Checked against primary sources 2026-09-07

No tabs, no book of your own

Minnesota Electrical Exam Book Rules: DLI Hands You One

Minnesota does something almost no other state does. You do not bring a code book to the examination, because the department gives you one, and the one it gives you has nothing in it. That single rule should decide how you prepare.

Test yourself: thirty free questions, timed

The rules, quoted

All four of these are from the Licensing Examination Guide, quoted as printed.

Applicants are allowed to use the National Electrical Code or National Electrical Safety Code (used only for the lineman examination), a Laws and Rules Booklet and an electronic calculator during their entire examination.

A copy of the National Electrical Code or the National Electrical Safety Code book is provided in the soft-cover format and does not include tabs or other aids.

The electronic calculator is of the common desk type that includes addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, square root and percentage functions.

No other materials or electronic devices, including cell phones, are allowed in the building.

Three things that follow

First, you do not bring a code book. DLI provides one, so there is no reference check at the door to fail and no wrong edition to arrive with.

Second, the provided book is soft cover and it has no tabs or other aids. Everything you have built into your own copy over four years stays at home.

Third, the prohibition is on the building, not the room. A marked up personal code book cannot be brought in and left outside the examination room, and neither can your phone.

The calculator

Common desk type, with addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, square root and percentage. That is the whole specification.

It rules out a programmable calculator and it rules out a phone. Buy a plain one and use it for every practice question between now and your date, because switching calculator on the morning of a five and a half hour paper is a needless cost.

The Laws and Rules Booklet

The guide says the Laws and Rules Booklet provided for the examination is in the department's current format and represents the laws and rules in effect at the time the examination is administered.

So the Minnesota law content moves with Minnesota law rather than with the code cycle, and it is supplied the same way the code book is. Minnesota Statutes chapter 326B and Minnesota Rules chapter 3800 are public law, free to read, and the sensible thing to do beforehand is read them rather than plan to look them up.

What the guide does not address

Marking the provided book. Highlighting, underlining, annotating or writing in the copy DLI hands you is not covered anywhere in the guide. It is neither permitted nor prohibited in the text, so we are not going to state a rule about it. Ask the proctor.

Examinations in a language other than English are not mentioned in the guide either, and a targeted read came back with nothing. If you need one, call DLI at 651-284-5034 rather than assuming.

Disability accommodations are a different case, because the guide does cover them. It carries an Americans with Disabilities Act summary and a request form, and it says to submit that form with your application for examination form. The wording is on the exam day page, and the point to take from it is that the request belongs with the application rather than with the proctor.

One wording variation is worth noting for accuracy. On a prior read the provided book sentence came back once with National Electrical Code in the second position and once with National Electrical Safety Code. The operative clause is identical either way: the book is provided, it is soft cover, and it does not include tabs or other aids.

What to practice instead of tabbing

Everything a tab set buys you has to live in your head here. The skill is navigating an unmarked book quickly, which is a different skill from knowing the rule.

Work these in the weeks before your date, with a clean copy of the 2026 edition open beside you.

• The article drill, timed, on which article governs a question. It scores in seconds, because search time is what an unmarked book costs you.
• Which table, ten prompts a round: read the job and name the table or section you would open.
• The code navigation race, twenty timed lookups a round, picking the chapter, article or section out of four.
• The free topic sets, worked with the book open and the lookups timed.
• The timed practice test, 30 questions under a clock with the working shown on every miss.

Then use the table of contents and the index deliberately. In an unmarked book those two are your tabs, and a few weeks of using them is worth more than any set of flags you are not allowed to bring.

What that means for the day

You arrive with a picture ID, a plain calculator and nothing else. The department supplies the code book and the Laws and Rules Booklet. The examination runs 8:15 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. and you have five and a half hours whether your paper is 25 questions or 80.

Leave the phone in the car, not in a locker inside the door, because the guide says the building.

Questions people ask

Do I bring my own code book to the Minnesota electrician exam?

No. DLI provides a copy of the National Electrical Code, or the National Electrical Safety Code for the lineman examination, in soft cover format.

Can I use a tabbed code book in Minnesota?

No. The guide says the provided book is in soft cover format and does not include tabs or other aids, and no other materials are allowed in the building, so a personal tabbed copy cannot come in at all.

What calculator can I bring to the Minnesota exam?

An electronic calculator of the common desk type with addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, square root and percentage functions. That specification rules out a programmable calculator and a phone.

Can I bring my phone into the Minnesota exam?

No. The guide says no other materials or electronic devices, including cell phones, are allowed in the building. That is the building rather than the examination room.

Can I highlight or write in the code book DLI gives me?

The guide does not address it. Marking the provided book is neither permitted nor prohibited in the text, so ask the proctor rather than assuming either way.

What is the Laws and Rules Booklet?

A booklet DLI provides in the examination. The guide says it is in the department's current format and represents the laws and rules in effect at the time the examination is administered.

Are accommodations available for the Minnesota exam?

Yes. The Licensing Examination Guide carries an Americans with Disabilities Act section and a request form, and it says to submit that form with your application for examination form. Examinations in a language other than English are not mentioned at all, so call DLI at 651-284-5034 about that.

What this page cites

• DLI Licensing Examination Guide Every quoted rule on this page: the allowed materials, the provided soft cover book with no tabs or aids, the calculator specification and the building prohibition. source
• DLI electrical codes and standards The September 8, 2026 examination transition, which is the edition of the book DLI now hands you. source
• Minnesota Statutes 326B.33 The licensing law behind the Laws and Rules Booklet content, free to read before your date. source
• DLI personal exam application The $50 fee and the examination contact details for questions the guide does not answer. source