Washington 02 Residential Electrician Exam Day: PSI, What to Bring, and Pacing Two Sections
What to expect on the Washington 02 residential specialty exam with PSI: your Exam Unique ID and photo ID, the code books, binder and calculator you may bring, the two-day cancellation rule, pacing both sections, and retakes.
Contents
Washington 02 Residential Electrician Exam Day: What to Expect
PSI gives the Washington electrical exams for L&I. Here is what the day looks like for the 02 residential specialty exam.
Before you go
- Book with PSI using the Exam Unique ID from your L&I approval letter. PSI bills by the exam hour: $65 for the full three-hour 02 exam.
- Cancel or reschedule at least two days ahead.
- Arriving late forfeits the fee.
Arrival and ID
Arrive 30 minutes early with a valid government-issued photo ID with your signature. You log in with the Exam Unique ID from your approval letter.
What you can bring
The exam is open book:
- any original copyrighted code book — for the NEC and Theory section, that means the 2020 NEC,
- RCW 19.28 and WAC 296-46B printed and bound in a three-ring binder (L&I publishes "exam friendly" versions to print),
- a silent, non-programmable calculator.
You may highlight and use permanent tabs. Handwritten notes and removable tabs are not allowed. PSI gives you 2 sheets of scratch paper and a pencil.
The two sections
| Section | Questions | Time | Per question |
|---|---|---|---|
| NEC and Theory | 40 | 2 hours | 3 minutes |
| Washington Codes | 17 | 1 hour | about 3½ minutes |
Up to 10 unscored experimental questions may be added.
- On the NEC section, check the clock at 1 hour: about 20 done.
- Use your tabs. Most 02 failures are on the NEC and Theory section, and three minutes is enough for a lookup you know where to find, not for a search through the index.
- Answer every question.
Scoring and retakes
Each section is scored on its own, and you need 70% on each. Within the one-year exam period you retake only the section you failed:
- wait 14 days after a failed attempt,
- after three failures of the same section within a year, wait 90 days,
- pass every section within one year of L&I approval, or you retake the whole exam.
A one-hour Washington Codes retake is $45; a two-hour NEC retake is $55. A pending rule would change the time limits — to two years and 60 days — from November 20, 2026, but it is only proposed.
Before you go
Sit both sections timed first. Our free practice test gives you 10 questions on the 2020 NEC, and the full exam prep has a full-length practice exam for the NEC and Theory section and one for Washington Codes. For eligibility, see Washington 02 Residential requirements.
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