Renew your practising licence

To renew your licence, you will need:

• A Google ID , Microsoft ID or RealMe® ID for login purposes;
• Up-to-date Competency Training completed within the last 2 years;
• A passport quality photo, if this is your first time applying for a licence, or if you want to change the photo currently on your card;
• To check that your details (e.g. address, employer) are up-to-date on the register.
• Your details MUST be up to date so that your new licence card reaches you and
• Payment of $250 for two years

The fastest and cheapest way to renew your Practising Licence is online. You can pay for your licence renewal by credit or debit card, or through Account2Account banking (internet bank transfer within your application).

Renew your licence now

When you first log in, you will need to choose your preferred log in method. Most people use their existing Google or Microsoft account ID as it does not require a new account setup. RealMe is also an option. Once you login to the new EW Portal using one of the above methods you must continue to use this method for all future logins.

To retrieve your username or password, go to ‘Login’ and select ‘Forgot Username' or 'Forgot Password’ from the login screen and follow the steps.

To renew your Practising Licence, you must pass and complete a Board approved competence programme course within the last 2 years. The course you attend must be relevant to the class of registration you hold and must be current before you can renew your Practising Licence.

Competence programme course

Book your training today to ensure you have completed a key part of your licensing requirements. You can find available courses and book through your EWRB portal.

See the list of Board approved training providers and courses

When you login to your EW Portal click on the “Manage my competence portal” tab and this will take you to your Competence Management Dashboard. Your dashboard tells you when your current Competence Programme is due to expire and will also allow you to search for and book new courses that are happening in your area.

Competence programme course

You can see this in the screenshots below.

You do not need to upload a new photo when you relicence.

You only need to submit a photo for your ID card the first time you are applying for a licence or if you want to change the photo that is currently on your licence card.

Passport quality photo

• A photo that meets the criteria for your ID card:
  • A face, head and shoulders shot, looking directly at the camera and less than 6 months old;
  • Plain, light coloured background;
  • No sunglasses, glasses with tinted lenses OR headwear that obscures your face;
  • 3:4 – width to height ratio, in full colour;
  • Between 50KB and 5MB in size (or printed image for paper applications) and
  • Saved in .jpg or .jpeg format.
• Check that your photo meets the requirements here:
  Online photo checker – New Zealand passports

If your photo does not meet these requirements or if the Board believes it is unsuitable for use on an ID card, they will refuse the photo.

To help ensure you have a suitable photo, we encourage you to have your photo taken at your nearest Post Shop. There is a 25% discount for Electrical Workers who purchase a photo (either printed or electronic) at a Post Shop store.

In-store services – NZ Post

Photos are required to make it easier to identify you as a current and licensed Electrical Worker. You can also choose to have your photo available on the public register, which will help protect both you and the consumer.

Employer payments are no longer an available option unless you have the use of a company credit card. Our new EW Portal is only accessible by individuals and Training Providers and not employers.

You should advise the Board why you do not require a practising licence.

To do this:

• Login to your EW Portal
• Edit the "Practising Licence renewal application" on your portal dashboard
• Check your personal details are correct
• Click “I confirm I do not wish to renew my practising licence”
• Provide a reason why you do not require a practising licence
• Submit your application.

If you are going overseas for an extended period and will miss the renewal date of your current licence you should let us know.

Keeping a NZ Practising Licence active while overseas can be difficult, as an EWRB competence programme must be completed to keep your safety training up to date before renewing. Only EWRB Competence Programmes will be accepted.

You can let us know you are going overseas, by either going to your online renewal application and click on “no practising licence required” or contact us to advise that you are going overseas and do not need a licence. This will ensure that you have no problems relicensing when you return.

When you return, you can apply for a Practising Licence either online or by sending a paper application by post, after completing an NZ competence programme. Your new licence will be granted for 2 years, and you will have a new anniversary date for renewal.

Competence programme course

If you need a copy of your invoice, you can print it once you have paid for your licence by following the instructions below.

1. Login to your account through the EW portal;
2. On your portal dashboard, click “View payment history and invoices”;
3. Select “My transactions” from the drop-down bar;
4. You can then choose the type of transaction – select “invoice”;
5. Click “search”;
6. Click on the blue invoice number, which will open your invoice in a PDF pop up screen;
7. Then click on “download PDF”;
8. It will download in your browser, click “open file”;
9. From here you will be able to print it as you would a normal PDF document.