To check a Delaware electrician, plumber or HVAC contractor, enter the name or license number in the Division of Professional Regulation’s DELPROS license verification. The same records are published as the Professional and Occupational Licensing dataset on data.delaware.gov, where you can filter by license type and status. Electrician licenses expire on June 30 of even years (Board of Electrical Examiners), and plumbing and HVACR licenses expire on October 31 of even years (Plumbing/HVACR Board). In Delaware it is illegal to practice on an expired license, including during the one-year late renewal window.
By our count of the dataset as updated October 24, 2026, 1,680 master electricians and 940 master plumbers hold active licenses. 63.4% of the master electricians list an address outside Delaware, mostly in Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey. With the October 31, 2026 plumbing deadline a week away, 321 master plumbers (34.1%) and 331 master HVACR licensees (35.6%) still showed a 2026 expiration date.
| License type | Active | Address outside Delaware | Expiration shown |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master Electrician | 1,680 | 63.4% | June 30, 2028 |
| Journeyperson Electrician | 2,075 | 29.2% | June 30, 2028 |
| Limited Electrician | 173 | 6.9% | June 30, 2028 |
| Residential Electrician | 76 | 60.5% | June 30, 2028 |
| Master Plumber | 940 | 51.6% | Oct. 31, 2026 (321) or Oct. 31, 2028 (619) |
| Master HVACR | 931 | 51.6% | Oct. 31, 2026 (331) or Oct. 31, 2028 (600) |
| Master HVACR Restricted | 309 | 37.5% | Oct. 31, 2026 (122) or Oct. 31, 2028 (187) |
| Homeowner’s electrical permit | 260 | 5.4% | One year from issue |
How to look up a Delaware electrician or plumber license
- Ask for the license number. The prefix tells you the type: T1 master electrician, TJ journeyperson, TA apprentice, T2 limited electrician, TR residential electrician, PL master plumber, HM master HVACR and HL restricted HVACR.
- Search the number or last name in DELPROS verification. Check that the license type fits the job: a master electrician, master plumber or master HVACR licensee for a contract, a journeyperson or apprentice for the crew.
- Read the status and expiration date. Active with a 2028 date is current. Expired means the holder may not work in Delaware until the late renewal is actually processed.
- For a plumbing or HVAC contractor this month, look again after October 31, 2026. A 2026 date that has not changed to 2028 by then means the license expired.
- For complaints or past discipline, use DPR’s disciplinary action information page. The open-data file carries a disciplinary flag, and every row we pulled for these trades shows N, so the flag is a poor guide on its own.
Delaware electrician license renewal: who dropped off after June 30, 2026
Every electrician license in the state renews on the same date, so the 2026 cycle shows up clearly in the data. 149 master electrician licenses carry a June 30, 2026 expiration and an Expired status, against 1,680 renewed: about 8.1% did not renew on time. For journeypersons the share is 12.6% (298 of 2,373). Those holders can still file a late renewal until June 30, 2027 with a late fee; after that the license terminates and the person has to apply again as a new applicant (electrician renewal page).
Renewal requires an attestation of continuing education and of liability insurance; journeypersons and apprentices are exempt from the insurance part. The board audits a random share of renewals and all late renewals.
Delaware plumbing and HVACR licenses due October 31, 2026
Plumbing and HVACR licenses follow their own two-year cycle. In the October 24 data, a third of active master plumber and master HVACR licenses still showed the 2026 date. The board emails renewal notices a few months ahead, and the late renewal period runs to October 31, 2027; a license left unrenewed after that terminates (plumbing/HVACR renewal page). Restricted HVACR licenses cover one specialty, such as air conditioning or gas piping (Plumbing/HVACR Board).
Master plumbers are the longest-licensed group in the file: 28.1% of active master plumbers were first licensed before 2000, and the median first-issue year is 2011. For master electricians the median is 2017, and 10.2% were first licensed in the past 12 months.
Delaware homeowner’s electrical permit: rules and how many are issued
Delaware lets an owner-occupant wire his or her own single-family home under a homeowner’s permit from the Board of Electrical Examiners (homeowner permit page). The permit is needed for new construction, renovations and any work that needs a building permit, and it lasts one year with no renewal. Before applying, the owner has to get the wiring plan reviewed and stamped by a licensed electrical inspection agency (list of agencies).
- Where it applies: a single-family dwelling on the site or under construction. Homes for sale or rent, condominiums, townhomes, duplexes, apartments and homes used commercially are excluded.
- Who does the work: the owner-occupant, to the National Electrical Code as adopted by the State Fire Prevention Commission. Hot tub and pool wiring is excluded.
- Inspections: call an inspection agency within five days of starting, and again for a rough-in inspection before drywall goes up.
- Proof of ownership: a recorded deed, a long-term lease, or a mobile home title or contract of sale.
The dataset holds 12,599 homeowner’s permits going back to 2003. Issuance ran at 800 to 930 a year from 2004 to 2008 and 420 to 515 a year from 2010 to 2023, then fell to 281 in 2024, 250 in 2025 and 211 so far in 2026. 260 permits are active now.
Checklist before hiring an electrician or plumber in Delaware
- License type matches the work: master electrician, master plumber, or master or restricted HVACR in the right specialty.
- Status Active in DELPROS on the day the contract is signed and through the job dates.
- For plumbing and HVAC work after October 31, 2026, an expiration date of October 31, 2028.
- Proof of liability insurance from the master or limited electrician.
- Electrical inspection by a licensed inspection agency, with the result in writing.
- Your county or city building permit where the job needs one; our guide to Kent County, Delaware permit records covers one county’s files.
Our contractor license lookup guide covers other states. For the same trades elsewhere, see our Oregon electrical and plumbing license lookup and Texas contractor license lookup.
Counts are our calculations from the Delaware Division of Professional Regulation’s Professional and Occupational Licensing data on data.delaware.gov, downloaded October 25, 2026. Address shares use the mailing address on each license. DPR board pages checked October 25, 2026.