What this is
What is an electrical competency authorisation?
What is an electrical competency authorisation?
A formal, signed decision that a named person may carry out defined electrical activities on a specific installation, at stated voltage levels, with any restrictions written down. It is issued after their qualification has been verified, their knowledge of this site's installation assessed, and their competence observed in practice. It is the record that turns a tradesperson into an authorised person on your system.
Why is a trade qualification not enough?
Because competence in electrical work is knowledge plus experience plus familiarity with the installation in front of you. A qualification evidences the first, employment history the second, and neither says anything about the third: this site's isolation arrangements, its arc flash positions, its wash-down constraints. An excellent electrician on a different system is not yet safe on yours, and every major regime places the judgement of that on the employer, not the awarding body.
Who should issue an electrical competency authorisation?
Someone competent to judge electrical competence, which normally means the engineering manager or a senior authorised person, and the form asks that question directly. An authorisation signed by someone who could not themselves assess the work being authorised is a signature, not a decision, and it is one of the first things an investigator tests after an electrical incident.
Scope
When is an electrical competency authorisation required?
This is the gate at the end of the competency chain, not the chain itself. Use it to record the authorisation decision; use the neighbouring templates for the training, assessment and justification that feed it.
Use this template when
- A new electrician, engineer or fitter needs formal authorisation before working on this site's electrical systems
- A contractor's electrician will work on the installation and their scope and limits need stating in writing
- An existing authorisation has reached its valid-until date or reassessment interval and must be renewed on evidence
- A person's role, the installation, or the activities they perform have changed enough to invalidate the current limits
- An incident or near miss has put someone's authorisation in question and it needs formal review or restriction
Do not use it for
- Assessing the shock, arc flash and burn risk of the work itself, which is the Electrical Safety Risk Assessment (SAF-156)
- Justifying why a task will be done live rather than dead, which is the Live Working Justification Record (SAF-158)
- Recording incident energy and PPE categories at each panel, which is the Arc Flash Study Record (SAF-157)
- Recording that awareness training was delivered to non-electrical workers, which is Electrical Safety Awareness Training (TRN-070)
- Holding the site-wide picture of who is competent at what, which is the Competency Matrix (TRN-020) this record feeds
Compliance mapping
Which ISO 45001 cl.7.2 requirements does this satisfy?
Regulation treats electrical competence as an employer judgement to be evidenced, not a certificate to be filed. Every regime asks the same question after an incident: on what basis did you decide this person could do this work on this installation?
| Clause | Requirement | Where it lands |
|---|---|---|
| ISO 45001 cl.7.2 | Determine the competence needed, ensure workers are competent on the basis of education, training or experience, and retain documented evidence | Qualification and experience |
| Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 reg.16 (GB) | No person engaged in work where technical knowledge or experience is necessary to prevent danger unless they possess it or are under appropriate supervision | Demonstrated competence |
| NFPA 70E Art.110 | Employer to train qualified persons and document that each employee has demonstrated proficiency in the work practices involved | Demonstrated competence |
| OSHA 29 CFR 1910.399 | Qualified person defined by demonstrated skills and knowledge of the equipment and installation and its hazards, not by licence alone | Site specific knowledge |
| OSHA 29 CFR 1910.333(a)(1) | Live parts to be de-energised before work unless infeasible or a greater hazard; live working is the exception to be justified | Authorisation |
| EN 50110-1 | Persons classified as skilled, instructed or ordinary, with a nominated person in control of the electrical installation and of each work activity | Authorisation |
| ISO 45001 cl.7.2(d) | Documented information retained as evidence of competence, current and retrievable | Related records |
What it does not cover
- Live working justification, which is a per-decision record (SAF-158) of why work proceeds live and who accepted it; an authorisation that says live working is permitted does not justify any particular live task.
- The permit to work itself, which authorises a specific job on a specific day; this record only establishes who may receive or issue such permits.
- Energy isolation procedure and verification, which live in the machine-specific LOTO procedure (MNT-055) and Energy Isolation Verification (MNT-057), not in the person's authorisation.
- The competency matrix (TRN-020), which is the site-wide register this record must be posted into; the authorisation is one row's evidence, not the register.
- Statutory licensing, which in several jurisdictions is a legal precondition for electrical work that no site-issued authorisation can substitute for.
Global
Electrical Competency Authorisation requirements by country
Every major regime restricts electrical work to people judged competent for it, but they split on who does the judging: licensing regimes certify the trade, while the duty to authorise a person on a specific installation stays with the employer everywhere.
OSHA 29 CFR 1910.331–335; NFPA 70E
Qualified person status turns on demonstrated skills and knowledge; NFPA 70E expects the employer to document the demonstration.
There is no federal electrician licence to point at, so the employer's own qualification record is the entire evidence base, and OSHA cites employers whose qualified persons exist only by assertion.
Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, reg.16; HSE guidance HSR25
Work requiring technical knowledge or experience is restricted to those who possess it or are appropriately supervised.
Reg.16 is judged against the specific work and installation, so a JIB card is evidence towards the judgement, not the judgement itself, and HSR25 says so almost in terms.
EN 50110-1 with Framework Directive 89/391/EEC
Operation of electrical installations by skilled, instructed and ordinary persons, under a nominated person in control.
The standard supplies the vocabulary most European sites use for authorisation levels, and auditors expect written designation of who holds each role.
Provincial trade certification; CSA Z462
Electrical trade licensing is provincial; CSA Z462 mirrors NFPA 70E on qualified person requirements and documentation.
The licence proves the trade and the province; whether the person is qualified for this installation and this task remains a documented employer decision under Z462.
State electrical licensing acts; model WHS Regulations; AS/NZS 4836
Unlicensed electrical work is an offence in every state, with WHS duties layered on top for how licensed work is managed.
Licensing sets the legal floor, but the licence covers the trade, not the site, so site authorisation with stated limits is still what an investigator asks to see.
ISO 45001, clause 7.2
Competence determined, ensured and evidenced within the management system.
Certification auditors sample authorisations and trace them backwards: what was the basis, who assessed, is the evidence retained and is the matrix consistent with it.
How to complete it
How to complete an electrical competency authorisation, step by step
The form asks the right questions, but every one of them can be answered from a desk. What separates an authorisation from a filed CV is whether the answers were established or assumed.
The form distinguishes verified with the awarding body from certificate seen, and the gap between those answers is where forged and lapsed credentials live. For anything above skilled person, and for every agency or contractor electrician, verify with the body and record the registration check. A certificate is a photograph of a fact that may no longer be true.
The site specific knowledge section is the point of the record: the isolation arrangements, the arc flash position, the wash-down constraints, the food area requirements. These cannot be answered from a CV, and an authorisation issued on the day someone arrives has by definition assumed them. Walk the installation with the person before signing anything.
Activities authorised, voltage levels and restrictions are the decision. Start from what the person will actually do and grant that; leave high voltage switching to senior authorised persons, leave live working at no unless a justification regime exists, and use the restrictions field for anything conditional. A blanket grant is not generosity, it is the absence of an assessment.
Knows own limits and would refuse unsafe work are the most predictive answers on the form, and the hardest to establish in an interview. Someone who can say precisely what they will not attempt is safer than someone who will attempt anything. The worker's countersignature matters for the same reason: a person cannot honour limits they have never read.
What auditors find
Most common electrical competency authorisation findings
Authorisation findings are rarely about a missing form. They are about an authorisation that no longer describes the person, the installation, or the work being done under it.
| Finding | Clause | What fixes it |
|---|---|---|
| Authorisation inferred from the trade qualification; no site-specific assessment on file. | ISO 45001 cl.7.2 | Issue authorisation only after site familiarisation and observed assessment, and record both in this template. |
| Qualification recorded as certificate seen and never verified with the awarding body. | ISO 45001 cl.7.2(d) | Verify registration and qualification with the body for every new authorisation and record the check. |
| Every activity and voltage level granted to every authorised person; restrictions blank. | EAWR 1989 reg.16 | Re-issue with limits that match each person's assessed work; blanket grants are withdrawn, not renewed. |
| Live working authorised as a default rather than an exception with justification behind it. | OSHA 29 CFR 1910.333(a)(1) | Set live working to no unless a Live Working Justification Record regime is in place for that person's tasks. |
| Valid-until date passed months ago; the person is still working under the lapsed authorisation. | ISO 45001 cl.7.2 | Drive reassessment from the expiry date before it arrives, and suspend the authorisation when it passes. |
| Assessor was not competent to assess the level being granted, or the form's assessor question was answered by the assessor about themselves. | ISO 45001 cl.7.2 | Restrict assessment to the engineering manager or a senior authorised person and record the basis of their own authority. |
| Authorisation never posted to the competency matrix; permits issued against a stale matrix. | ISO 45001 cl.7.2(d) | Record the TRN-020 matrix ID in this record and treat recorded-in-matrix as a condition of issue. |
| Competence established by interview only; isolation and test instrument use never observed. | NFPA 70E Art.110 | Observe an isolation, proving dead and instrument category selection on this installation before signing. |
| Worker never countersigned and cannot state their own limits when asked. | EAWR 1989 reg.16 | Obtain the second signature at issue and have the person state their limits back as part of the assessment. |
| High voltage switching authorised at skilled-person level without a senior authorised person structure. | EN 50110-1 | Reserve HV switching for senior authorised persons appointed in writing under the site's HV rules. |
Case in point
Case in point: the electrician who was excellent somewhere else
A dairy site took on an agency electrician with twenty years of experience and an impeccable qualification to cover a maintenance backlog. The engineering manager completed the authorisation the morning he arrived: qualification seen, every site-specific knowledge question marked yes, all activities granted at low voltage, signed and filed. Nobody walked the installation with him, because his CV made it feel unnecessary.
Three weeks later, fault-finding on a chill store control panel, he isolated the labelled supply, proved the control circuit dead, and started work. The panel had a second feed, added years earlier for the defrost heaters and documented only in the site's isolation schedule, which he had never seen. The flashover burned his hand and forearm; it missed his face because he happened to be reaching from the side.
The investigation did not fault his competence as an electrician; it faulted the authorisation. Every answer in the site specific knowledge section had been assumed, not assessed, and the record signed that morning was evidence of the assumption. The corrective action was procedural: no authorisation before a documented installation walk-through covering the isolation schedule, and observed isolation on a live area of the site before any solo work.
The template
The template, field by field
The form exactly as it installs. Every field, option, score and conditional rule is editable, and the links to other templates come with it.
6 sections
- Reference
- SAF-162
- Archetype
- Record
- Record ID
- ECA-2026-000
- Scoring
- Authorisations current
- Direction
- High is good
- Singleton
- Yes
- Basis
- ISO 45001 cl.7.2
- Links
- Links Competency matrix, Permits
- Tags
- Electrical, Competency
- Sections
- 6
- Fields
- 48
- Follow up fields
- 3
- Repeating sections
- 0
- Links out
- 4
Header
14 fieldsAuthorisation ID*
Auto sequence. Format ECA-2026-000.
The record's own ID. Other templates point at this value.
Status*
Drives who this goes to next.
- Planned2 pts
- In progress2 pts
- Complete3 pts
- Deferred0 pts
- Open0 pts
- Closed3 pts
- Overdue0 pts
Date and Time*
Completed By*
Site*
Site ID*
Format SITE-000.
Links to FDN-001 Site ID
Area
The area within the site.
Exact Location
Drop a pin for anything hard to find.
Worker*
Person ID*
Format PER-0000.
Links to FDN-003 Person ID
A Trade Qualification Is Not Authorisation
Competence is knowledge plus experience plus familiarity with this installation. Somebody excellent on a different system is not yet authorised on yours.
Authorisation Level Sought*
Ordinary person, skilled person, authorised person, or senior authorised person.
- Ordinary person1 pt
- Skilled person2 pts
- Authorised person3 pts
- Senior authorised person4 pts
Assessed By*
Assessor Competent To Assess*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Qualification and experience
6 fieldsTrade Qualification Held*
- Yes3 pts
- Partial1 pt
- No0 pts
Qualification Verified*
- Yes, with body3 pts
- Certificate seen1 pt
- No0 pts
Years Of Relevant Experience*
Registration Or Licence Held
- Yes3 pts
- No1 pt
Registration Verified With Body
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Continuing Development Current*
- Yes3 pts
- Overdue1 pt
- None0 pts
Site specific knowledge
6 fieldsFamiliar With This Installation*
- Yes3 pts
- Partly1 pt
- No0 pts
Knows The Isolation Arrangements*
- Yes3 pts
- Partly1 pt
- No0 pts
Knows The Arc Flash Position*
- Yes3 pts
- Partly1 pt
- No0 pts
Understands Wash Down Constraints*
- Yes3 pts
- Partly1 pt
- No0 pts
Understands Food Area Requirements*
- Yes3 pts
- Partly1 pt
- No0 pts
Site Permit System Training Complete*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Demonstrated competence
5 fieldsObserved Carrying Out Isolation*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Observed Using Test Equipment*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Correct Test Instrument Category Selected*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Knows Own Limits*
The most important indicator. Somebody who knows what they will not attempt is safer than somebody who will attempt anything.
- Yes3 pts
- Partly1 pt
- No0 pts
Would Refuse Unsafe Work*
- Yes3 pts
- Uncertain1 pt
- No0 pts
Related records
1 fieldCompetency Matrix ID
Where this authorisation is recorded.
Links to TRN-020 Matrix ID
Authorisation
16 fieldsActivities Authorised*
Voltage Levels Authorised*
Live Working Authorised*
- No3 pts
- Yes, restricted1 pt
- Yes0 pts
Permit Issuing Authorised*
- Yes3 pts
- No1 pt
Restrictions
Valid Until*
Reassessment Interval*
Recorded In Matrix*
- Yes3 pts
- No0 pts
Action Required*
Raise the action record, then enter its reference here.
- No2 pts
- Yes0 pts
Priority
- High0 pts
- Medium1 pt
- Low3 pts
CAPA ID
Format CAPA-2026-00000.
Links to FDN-014 CAPA ID
Action Owner
Engineering Manager*
Signature*
Worker*
Second Signature*
SAF-162 · record IDs look like ECA-2026-000 · Links Competency matrix, Permits
Open in KnowellaRun it with agents
From a document you fill in to a programme that runs itself
The authorisation is a decision frozen at a date. What fails around it is time: the expiry nobody watched, the matrix that was never updated, the contractor authorised for a site he left in March.
Holds the register of authorisations against the installation and the permit system, so a permit cannot be issued to someone whose authorisation has lapsed or never covered the activity.
Posts each authorisation into the competency matrix and drives the reassessment before the valid-until date rather than after it.
Ties contractor electricians' authorisations to their engagement, insurance and induction records, so the authorisation ends when the contract does.
Watches expiry dates, role changes and incident records for anything that should suspend or narrow an authorisation, and raises the review with the engineering manager.
This template lives in KnowSafe — safety and compliance. Incidents, hazards, permits, inspections and the critical controls behind them.
Meet KnowSafe→Glossary
Electrical Competency Authorisation definitions and key terms
- Authorised person
- A person formally appointed in writing by the duty holder to carry out defined electrical work on a specific installation, within stated limits.
- Senior authorised person
- An authorised person additionally appointed to control high voltage switching, sanction work on HV systems and issue safety documents under the site's electrical rules.
- Skilled person (electrically)
- In EN 50110-1 terms, a person with relevant education, knowledge and experience enabling them to perceive risks and avoid electrical hazards.
- Ordinary person
- A person who is neither skilled nor instructed in electrical matters and must therefore be kept away from electrical danger entirely.
- Qualified person
- The US term of art: one who has demonstrated skills and knowledge of the construction and operation of the equipment and the hazards involved, per 29 CFR 1910.399 and NFPA 70E.
- Limits of authorisation
- The stated activities, voltage levels and restrictions within which a person's authorisation holds; work outside them is unauthorised regardless of ability.
- Proving dead
- Verifying absence of voltage at the point of work with a proved test instrument, before and after the test, as the final step of isolation.
- Measurement category (CAT rating)
- The IEC 61010 classification of a test instrument's transient withstand; using an instrument of too low a category on distribution circuits is a common cause of instrument-initiated arc flash.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions about electrical competency authorisation
Is a licensed electrician automatically authorised on our site?+
No. The licence or qualification proves trade competence; authorisation is the employer's decision that this person may do this work on this installation, and it depends on site knowledge no licence can carry. Every regime that licenses electricians still leaves that decision, and the liability for it, with the duty holder.
Who should sign the authorisation, and why does the worker countersign?+
The engineering manager or a senior authorised person, because the signer must be competent to judge what they are granting, and the form asks that question explicitly. The worker countersigns because limits only restrain someone who has read and accepted them; an authorisation the person has never seen is a management record, not a control.
Can contractors and agency electricians hold one?+
Yes, and they are the population that needs it most, because their competence was assessed by someone else against a different installation. Scope it narrowly, time-limit it to the engagement, verify the qualification with the body rather than sighting a card, and tie it to the contractor control records so it lapses when the engagement does.
How long should an authorisation last?+
Shorter than feels comfortable. Annually for anything involving high voltage or live work, up to three years for low voltage dead working with a stable installation, and in every case invalidated by change: a new role, a materially modified installation, an incident, or a period away from the work. The valid-until date is a backstop for the change nobody noticed.
Does this authorisation permit live working?+
Not by itself, and the form scores no as the best answer deliberately. Live working needs two things: a person authorised for it here, and a per-task justification of why the work cannot be done dead, which is the Live Working Justification Record. An authorisation that grants live working without that second layer has authorised a category of incident.
What is the difference between this and the competency matrix?+
The matrix is the register; this is the decision behind one cell of it. The matrix tells a permit issuer at a glance who may do what; the authorisation is the evidence of how that was decided, by whom, on what basis, and until when. Each is useless without the other, which is why recorded-in-matrix is a scored question on this form.
Keep going
Related templates and programmes
Industries this is written for
Programmes this belongs to
Lockout and Tagout
A defensible energy control programme with a procedure per machine, group lockout, lock removal and yearly verification.
Electrical Safety and Arc Flash
An arc flash study with current labels, authorised persons on record and live work justified in writing.
Worker Competency and Credentials
A matrix that reflects observed practice rather than attendance.
Used together in Lockout and Tagout
Audit Finding Record
Records a single audit finding with its evidence, clause reference and classification
Lockout/Tagout Procedure (Machine Specific)
Sets out exactly how to isolate a specific machine, listing every energy source and isolation point
LOTO Periodic Inspection
Checks that a specific energy control procedure is being followed correctly in practice
Energy Isolation Verification
Records the physical test proving stored energy is gone before work begins
Group Lockout Record
Records a group isolation where several people work on one machine under a single lockout
Lock Removal Authorization
Authorises removing a lock when the person who applied it is not available
More in Electrical Safety
Electrical Safety Risk Assessment
Assesses shock, arc flash and burn risk from work on or near electrical systems
Arc Flash Study Record
Records the incident energy calculation at each panel and the resulting boundary and PPE category
Live Working Justification Record
Records why work is being carried out live rather than dead, and who accepted that decision
Portable Appliance Test Record
Records inspection and testing of portable electrical equipment, with the result and next due date
Fixed Installation Inspection
Records periodic inspection and testing of the fixed electrical installation, with observations classified by urgency
Electrical Panel Inspection
Checks panels for damage, heat, moisture ingress, labelling, clearance and unauthorised modification
Written and reviewed by
Siddarth Singh
Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Knowella
Certified Safety Professional and industrial and systems engineer with more than a decade inside food supply chain, freight and manufacturing operations. This page was written against the current text of the standards it cites, not against secondary summaries of them.
- Certified Safety Professional (CSP), Board of Certified Safety Professionals
- MBA, University of Chicago Booth School of Business
- MS and BS, The Ohio State University, Industrial and Systems Engineering
- Six Sigma Black Belt
Sources and last review. Reviewed 16 August 2026 against:
- ISO 45001:2018 clause 7.2, competence
- Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, regulation 16, and HSE guidance HSR25 (GB)
- NFPA 70E, Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace, Article 110
- OSHA 29 CFR 1910.331–335 and the 1910.399 definition of qualified person (US)
- EN 50110-1, Operation of electrical installations
- CSA Z462, Workplace electrical safety (Canada)
- AS/NZS 4836, Safe working on or near low-voltage electrical installations and equipment (Australia)
This page is general guidance, not legal advice. Confirm requirements with your jurisdiction’s regulator.