Mississippi Contractor License Requirements

01 The Mississippi model

The first question in Mississippi is never "what trade am I" — it is "how big is the contract, and is it commercial or residential". Cross the threshold and the license is required before the work; stay under it and the state defers to the city or county.

• Commercial over $50,000 needs the COR — § 31-3-21(1) verbatim: unlawful to "submit a bid, enter into a contract, or otherwise engage in … the business of a contractor" without one; MSBOC adds "including equipment installation" and covers subcontractors too. (Rule MS-COR-LICENSE.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-21
• Residential thresholds are per work type — $50,000 for new construction (max three floors), $10,000 for remodeling, additions and roofing. (Rules MS-RESIDENTIAL-BUILDER, MS-RESIDENTIAL-REMODELER, MS-ROOFING.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-1S-MS-CODE-73-59-1
• No bond — verified absence — § 31-3-13(h) forbids the board to fix bonding capacity; insurance replaces it. (Rule MS-NO-BOND.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-13
• Under the threshold, the locality governs — there is no statewide registration or exemption certificate below the line. (Rule MS-NO-BELOW-THRESHOLD-REG.) S-MS-BOC-HOW-DOI

02 Who regulates

03 The commercial regime — Certificate of Responsibility (Title 31 ch. 3)

"a Certificate of Responsibility is the official name for a commercial license" (MSBOC How-Do-I). Six major classifications — Building Construction, Heavy Construction, Highway Street and Bridge Work, Mechanical Work, Electrical Work, Municipal and Public Works Construction — plus about fifty specialties; one selection is included with the application and each additional one costs $100.

• Bid-envelope rule — § 31-3-21(2): every bid over $50,000 carries the COR number on the exterior of the envelope, or it is not opened or considered; willful violation is a misdemeanor (≤$1,000 fine, ≤6 months). (Rule MS-COR-ENVELOPE.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-21
• Contracts without a COR are void — § 31-3-15, verbatim: "null and void". The board may also order abatement and assess a civil penalty of up to 3% of the total contract (§ 31-3-21(4)). (Rule MS-COR-LICENSE.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-21
• Fire sprinkler has its own thresholds — public projects over $5,000 and private projects over $10,000 already require the COR, with NICET Level 3 certification for the qualifying party. (Rule MS-COR-LICENSE.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-21
• Tax numbers are prerequisites — § 31-3-13(a): no COR or renewal until the Mississippi sales/use tax number and state income tax ID are furnished. (Rule MS-COR-TAX.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-13
• Reviewed financials — a CPA-reviewed statement showing net worth of $50,000 (major classification) or $20,000 (specialty), completed within the prior twelve months (30 Miss. Code. R. 802-1.1); commercial renewal requires updated financial information. (Rule MS-COR-FINANCIALS.) S-MS-BOC-LICENSE
• Five-year reissuance bar — the board's own application form: no initial or renewed COR until five years have expired (snippet-verified only — NOT_VERIFIED beyond the snippet). (Rule MS-COR-5YEAR-BAR.)

04 The residential regime — annual licenses (Title 73 ch. 59)

• Residential builder — $50,000 and three floors — § 73-59-1(b) verbatim; the crossover rule lets Residential Builders take commercial work up to 7,500 square feet and three floors (board practice, not statute). (Rule MS-RESIDENTIAL-BUILDER.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-1
• Remodeler and roofing — $10,000 — improvements to an existing residence over $10,000 (§ 73-59-1(c)); "residential roofing over $10,000" needs a license per FAQ #1, through the Roofing classification on the residential application. (Rules MS-RESIDENTIAL-REMODELER, MS-ROOFING.) S-MS-BOC-FAQ
• Construction managers and solar — no dollar threshold — anyone other than the builder, remodeler or owner contracting with the owner (§ 73-59-1(h)) and anyone installing, modifying, maintaining or repairing thermal or photovoltaic solar systems (§ 73-59-1(i)) must be licensed. (Rules MS-CONSTRUCTION-MANAGER, MS-SOLAR.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-1S-MS-CODE-73-59-1
• Sub-trades — the CONFLICT-MS-001 line — § 73-59-3(1)(d) licenses electrical, plumbing, mechanical and HVAC subcontractors of any tier "no matter the dollar amount", while MSBOC's own How-Do-I says under $10,000 "a state license is not required". The statute is seeded; sub-threshold answers stay NOT_DETERMINED while the conflict is open. (Rule MS-SUBTRADES.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-3
• Exemptions — § 73-59-15, seven clauses — own residence, relative work, owners on their own property, agricultural buildings, COR holders (no separate residential license needed), nonresident certificate holders, and up to two permit-free residences per year not built for sale; one permit application per year is the limit before a rebuttable presumption of building for sale attaches. (Rule MS-EXEMPTIONS.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-15

05 No bond — insurance instead

• The board cannot set bonding capacity — § 31-3-13(h) verbatim: its powers "shall not extend to fixing … the bonding capacity … and the Board of Contractors shall not have jurisdiction or the power or authority to determine the maximum bond a contractor may be capable of obtaining." No bond appears anywhere in the application pipeline. (Rule MS-NO-BOND.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-13
• Commercial insurance minimum — $300,000 per occurrence and $600,000 aggregate, MSBOC listed on the policy for cancellation notice. (Rule MS-INSURANCE-CGL.) S-MS-BOC-FAQ
• Residential: proof only — "There is no minimum coverage amount required for residential applicants, just proof of coverage" (application video); § 73-59-3(3) is the statutory hook. (Rule MS-INSURANCE-CGL.) S-MS-BOC-FAQ
• Workers' compensation at five employees — proof required at 5 or more employees (§ 73-59-3(2)(a)); letting it lapse is a disciplinary ground. (Rule MS-WORKERS-COMP.) S-MS-BOC-LICENSE

06 Qualifying party, exams and references

• Qualifying party — max three entities — § 31-3-13(a): the QP may serve no more than three separate entities without special board permission; on departure, both sides must notify the board and the company has 90 days to replace the QP or the COR risks suspension or revocation; a U.S. social security number is required for each QP; the change fee is $25. (Rule MS-QP.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-13
• Law and Business Management exam for everyone — all exams are PSI, open book; a trade exam applies per classification (some specialties exempt); the NASCLA Commercial General Building exam substitutes for Mississippi Building Construction; reciprocity waives the trade exam only — Business and Law is always required. (Rule MS-EXAM.) S-MS-BOC-FAQ
• Three reference letters, one from your bank — application verbatim; 180 days to complete the application before it is destroyed; no affidavit or notarization any more. (Rule MS-REFERENCES.) S-MS-BOC-LICENSE

07 Renewal, CE and inactive status

• Annual, both regimes — residential licenses expire "on the last day of the twelfth month following its issuance or renewal" (§ 73-59-3(5)); certificates expire one year from issuance (§ 31-3-13(a)). Renewal notices are emailed ~60 days ahead — a courtesy only, and email-only from 2026. (Rule MS-RENEWAL-ANNUAL.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-3
• 180-day window, then a new application — renewal within 180 days of expiry costs the fee plus a 10% statutory penalty (§ 73-59-3(5)); beyond 180 days the license "cannot be renewed and require[s] submission of a new application" (FAQ #3). (Rule MS-RENEWAL-ANNUAL.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-3
• 2 CE credit hours — residential only — each residential qualifying party completes two board-approved hours per year; the cap is statutory (§ 73-59-11(g)) and licensees who held a valid license before July 1, 2015 are exempt; there is NO commercial CE. (Rules MS-CE-2H, MS-NO-COMMERCIAL-CE.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-11S-MS-BOC-CE
• Inactive status costs $25 each way — inactive licensees keep paying the annual renewal but may not bid, contract, pull permits or perform work; reactivation adds proof of insurance (and commercial financials). (Rule MS-INACTIVE.) S-MS-BOC-FAQ

08 Conduct rules and discipline

• Insurance disclosure at signing — identical duty in both chapters: a written disclosure of whether the holder carries general liability insurance, placed immediately before the purchaser's signature space in boldfaced conspicuous larger type. (Rule MS-INSURANCE-DISCLOSURE.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-11
• Business name must match the certificate — signing bids, contracts or permits under any other name "is equivalent to unlicensed contracting" and can cost lien and contract enforcement; $50 name change for the same entity. (Rule MS-NAME-DISCIPLINE.) S-MS-BOC-HOME
• Discipline — residential penalties of $100–$5,000 per violation (§ 73-59-13(5)(d)), grounds including "failing to pay for goods or services for which the builder is contractually bound"; commercial civil penalty up to 3% of the contract; decision within 90 days; appeal within 10 days on a $250 bond; the Statewide Investigative Team runs weekly jobsite operations. (Rule MS-DISCIPLINE.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-13
• Emergency licenses — after a catastrophe the board may issue 90-day residential licenses (one 90-day extension), fee ≤$50, with the employer certifying to the board within five days (§ 73-59-7). (Rule MS-EMERGENCY.) S-MS-CODE-73-59-7

09 Fees

Every amount below was read on 2026-10-06 from MSBOC's own pages or the statute, in whole dollars. Commercial initial cost = $400 application + the $200 Construction Education Fund fee; residential initial cost = $50; annual renewal = $400 commercial (plus $200 CEF, plus updated financials) or $100 residential.

10 Documented conflicts

11 Project guides

12 Verified absences

• No surety bond — either regime — the board is statutorily forbidden to set bonding capacity, and no bond appears in the application pipeline. (Rule MS-NO-BOND.) S-MS-CODE-31-3-13
• No commercial continuing education — the CE requirement is residential-only by statute and board page. (Rule MS-NO-COMMERCIAL-CE.) S-MS-BOC-CE
• No statewide credential below the thresholds — no registration, exemption certificate or handyman license; the city or county governs. (Rule MS-NO-BELOW-THRESHOLD-REG.) S-MS-BOC-HOW-DOI
• No published PSI exam fee — set by PSI, never published by MSBOC: NOT_VERIFIED.

13 Sources

15 official sources · verified 2026-10-06 · msboc.us read directly, no proxy; Mississippi Code via the FindLaw mirror (current as of January 1, 2025).

14 Verify a Mississippi license

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

• MSBOC publishes its license search from msboc.us — contact the board at 800-880-6161 for verification.