge, which the Board's list puts as an employer, contractor, foreman or supervisor, fellow employee, other journeyman, union representative, building inspector, architect, engineer or homeowner.

The two exams

Applicants take and pass two examinations, Law and Business plus the C-10 trade exam. The Board allows 3 and a half hours for each one, and they can be scheduled on the same day or on different days, each with its own fee.

Both are closed book. Reading materials and textbooks are on the prohibited list along with phones, calculators, notes and food, and a valid government issued photo ID is required at the door.

The Board publishes study guides for both: the C-10 Electrical study guide and the Law and Business study guide. The examination FAQ read for this page does not print a question count or a passing score for the trade exam, so we do not print one either.

Scheduling, retakes and the deadline

Scheduling runs through PSI, online at any hour or by phone at (877) 392-6422. Cancelling less than 48 hours before the appointment forfeits it.

A failed exam can be retaken after 21 calendar days. The outer limit is 18 months from the acceptance of your application to passing, so the retake clock matters.

Test centers on the Board's list are Agoura Hills, Atascadero, Bakersfield, Carson, Diamond Bar, El Monte and Santa Fe Springs, Fresno, Irvine, Lawndale, Redding, Riverside, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Santa Rosa, Union City, Ventura, Visalia and Walnut Creek. Outside California the trade exam is offered in Oregon only, at Wilsonville. The Law and Business exam is also offered in Colorado, Connecticut, Georgia, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.

Bonds and insurance at issuance

Passing is not the last step. The Board's issuance page lists a $25,000 contractor bond and a $25,000 bond of qualifying individual, plus an employee or worker bond and liability insurance for a limited liability company, whose amounts that page does not print.

Proof of workers compensation coverage is a condition of licensure, with an exemption available for most contractors who have no employees. That exemption disappears the day you hire someone.

What it costs

From the Board's fee list: an original application in one classification is $450, and the initial license fee is $200 for a sole owner or $350 for anyone else. An additional classification is $150 during the original application or $230 after.

Renewals for C-10 carry a surcharge. Active timely renewal is $450 for a sole owner and $700 otherwise, but $470 and $720 for C-10. Delinquent renewals run $675 and $1,050 generally, and $695 and $1,070 for C-10. The $20 difference is the electrician certification surcharge.

The renewal cycle

Active licenses expire every two years and inactive licenses every four. A contractor has 90 days after expiration, under Senate Bill 1474, to submit a completed renewal application with fees for retroactive reinstatement.

The Board's general renewal page names no continuing education requirement for contractors. That is a real difference from the certification card, which asks for 32 hours every three years.

Coming from another state

The Board has reciprocity agreements with Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada and North Carolina. The conditions are an active license in good standing in that state for the previous five years, a Request for Verification of License form, an Application for Original Contractor's License, and a classification that appears on that state's Reciprocal Classifications List.

Whether C-10 Electrical appears on any of those five lists could not be confirmed from the pages read for this page. Ask the Board before you count on it.

Questions people ask

How do I get a C-10 license in California?

Show four years of journey level experience in the classification, pass the Law and Business exam and the C-10 trade exam, then file the bonds and workers compensation proof the Board asks for at issuance. Education can substitute for up to three of the four years.

How much does a C-10 license cost?

The original application in one classification is $450 and the initial license fee is $200 for a sole owner or $350 otherwise. Active timely renewal for C-10 is $470 for a sole owner and $720 for anyone else.

Is the C-10 exam open book?

No. The Board prohibits reading materials and textbooks in the examination room, along with phones, calculators, notes and food. That is the opposite of the state certification exam, which supplies its references on screen.

How long do I have to pass the contractor exams?

18 months from the acceptance of your application. A failed exam can be retaken after 21 calendar days, and scheduling runs through PSI online or at (877) 392-6422.

What bond does a California electrical contractor need?

A $25,000 contractor bond, and a $25,000 bond of qualifying individual where one applies. A limited liability company also files an employee or worker bond and liability insurance, and the issuance page does not print those amounts.

Does a C-10 license need continuing education?

The Board's general renewal page names no continuing education requirement. Active licenses renew every two years and inactive licenses every four, with a 90 day window after expiration for retroactive reinstatement.

Do my employees still need certification if I hold a C-10?

Yes. Electricians who make connections of greater than 100 volt amps for a C-10 contractor must hold a state certification or be registered electrician trainees. The sole owner exemption covers the owner only.

What this page cites

• CSLB C-10 classification Sets out the scope of electrical contracting under Business and Professions Code sections 7008 and 7059. source
• CSLB experience requirements Requires four years of journey level experience and sets the education substitutions and verification rules. source
• CSLB examination FAQ Gives the 3 and a half hour limit, the closed book rule, PSI scheduling, the 21 day retake and the test center cities. source
• CSLB issuing my license Lists the $25,000 contractor bond, the qualifying individual bond and the workers compensation condition. source
• CSLB fee list Prints the application, initial license and renewal fees, including the higher C-10 renewal figures. source
• CSLB renewal information States the two year active cycle, the four year inactive cycle and the 90 day retroactive window. source