Going out on your own as a solar installer in QLD
Checked against WorkSafe Queensland Electrical Safety Office, plus Solar Accreditation Australia for the rebate on 8 August 2026.
To take jobs in your own name
Electrical contractor licence
Required to do electrical work for others as a sole trader. Queensland issues these for one year at a time, so it is an annual cost.
And underneath it, to do the work
Electrical mechanic licence
The unrestricted electrical work licence. A restricted electrical work licence is not enough: it does not permit electrical installation work.
This is the one people get wrong: the licence that lets you DO the work and the one that lets you CONTRACT for it are different. Working for a boss you only need the first. Going out on your own you need both.
- What you need before you apply
- An electrical mechanic licence, then the contractor licence, which needs a qualified technical person and a qualified business person (both can be you). The technical person must have held a Queensland electrical mechanic licence for at least two years, so a newly ticketed electrician cannot get their own contractor licence straight away. Separately, SAA accreditation for the rebate.
- What it costs
- From 1 July 2026: electrical contractor licence $464.30 to issue and the same to renew, electrical work licence $97.15. SAA first accreditation is $715 excluding GST.
- How long it takes
- SAA says up to 10 business days. Queensland does not publish a licence processing time and currently warns of delays.
- What you can do without it
- Almost nothing, and no dollar threshold. Only a very narrow list of tasks is unlicensed, and panel cleaning or visual inspection by a competent person is about the extent of it.
- Insurance the regulator requires
- The contractor licence requires public and products liability of at least $5 million plus $50,000 of consumer protection insurance, covering testing and certification liability, faulty design, incorrect advice and goods in your care. SAA also wants a certificate of currency.
Read this before you rely on it
- The two year rule is the real gate here. Plan for it rather than being surprised by it.
- Queensland's own page says you may need a QBCC licence as well depending on the system's capacity and where it goes, but we could not find any QBCC page saying which class applies or at what capacity. Ring QBCC on 139 333 with your specific system type before you quote.
- That same Queensland page still tells you to get accredited by the Clean Energy Council. That is out of date: SAA took over in February 2024.
Where this came from
Read off WorkSafe Queensland Electrical Safety Office, plus Solar Accreditation Australia for the rebate on 8 August 2026. Fees and processing times usually change on 1 July, so check before you budget.
- https://www.worksafe.qld.gov.au/licensing-and-registrations/electrical-licences/electrical-contactor-licences
- https://cer.gov.au/schemes/renewable-energy-target/renewable-energy-target-participants-and-industry/rooftop-solar
- https://www.qld.gov.au/law/laws-regulated-industries-and-accountability/queensland-laws-and-regulations/selling-your-products-and-services/selling-products/selling-solar-products
Once you are up and running, we also have a page on what ONARA Ops does for solar installers.
When you are ready to take the first job
Once the licence is sorted, you need to look like you have been doing this for years: a website people can book from, and quotes and invoices with your logo that go out the same day you finish. That part is us.
Other trades in QLD
We are not accountants, lawyers or insurance brokers, and none of this is advice. It is what the regulators and the ATO publish, gathered in one place with links to the source, so you know what to go and ask about. Rules and fees change, so check with the authority before you act on anything here. Government fees shown are for the 2026-27 year and are indexed every 1 July.