How to get a contractor license in California

Licensing office Contractors State License Board (CSLB) · 1-800-321-CSLB (2752) [3][12]

The license pathway in California

1. 1

   B-2 Residential Remodeling Contractor

   • 4 years of experience
   • Law and business exam plus the B-2 trade exam (PSI, multiple choice)
   • $450 application + $200 initial license (sole owner)
   • Every 2 years; $450 active sole owner

   Remodeling jobs on existing wood-frame homes that involve at least three unrelated trades, such as drywall, flooring, painting and fixture swaps. A B-2 contractor can't change load-bearing parts of a building. [2][7][10]

2. 2

   B General Building Contractor

   • 4 years of experience
   • Law and business exam plus the B trade exam (PSI, multiple choice; Spanish versions offered)
   • $450 application + $200 initial license (sole owner)
   • Every 2 years; $450 active sole owner

   The classic general contractor license: building projects of any kind that use at least two unrelated trades besides framing or carpentry. Fire sprinkler and well-drilling work must go to the right specialty license. [2][6][9][10]

3. 3

   A General Engineering Contractor

   • 4 years of experience
   • Law and business exam plus the A trade exam (PSI, multiple choice)
   • $450 application + $200 initial license (sole owner)
   • Every 2 years; $450 active sole owner

   Heavy civil work that needs specialized engineering knowledge: roads, bridges, pipelines, grading, sewers, dams and similar fixed works. [2][8][10]

Who needs a California contractor license

State law exempts only small, simple jobs. The exemption covers work where the total contract price for labor, materials and everything else is under $1,000 and the work doesn't need a building permit. The exemption doesn't apply if you split a bigger job into smaller contracts, advertise yourself as a contractor, or hire someone to help.

This section of the law was amended effective January 1, 2025, and again effective January 1, 2026. Older CSLB materials, including its "Get Licensed to Build" booklet, still say $500. Go by the current statute, and confirm with CSLB if you're unsure. [1][4]

The license classes: A, B, B-2 and C

California sorts contractors into classes. Most people working up to running their own construction business aim for one of these:

• B-2 Residential Remodeling: improvements to existing wood-frame homes, with at least three unrelated trades on each contract. No structural changes to load-bearing walls, foundations or roof structures.
• B General Building: buildings of any kind, with at least two unrelated trades other than framing or carpentry. A B contractor can't take on fire sprinkler or well-drilling work unless it holds that license or hires a licensed subcontractor.
• A General Engineering: fixed works that need engineering know-how, such as highways, bridges, pipelines and grading.
• C Specialty: more than 40 single-trade licenses, from C-5 framing to C-36 plumbing to C-46 solar.

You can apply for only one A, B or C class on a first application. See all CSLB classifications. [2][5][6][7][8]

Experience: what counts toward the four years

The qualifier needs four years of experience within the last ten years, at journey level or above, in the class you're applying for. CSLB defines a journeyperson as an experienced worker who can do the trade without supervision, or someone who has finished an apprenticeship. Foreperson, supervising employee, contractor and owner-builder time also counts. A former qualifier in the same class doesn't have to stay within the ten-year window.

Schooling helps. Training at an accredited school or a completed state-approved apprenticeship can count as experience, but never for more than three of the four years. CSLB's booklet adds that every qualifier needs at least one year of hands-on journey-level work, and that high school courses don't count. There is no education requirement to apply.

Someone who knows your work must sign the Certification of Work Experience form, and CSLB checks a share of these statements at random. [1][2][4]

The exams

Most applicants take two exams: law and business, and a trade exam for the class. PSI gives CSLB's exams on computer at test centers in California and Wilsonville, Oregon. Each exam is multiple choice, and you get 3.5 hours for each one. The law and business exam can also be taken at PSI centers in many other states. The B exam and the law and business exam come in Spanish.

You pay exam fees to PSI, not CSLB. If you fail, you can retest after 21 days. You must pass within 18 months of CSLB accepting your application, or you start over with new fees. CSLB posts free exam study guides, and it says no schools are affiliated with it.

You may not need the exams if, in the last five years, you passed the same exam or served as qualifier on a license in good standing in that class. [1][2][3][9]

Bond, insurance and money you'll need

Before CSLB issues your license, you need:

• A $25,000 contractor bond. CSLB can require double that from some applicants with a past unlicensed-contracting violation.
• Workers' compensation insurance, or a signed statement that you have no employees. Licenses in C-8 concrete, C-20 HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), C-22 asbestos, C-39 roofing and D-49 tree service can't use that exemption. A law already on the books removes the no-employee exemption for almost everyone starting January 1, 2028.
• For an LLC: an extra $100,000 bond that protects workers' wages. CSLB's booklet says LLCs also need liability insurance of at least $1 million.

State fees for a sole owner come to $450 to apply and $200 for the first license, or $350 for other business types. Fingerprinting costs $32 (state) plus $17 (FBI) plus whatever the Live Scan site charges. [1][4][10]

If you're licensed in another state

California has formal reciprocity agreements with Arizona, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada and North Carolina. If you've held an active license in good standing in one of those states for five years, in a matching class, CSLB may waive the trade exam. It can still require it. Everyone takes the California law and business exam. For a B trade exam waiver, builders from Louisiana and North Carolina must also have passed the NASCLA (National Association of State Contractors Licensing Agencies) commercial building exam, and Mississippi builders the NASCLA or Mississippi commercial building exam. One of CSLB's own reciprocity pages names only four partner states (leaving out Mississippi) while still listing Mississippi's classes, so confirm with CSLB at 1-800-321-2752 if you hold a Mississippi license.

Builders who passed the NASCLA Commercial General Builders exam and have held a general building license for five years can ask for a B trade exam waiver from any state. More on how licenses transfer: license reciprocity. [11][12][13]

Career changers and veterans

There's no degree requirement, and the qualifier only has to be 18. The real hurdle is the four years of verified field experience. Most people get it by working for a licensed contractor, through a union or open-shop apprenticeship, or by combining an accredited construction program (up to three years of credit) with field work. See carpenter apprenticeships for the usual first step.

CSLB's Military Veterans Application Assistance Program offers faster processing, and staff who are trained to count military training and experience toward the requirements. Approved military applicants may get the initial license fee cut by 50%. [1][2][14]

Steps to get licensed in California

1. Build four years of journey-level experience

   Work as a journeyperson, foreperson, supervising employee or owner-builder in the class you want. The four years must fall within the last ten years. A completed apprenticeship or accredited schooling can count for up to three of the four years. [1][2]

2. Choose your class and apply to CSLB

   Pick one class (B-2, B or A, for example) and file the Application for Original Contractor License with the $450 application fee and a Certification of Work Experience form. Everyone on the application submits fingerprints. [2][10]

3. Schedule and pass your exams with PSI

   Once CSLB accepts your application, you get a notice to schedule the law and business exam and the trade exam with PSI. You have 18 months from acceptance to pass. [9]

4. File your bond, insurance and license fee

   After you pass, CSLB mails a bond and fee letter. File the $25,000 contractor bond, workers' compensation insurance or an exemption, the asbestos open-book exam, and the $200 initial license fee (sole owner). [1][2][9]

5. Renew every two years

   Your license renews every two years. An active sole-owner renewal is $450 if it's on time. [2][10]

Where to get the hours

Programs that train general contractors in or for California, from their own official pages. Listed by type, not ranked.

• State program

  California Division of Apprenticeship Standards (DAS)

  The state apprenticeship agency, with a search tool for registered programs. CSLB counts a completed state-approved apprenticeship as experience (up to three years). [1][15]

• Union

  Carpenters Training Committee for Northern California (union)

  Union carpenter apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship training for Northern California, with applications on its site. [16]

• Open shop

  ABC NorCal apprenticeship (open shop)

  Sponsors five state and federally approved apprenticeship programs, including carpentry and construction craft laborer. Applications are accepted year-round. [17]

• Open shop

  ABC Southern California apprenticeship (open shop)

  Open-shop apprenticeships in electrical, plumbing, low voltage and sheet metal work, combining classroom instruction with on-the-job training on active construction projects. [18]

• Other

  Apprenticeship.gov job finder

  The U.S. Department of Labor's search for registered apprenticeship openings, including carpentry and construction. [19]

Licensed in another state?

Questions people ask