# Taking the Texas Electrician Exam in Spanish

> PSI offers the Texas electrician exams in English and Spanish at no extra cost, and you choose the language when you schedule. You may bring a bound word-to-word dictionary with no pictures, definitions or markings, but the NEC you use is the English 2026 edition, so learn the English terms you will look up.

Updated: 2026-11-09

If Spanish is your stronger language, you can take every Texas electrician exam in Spanish. It costs nothing extra. The catch is that your code book is still in English, so the real skill is moving between a Spanish question and an English NEC quickly.

## Key facts

- PSI offers the exams in English and Spanish at no additional cost.
- You choose the language when you schedule the exam.
- Other languages need a paid translation request through PSI.
- You may bring a bound word-to-word translation dictionary, with strict rules.
- The NEC is the English 2026 edition, and the exam questions are based on it.
- PSI publishes a Spanish bulletin, the "Boletín Informativo para Candidatos".

## How to choose Spanish

The English PSI bulletin, under Foreign Languages, says the exams are available in English and Spanish for no additional cost and that you indicate your language preference when you schedule. That statement covers the TDLR electrician exams in general. It is not repeated under each license, but nothing limits it to one exam.

When you schedule online at PSI or by phone at (833) 333-4741, choose Spanish at that step. PSI does not say whether you can switch the language after booking, so decide before you schedule, or call PSI if you need to change it.

For any language other than English or Spanish, PSI says you can request a translation by contacting PSI and paying an extra cost that PSI quotes after it receives the request.

One line in the Spanish bulletin also mentions Vietnamese. The English bulletin names only English and Spanish, so treat that line as an error and do not count on a Vietnamese exam.

## The dictionary rule

PSI allows a bound word-to-word translation dictionary. The rules, paraphrased from the bulletin:

| Allowed | Not allowed |
|---|---|
| A bound, word-to-word translation dictionary | Pictures or definitions in the dictionary |
| | Extra papers, loose or attached |
| | Highlighting, underlining, indexing or marking, before or during the exam |

PSI says a candidate caught marking the dictionary during the exam can lose the dictionary, have the exam ended, and be reported to TDLR. Note the difference from the NEC: you may highlight your NEC before the exam, but you may not mark the dictionary at all.

## The NEC is in English

TDLR adopted the 2026 NEC, and PSI bases the questions on it. You bring your own soft-bound copy under PSI's [open-book rules](https://texaselectricianexam.com/guides/open-book-nec-rules-and-tabs/). PSI does not say whether a Spanish translation of the NEC is accepted as your reference. Until PSI confirms it, plan to use the English book.

That means a Spanish question will send you to an English index. If the question says "caída de tensión", you look up "voltage drop". If it says "circuito derivado", you look up "branch circuit". Learn those pairs before exam day. Our [code lookup drills](https://texaselectricianexam.com/code-lookup/) and [glossary](https://texaselectricianexam.com/glossary/) help, and you can study every drill on this site in Spanish at the same address with /es/ in front.

## Terminology: English to Spanish

The terms below come from PSI's Spanish bulletin (marked **PSI**) and TDLR's Spanish rule summary of March 31, 2026 (marked **TDLR**). Where neither uses a term, we give common usage and mark it **suggestion**, which means unconfirmed. PSI's Spanish bulletin reads like a machine translation in places, so a few PSI terms are literal.

**License and exam names**

| English | Spanish | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Journeyman Electrician | electricista oficial | PSI, TDLR |
| Master Electrician | maestro electricista (also electricista maestro) | PSI |
| Residential Wireman | "Instalaciones Eléctricas Residenciales" (exam title only, no word for the person) | PSI |
| Maintenance Electrician | electricista de mantenimiento | PSI |
| Candidate Information Bulletin | Boletín Informativo para Candidatos | PSI |
| Calculations exam | examen de cálculos | PSI |
| NEC knowledge portion | conocimientos del NEC (journeyman), entendimiento del NEC (master) | PSI |
| Open book | a libro abierto | PSI |
| Exam fee | tasa de examen, tarifa del examen | PSI |
| Score report | informe de calificaciones | PSI |
| Non-programmable calculator | calculadora no programable | PSI |
| Apprentice | aprendiz | suggestion |

**Technical terms**

| English | Spanish | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Branch circuit | circuito derivado | PSI |
| Feeder | alimentador (PSI mostly writes "cables de alimentación eléctrica") | PSI |
| Service equipment | equipos de servicio | PSI |
| Separately derived system | sistema derivado por separado | PSI |
| Grounding | puesta a tierra | PSI |
| Bonding | conexión | PSI |
| GFCI | interruptor de circuito por falla a tierra | PSI |
| Wiring methods | métodos de instalación eléctrica | PSI |
| Disconnecting means | medios de desconexión | PSI |
| Motors and generators | motores y generadores | PSI |
| Special occupancies | ocupación especial (also "usos, equipamientos y condiciones especiales") | PSI |
| Signs and outline lighting | letreros eléctricos e iluminación de contornos | PSI |
| Load calculation | cálculo de cargas | suggestion |
| Raceway | canalización | suggestion |
| Box fill | ocupación de cajas | suggestion |
| Voltage drop | caída de tensión | suggestion |
| Overcurrent protection | protección contra sobrecorriente | suggestion |

If a Spanish question uses a word you do not recognize, it may be one of PSI's literal translations. Read the question for the numbers and the thing being asked, then match it to the English index.

## How to prepare in Spanish

1. **Study the method in Spanish, the lookups in English.** Every drill on this site, such as [dwelling standard load](https://texaselectricianexam.com/calculations/dwelling-standard-load/), has a Spanish version under /es/ with worked steps in Spanish, while the table names point to the English NEC.
2. **Make your own term list** of every English index word you look up while practicing. Write it inside your NEC before the exam; notes in the NEC are allowed, but the dictionary may not be marked.
3. **Practice timed.** Translating costs seconds. The journeyman calculations portion gives about 4.2 minutes per item, so build that time into your practice on the [practice tests](https://texaselectricianexam.com/practice-test/journeyman/).
4. **Read the format guides** for your exam: [journeyman](https://texaselectricianexam.com/guides/texas-journeyman-electrician-exam/), [master](https://texaselectricianexam.com/guides/texas-master-electrician-exam/) or [residential wireman](https://texaselectricianexam.com/guides/texas-residential-wireman-exam/).

TDLR's pass-rate tables do not separate English and Spanish candidates, so there is no official pass rate for the Spanish exam.

TexasElectricianExam is an independent study site, not affiliated with TDLR, PSI or NFPA.

## Questions people ask

### Can I take the Texas electrician exam in Spanish?

Yes. PSI's bulletin says the exams are available in English and Spanish at no additional cost. You indicate your language when you schedule.

### Does the Spanish exam cost more?

No. Spanish is offered at no extra cost. Only languages other than English and Spanish need a paid translation request.

### Can I bring a dictionary?

Yes, a bound word-to-word translation dictionary. It cannot contain pictures or definitions, cannot have extra papers with it, and cannot be highlighted, underlined, indexed or marked before or during the exam.

### Is the code book in Spanish?

The code TDLR adopted is the 2026 NEC, which you bring yourself, and the questions are based on it. PSI does not say whether a Spanish translation of the NEC is accepted as your reference, so confirm with PSI before relying on one.

### Is the exam offered in Vietnamese?

Do not count on it. One line in the Spanish bulletin mentions Vietnamese, but the English bulletin names only English and Spanish, and other languages need a paid translation request.

## Sources

- [PSI, TDLR Electrician Candidate Information Bulletin (English), updated 9/15/2026, Foreign Languages](https://test-takers.psiexams.com/api/content/bulletin/1682) (checked 2026-11-09)
- [PSI, Boletin Informativo para Candidatos de TDLR (Spanish), updated 9/15/2026](https://test-takers.psiexams.com/api/content/bulletin/2388) (checked 2026-11-09)
- [TDLR, Electrician Exam Information](https://www.tdlr.texas.gov/electricians/elecexam.htm) (checked 2026-11-09)
- [TDLR, proposed rule summary of 2026-03-31 (Spanish terms used by TDLR)](https://www.tdlr.texas.gov/news/rulemaking/2026/03/31/summary-of-proposed-rule-changes-and-request-for-comments-and-information-4/) (checked 2026-11-09)

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