Hawaii Supervising Electrician License: Requirements and How to Apply
What Hawaii requires for a Supervising Electrician license: four years as a licensed journey worker, the board application, the 70-question PSI exam on the 2020 NEC, fees, renewal and no reciprocity.
Hawaii Supervising Electrician License: Requirements and How to Apply
The Supervising Electrician license is the step above journey worker in Hawaii. It is issued by the Board of Electricians and Plumbers (DCCA), and PSI gives the exam. About 400 Hawaii electricians held an active supervising license in mid-2025. Everything below comes from Hawaii Revised Statutes Chapter 448E, the board's rules (HAR Title 16, Chapter 80), the board's June 2026 application and PSI's candidate bulletin.
Eligibility
You need four years as a licensed Hawaii Journey Worker Electrician, or the equivalent: a journey worker or supervising electrician license from a jurisdiction whose requirements are substantially equivalent to Hawaii's. The board decides whether an out-of-state license counts.
Hawaii also has Supervising Industrial and Supervising Specialty licenses, which build on the journey worker industrial and specialty licenses and have their own exams.
How to apply
- File the application with the board, with the $40 application fee, at least seven days before a board meeting.
- Wait for the approval letter, then register with PSI.
- Schedule and pay PSI: $95 per attempt, online at PSI's Hawaii site or by phone at (833) 333-4754.
- Pass within two years. Your approval is good for two years, with no limit on attempts in that time.
- Pay the license fee: $306 in the first year of the three-year licensing period, $204 in the second and $102 in the third.
The exam in brief
| Item | Hawaii Supervising Electrician |
|---|---|
| Vendor | PSI, at test centers in Honolulu, Kahului, Kailua-Kona and Kapaa |
| Scored questions | 70 (PSI may add up to 10 unscored) |
| Time | 3 hours |
| Passing score | 70% |
| Format | Open book, computer-based |
| Code | 2020 NEC, provided by PSI |
The Supervising exam covers the same code areas as Journey Worker, but adds separate areas for motors, electrical power, overcurrent protection and illuminated signs. See what is on the Supervising exam.
No reciprocity
Hawaii does not reciprocate with any other state. An out-of-state license may count toward eligibility as an equivalent, but you still take the Hawaii exam.
Renewal
Licenses renew every three years, by June 30; the next renewal date is June 30, 2029. To renew, you complete a course on NEC updates given or approved by the University of Hawaii community colleges, or pass the board's NEC-updates exam.
Practice for the exam
Five of the 14 Supervising exams taken from January to July 2026 were passed. Our Hawaii Supervising Electrician practice test is weighted like PSI's outline, and every question cites the 2020 NEC section. If you are still working toward this license, start with the Journey Worker requirements.
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