2026 Code Year: NEC 555

NEC Article 555 details the electrical safety standards for the marina & docking industry. See what's new in the 2026 edition of the Code Book.

What is NEC 555?

National Electrical Code (NEC) Article 555, as well as its subsets, outline the electrical safety requirements for Marinas, Boatyards, Floating Buildings, and Commercial & Noncommercial Docking Facilities. It has 2 separate subsections where it calls out various Ground Fault Protection requirements; NEC 555.35, which has 6 parts overviewing Ground Fault Protection for docks & piers, and NEC 555.53 which details the Ground Fault safety measures for floating buildings. Let's look at subsection 555.35 first, and what it entails:

What is NEC 555.35?

NEC 555.35 states the Ground Fault Protection Equipment (GFPE) & Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) standards for docking facilities and piers (note NSS uses the product terminology Equipment Circuit Leakage Interrupter, or ELCI, for the NEC term GFPE). It is broken into 6 parts (A through F), which is two more than the 2023 Code edition. Let's look at them in order, starting with part A:

What is NEC 555.35(A)?

Part A of National Electrical Code 555.35 states that all feeders & branch circuits must be protected by a Listed (an Agency such as UL, CSA, ETL, etc.) ELCI/GFPE that is rated at or below 100mA for its trip level.

What is NEC 555.35(B)?

New to this specific Code, Part B of NEC 555.35 subsequently pushed every other section back a letter that was in previous NEC 555 editions. It lists the Ground Fault protection measures for Fire Pump circuits of marinas, with 3 numbered rules: There must to be a Ground-Fault monitoring system with an alarm that is instigated at or above 100mA of electrical leakage

There must to be a Ground-Fault monitoring system with an alarm that is instigated at or above 100mA of electrical leakage
The alarm for the system must be both audible & visual
The alarm needs to be in a location that can be monitored by qualified personnel

There is also an informational note, that states in NEC 695.7(G) that GFPE are prohibited from fire pump power systems (which is why they detail the alarm/monitoring system for this Code).

30 amp marine ELCI mounted on a pedestal

What is NEC 555.35(C)?

Part C of National Electrical Code 555.35 lists requirements for Ground Fault protection of receptacles & outlets of 2 different types; Shore Power connections, and non-Shore Power outlets. Their specifications for electrical protection are as follows:

Receptacles for Shore Power pedestals are now required to have Listed ELCI/GFPE rated no higher than a 30mA trip level for each boat. It also mentioned the ELCI/GFPE have to comply with NEC 555.33(A), which outlines robust outdoor rated enclosures (x. NEMA 4X & IP69K) and marine grade locking type receptacles.
Outlets that are not a part of Shore power receptacles need to follow Ground Fault protection requirements closely aligned with NEC 210.8(B), which this Code states as:
1. All single-phase branch circuits rated up to 60 Amps & under 150V to ground per hot leg need Class A (5 mA +/- 1 trip level) GFCI protection.
2. All three-phase branch circuits rated up to 100 Amps & under 150V to ground per hot leg need Class A (5 mA +/- 1 trip level) GFCI protection.

What is NEC 555.35(D)?

Part D of NEC 555.35 points out that Class A GFCI protection is needed for all boat hoists receiving power from outlets at or below 240V. It also notes that GFCI protected receptacles that aren’t used for Shore Power can satisfy this requirement (which is detailed above in NEC 555.35(C)(2)).

30 Amp Leakage Current Measurement Device

What is NEC 555.35(E)?

Part E of National Electrical Code NEC 555.35 sets the ground rules for electrical leakage testing equipment (or as defined in the Code as “Leakage Current Measurement Devices”). It states that any marina or docking facility that has 3 or more shore power receptacles (not 3 pedestals, but 3 locations for boats to plug into, as many shore power options can service more than 1 vessel) must have an Agency Listed device that can test electrical leakage current (in milliamperage, or mA format) from a boat. This stipulation in the Code officially went into effect on January 1st of 2026, and that date was mentioned in the 2023 edition of this subsection. Part E also has 2 informational notes, as this is the first time the marina/docking industry has been required to use electrical leakage reading devices. They are:

Note 1: States that these Leakage Current Measurement Devices should be used by facility operators to diagnose electrical leakage on a case by case (vessel by vessel) basis. Keep in mind NSS recommends setting these devices to 30mA, as this will tell if the boat will trip the required GFPE at the pedestal while running the vessel's full electrical load.
Note 2: states that the Leakage Current Measurement Devices should be used annually on every vessel in a marina or boatyard. NSS recommends (especially in more seasonal weather environments) testing vessel’s current leakage at the beginning of the season, when boats are put back in the water, to proactively prevent electric shock harm to boaters & their docking neighbors.

What is NEC 555.35(F)?

Part F of NEC 555.35, which was added to give guidance for the newly mandated pedestal level protection (NEC 555.35(C)(1)), states that once a GFPE protection system is installed at a marina or boatyard, it needs to be performance tested to ensure safe and efficient operation. The tests should be conducted by a qualified personnel in coordination with the GFPE manufacturers recommendation. The Code also notes that an authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) should have a written record of the performance testing.

What is NEC 555.53?

National Electrical Code subsection 555.53 details the Ground Fault Protection needs of Floating Buildings. It states the main Over Current Protective Device (OCPD) feeding a floating building should have GFPE that has a set trip level at or below 100mA. The subsection also points out that if each individual branch and or feeder circuit is GFCI protected (at a Class A 5mA +/-1 trip level) the 100mA rated GFPE isn’t needed. This Code also notes that receptacles need to comply with 555.35(C) (30mA rated GFPE for Shore Power or Class A GFCI for “other” outlets) and NEC 555.35(D) (Class A GFCI protection for receptacles supplying boat hoists).

What does this Code mean?

The 2026 version of National Electrical Code 555 made some slight readability updates, along with some significant changes for the Ground Fault Protection requirements of the marine docking industry. Now every 30 Amp & 50 Amp Shore Power receptacle is required to have 30mA Ground Fault Protection Equipment (GFPE) level protection, more stringent than previously only needing Ground Fault Protection in pedestals after an electrical service update or upgrade. NEC 555 also now requires Agency Approved Leakage Current Measurement Devices for all marinas with 3 or more slips, which the Code forewarned in the 2023 edition.

How can NSS Help?

North Shore Safety (NSS) manufactures a wide variety of equipment that can meet the newest (and existing) standards of NEC 555. Check out our Marine Products page to view our permanent (for Marinas) & portable (for Boaters) ELCI/GFPE products as well as our Leakage Current Measurement Devices (now required by 2026 NEC standards).