Electrical Contractor Permit Requirements in Louisville, KY

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   Required if you have employees or operate as an LLC or corporation. Free from the IRS.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online application)

   Free

   Immediate (online application)

1. Kentucky Department of Revenue — Sales and Use Tax Permit (Retailer's or Seller's Permit)

   KRS 139.200 imposes a 6% tax on the gross receipts of all retailers from retail sales of tangible personal property and of digital property, and from the furnishing of the services enumerated in subsection (2). That enumerated list is long and catches many service businesses that assume they are untaxed: landscaping services including lawn care and maintenance, tree trimming, landscape design and installation, and snow plowing or removal (paragraph (g)); janitorial services including residential and commercial cleaning and carpet, upholstery and window cleaning (h); small animal veterinary services (i); pet care services including grooming, boarding, pet sitting and obedience training (j); non-coin-operated laundry and dry cleaning (l); indoor skin tanning (n); non-medical diet and weight reducing (o); extended warranty services (p); photography and photofinishing (q); telemarketing (r); lobbying (t); executive employee recruitment (u); website design and development (v) and website hosting (w); bodyguard services (z); security system monitoring (aa); private investigation (ab); process serving (ac); repossession (ad); personal background checks (ae); parking and valet (af); rental of space for meetings, conventions, weddings, banquets, parties and other short-term social events (ai); social event planning and coordination (aj); leisure, recreational and athletic instructional services (ak); recreational camp tuition (al); personal fitness training (am); massage except when medically necessary (an); cosmetic surgery (ao); body modification including tattooing, piercing, scarification and branding (ap); non-medical laboratory testing (aq); interior decorating and design (ar); household moving (as); specialized design (at); lapidary (au); labor to repair or maintain commercial refrigeration equipment where no property is sold (av); labor to repair or alter apparel, footwear, watches or jewelry where no property is sold (aw); prewritten computer software access services (ax); and data brokering services (ay), the last effective August 1, 2026. KRS 139.240(1) requires every person presently engaged in or desiring to engage in business as a retailer or seller in Kentucky to file a permit application for each place of business, and KRS 139.250 requires the department to issue a separate permit per location, makes it nonassignable, limits it to the person named, and requires it to be conspicuously displayed. There are no local sales and use taxes in Kentucky, so the rate is 6% statewide.

   Official government source

   No fee. Neither KRS 139.240 nor KRS 139.250 prescribes a charge for the retailer's or seller's permit, and the Department of Revenue issues the account at no cost through the Kentucky Business One Stop registration·Not published by the Department of Revenue. KRS 139.240(1) requires the application to be on file before engaging in business as a retailer, and KRS 139.240(4) waives the written signature for electronic registrants, so file through the Kentucky Business One Stop before the first taxable sale

   No fee. Neither KRS 139.240 nor KRS 139.250 prescribes a charge for the retailer's or seller's permit, and the Department of Revenue issues the account at no cost through the Kentucky Business One Stop registration

   Not published by the Department of Revenue. KRS 139.240(1) requires the application to be on file before engaging in business as a retailer, and KRS 139.240(4) waives the written signature for electronic registrants, so file through the Kentucky Business One Stop before the first taxable sale

1. Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction — Electrical Contractor License

   Electrical contractors in Kentucky must hold an electrical contractor license issued by the Electrical Division of the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction under KRS Chapter 227A and 815 KAR 35:060 (application form EL-2). There is no Kentucky Board of Electrical Examiners. A licensed master electrician must be associated with the contracting business, and applicants must pass the state examination with a score of at least 70 percent.

   Official government source

   $400 for a biennial electrical contractor license ($400 renewal); master electrician $200 and electrician $100, each biennial. Late renewal fee $50·Not published by the Electrical Division; licenses run two years and renew by the last day of the licensee's birth month

   $400 for a biennial electrical contractor license ($400 renewal); master electrician $200 and electrician $100, each biennial. Late renewal fee $50

   Not published by the Electrical Division; licenses run two years and renew by the last day of the licensee's birth month

2. Louisville Metro Revenue Commission — Occupational License Tax Registration

   Louisville Metro does not issue a general local business license. The Louisville Metro Revenue Commission states that to start a new business "there is no local business license required"; instead a new business must register with the Revenue Commission, the Jefferson County Clerk's Office, and the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Registration with the Revenue Commission opens an occupational license tax account. The tax is on net profits (and on employee wages, withheld quarterly on Form W-1), reported annually on Form OL-3, due the 15th day of the 4th month after the end of the taxpayer's fiscal year. There is no flat annual license fee. The claim's Develop Louisville URL is the wrong agency; the Revenue Commission administers this registration.

   Official government source

   No local business license fee. Occupational license tax of 2.2% (resident rate) or 1.45% (non-resident rate) on net profits and on wages; minimum $25 penalty for filing late·Not published by the Revenue Commission; registration is completed online. The annual OL-3 return is due the 15th day of the 4th month after the fiscal year ends

   No local business license fee. Occupational license tax of 2.2% (resident rate) or 1.45% (non-resident rate) on net profits and on wages; minimum $25 penalty for filing late

   Not published by the Revenue Commission; registration is completed online. The annual OL-3 return is due the 15th day of the 4th month after the fiscal year ends

3. Louisville Metro Construction Review — Electrical Permit

   Every electrical installation, alteration, repair, removal, conversion or replacement regulated by the Kentucky Building and Electrical Codes requires an electrical permit from the Louisville Metro Office of Construction Review (a division of Codes & Regulations), which enforces LMCO Chapter 150. Only a licensed electrician may pull the permit (homeowners may permit work on their own primary residence). Replacing a like-for-like breaker or light fixture does not require a permit. Permit fees include the inspections listed; the permit holder must request them. Starting electrical work without a permit carries a $1,000 penalty for the first offense and $2,000 for later offenses.

   Official government source

   Per LMCO 150.096: $200 for initial wiring of a one- or two-family residence (3 inspections); $75 for a service upgrade, repair, or added wiring costing $750 or less, $100 if over $750; $100 base plus $25 per subpanel and per dwelling unit, plus $0.25 per ampere to 600A and $0.50 per ampere above, for new wiring in all other buildings; $85 for a temporary pole; $50 per additional inspection·Not published by Construction Review; permits are applied for through its online business portal and the permit holder schedules the included inspections

   Per LMCO 150.096: $200 for initial wiring of a one- or two-family residence (3 inspections); $75 for a service upgrade, repair, or added wiring costing $750 or less, $100 if over $750; $100 base plus $25 per subpanel and per dwelling unit, plus $0.25 per ampere to 600A and $0.50 per ampere above, for new wiring in all other buildings; $85 for a temporary pole; $50 per additional inspection

   Not published by Construction Review; permits are applied for through its online business portal and the permit holder schedules the included inspections

Official Sources

• Kentucky Board of Electrical Examiners — Electrical Contractor License
• Louisville Metro Revenue Commission

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