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Electricians in QueenslandTwo rules to know before you book.

Every Queensland home needs interconnected photoelectric smoke alarms by 1 January 2027, owner-occupied homes included. And if the power points have no approved safety switch, an electrician generally can't do installation work there without fitting one. When work is connected, you'll get a certificate of testing and compliance.

Getting your smoke alarms ready for 1 January 2027

  1. Count where they need to go

    Every bedroom, the hallways linking bedrooms to the rest of the home, and every storey.

  2. Check each alarm

    Photoelectric with no ionisation sensor, marked AS 3786-2014, under 10 years old when installed, and interconnected so they all sound together.

  3. Hardwired now? Stay hardwired

    Replacements for hardwired alarms must also be hardwired, and a qualified electrician has to install them.

  4. No wiring? Wireless can work

    Wireless alarms with a non-removable 10-year battery need no wiring, and the Queensland Fire Department says you can fit those yourself.

Safety switches when you buy, sell or rent

A seller must tell the buyer in writing, by the possession date, whether an approved safety switch protects the power points. If none does, the new owner has 90 days to get one installed, and a landlord has 90 days from the start of a tenancy.

An approved safety switch is an RCD (a device that cuts power fast when current leaks to earth) approved in Queensland and tripping at no more than 30 milliamps. Without one on the power points, an electrician can't do installation work in the home unless the job includes fitting it or another listed exception, like an emergency, applies.

Who licenses electricians in Queensland?

The Electrical Safety Office, part of Workplace Health and Safety Queensland, runs electrical licensing. Anyone doing or supervising electrical work needs an electrical work licence, and an electrical mechanic licence covers all of it. A business that does electrical work, or advertises that it will, needs an electrical contractor licence, issued for up to a year at a time.

Under the Electrical Safety Regulation 2026, which started on 1 September 2026, a contractor's ads must carry their licensed or business name, a statement that they're licensed under the Electrical Safety Act, and their contractor licence number. We couldn't confirm what the Electrical Safety Office's online search shows, so take that number from the ad or quote and confirm it with the Office before work starts.

Your certificate of testing and compliance

The contractor who connects the work hands it over as soon as practicable after connection. It lists your name and address, the installation tested, the test date and the contractor's licence number, and certifies the work was tested as safe and meets the Wiring Rules.

What Queensland law lets you do yourself

You can

  • Change a light bulb, which the law says isn't electrical work.
  • Press the test button on a safety switch.
  • Fit wireless smoke alarms with a sealed 10-year battery.

Leave to a licensed electrician

  • Hardwired smoke alarms, including like-for-like replacements.
  • Fitting an approved safety switch for the power points.
  • Any wiring, power point, light or switchboard work.

A fallen line, or a shock from a tap? Ring the network

Always assume a fallen powerline is live and keep well clear. Report it, or any electric shock, to Energex or Ergon on the numbers below, and call 000 first if someone's life is at risk.

Energex or Ergon: who runs your poles and wires

Energex, South East Queensland

Brisbane, the Gold Coast, the Sunshine Coast, Logan, Ipswich, Redlands and Moreton Bay. Fallen lines and shocks: 13 19 62. Outages: 13 62 62.

Ergon Energy, the rest of the state

Regional Queensland, including Toowoomba, Townsville, Cairns, Mackay and Rockhampton. Fallen lines and shocks: 13 16 70. Outages: 13 22 96.

Our take for Queensland homes

Check your alarms now rather than in December. If any are hardwired, book one electrician who does smoke alarms to replace the lot in a single visit. If the power points have no safety switch either, ask for both together, since that rule can hold up other installation work until one's fitted.

Want a specialist to sort it?

Tell us the job and your postcode. We match the licence-checked local electrician who does this kind of work, and they call you. No ring-around, and your number goes to them alone.

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Cities in Queensland

Electricians in BrisbaneBrisbane storms, floods and old Queenslanders: who to call, and the electrical jobs locals need most.Electricians on the Gold CoastEnergex fault lines, storm season, units, canals and Queensland's rules for Gold Coast electrical jobs.Electricians on the Sunshine CoastStorm seasons, older beach houses, new estates and rentals: electrical work on the Sunshine Coast.Electricians in TownsvilleFlood and cyclone checks, older raised homes, new estates and Ergon's numbers for Townsville.Electricians in CairnsWet season trips, cyclone and flood checks, units and Ergon's fault lines in Cairns.Electricians in ToowoombaErgon's fault lines, flash floods, cold winters and heritage Queenslanders: electrical work in Toowoomba.Electricians in MackayRaising and renovating older timber homes, fibro walls, storm tides and Ergon's numbers in Mackay.Electricians in Hervey BayPost-war coastal homes, smoke alarm and safety switch rules, Ergon's numbers and heat in Hervey Bay.Electricians in BundabergBurnett floods, storm season, timber and tin homes and Ergon's numbers in Bundaberg.Electricians in RockhamptonCooling circuits, Fitzroy floods, older cottages and Ergon's fault numbers in Rockhampton.Electricians in GympieMary River floods, older homes and the Energex and Ergon boundary: electrical work in Gympie.Electricians in YeppoonCyclone winds, rooftop solar, flash floods and Ergon's numbers on the Capricorn Coast.Electricians in GladstoneSolar, batteries and EV chargers, storm tides and Ergon's numbers in Gladstone and Tannum Sands.

Related help

Helpful next

Electricians in BrisbaneBrisbane storms, floods and old Queenslanders: who to call, and the electrical jobs locals need most.Smoke alarm laws in QueenslandQueensland's 2027 deadline, what a compliant alarm looks like, and who can fit hardwired or wireless ones.Interconnected smoke alarmsWired or wireless, who can fit them, and where your state requires interconnected alarms.Safety switchesNo test button on your board, or selling or renting: what safety switches do and when the law needs them.Safety switch rules when you sell or rentSafety switch rules at sale, lease and renovation in every state, and what to do before you list.Electrical compliance certificatesEvery state's electrical certificate: its name, who issues it, the deadline, and what to do if it's missing.

Where this information comes from

Rules change, so check with your state regulator if something matters to your job. How we write and check these pages.

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