Virginia electrical contractor license: what your Class A, B or C license lets you do, and your first 30 days

Published November 3, 2026 · Law checked November 3, 2026

• Free to read. The 30-day checklist is also a free printable (Google Docs, Word or PDF). The files come by email.
• Deepsel is our product: free estimate, invoice and scheduling software for contractors (scheduling, quotes, invoicing, card payments). The section before the FAQ says where it fits and where it doesn't.
• Not legal advice. Every rule here links to the statute, regulation or official page it comes from. Ask DPOR, your building department or a Virginia attorney before you bet a job on my reading.

A Virginia electrical contractor license lets your business contract for any electrical work the state building code covers, up to the dollar limit of its class. Class C covers single jobs over $1,000 and under $30,000 (and under $250,000 of work in any 12 months), Class B goes up to $150,000 a job, and Class A has no ceiling.¹ The ELE letters on the license include data, phone and fire alarm wiring at 50 volts or less. The whole license rests on one person: a master electrician who works full-time for the business or is one of its owners.³

Four things catch new Virginia shops before the next job. Class C firms working on houses in Fairfax and Prince William counties need a county license on top of the state one, with a $10,000 bond.^8,9 Dominion's work-request setup asks builders for a Dominion service account number.¹⁴ Anything past a like-for-like device swap needs a permit from the city or county.¹⁰ And gas lines, solar panels and burglar alarms each need a license you probably don't hold yet.^3,18

The utility one is real. A new owner in northern Virginia posted this in March 2026 (the post has since been removed): "I just started my own (solo) electrical contracting business. ... I'm trying to setup an account with Dominion Energy (in northern VA) on their eBuilder site. It's asking me to connect my profile to a Dominion account, which I don't have" (Reddit). Below: what your license lets you take, where it stops, permits, the utilities, a "can I take this job?" table, a 30-day checklist and what crossing the line costs, each with the rule behind it. What your residential contracts must say is in Virginia home improvement contract requirements, and the general contractor side (the $1,000 line, RBC and HIC) is in Virginia handyman license rules.

The 30-day checklist is also a printable: make your own copy in Google Docs (lands in your Drive), download the Word version (.docx), or download the PDF. Pick a format, enter your email and I'll send the links. It's the same list as on this page, with tick boxes and blanks for your license numbers, portal logins, policy numbers and renewal dates.

Virginia electrical license basics: the master's license and the firm's license

Virginia licenses electrical work twice, and the two licenses don't merge. The person holds a tradesman license from DPOR's Board for Contractors, as a journeyman or master electrician.^5,6 The business holds a contractor license with two parts: the class, which sets how big a job it can sign, and the classification, which sets what kind of work it can do.⁷ Fairfax County's guide for new contractors puts it in one line: "Tradesman and journeyman licenses are separate and cannot be combined with a contractor's licenses (class A, B or C) to expand the scope or dollar limits of work allowed."⁸

Sources for the table: tradesman definitions, renewal and CE,^5,6 contractor renewal and fees.³

Who has to be named on the firm's license

• The qualified individual. For ELE this person must hold a "Master electrician tradesman license" and be "a full-time employee of the firm or ... a member of the responsible management of the firm." Full-time means at least 30 hours a week on the firm's work, paid on a W-2. The experience bar is 1 year for Class C, 3 for B and 5 for A.³
• The designated employee, on Class B and A only: a full-time employee or member of management who passed the Board's exam on the firm's behalf.^1,3
• Responsible management: the owners, partners, officers or LLC members.³

A solo master who owns the company fills every role. If the master on your license is someone else and leaves, you have 60 days to report a new qualified individual.³ A master who "qualifies" your license while working full-time somewhere else fails the W-2 test, and the Board lists both "Allowing a firm's license to be used by another" and acting as "an ostensible licensee for undisclosed persons" as prohibited acts.⁴ One commenter's warning about those deals: "You could end up behind bars because of someone else’s mistake made under work done in your name" (r/electricians).

Small jobs on the tradesman license alone

The contractor license starts at contracts over $1,000.¹ Below that, a journeyman or master can work on their own tradesman license. DPOR's tradesman application says "Any applicant performing work over $1,000 must contact the Board for Contractors," and Fairfax County says journeymen and masters "can do work under $1,000 per contract without a state contractor's license."^7,8

Virginia contractor license classes: your dollar ceiling

These limits are new. Before July 1, 2025, Class C stopped at $10,000 a job and $150,000 a year, and Class B at $120,000 and $750,000.² Plenty of pages still print the old numbers, including some county pages. A Class C shop that lands a $35,000 tenant fit-out needs Class B before it signs, because working "without the proper class of license" is the same misdemeanor as working with none.²⁴ How the lines are counted (labor and materials together, per contract or project, change orders included) is on the handyman license page.

Residential and commercial

Virginia has no residential-only electrician license. The residential-only licenses DPOR added in April 2025 are for HVAC mechanics and plumbers.⁶ Your journeyman or master license and the ELE classification cover a house and an office building alike.³ Bigger work changes the paperwork, though. Fairfax County treats apartment buildings and condos as commercial under the building code, wants plans for a residential service of 600 amps or more, and says a service "rated at or below 800 amps may be designed by a Virginia Master Electrician or Virginia Class "A" electrical contractor."⁸

What the ELE classification covers

ELE covers "the construction, installation, repair, maintenance, alteration, or removal of electrical systems," which the Board defines as "all work covered by the electrical provisions of the USBC" (the Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code).³ On the jobs that raise questions:

• Low voltage and data. The electronic/communication specialty (phone wiring, computer cabling, networks, TV, fiber, sound and "other systems that operate at 50 volts or less") is inside ELE. So is the fire alarm specialty, for fire alarm systems at 50 volts or less.³
• Signs. A sign contractor may "connect or disconnect signs to existing electrical circuits" and no more. A new circuit to a sign is electrical work.³
• Pools and hot tubs. The pool-building specialty excludes "trade related plumbing, electrical, backflow, or HVAC work," so the bonding and the circuits are yours.³
• Standby generators. The alternative energy specialty leaves out "emergency generators powered by fossil fuels," so wiring a generator and its transfer switch is ELE work. The gas line to it isn't (next section).³
• Solar. ELE alone isn't enough. The alternative energy specialty (AES) covers the system "from the customer's meter," and "No other classification or specialty service provides this function." AES in turn "does not provide for electrical" work, so a solar job needs both sets of letters. Adding AES takes a qualifier who meets its own experience and exam rules, or one who qualifies for roofing by exam and holds a NABCEP or board-approved certification.³

Supervision: who can work alone

A licensed journeyman or master can work alone. Anyone without a tradesman license, apprentices included, can do electrical work only "under the supervision of a tradesman who is licensed in the specialty for which work is being performed."⁵ The Board defines supervision as guidance from a licensed tradesman who is "accessible to the helper or laborer" and periodically observes and evaluates the work, and making sure every helper gets it is the firm's job: failing to is a prohibited act.^3,4 I found no fixed apprentice-to-journeyman ratio in the Board's statutes or regulations. The master named on the license has to be a full-time W-2 employee or an owner, as above, so a master who only lends a name doesn't count.

Where your license stops

• Gas piping. The gas line to a standby generator, range or pool heater is gas fitting: the GFC specialty (LPG covers propane), qualified by a master gas fitter. The HVAC and plumbing classifications exclude gas piping too.³ Wire the generator and transfer switch, and sub the gas line to a contractor holding GFC. The code requires a permit for "fuel supply systems" as well as wiring.¹⁰
• HVAC equipment. Setting a condenser, heat pump or air handler is HVAC work (HVA).³ You run the circuit and the disconnect. The tradesman law lets an HVAC tech do electrical work that is "incidental" to the HVAC job, meaning "necessary for that particular repair or installation," without an electrician's license.^5,6 Neither rule says where your circuit ends and their incidental wiring starts, so agree it with the HVAC contractor before the job and write it into your quote.
• Plumbing. Water heaters sit in the plumbing and HVAC definitions. You can wire one; the tank and the piping go to a plumber or HVAC contractor.³
• Solar panels and racking without AES on your license (above).
• Burglar alarms and security cameras. Virginia defines "electronic security equipment" as alarm signaling devices "including burglar alarms" and "cameras used to detect intrusions," and a business that installs it needs a license from the Department of Criminal Justice Services, with a registration for each technician. The exemption list in that law covers licensed contractors only for locksmith work.¹⁸ Fire alarm and data are yours; intrusion alarms and cameras need DCJS.
• Lead paint in pre-1978 homes. Virginia doesn't run its own lead renovation program, so EPA's rule applies directly. Disturb painted surfaces for pay in a home built before 1978 and your firm needs EPA certification, with the work "directed by renovators certified" by EPA, unless it's minor repair: "6 square feet or less of painted surface per room for interior activities or 20 square feet or less" outside. Jobs "in the same room within the same 30 days must be considered the same job," so fishing a rewire through plaster adds up fast. The federal civil penalty is up to $49,772 per violation at EPA's January 2025 adjustment.²⁰
• Digging. A trench for an underground service, a feeder to a garage or a hot tub circuit counts as "excavation." Submit a Miss Utility locate request first and wait until every utility has marked or answered. Willfully skipping it makes you liable for three times the repair cost of whatever you hit, the State Corporation Commission can fine up to $10,000 per violation, and the Board lists Miss Utility failures as a prohibited act.^17,4

Virginia electrical permits and inspections

Virginia has one building code, the USBC, and it overrides city and county building codes.¹¹ Enforcement is local. In the statute's words, "Enforcement of the provisions of the Building Code for construction and rehabilitation shall be the responsibility of the local building department."¹¹ So the state licenses you, and the city or county issues the permit and sends the inspector.

When you need one

A permit is required before work on "electric wiring" or "any equipment regulated by the USBC." The exemptions that matter to an electrician:¹⁰

• Like-for-like replacement of switches, dimmers, "125 volt-15 or 20 ampere receptacles, luminaires (lighting fixtures), and ceiling (paddle) fans" in houses, townhouses and single apartment units.
• Wiring under 50 volts, broadband, and monitoring or automation systems in homes, unless it runs in a plenum, goes through fire-rated construction, or is part of a fire alarm, fire detection, access control or similar life-safety system.
• Emergencies. You can replace failed equipment first and apply "by the end of the first working day that follows the day such work commences."

A panel swap, a service change, a new circuit or an EV charger is never on that list. And if the owner asks for a permit on exempt work, the building official has to issue one.¹⁰

Who pulls the permit

The owner, the lessee, or "the RDP, contractor, or subcontractor associated with the work" can apply, and nobody can make you apply in person.¹⁰ Before the building official can issue it, you furnish your license number and proof your local business license taxes are paid.¹² On a job over $1,000 that's the firm's contractor license number. Fairfax County asks for a License Exemption Affidavit when no licensed contractor is listed on the application.⁸

Homeowners can pull permits for their own house. The contractor law exempts work on one primary residence the owner lives in, and tradesman licensing covers only work "for the general public for compensation."^12,5 Fairfax lets owners pull electrical permits in their own name but "strongly" recommends a licensed contractor do it.⁸ If a customer offers to pull the permit to save you the fee, remember that exemption covers the owner's own work. You're still working for pay, so your licenses and the Board's permit rule still apply to you.⁴

Inspections and the meter

The local building department inspects. It may waive an inspection when the construction cost is under $2,500, at its discretion.¹¹ On a service job the utility waits for the inspection: Dominion's Blue Book says "the meter will be installed following any required electrical inspections," and Rappahannock Electric Cooperative requires "a county electrical inspection" on connections.^14,16 Owners know the feeling: "The power company won’t tie it in until it passes inspection" (Reddit).

Fairfax, Prince William, Virginia Beach and the rest

• Fairfax County. Permits go through the county's PLUS portal. The county page says a residential electrical permit is required for "new residential service, new electrical equipment and/or fixtures, replacement of electrical equipment or fixtures, and electrical vehicle charging station circuits and outlets," and trade permits come "after the associated building permit is issued."⁸ (The state code exempts like-for-like light fixtures in houses. Ask Fairfax before you skip one.) Class C contractors also need a county Home Improvement Contractor license: two business references, your DPOR number, your Fairfax BPOL number, "Your standard contract template," a financial statement, and a surety bond of $10,000 for contracts over $1,000 ($5,000 under). It lasts one to two years, depending on the bond.⁸ The county page names every DPOR Class C contractor and carves out no trade.
• Prince William County. Its home improvement license has an Electrical category that "requires master electrician certification" and a $10,000 surety bond. Class A and B contractors are exempt; the county's sheet says Class C contractors need it "if the work being performed is residential."⁹ The ordinance copy on the county site is codified through 2012 and still uses the old $10,000 Class C limit, so call Building Development (703-792-6930) to confirm the current rules.
• Virginia Beach. The city's electrical permit application (revised June 2025) marks generator circuits and transfer switches as requiring "an approved site plan," and asks for the contract value and your state registration number.¹³
• Everywhere. Every locality can charge the BPOL business license tax, and state law lets any locality require its own home improvement license from contractors other than Class A.^12,23 I checked only Fairfax and Prince William for one. Ask the building department and the Commissioner of the Revenue in each new city or county.

Dominion, Appalachian Power and the co-ops: set up before the first service upgrade

The 200-amp service upgrade is where the permit, the inspector and the utility all meet, and the utility is the part you can't hurry once the customer's power is off. Get access set up with the utilities you'll work with in the first month, before a job depends on it.

Dominion Energy Virginia

• Requests. "For builders, developers, or electricians, requests for a new service, a temporary service, or a service upgrade are initiated by calling the Company's toll free number 1-888-569-5700," online, or through eBuilder.¹⁴
• The account wall. Dominion's new construction page says "A Dominion Energy service account number is required for builders," along with a PIN or the last 4 digits of the TIN or SSN on that account. That's what stopped the owner quoted above. If you have no Dominion account, call the residential contractor line printed on the eBuilder sign-in page, 1-866-366-4357, before your first upgrade is scheduled.¹⁴
• The meter. Dominion seals every meter and needs "at least 24 hours notice to remove a meter." On service upgrades it "may give a licensed electrician authorization to remove the seal and meter," and you notify Dominion as soon as the work is done.¹⁴
• Scope. The Blue Book reserves Dominion's right to "correct service discrepancies on service upgrades," so read its residential requirements before you price the job.¹⁴

Appalachian Power

New service runs through the online forms on its Builders & Contractors page. For an existing house, the Modify Home Service form covers "Upgrading your electrical service to provide sufficient power for a new heating or air conditioning system or other large electrical appliance." It asks for the customer's 11-digit account number and has optional fields for the contractor's company and phone, so fill it in with the customer at the estimate.¹⁵

NOVEC, Rappahannock and the other co-ops

• NOVEC posts a builders' new service request form and an Electrician's Guide that "describes the steps necessary to obtain service, from the planning stage through construction to meter installation."¹⁶
• Rappahannock Electric Cooperative is stricter about the meter than Dominion: "No one, other than REC personnel, can cut or remove the seal." Work inside the meter base has to be coordinated with REC, and you notify it once the site passes the county inspection.¹⁶
• Any other co-op: read the name on the meter and find that utility's builder or new-service page before you quote. Who may pull the meter differs from one utility to the next.

Can I take this job? A table for Virginia electrical contractors

The verdicts assume your firm holds Class C or higher with ELE, the contract fits your class, and a licensed journeyman or master does or supervises the work.

Sources for the table: classes and specialties,^1,3 incidental work,^5,6 local rules,^8,9,13 permits,¹⁰ utilities,^14,15,16 Miss Utility,¹⁷ DCJS,¹⁸ solar contracts,¹⁹ lead,²⁰ BPOL,²³ wrong class.²⁴

Your first 30 days: a checklist for a new Virginia electrical contractor

This is the same list as the printable. Week 1 keeps you legal on the next job. The rest keeps a service upgrade from stalling for a week while the customer sits in the dark.

Week 1: licenses and paperwork

1. Look up your firm and your master on DPOR's License Lookup. Write down the firm's class, its letters (ELE, plus AES or anything else), both license numbers and both expiration dates.⁷
2. Check your master meets the qualifier rule: a full-time W-2 employee working at least 30 hours a week, or an owner or officer.³
3. Register the business with the State Corporation Commission if it's an LLC or corporation. If you trade under any name other than your own legal name, file an assumed name certificate with the SCC clerk.^8,22
4. Get the BPOL business license from the Commissioner of the Revenue where your office is. Fairfax wants it within 75 days of starting, and another city or county can require its own once you do more than $25,000 of work there in a year.²³
5. If you're Class C and work on houses in Fairfax or Prince William County, apply for the county home improvement license and buy the $10,000 surety bond.^8,9
6. Put your license number, class and "ELE" into your quote terms and contracts. A residential contract has to show your "name, address, license number, class of license, and classifications or specialty services," plus ten other items listed in the contract article.⁴
7. Check your trucks, website and ads. No statewide rule requires the license number on them. What applies is the ban on "false, deceptive, or misleading" ads, and DPOR's rule that a business name can't suggest work outside your license.^4,7 So no "solar" without AES and no "security systems" without DCJS.

Week 2: insurance and people

8. General liability: Virginia doesn't require it for an ELE license. The only firms the Board makes carry it are residential building energy analysts.³ Price it anyway. One Virginia electrician setting up on the side reported "a 1m policy for general liability. It came in way cheaper than I budgeted for" (r/electricians). Ask the agent, in writing, whether the policy covers work outside your class or classification.
9. Workers' comp: required once you have three or more employees "regularly in service." Sole proprietors and single-member LLC members can elect to cover themselves. Going without when you're required to costs up to $250 a day, capped at $50,000, and the injured worker can sue you without your usual defenses.²¹
10. Subcontractors: if a sub's worker is hurt and the sub has no coverage, you can owe the comp as the "statutory employer." Get a certificate from every sub, and look each one up on License Lookup, because you carry the penalty for hiring someone without a required credential.^21,24
11. Helpers: anyone without a tradesman license works under a licensed journeyman or master who stays reachable and checks the work.^3,5

Weeks 3 and 4: utilities, permits and digging

12. Dominion: register for eBuilder. If it asks for an account you don't have, call 1-866-366-4357. Save 1-888-569-5700 for service upgrade requests.¹⁴
13. Appalachian Power: bookmark the Modify Home Service form and collect the customer's 11-digit account number at the estimate.¹⁵
14. NOVEC, REC or another co-op: download its builder or electrician forms and write down who may pull the meter.¹⁶
15. Open a permit account with each building department you'll work in (Fairfax uses PLUS).⁸
16. Before any trench, submit a Miss Utility locate request and wait for every utility to mark or answer.¹⁷
17. If you'll cut into painted walls in pre-1978 homes, get the firm EPA-certified and take the certified renovator course.²⁰

On the calendar

18. Firm license: expires two years from the last day of the month it was issued. Renewal is $220, $260 or $270 by class, plus $30 for the Recovery Fund, and the license isn't valid during the 30-day grace period.³
19. Master's and journeyman's licenses: every 3 years, with 3 hours of board-approved electrical continuing education on code changes finished before the expiration date.⁶
20. If your qualifier leaves, report the new one within 60 days.³
21. BPOL renewal: Fairfax by March 1. Check your own locality's date.²³
22. County home improvement license and bond (Fairfax, Prince William), general liability and workers' comp: put each renewal date in the calendar. Fairfax's license lasts one to two years, depending on the bond.⁸
23. Solar firms: from January 1, 2027, every residential solar sale, lease or power purchase agreement needs a written contract with the items in § 54.1-1117.1, including a five-business-day right to cancel.¹⁹

What happens if you cross the line

No contractor license on a job over $1,000, or the wrong class

• It's a crime. Contracting without a license, or "without the proper class of license," is a Class 1 misdemeanor: up to 12 months in jail and a $2,500 fine, plus a fine of up to $500 for each day of the violation.²⁴ A third conviction for unlicensed practice within 36 months is a Class 6 felony.²⁴
• DPOR can also sue for a civil penalty of $200 to $5,000 per violation, up to $25,000 a year.²⁴
• You may not get paid. A contract made without a valid license "shall not be enforceable by the unlicensed contractor" unless the work was done in good faith and the contractor "did not have actual knowledge that a license or certificate was required." Letting a license lapse creates "a rebuttable presumption of actual knowledge."²⁴ For the wrong class, the statute doesn't say, and I didn't research how courts read it.
• No mechanic's lien, with no license or with the wrong class.²⁴
• The customer can sue. Unlicensed work in a consumer deal is a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act: actual damages or $500, whichever is more, up to three times damages or $1,000 if willful, plus attorney's fees.²⁴

No tradesman license on the person doing the work

Practicing as an electrician without a license is a Class 1 misdemeanor for that person.⁵ The firm is "solely responsible" for any penalty that comes from employing someone who lacks a required credential, and failing to supervise helpers is a prohibited act.^24,4 Collecting gets harder too: the customer can raise the missing tradesman license as a defense unless the work was done in good faith "without actual knowledge of the licensure requirements."⁵

Outside your letters, no permit, or a lent license

• Working outside your class or classification (a gas line, solar without AES) is a prohibited act. So is "Failure to obtain a building permit or applicable inspection, where required."⁴ The Board can fine up to $2,500 per violation, and its discipline also covers remedial education, probation, suspension and revocation.^4,7
• Lending the license is a prohibited act for the firm and for the master, and "Presenting or attempting to use the license or certificate of another" is a misdemeanor for whoever borrows it.^4,6,24
• Burglar alarms or cameras without a DCJS license: the business license requirement is in § 9.1-139. I didn't check that law's penalty section.¹⁸

Insurance

I found no Virginia rule on what unlicensed or out-of-scope work does to your coverage. That's in your policy. Ask your agent in writing and keep the reply.

More for new electrical contractors

• How much to charge per hour: service call, first hour and hourly rate, with a free rate sheet.
• Flat rate, per opening or hourly: how electricians price each kind of job, with a free price sheet.
• 200 amp service upgrade checklist: scope, permit, utility, inspection and price.
• Someone asked to use your master license: what being a company's qualifier pays, and what it can cost you.

Where Deepsel fits

Deepsel is the field service software I build, and it doesn't know Virginia licensing. It won't warn you when a quote passes $30,000, pull a permit, or talk to eBuilder. Two parts of it help with what's above. The shop-wide terms text you set once is copied onto every new quote and shows under "Terms" on the customer's quote page, and the invoice footer is copied onto every invoice, so your license number, class and ELE go on every document without retyping. And you can build a checklist template once (permit number, utility work request number, inspection passed, meter set) and add it to the quote for each service upgrade. Your office and techs tick items off, each answer is stamped with who did it and when, and the customer never sees it. Quotes can carry options, the customer approves and signs on screen, and an optional card deposit is credited on the final invoice. Free covers 30 estimates and 30 invoices a month for your whole team; Pro is $29 a month with unlimited estimates and invoices (pricing).

Frequently asked questions

Do electricians need to be licensed in Virginia?

Yes. Anyone doing electrical work for the public for pay needs a journeyman or master electrician license from DPOR's Board for Contractors, or has to work under the supervision of a licensed electrician. The one exception is a job under $250 on a single-family house by someone who doesn't advertise as an electrician. A business that contracts for electrical jobs over $1,000 also needs a contractor license (Class A, B or C) with the ELE classification, and a master electrician as its qualified individual.

How do I look up a Virginia electrical license?

Use DPOR's License Lookup at dpor.virginia.gov/LicenseLookup. Search the person for a journeyman or master electrician license, or the business for its contractor license. The firm's record shows its class and its letters (ELE for electrical). DPOR says the lookup also shows the continuing education hours a tradesman needs before renewing.

Can a master or journeyman electrician work without a contractor license in Virginia?

On small jobs, yes. The contractor license starts at contracts over $1,000. DPOR's tradesman application tells anyone performing work over $1,000 to get a contractor license, and Fairfax County's contractor guide says journeymen and masters can do work under $1,000 per contract without one. Anything bigger needs the firm's license, and the permit office will ask for its number.

What can a Class C electrical contractor do in Virginia?

Any work the ELE classification covers, on contracts over $1,000 and under $30,000, as long as all your contracts in any 12 months total less than $250,000. Those limits took effect July 1, 2025, and older pages still show $10,000 and $150,000. A $30,000 job needs Class B. In Fairfax and Prince William counties, Class C firms doing work on houses also need a county home improvement license with a $10,000 surety bond.

Does a Virginia electrical contractor need insurance or a bond?

Not for the state license. The Board's regulations require general liability insurance only from residential building energy analyst firms, and a $50,000 surety bond only as a Class B or A firm's alternative to showing $15,000 or $45,000 of net worth. Workers' comp becomes mandatory once you regularly have three or more employees. Fairfax County requires a $10,000 surety bond with its home improvement license for Class C contractors on jobs over $1,000, and Prince William County requires $10,000 for its license.

Do I need a separate license for low voltage or alarm work in Virginia?

Not for data, network, phone, TV, sound or fire alarm wiring at 50 volts or less: the ELE classification includes the electronic/communication and fire alarm specialties. Burglar alarms and security cameras are different. Virginia treats installing them as an electronic security business, which needs a license from the Department of Criminal Justice Services and a registration for each technician, and that law has no exemption for electrical contractors.

Sources

1. Code of Virginia § 54.1-1100, definitions of Class A, B and C contractors (single contract or project over $1,000 and under $30,000 for Class C, $30,000 to under $150,000 for B, $150,000 or more for A; 12-month totals under $250,000, under $1 million, and $1 million or more; "The Board shall require a master tradesmen license as a condition of licensure for electrical, plumbing, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractors") and "Designated employee." Amended 2025, cc. 127, 133. law.lis.virginia.gov, read November 3, 2026.
2. Department of Planning and Budget, State Fiscal Impact Statement for SB 1059 (2025), published 1/29/2025 - the bill would "raise the maximum allowable revenue for a Class C contractor from $10,000 per project or $150,000 per year to $30,000 per project or $250,000 per year," and Class B from "$120,000 per project or $750,000 per year." lis.blob.core.windows.net, read November 3, 2026.
3. 18VAC50-22, Board for Contractors Regulations, full chapter: 18VAC50-22-10 ("Full-time employee," 30 hours a week and a W-2; "Supervision"; "Responsible management"), -20 (ELE, HVA and PLB definitions), -30 (AES, ESC, FAS, GFC, LPG, BSC, POL specialties), -40, -50 and -60 (qualified individual and designated employee; $15,000 and $45,000 net worth or a $50,000 bond), -61 (ELE qualifier must hold a "Master electrician tradesman license"; AES and GFC prerequisites), -62 (general liability insurance required of residential building energy analyst firms), -110 and -130 (two-year term; not valid during the 30-day grace period), -140 (renewal fees $220, $260, $270 and the $30 Recovery Fund assessment) and -220 (new qualified individual reported within 60 days). law.lis.virginia.gov, current through Virginia Register Vol. 41 Iss. 25 (eff. September 1, 2025), read November 3, 2026.
4. 18VAC50-22-260 B, prohibited acts: 4 (false, deceptive or misleading advertising), 9 i (license number, class and specialties on residential contracts), 19 (allowing a firm's license to be used by another), 20 (ostensible licensee for undisclosed persons), 26 (Miss Utility notification), 27 (practicing outside your class or classification), 29 (unlicensed or improperly licensed subs), 32 (supervision of helpers), 33 (no permit or inspection where required). law.lis.virginia.gov. Board penalty up to $2,500 per violation: Code of Virginia § 54.1-202, law.lis.virginia.gov. Both read November 3, 2026.
5. Code of Virginia §§ 54.1-1128 ("Tradesman": work "for the general public for compensation"), 54.1-1129 A (license required; work "under the supervision of a tradesman who is licensed in the specialty"; work "incidental" to another specialty license), 54.1-1131 C (no tradesman license for work under $250 on a single-family residence by someone who doesn't hold himself out as a tradesman), 54.1-1132 (three-year license), 54.1-1133 (code-change education for renewal) and 54.1-1135 A and C (Class 1 misdemeanor; lack of licensure as a defense). law.lis.virginia.gov, read November 3, 2026.
6. 18VAC50-30, Tradesman Rules and Regulations: 18VAC50-30-10 ("Electrician," "Journeyman," "Master," "Incidental"), -120 (electrician licenses expire after three years; three hours of continuing education per designation on building code changes; $160 renewal) and -190 (prohibited acts, including allowing one's license to be used by an unlicensed individual). law.lis.virginia.gov. DPOR, Tradesmen Program page (residential-only licenses since April 1, 2025 for HVAC mechanics and plumbers; three-hour CE course for electrical, completed before the expiration date; License Lookup shows CE hours), dpor.virginia.gov. Both read November 3, 2026.
7. DPOR documents: "Contractor Licensing Information," A501-27INTRO-v8, 09/01/2025 (a license has two parts, the class and the classification or specialty), dpor.virginia.gov; Tradesman Exam and License Application, A501-2710EXLIC-v8, 07/01/2026 ("Any applicant performing work over $1,000 must contact the Board for Contractors"), dpor.virginia.gov; "A Step By Step Guide to Obtaining Your Contractor License" (a business name "must not indicate that you do work that is not allowed by your license"), dpor.virginia.gov; "Statement of Consumer Protections," revised 4/29/2025 (Board discipline is "monetary penalties and/or remedial education, revocation or suspension of a license, and placing the licensee on probation"), dpor.virginia.gov; License Lookup. All read November 3, 2026.
8. Fairfax County: "How to Become a Contractor in Fairfax County" (tradesman and contractor licenses "cannot be combined"; journeymen and masters under $1,000; SCC registration; Class C contractors must obtain a county HIC license; BPOL within 75 days), fairfaxcounty.gov; "Home Improvement Contractor License (HIC)" (requirements; "Contracts under $1,000 must have $5,000 surety bond"; "Contracts over $1,000 must have a $10,000 surety bond"; valid one to two years), fairfaxcounty.gov, and its form with the $5,000 and $10,000 bond forms, fairfaxcounty.gov; "Electrical (ELER) - Residential" (what needs a permit; trade permits after the building permit; owners may pull permits; License Exemption Affidavit; plans at 600 amps; master electrician or Class A design up to 800 amps; condos and apartments are commercial), fairfaxcounty.gov. All read November 3, 2026.
9. Prince William County Code, Chapter 5, Article III, Home Improvement Contractor License (county copy "Version 2013-01-25," codified through Ordinance No. 12-57 of 2012): § 5-51 (state Class A and B licensees exempt), § 5-52 (Electrical category "requires master electrician certification"; "Surety bond requirement for home improvement license in all categories is $10,000.00"), pwcva.gov; "Contractor Licensing Information," Version 2015-05-19 (Class C contractors need the county license "if the work being performed is residential"), pwcva.gov; Home Improvement Contractor's Surety Bond form ($10,000), pwcgov.org. All read November 3, 2026. The county documents use the pre-2025 state class limits.
10. Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code, 13VAC5-63-80, Section 108: 108.1 (permit before work on "electric wiring," "fuel supply systems" or "any equipment regulated by the USBC"; emergency replacement applications "by the end of the first working day"), 108.2 (exemptions: wiring under 50 volts, broadband and home automation except in plenums, fire-rated construction and life-safety systems; replacement of switches, 15 and 20 amp receptacles, luminaires and fans in R-2 single units, R-3, R-4 and R-5; a permit must be issued if the owner asks), 108.3 (who may apply; no in-person requirement), 108.4 (license proof and local taxes). law.lis.virginia.gov, read November 3, 2026.
11. Code of Virginia § 36-105 A and B (local building department enforces the code; inspection may be waived where construction cost is less than $2,500) and § 36-98 (the USBC supersedes local building codes). 36-105, 36-98, read November 3, 2026.
12. Code of Virginia § 54.1-1111 (license number or exemption statement, and proof local license taxes are paid, before a building permit or local business license), § 54.1-1117 (localities may license the business of home improvement, except Class A contractors), § 54.1-1101 A 7 (exemption for one primary residence owned and used by the person). 54.1-1111, 54.1-1117, 54.1-1101, read November 3, 2026.
13. City of Virginia Beach, Application for Electrical Permit, rev. Jun-2025 (generator circuit and transfer switch "*requires an approved site plan"; contract value; state registration number), virginiabeach.gov document, and Trades Permits page, planning.virginiabeach.gov. Read November 3, 2026.
14. Dominion Energy: "New Construction" (Virginia) ("A Dominion Energy service account number is required for builders"; PIN or last 4 of TIN or SSN; eBuilder work requests; 888-569-5700), dominionenergy.com; eBuilder sign-in page (Residential Contractors 1-866-366-4357), ebuilder.dominionenergy.com; "Information and Requirements for Electric Service," 2023 Edition Blue Book, © March 2024 (service upgrade requests from electricians; meter installed after required inspections; "at least 24 hours notice to remove a meter"; 220.5 and 330.2, a licensed electrician may be authorized to remove the seal and meter on service upgrades; 100.6, correcting discrepancies on upgrades), dominionenergy.com. All read November 3, 2026.
15. Appalachian Power: "Builders & Contractors" (online forms for temporary and permanent service), appalachianpower.com; "Modify Home Service" (upgrade requests; customer's 11-digit account number; optional contractor fields), appalachianpower.com. Read November 3, 2026.
16. NOVEC, "Installation of Electric Service - Residential" (builders' new service request form; Electrician's Guide), novec.com; Rappahannock Electric Cooperative, "New Construction" ("No one, other than REC personnel, can cut or remove the seal"; county electrical inspection required on connections), myrec.coop. Read November 3, 2026.
17. Underground Utility Damage Prevention Act: Code of Virginia § 56-265.15 ("excavation" includes trenching, digging and driving), § 56-265.17 A and B (locate request before any excavation; wait for positive response; treble damages for willful failure) and § 56-265.32 A (civil penalty up to $10,000 per violation of 56-265.17 A). 56-265.15, 56-265.17, 56-265.32, read November 3, 2026.
18. Code of Virginia § 9.1-138 ("Electronic security business," "Electronic security equipment" including burglar alarms and intrusion cameras, "Private security services business"), § 9.1-139 A and C (business license and technician registration required) and § 9.1-140 (exceptions; contractors exempt only for locksmith services). 9.1-138, 9.1-139, 9.1-140, read November 3, 2026.
19. Code of Virginia § 54.1-1117.1 (effective January 1, 2027; 2026, cc. 851, 852): written contract for any residential solar sale, lease or power purchase agreement, with the installer's license number, design assumptions, payment schedule, "The right to cancel the contract, without penalty, within five business days of contract execution," and who obtains interconnection approval; Board civil penalty up to $2,500 per willful violation. law.lis.virginia.gov, read November 3, 2026.
20. EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting rule, 40 CFR 745.81, 745.82, 745.83 (minor repair: 6 square feet per room inside, 20 outside; same room within 30 days is one job) and 745.89 (firm certification), law.cornell.edu; EPA, "Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting Program" (Virginia is not an authorized state), epa.gov; 40 CFR 19.4, Table 1 (TSCA civil penalty $49,772 for penalties assessed on or after January 8, 2025), law.cornell.edu. All read November 3, 2026.
21. Virginia Workers' Compensation Act: Code of Virginia § 65.2-101 ("Employee" excludes employees of an employer that "has regularly in service less than three employees"; sole proprietors and single-member LLC members may elect coverage), § 65.2-800 A (duty to insure), § 65.2-805 A (civil penalty "not more than $250 per day for each day of noncompliance, subject to a maximum penalty of $50,000") and § 65.2-302 (statutory employer). 65.2-101, 65.2-800, 65.2-805, 65.2-302, read November 3, 2026.
22. Code of Virginia § 59.1-69 B - no business under an assumed or fictitious name unless a certificate is filed "in the office of the clerk of the Commission" (the State Corporation Commission). law.lis.virginia.gov, read November 3, 2026.
23. BPOL: Code of Virginia § 58.1-3703 A, § 58.1-3706 A and § 58.1-3715 (license where the principal office is; another locality may require a license above $25,000 of business there in a year), 58.1-3703, 58.1-3706, 58.1-3715; Fairfax County, "Understanding Business, Professional & Occupational License Tax" (register within 75 days; renew by March 1), fairfaxcounty.gov. All read November 3, 2026.
24. Penalties: Code of Virginia § 54.1-1115 (Class 1 misdemeanor for contracting without a license "or without the proper class of license," or using another's license; up to $500 a day; contract unenforceable by the unlicensed contractor; lapse creates "a rebuttable presumption of actual knowledge") and § 54.1-1115.01 (contractor "solely responsible" for penalties from hiring someone without a required credential), 54.1-1115, 54.1-1115.01; § 18.2-11 (Class 1 misdemeanor: up to twelve months and $2,500), 18.2-11; § 54.1-111 (civil penalty $200 to $5,000 per violation, $25,000 a year; third conviction in 36 months a Class 6 felony), 54.1-111; Virginia Consumer Protection Act § 59.1-200 A 46 and § 59.1-204, 59.1-200, 59.1-204; § 43-3 D (no mechanic's lien without a license or the proper class), 43-3. All read November 3, 2026.