Michigan Contractor License Requirements

01 The Michigan model

Michigan is not a value-threshold state: there is no general-contractor licence keyed to project value and no statewide GC licence at all. What exists is an individual residential credential (RB / M&A, Article 24), an entity layer run through a qualifying officer, individual trade licences — plus the local building official for every permit.

• No statewide GC licence — verified absence — Article 24 covers residential structures; commercial contracting credentials, where a locality requires them, are LOCAL. (Rule MI-NO-GC-LICENSE.) S-MI-MCL-2401
• Licence required unless exempt — MCL 339.2403: a person may act as an RB or M&A contractor without a licence only IF the person falls inside one of the nine enumerated exemptions (a)–(i). (Rule MI-RB-LICENSE.) S-MI-MCL-2403
• No dollar-value threshold — the only figure in Article 24 is the $600 anti-splitting exemption; secondary guides claiming '$50,000' or a '$7,500–$50,000' band have no official source and are kept in research §A only. (Rule MI-NO-DOLLAR-THRESHOLD.) S-MI-MCL-2403
• The residential structure test — a detached 1- or 2-family dwelling with appurtenant facilities, or a townhouse of not more than 3 stories above the grade plane with separate means of egress (MCL 339.2401(c)). (Rule MI-NO-GC-LICENSE.) S-MI-MCL-2401

02 Who regulates

03 Article 24 — the RB & M&A licence

LARA's own pages describe the path verbatim: '1. Must be 18 years of age; 2. Complete required pre-licensure courses; 2. Submit completed application to state of Michigan; 3. Take and pass appropriate test.' The 60 hours carry at least 6 hours in each of seven named subjects — Business Management/Estimating/Job Costing, Design and Building Science, Contracts/Liability/Risk Management, Marketing and Sales, Project Management and Scheduling, The Michigan Residential Code and MIOSHA Construction Safety Standards — plus 18 elective hours, before the examination AND before the application. Fees: $195 application, $150 renewal every three years by 5/31.

• 60 hours of prelicensure education — before the exam and the application. (Rule MI-PRELICENSE-60H.) S-MI-LARA-PRELIC
• PSI examination — five PSI testing centres in Michigan, six days a week; the exam fee is paid directly to PSI at scheduling (amount not published). (Rule MI-EXAM-PSI.) S-MI-MCL-2404
• Age 18 — for individual applicants and every entity control person. (Rule MI-RB-AGE.) S-MI-RB-MAP
• Michigan place of business + branch offices — MCL 339.2404(4): a licence holder 'shall maintain a place of business in this state'; each additional office needs its own branch office licence. (Rule MI-PLACE-OF-BUSINESS.) S-MI-MCL-2404
• Qualifying officer for entities — the entity licence runs through an officer who passes the exam and holds the individual licence, with the suspension cascade in §2405(2)/(4); renew BOTH or the company falls into Section 2405 Suspension. (Rule MI-QUALIFYING-OFFICER.) S-MI-MCL-2405
• Salespersons need their own licence — MCL 339.2401(d), with the 'occasional and incidental' carve-out for a principal employee. (Rule MI-SALESPERSON.) S-MI-MCL-2401
• Additional licence — no repeat exam, except M&A → RB — MCL 339.2410. (Rule MI-ADDITIONAL-LICENSE.) S-MI-MCL-2410
• Serial flippers need the M&A licence — buying, substantially rehabilitating and reselling the same structure more than twice in one calendar year. (Rule MI-FLIPPER.) S-MI-MCL-2401
• Three-year term by 5/31, 21/3 hours of CE — 21 hours on the first two renewal cycles, 3 hours from the third onward; documentation kept at least 5 years; a current Michigan Residential Code must be affirmed. (Rules MI-RENEWAL-3YR, MI-CE-21H.) S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS

04 The nine exemptions (MCL 339.2403)

MCL 339.2403 opens: a person may act as an RB or M&A contractor or salesperson without a licence 'IF the person is 1 of the following' — nine enumerated exemptions. Everything outside them needs the licence.

• Under $600 aggregate — with the anti-splitting rule — one undertaking by one or more contracts, aggregate price under $600.00; void where the work is part of a larger operation or the operation is divided into sub-$600 contracts 'to evade this act'. (Rule MI-600-EXEMPTION.) S-MI-MCL-2403
• Owners — own-use occupancy on the owner's property, and maintenance/alteration of the owner's rental property. (Rule MI-EXEMPTIONS.) S-MI-MCL-2403
• Government representatives & court officers — federal, state or political-subdivision representatives acting within scope; officers of court. (Rule MI-EXEMPTIONS.) S-MI-MCL-2403
• Subcontractors — the 'solely' limit — work performed solely under contract with a licensed RB or M&A contractor; the worker's entire business must sit under that contract. (Rule MI-EXEMPTIONS.) S-MI-MCL-2403
• Licensed trade contractors — own trade only — electrical, plumbing and mechanical contractors are exempt from Article 24 only for their own installation/maintenance/repair work; the non-trade portion still needs RB or M&A. (Rule MI-EXEMPTIONS.) S-MI-MCL-2403

05 The skilled trades — electrical, plumbing, mechanical

Three separate articles of the Skilled Trades Regulation Act run in parallel with Article 24: an Electrical Contractor licence (with an associated Master Electrician, one master per contractor), a Plumbing Contractor licence (master plumber representation, joint and several supervision, 30 days to redesignate) and a Mechanical Contractor licence ($300 initial, PSI exam, three-year cycle by 8/31).

• Electrical Contractor — required to do business as an electrician — hold or hire a Master Electrician; without one the licence is put on hold. (Rule MI-ELECTRICAL-CONTRACTOR.) S-MI-LARA-ELEC
• Electrical contractor examination — CONFLICT-MI-001 — LARA's page states 'There is no test required to be an Electrical Contractor' while MCL 339.5707(1) still prices a $100 examination fee and the official form remains titled '… Examination and License' — PRESERVED UNRESOLVED (see §10). (Rule MI-ELEC-CONTRACTOR-NO-EXAM.) S-MI-LARA-ELEC
• No electrical reciprocity — 'Michigan does not hold reciprocity with any other state/country'; out-of-state applicants submit their licence plus that jurisdiction's detailed requirements. (Rule MI-NO-RECIPROCITY.) S-MI-LARA-ELEC
• Electrical renewal deadline — CONFLICT-MI-002 — the renewals page says 'by 12/31' while MCL 339.5707(7) allows renewal 'not later than … March 1' every third year (resolved by method: expiry vs statutory window). (Rule MI-ELEC-RENEWAL-DEADLINE.) S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS
• Plumbing Contractor — master representation — 'The contractor license will not be issued without master plumber representation'; joint and several supervision; 30 days to redesignate if the master leaves. (Rule MI-PLUMBING-CONTRACTOR.) S-MI-MCL-6111
• Mechanical Contractor — $300 / PSI / 8/31 — initial $300, add-classification $300/$200/$100 by cycle year, renewal $300 every three years by 8/31 (+$100 late); re-apply and re-test beyond three years expired. (Rule MI-MECHANICAL-CONTRACTOR.) S-MI-MECH-APP

06 Permits — local, under the Michigan Residential Code

• Permits are local — the state runs no statewide permit process; the Michigan Residential Code Notification records that the department 'has determined to not update the Michigan residential code' (MCL 125.1504(6)) and LARA's consumer guide states 'The contractor should handle permits'; every permit-fee answer is LOCAL_AUTHORITY_REQUIRED. (Rule MI-LOCAL-PERMIT.) S-MI-CONSUMER-GUIDE
• Verify before hiring — LARA's 2025-07-17 release: 'If a contractor can't provide their license number or a copy of their license, that's a red flag … Consumers should always verify credentials before the work begins.' (Rule MI-VERIFY-LICENSE.) S-MI-LARA-NEWS-2025
• Payment guidance — no full prepayment — 'LARA discourages paying for the entirety of the job in advance. Instead, schedule payments to occur as the job progresses' — consumer guidance, not a statutory deposit cap. (Rule MI-PAYMENT-GUIDANCE.) S-MI-LARA-NEWS-2025

07 Bond & insurance

• No surety bond — verified absence — neither the fee schedule, form BCC-2000, the license map nor MCL 339.2401–2410 mentions a surety bond as a condition of licensure; LARA's consumer guide offers performance bonds as a CONSUMER choice. (Rule MI-NO-SURETY-BOND.) S-MI-LARA-FEES
• No state liability minimum — verified absence — no official page read imposes a general-liability or professional-liability floor on RB/M&A or skilled-trade licences. (Rule MI-NO-CGL-MINIMUM.) S-MI-CONSUMER-GUIDE
• Workers' compensation — the WDCA criteria — employers with 1+ employee at 35+ hours/week for 13+ weeks in the preceding 52 weeks, OR 3+ employees at one time, plus agricultural, domestic and public-employer triggers; compliance by insurance, self-insurance or a properly executed exclusion form. (Rule MI-WORKERS-COMP.) S-MI-LEO-WDCA

08 Fees

Every amount below was read verbatim on 2026-10-05. See the Michigan fees page for the full list; the RB/M&A PSI examination fee (PSI's own amount), the initial master-plumber and plumbing-contractor licence amounts and all local permit fees are not published here.

• Residential Builder or Maintenance & Alteration Contractor licence — application — $195 S-MI-LARA-FEES
• Residential salesperson or branch office licence — application — $195 S-MI-LARA-FEES
• Qualifying Officer Change — $10 S-MI-LARA-FEES
• Name/Address Change — $10 S-MI-LARA-FEES
• Builder, M&A, salesperson or branch office licence — renewal — $150 S-MI-LARA-FEES
• Builder, M&A, salesperson or branch office licence — late renewal — $170 S-MI-LARA-FEES

09 Renewal

• REN-MI-BUILDER — 36 months S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS
• REN-MI-MA-CONTRACTOR — 36 months S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS
• REN-MI-COMPANY — 36 months S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS
• REN-MI-SALESPERSON — 36 months S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS
• REN-MI-ELECTRICAL — 36 months S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS
• REN-MI-PLUMBING — 36 months S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS
• REN-MI-MECHANICAL — 36 months S-MI-LARA-RENEWALS
• RB / M&A — three years by 5/31 at $150 (+$20 late, +$35 beyond 60 days = the $170 / $185 schedule), 21 hours of CE on the first two cycles and 3 hours thereafter. (Rules MI-RENEWAL-3YR, MI-CE-21H.) S-MI-LARA-RENEWALSS-MI-LARA-RENEWALS

10 Documented conflicts

11 Verify a Michigan license

Look a credential up at the official source — never a third party.

• https://aca-prod.accela.com/LARA/GeneralProperty/PropertyLookUp.aspx?isLicensee=Y

12 Project guides

• HVAC Replacement (3)
• Roof Replacement (3)
• Water Heater Replacement (3)
• Bathroom Remodel (4)
• Kitchen Remodel (4)
• Home Addition (5)

13 Sources