Minor Work / Handyman Requirements in Illinois
Illinois minor work: at ANY price there is no state general contractor licence and no home improvement registry to hold (verified absence REQ-IL-NO-GC-001 — IDFPR's profession list plus the Home Repair Act's consumer-statute structure). What still bites statewide inside that gap is the three silos — a roofer needs the IDFPR licence on a $0 floor, any plumbing 'for another person' triggers the $150 IDPH registration, fire sprinkler work needs the OSFM licence — and what answers day to day is the locality: Chicago's class ladder if you are inside the City, Cook County's $150/$75 trade registration in unincorporated areas, a village's ordinance elsewhere, plus the permit everywhere. Every claim sourced and dated 2026-10-11.
01 The requirements, sourced
- No state general contractor licence and no state home improvement registration exist (verified absence) — Illinois issues NO state general contractor licence and NO home improvement contractor registration. Evidence assembled from official surfaces machine-read 2026-10-11: (1) IDFPR's official profession list (profs/proflist.html) names exactly five construction-adjacent professions — Architect, Home Inspection, Landscape Architect, Qualifying Party Roofing Contractor and Roofing Contractor — and no general contractor, home builder or contractor-profession entry; (2) the Home Repair Act (815 ILCS 510, §§ 5–30 read on the FindLaw mirror) is a REMEDIAL CONSUMER STATUTE ONLY — it defines 'home repair' and prohibited practices, gives the customer a private right of action (§ 15) with attorney's fees (§ 20) and empowers Attorney General enforcement (§ 25), but creates NO licence, NO registration, NO fee and NO qualifying party; (3) IDPH enumerates only plumbing trades and OSFM only fire sprinklers. General building work in Illinois is therefore licensed ONLY locally (Chicago DOB's five-class GC licence; village and city ordinances) or not at all. S-IL-IDFPR-PROFLIST
- Roofing contractor licence required (IDFPR Limited or Unlimited), tied to a qualifying party — Any roofing contracting business in Illinois must hold an IDFPR Roofing Contractor licence — Limited (LRF) for residential roofing 'including residential properties consisting of 8 units or less', Unlimited (URF) for 'residential, commercial and industrial properties' (RF application verbatim). The licence is INOPERABLE without an active qualifying party ('The license will become INOPERABLE if there is no active qualifying party associated to the license'), and a change of qualifying party must be reported 'within 30 business days' (IL486-1920). The licence 'will expire on December 31st of each odd numbered year regardless of when it is issued'. S-IL-RF-APP
- Plumbing contractor registration — annual $150, named Plumber of Record, insurance — IDPH page verbatim: 'Plumbing Contractors are any licensed plumber or apprentice plumber who performs work for another person… All plumbing contractors must register with the state and pay an annual fee.' The application sets the price and duties: '$150 annual registration fee (Registration fees are non-refundable.)'; footer 'Renewal Fee: $150 / Reinstatement/Late Fee: $100 / Returned Check Fee: $200'; a named Licensed Plumber of Record who 'must have an Illinois plumbing license and Illinois license active'; certificate(s) of insurance showing general liability, bodily injury, property damage and workers' compensation coverages; entity filings per ownership type (SOS Articles/Certificate of Authority, Assumed Business Name 805 ILCS 405, partnership agreement, annual corporate report); a child-support certification; late filing suspends the registration and forces re-registration at a $100 penalty. S-IL-PC-APP
- Unincorporated Cook County — contractor registration by trade: $150 initial + $75 per trade per year, $1M general liability — County page verbatim: 'All contractors performing work in unincorporated Cook County are required to register with the Cook County Department of Building and Zoning.' 'The initial registration fee is $150 per trade. To keep your registration active, there is an annual fee of $75 per trade due by December 31 each year.' Every lane needs '$1,000,000.00 in General Liability' naming the County as certificate holder. Trade conditions: electrical — a supervising electrician's licence from an Illinois city/town/village 'that has an electrical commission that administers an examination'; plumbing — 'Only a corporate officer holding the state plumbing license for the corporation may register', with the IDPH plumbing contractor registration, a State Plumber or Chicago Journeyman Plumber's licence, three completed-installation and three business references; roofing — 'a State of Illinois Roofing License must be submitted'; demolition — an approved bond; crane operators — City-of-Chicago-recognised certification, notarised, non-transferable. Homeowners register free as 'General' contractors, residing on the property, with $1M homeowner GL naming the County as additional insured. Initial registration is IN PERSON (application PDF). S-IL-COOK-REG
- Building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits and inspections are LOCAL everywhere in Illinois — IDPH page verbatim: the Illinois Plumbing Code (77 IAC 890) is adopted statewide, but plumbing permits and inspections are run by local health departments and municipalities under IDPH oversight; building, mechanical and electrical permits run through municipal or county building departments (Chicago DOB; Cook County Building and Zoning; village building departments). Illinois has NO state building-permit office — every permit fact is LOCAL_AUTHORITY_REQUIRED. S-IL-DPH-PLUMBING
02 Which credentials this project can touch
| Credential | Relation | Rule | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Licensed Roofing Contractor — Limited (residential) | may require | IL-ROOFING | S-IL-RF-APP |
| Plumbing Contractor registration (IDPH) | alternative | IL-PLUMBING-CONTRACTOR | S-IL-DPH-PLUMBING |
| Chicago Electrical Contractor licence (MCC Title 4, DOB) | alternative | IL-CHI-ELECTRICAL | S-IL-CHI-4-5-010 |
Each row is one (project, classification, relation) triple the research record can source — the rendered sections and the seeded evidence can never disagree.
03 Deterministic rules applied
- IL-NO-STATE-GC
- IL-ROOFING
- IL-PLUMBING-CONTRACTOR
- IL-COOK-REG
- IL-LOCAL-PERMITS
Illinois has no conflict rows (the research pass found no official-vs-official disagreement), so this page publishes no conflict notice — the eleven named gaps live on the fees page's withheld list instead.
04 What it costs
| Fee | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Cook County contractor registration — initial, per trade County service page verbatim: 'The initial registration fee is $150 per trade.' Initial registration is filed IN PERSON by the owner or a corporate officer (application PDF); homeowners' 'General' registration is free of charge. | $150 | S-IL-COOK-REG |
| Roofing contractor licence — application (Limited and Unlimited alike) RF application packet verbatim: 'Payment of $125.00 in the form of a U.S. check or money order made payable to IDFPR', and the checklist's 'An application fee of $125' — the SAME price for Limited and Unlimited (packet machine-read 2026-10-11). Fees are non-refundable; the application 'is active for three years from the date of receipt by the Department' and the Department asks applicants to 'allow eight business weeks'. | $125 | S-IL-RF-APP |
| Roofing contractor licence — renewal price NOT PUBLISHED on the application (cycle verified) PRICE WITHHELD BY NAME (research §O.1): the RF packet prints the $125 application fee and the biennial term ('The license will expire on December 31st of each odd numbered year regardless of when it is issued') but NOT the renewal price, and no IDFPR page read this session published it — unofficial secondary sources circulate $150/$300 figures and NONE was verified, so this row records the duty with amount 0 = 'unpublished', never a guess. See RENEW-IL-ROOFING for the verified cycle. | not published | S-IL-RF-APP |
| Fire sprinkler contractor licence — initial (2-year licence) Application fee table p. 4 verbatim: 'Initial License (2-year license) $3,000' — the most expensive Illinois state construction credential. 'Do not remit fees with application. Once your application has been reviewed and approved, you will be invoiced for the applicable fees.' | $3,000 | S-IL-SFM-APP |
| Fire sprinkler contractor licence — renewal on or before the expiration date Application fee table verbatim: 'Renewal of License (before or on expiration date) $3,000'. Continuing education is required for renewal (OSFM approved-provider list). | $3,000 | S-IL-SFM-APP |
| Fire sprinkler contractor licence — late renewal (up to one year after expiry) Application fee table verbatim: 'Late Renewal of License (up to a year after expiration; includes a $500 late filing fee) $3,500'. The $500 late component is printed inside the row itself — after the year, the licence is expired rather than late. | $3,500 | S-IL-SFM-APP |
| Fire sprinkler contractor licence — duplicate or corrected licence Application fee table verbatim: 'Duplicate or Corrected License $50'. | $50 | S-IL-SFM-APP |
| Chicago general contractor licence — Class A (no value limitation), annual DOB application classification block verbatim, cross-checked against the codifier's § 4-5-010 table: '$3,500' per year. § 4-36-070: the fee 'shall be payable annually. A general contractor license shall expire one year after issuance.' | $3,500 | S-IL-CHI-GC-APP |
| Chicago general contractor licence — Class B (contracts over $20,000,000), annual DOB application verbatim: '$1,800'; § 4-5-010 indexed snippet cross-check verbatim: 'General Contractor, Class B (Chapter 4-36). – $1,800.00 (1 year)'. | $1,800 | S-IL-CHI-GC-APP |
| Chicago general contractor licence — Class C (contracts over $10,000,000), annual DOB application classification block verbatim: '$1,300' per year. | $1,300 | S-IL-CHI-GC-APP |
| Chicago general contractor licence — Class D (contracts over $4,000,000), annual DOB application classification block verbatim: '$900' per year. | $900 | S-IL-CHI-GC-APP |
| Chicago general contractor licence — Class E (contracts over $500,000), annual DOB application verbatim: '$300'; the floor of the Chicago value ladder — and the class whose § 4-36-090 insurance floor is $1,000,000 per occurrence. | $300 | S-IL-CHI-GC-APP |
| Chicago plumbing contractor licence — annual (MCC ch. 4-336) Codifier § 4-5-010 indexed snippet verbatim: 'Plumbing Contractor (Chapter 4-336). – $150.00 (1 year). $150.00 (1 year)'; § 4-336-040: 'The license fee shall be as set forth in Section 4-5-010 of this code.' This City fee STACKS on the $150 IDPH state registration (FEE-IL-PC-ANNUAL-001) — two $150 duties for the same Chicago plumbing business. | $150 | S-IL-CHI-4-5-010 |
| Chicago electrical contractor licence — annual, all classifications (MCC ch. via § 4-5-140) Codifier § 4-5-140 annual-adjustment snippet verbatim: 'Electrical Contractor, all classifications … $150.00 (1 year). $150.00 (1 year)'. The chapter number and the Electrical Supervisor / journeyman / master fees could NOT be machine-read this session (research §O.7) — flagged, never guessed. | $150 | S-IL-CHI-4-5-010 |
| Plumber licence — fee after passing the state examination IDPH 'Retired Plumber's License Application' verbatim (read via the official page's indexed text 2026-10-11): 'apply for the plumber examination with the proper fee ($100) and successfully pass the exam. After passing the exam, the fee for a plumber license is $100.' The plumber and apprentice RENEWAL prices are not on any page read this session (research §O.4) — no renewal fee row is seeded. | $100 | S-IL-PHL-LIC-FEE |
| Plumbing contractor registration — annual (initial and renewal alike) Application body verbatim: '$150 annual registration fee (Registration fees are non-refundable.)'; the IDPH page independently states that 'All plumbing contractors must register with the state and pay an annual fee'. The company registers, the named Plumber of Record carries the competency. | $150 | S-IL-PC-APP |
| Plumbing contractor registration — reinstatement / late fee Form footer verbatim: 'Reinstatement/Late Fee: $100'. The form warns that a late filing suspends the registration and forces re-registration at that penalty; the footer also prints 'Returned Check Fee: $200'. | $100 | S-IL-PC-APP |
| Plumbing contractor registration — returned check fee Form footer verbatim: 'Returned Check Fee: $200'. | $200 | S-IL-PC-APP |
| Plumber state examination — application fee (Illinois apprentice route) Official IDPH examination application verbatim: 'FEES ARE NON-REFUNDABLE. Application Fee for Illinois Licensed Apprentice Plumber: $175.' The parallel line for plumbers registered/licensed in Chicago or out of state is CUT in the retrieved snippet (research §O.3) — no second amount is asserted. Due 30 days before the examination date (225 ILCS 320/10(d)); retakes use the separate Examination Retake Form plus the applicable fee. | $175 | S-IL-PHL-EXAM |
| Cook County contractor registration — annual renewal, per trade County service page verbatim: 'To keep your registration active, there is an annual fee of $75 per trade due by December 31 each year. If you have not renewed your registration in at least two years, please contact the Department…' — the two-year gap is when the registration is treated as lapsed rather than merely late. | $75 | S-IL-COOK-REG |