Tennessee — electrical code & licensing
Verified
The code
| Edition in force | 2017 NEC (NFPA 70), adopted by reference in Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0780-02-01-.02 (Chapter 0780-02-01, Electrical Installations), with Tennessee amendments in the same chapter |
| Edition structure | One statewide edition |
| Effective date | 2018-10-01 |
| Date as recorded | 2018-10-01 (effective date stated in Rule 0780-02-01-.02 for the 2017 NEC; the amending rules were filed 2017-12-19 and took effect as rules 2018-03-19) |
| Adopted by | Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance, Division of Fire Prevention - State Fire Marshal's Office (SFMO), by rule under T.C.A. §§ 68-102-113 and 68-102-143 |
| Adoption source | https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/rules/0780/0780-02/0780-02-01.20250714.pdf |
| State amendments | Amendments ride in the adoption document itself — https://publications.tnsosfiles.com/rules/0780/0780-02/0780-02-01.20250714.pdf |
Licensing
| Model | Split by project cost; NO state journeyman or master electrician license. (1) Contractor's license with a CE (electrical) classification and an assigned monetary limit is required at $25,000 or more (materials and labor), for prime contractors and for electrical subcontractors; the state CE classification is accepted statewide, is exempt from local electrical exams, and is described by the Board as comparable to a (local) master's license - local license/permit/inspection rules and fees still apply. (2) Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE): state individual license for electrical work under $25,000, required only where there is no local licensing agency for inspections (the Division of Fire Prevention performs those inspections); an LLE is NOT a contractor's license, its holder may not use the term 'Contractor', a CE holder is exempt from the LLE, and the LLE is not accepted in jurisdictions that run their own licensing and inspections. (3) Local (city/county) journeyman/master-type licensing applies regardless of project amount in jurisdictions with a codes office. |
| Authority | Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance (licensing under T.C.A. Title 62, Chapter 6 - Contractor CE and LLE); electrical permits/inspections are administered separately by the SFMO, Division of Fire Prevention |
| Licensing source | https://www.tn.gov/commerce/regboards/contractor |
| License classes | https://www.tn.gov/commerce/regboards/lle/who-needs-a-limited-licensed-electrician--lle--license-.html |
Permits & inspections
State-level regime exists. SFMO issues electrical permits in some areas of the state (SFMO Permits & Inspections page). Rule 0780-02-01-.05: no wiring on which inspection is required may be installed without an electrical permit, obtained from the power distributor, the local building official, the Commissioner or designee, or another issuing agent authorized by the Commissioner (issuing-agent fee capped at $5, in addition to inspection fees under Rule .21; issuing agents must hold a contract with the Department through the Electrical Section of the Division of Fire Prevention, Rule .18). Rule 0780-02-01-.04 / T.C.A. § 68-102-143: inspections are performed by deputy electrical inspectors appointed under contract with the Commissioner (deputy fire marshals where the need arises); a minimum of two inspections is required (rough-in before concealment, and final). Rule 0780-02-01-.20 / T.C.A. § 68-102-143(b)(1): the Commissioner may authorize a local government to perform electrical inspections through its own appointed deputy inspectors - SFMO lists these as Exempt Jurisdictions for the electrical program - except state-owned or state-leased properties, which remain under the Commissioner; in a conflict over the same or substantially identical standards, the State Fire Marshal's determination supersedes the local government's. Engineers may also elect to conduct electrical inspections for an exempt jurisdiction under T.C.A. § 68-120-118 (SFMO Electrical Engineer Registry).
How this record was verified
| Adoption | Verified |
| Amendments | Verified |
| Licensing | Verified |
| Permits & inspections | Verified |
Working notes
STATEWIDE MINIMUM, not a single uniform local edition. Rule 0780-02-01-.17: no city, county, town, municipal corporation, metropolitan government or political subdivision may adopt or enforce electrical standards less stringent than this chapter, as determined by the Division - localities may go more stringent/newer. Under Rule .20(3) an authorized (exempt) local government's adopted electrical code must be current within seven (7) years of the latest edition unless the State Fire Marshal approves otherwise, so an exempt jurisdiction may lawfully enforce a newer NEC edition than 2017 while the state floor remains 2017; the edition field records the STATE in-force floor, not every exempt jurisdiction's edition. TENNESSEE AMENDMENTS IN THE ADOPTION (.02(1)): (a) NEC Section 110.24, Available Fault Current, is OPTIONAL; and (b) AFCIs are OPTIONAL for bathrooms, laundry areas, garages, unfinished basements (portions or areas not intended as habitable rooms and limited to storage, work or similar areas), and for branch circuits dedicated to supplying refrigeration equipment. The rest of Chapter 0780-02-01 (e.g. .07 special occupancies, .11 dwelling units, .22 boat docks and marinas) is the state amendment/inspection layer riding with the NEC, so adoption_source_url and amendments_url are the same official chapter. NO OCCUPANCY SPLIT on the NEC edition: Chapter 0780-02-23-.02 (One and Two Family Dwellings and Townhouses; SOS compilation revised February 2024, read firsthand) deletes IRC Chapters 34-43 relating to electrical installations and provides that the electrical standards adopted in 0780-02-01 apply - dwellings follow the same 2017 NEC. NO PENDING EDITION PROMOTED: Tennessee's 2025 codes update (SFMO rules effective 2025-04-17 for Chapters 0780-02-02/-03, 2021 I-Codes) did not change the electrical adoption - the current official compilation of Chapter 0780-02-01 (July 2025, Revised; SOS file dated 2025-07-14, read firsthand) still prescribes the 2017 NEC in .02, and Chapter 0780-02-02 (April 2025, Revised) adopts no NEC edition; the only 2025 change found in Chapter 0780-02-01 was the Rule .21 inspection-fee amendment (filed 2025-04-15, effective 2025-07-14). NO STATE JOURNEYMAN/MASTER LICENSE: journeyman/master titles in Tennessee are LOCAL licenses (Board for Licensing Contractors LLE page, read firsthand). Legislative proposals to create statewide individual electrician licensing (e.g. the 'Electricians' Licensing Act' drafts in the General Assembly bill records) were NOT recorded as law and are not in the row: as of retrieval the Board's own pages list only Contractor, Home Improvement, Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) and Limited Licensed Plumber (LLP) licenses. Cross-check only, not cited for any field: IAEI's code-adoption list independently shows Tennessee on the 2017 NEC effective 10/1/2018, matching the rule text. No field in this row rests on a secondary source.
Reference only. Compiled from the cited official sources as of the date shown; adoptions and rules change. Confirm with the authority having jurisdiction before designing or permitting work.