In South Carolina, you can get a Mechanical Contractors License or a Residential Contractors License.
They also operate as two separate State Boards, so you will have a Mechanical Licensing Board and a Residential Licensing Board.

• Mechanical contractors are able to perform commercial, industrial, and residential work.
• Residential contractors can only perform residential work.

Most of our guys reciprocating with South Carolina will go for the Mechanical, so I’ll focus on that one:

The PSI Examination Bulletin for Contractors will go over what you need for your examination. South Carolina has two exams for Mechanical Contractors; an Electrical Exam and a Business Exam. When a state decides to reciprocate a license, that just means that they have acknowledged the original Electrical Exam that you’ve done. As South Carolina reciprocates with North Carolina, they have acknowledged that you’ve already done your Electrical Exam and will not make you retake it. Although,
South Carolina also has a Business Exam you’ll have to take.

There are 50 questions on the Business Exam and need 35 correct to pass (see page 12 in the PSI Bulletin). The reference they refer to as of 9/15/2022 is the NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law
and Project Management - South Carolina Commercial Contractors, 8th Edition.

For your Limited license you need 8 hours of continuing education units (CEU) every year to renew your license. North Carolina requires four of your hours to be classroom and the other four to be either classroom or online. Think of your license like a bank and know that you may bank up to three years
worth of continuing education (or 24 hours) to use when you’re due to renew your license. When you passed your exam, the Board gifted you your first year of continuing education, so you will see that you
have 8 hours in there right now.

North Carolina and many other states accepts virtual workshops as your classroom hours. This is because the workshop is being held live. Some people have decided they enjoy this option, while others still like the routine of coming to an in-person workshop. It’s up to you.

When you renew your license, NC will use your continuing education hours as part of your “payment” for your renewal. If you happen to have a mix of classroom hours and non-classroom hours in your bank, they will take half of your classroom and half of your non-classroom - so you don’t have to worry that in one renewal all of your in person hours get used!

If at any time you want to check the status of your license, you can either log in to your online account, or check in the public view at www.ncbeec.org. You will see a menu bar on the page that says “Check CE Credit”. This will take you to a search page where you may search by license number or by name as the NC Board has it listed.

If you click on your name, you will see the following information about your license:

• if the license is Active or Inactive,
• when the license expires,
• if there is enough continuing education to renew your license (True/False),
• a comment of what type of continuing education is needed (classroom or non-classroom),
• and how many hours you currently have out of the required amount.

Getting your CEUs (Continuing Education Units) are only one part of it. You also need to login to your account to renew the license.

1. Login at www.ncbeec.org
2. You’ll see “Renewal Needed” in Red. Click on the “View” button to begin
3. Then click on “Renew License”

They will ask you to verify some information for accuracy - your contact information, your email, mailing
address.

While we don’t specialize in the NASCLA exam, below is some information that we’ve researched about the program.

In 2018, the NASCLA Accredited Electrical Examination Program was launched. This program offers potential for greater mobility - allowing contractors to move between participating states to help meet the need for qualified contractors. There are states a part of the NASCLA Accredited Electrical Examination Program, and there are states that are both a part of and an administrator of the NASCLA Accredited Electrical Examination.

States recognizing & administering the NASCLA Accredited Examination:

• Alabama
• Arizona
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• South Carolina (both Contractor & Residential)

States recognizing the NASCLA Accredited Examination:

• District of Columbia
• Florida
• Louisiana
• Tennessee
• Utah
• Virginia
• West Virginia

There are three types of NASCLA Accredited Examinations -

NASCLA Accredited Trade Examination for Electrical Contractors

• Passing score 75%; Time 270 minutes; Questions 100

Subject Areas-
Project Design & Management; Safety; Electrical Theory & Principles; General Code Requirements; Wiring & Protection; Wiring Methods & Materials; Equipment for General Use; Special Occupancies,
Special Equipment, & Special Conditions; Communication Systems

NASCLA Accredited Trade Examination for Journeyman Electricians

• Passing score 70%; Time 270 minutes; Questions 100

Subject Areas-
Interpreting Plans & Specifications; Basic Electrical Safety; Electrical Theory & Principles; Testing & Troubleshooting; General Code Requirements; Wiring & Protection; Wiring Methods & Materials;
Equipment for General Use; Special Occupancies & Special Equipment; Special Conditions & Communications Systems.

NASCLA Accredited Trade Examination for Residential Electrical Contractors

• Passing score 70%; Time 270 minutes; Questions 100

Subject Areas-
Theory; Personal/Jobsite Safety (OSHA, NFPA 70E); Project Design, Estimating & Management; Grounding & Bonding; Special systems & equipment; Tools & Test equipment; Circuit Protection &
Installation; Wiring Methods & Practices; Equipment for General Use; Energy Efficiency/Management

What do I get with this exam:

Each state decides individually what license levels they’ll recognize; Electrical Contractor/Master Electrician, Journeyman Electrician, Residential Electrical Contractor. See more details on what each state recognizes here: https://www.nascla.org/page/ParticipatingAgencies_Electrical

Where do I apply:

In order for candidates to take an examination, they must apply under an administering state agency.
You will then follow the same application guidelines that are set forth with the administering state agency for approval. NASCLA does not offer a standalone, national examination.

After passing the NASCLA:

Register an account on the database (https://ned.nascla.org) to send your transcript to participating
states.

• Additional Links:
  NASCLA Candidate Information
  Bulletin
• Submitting your application
• FAQ
• History & Creation of the NASCLA Program

We hope this information helps jump-start your journey to taking and passing the NASCLA.

Let us know how you do!