Virginia Contractor License Requirements
Virginia sells the licence by the size of the job: § 54.1-1100 fixes the class purely by contract value — Class A at $150,000+, Class B at $30,000–$149,999, Class C at $1,001–$29,999 — and work at or below $1,000 falls below every class. The licence issues to the business entity, never an individual; entry needs 8 hours of education for every class, a PSI exam for A and B only, a Qualified Individual, and net worth instead of bond or insurance — no surety bond, no general liability. Every claim below is traced to an official source with a verification date.
01 The Virginia model — the class ladder
The ladder lives inside the definition section: Class C is a contractor whose project is "more than $1,000 but less than $30,000," so the $1,000 floor and the exemption line are the same sentence. Both prongs of every class bind — a single $150,000 project jumps a firm from B to A, and a 12-month total under $250,000 drops it from B to C even when individual projects sit in B's range.
- Class A — $150,000+ with no upper limit — a single contract/project of $150,000 or more, or $1 million or more in any 12-month period. (Rule VA-LADDER.) S-VA-STAT-1100
- Class B — $30,000 to $149,999 — or 12-month receipts of $250,000 to $999,999. The double band cuts both ways: one big project escapes upward, high volume escapes downward.
- Class C — $1,001 to $29,999 — or under $250,000 a year. Class C skips the business exam and the net worth, never the 8-hour education. (Requirement REQ-VA-DE-EXAM-001.) S-VA-APPLIC
- Below $1,000 — no licence exists to hold — the floor is drafted into Class C's own definition. (Rule VA-LADDER.)
- Irrigation and water well answer differently — licensed regardless of contract amount on their own bands (C ≤ $10,000, B ≥ $10,000 and < $120,000, A ≥ $120,000) — a $500 irrigation repair still needs the licence. S-VA-REGS
Every locality's licence fee and BPOL amount, Workers' Compensation Act costs and Universal License Recognition application details are LOCAL_AUTHORITY_REQUIRED or NOT_VERIFIED and never seeded. No Virginia municipality was researched per-locality by design.
02 Who regulates
Administers Title 54.1 Chapter 11 Article 5 (§ 54.1-1103 et seq.) and 18VAC50-22: the three-class firm licence (A/B/C by contract value), the classification/specialty codes (18VAC50-22-20/-30), the 8-hour pre-license education, the PSI Designated Employee exams for Classes A and B, the Qualified Individual per specialty, the $45,000/$15,000 net-worth proofs, the initial/renewal/reinstatement fee schedule (18VAC50-22-100/-140/-170) and the two-year term. It also administers 18VAC50-30 (tradesmen) through the same department — separate individual licences, separate fees, separate terms.
Official host of the Code of Virginia. §§ 54.1-1100 (definitions — the class bands, the master-tradesman condition, 'value') and 54.1-1101 (the fifteen exemptions + certificate-of-occupancy conditions + penalties) were read live on 2026-10-08; §§ 54.1-1103, 1111, 1115, 1115.01, 1117, 1119, 1129, 1131, 1132 and 1133 were read verbatim in the reproduced-statutes appendix of the Board for Contractors Regulations (A501-27REGS).
03 Entry — education, exam, experience, net worth
Every class starts with the same 8 hours of board-approved pre-license education, then diverges: the PSI Designated Employee exam applies to A and B only — "Class C applicants skip to question 19" — and the money question swaps sides: A/B document net worth ($45,000 / $15,000), never a bond.
- 8 hours for every class — taken by responsible management (C) or the designated employee (A/B); the course is not the exam and does not waive it. (Rule VA-ENTRY.) S-VA-DPOR-BOARD
- PSI exam: 3 portions for A, 2 for B, none for C — Virginia + General sections, plus Advanced for A; PSI charges $40 / $72 / $85 by portion count. (Rule VA-EXAM.) S-VA-APPLIC
- Qualified Individual per specialty — 5 years (A), 3 years (B), 1 year (C), full-time or responsible management, pre-approved; some specialties additionally require the QI to hold a DPOR credential (ELE via master electrician, PLB, HVA, RMC via NICET III …), the rest a technical exam. (Requirement REQ-VA-QI-001.) S-VA-APPLIC
- Net worth $45,000 (A) / $15,000 (B), none (C) — evidenced by ONE of: financial statement, CPA review/audit (no compilations), or the Board's Surety Bond Form (two-year bond, submitted only on request). Cannot document it? "may qualify for a Class C license." (Requirement REQ-VA-NETWORTH-001.) S-VA-APPLIC
- Master tradesman as a condition — § 54.1-1100 verbatim: "The Board shall require a master tradesmen license as a condition of licensure for electrical, plumbing, and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractors." (Rule VA-MASTER-TRADESMAN.) S-VA-STAT-1100
- Local licences are a separate gate — Q17 requires affirming every locality's licensing requirements: "IF NO, THIS APPLICATION CANNOT BE PROCESSED." S-VA-APPLIC
04 The money — net worth, not bond or insurance
Virginia's programme asks for education, experience and net worth instead of the bond and general liability other states demand — money moves to the applicant's balance sheet, not to a surety.
- No surety bond — verified absence — the requirement lists and the 18VAC50-22-100 fee table contain no bond item; the only surety bond is the optional two-year Surety Bond Form used as net-worth evidence. (Rule VA-NO-BOND.) S-VA-APPLIC
- No general liability for A/B/C — verified absence — the only GL minimum in the chapter is the RBEA firm's $500,000 (and the RBEA individual's $100,000). Workers' compensation lives in the separate Virginia Worker's Compensation Act — out of scope, never seeded. (Rule VA-NO-INSURANCE.) S-VA-APPLIC
- No routine CE for firms — verified absence — renewal continues the entry qualifications; CE belongs to the tradesmen article (3 hours per designation for plumbing/electrical/HVAC), plus the Board's power to order remedial education as discipline. S-VA-REGS
| Insurance | Requirement | Source |
|---|---|---|
| INS-VA-ABC-NO-GL-001 | not required — Class A, B and C contractor licences — NO general-liability, professional-liability or other insurance item appears in the requirement lists or the 18VAC50-22-100 fee schedule | S-VA-APPLIC |
| INS-VA-RBEA-FIRM-001 | required by board — RBEA firm licence — $500,000 general-liability minimum at licensure AND renewal | S-VA-REGS |
05 Term, renewal and reinstatement
- Two years from the last day of the issuance month — renewal at $270 (A) / $260 (B) / $220 (C) plus the $30 Recovery Fund; failure to receive the notice does not excuse a late renewal, and the RECEIPT date — not the postmark — decides renewal vs reinstatement. (Rule VA-RENEWAL.) S-VA-REGS
- 30-day grace, then 24 months of reinstatement — $460 (C) / $550 (B) / $550 (A), each including the renewal fee, plus $30 RF; after 24 months only a new application, and a reinstated licence keeps its number and its continuous- licence fiction for discipline. (Rule VA-REINSTATEMENT.) S-VA-REGS
- Temporary licence — 45 days, one lifetime — non-renewable, non-reinstatable, out-of-state letter of good standing, $85 temp component (form v13 of 08/01/2026). Three official artefacts state $50 / $60 / $85 — CONFLICT-VA-001 resolved to $85 by recency. (Rule VA-TEMP.) S-VA-TEMPAPP
06 Enforcement — § 54.1-1115
Contracting or bidding without a licence or without the proper class is a Class 1 misdemeanor with a fine up to $500 per day — and the contract itself is unenforceable by the unlicensed contractor, with failure to renew creating a rebuttable presumption of actual knowledge.
- Permits and BPOL are gated — the state licence number (or a written exemption statement) comes before the building permit; issuing without it is a Class 3 misdemeanor for the official; the same proof gates the local business licence. (Rule VA-PERMIT-GATE.) S-VA-REGS
- Employers are liable for their workers — a contractor who employs or contracts with an uncredentialed person is "solely responsible" for the resulting penalties (§ 54.1-1115.01); unlicensed consumer work is a prohibited practice under the Virginia Consumer Protection Act. (Requirement REQ-VA-ENFORCEMENT-001.) S-VA-REGS
- Localities layer their own — § 54.1-1117 lets each city and county license contractors, with a civil penalty up to $2,500; every locality amount is LOCAL_AUTHORITY_REQUIRED.
07 Exemptions and the two ladders
- Fifteen statutory exemptions (§ 54.1-1101) — the owner on ONE primary residence per any 24-month period, the gift-house, the owner-developer with a third-party-beneficiary contract with a licensed contractor, students/apprentices under a licensed contractor, and the $25,000 licensed-subcontractor carve-out (item 15 — work under a licensed RBC/CBC/HIC firm; licensed individuals still do licensed services). Conditions: certificate of occupancy before conveying to a third party; Uniform Statewide Building Code compliance; violations are a Class 1 misdemeanor, third within 36 months a Class 6 felony. (Rule VA-EXEMPTIONS.) S-VA-STAT-1101
- The tradesman ladder runs in parallel — since 1995-07-01 no individual works as a tradesman without a licence (§ 54.1-1129), with the supervision exception and the $250 single-family de-minimis (§ 54.1-1131 C); $150 original / $160 renewal, 3-year terms for electrical/gas/LPG/HVAC/plumbing with 3 hours of CE per designation. A tradesman licence never substitutes for the firm's. S-VA-TRADEREGS
- Three different numbers, three different questions — $1,000 (the firm ladder's floor), $25,000 (the exemption for work UNDER a licensed firm) and $250 (the tradesman de-minimis) are drafted in three different sections and never substitute for each other.
08 Credential surface at a glance
§ 54.1-1100 verbatim: Class A means a contractor 'whose single contract or project is $150,000 or more, or who receives $1 million or more in any 12-month period' — with NO upper monetary restriction. Entry (A501-27LIC): 8 hours board-approved pre-license education taken by responsible management; the PSI Designated Employee exam in three portions (Virginia Section + General Section + Advanced Section); a Qualified Individual per classification/specialty who is full-time or responsible management with FIVE years of experience, pre-approved by the Board; documented net worth of $45,000 evidenced by ONE of a financial statement, a CPA review/audit (no compilations) or the Board's Surety Bond Form (a two-year bond whose expiry must cover the licence term). Fees: $400 initial + $25 Recovery Fund + $14.50 Technology Fee = $439.50 (18VAC50-22-100); renewal $270 + $30 Recovery Fund biennial (18VAC50-22-140). Electrical, plumbing and HVAC applicants must ALSO hold a master tradesman licence (§ 54.1-1100). The licence issues to the business entity, not the individual.
§ 54.1-1100 verbatim: Class B means a contractor 'whose single contract or project is $30,000 or more but less than $150,000, or who receives $250,000 or more but less than $1 million in any 12-month period.' Entry: 8 hours pre-license education; the PSI Designated Employee exam in TWO portions (Virginia Section + General Section); a Qualified Individual with THREE years of experience per specialty; documented net worth of $15,000 by the same three evidences. Fees: $380 initial + $25 + $14.50 = $419.50; renewal $260 + $30 Recovery Fund biennial. Master tradesman licence required for electrical, plumbing and HVAC contractors (§ 54.1-1100).
§ 54.1-1100 verbatim: Class C means a contractor 'whose single contract or project is more than $1,000 but less than $30,000, or who receives less than $250,000 in any 12-month period.' The $1,000 floor: work at or below it falls below every class and needs no contractor licence (the Class C definition itself is the source — A501-27LIC: 'Any applicant performing work over $1,000 must contact the Board for Contractors to obtain a Virginia license'). Entry: 8 hours pre-license education; NO business examination — A501-27LIC Q13: 'Class C applicants skip to question 19'; a Qualified Individual with ONE year of experience per specialty; NO net-worth requirement. Fees: $235 initial + $25 + $14.50 = $274.50; renewal $220 + $30 Recovery Fund biennial. Master tradesman licence still required for electrical, plumbing and HVAC contractors.
Form A501-2703LIC-v13 (08/01/2026) verbatim rules: a temporary licence is valid 45 days, may be issued ONCE in a lifetime, is non-renewable and non-reinstatable; the applicant must furnish a letter of good standing from the out-of-state licensing authority; application fees are valid one year. Fee: the temp component is $85.00 (trans code 2703), combined 'temp + initial' totals A $499.50 / B $479.50 / C $334.50 on the current form. The $85 figure is the resolution of CONFLICT-VA-001 (recency method — the booklet's $50 and the Sep-2025 regulation table's $60 are superseded guidance; the operative form postdates HB 30's 2026-07-01 effective date).
§ 54.1-1129 A verbatim: since July 1, 1995, no individual shall work as a tradesman without a licence — subject to two carve-outs: working under the supervision of a tradesman licensed in that specialty, and work incidental to one's own specialty (§ 54.1-1129 A); § 54.1-1131 C further exempts work on ships/boats/barges/floating vessels and single-family-residence work valued UNDER $250 where the individual does not hold himself out to the general public as a tradesman. Designations: electrical, plumbing and HVAC (each journeyman and master), gas fitting, LPG fitting, natural gas fitting provider, backflow prevention device worker (voluntary certification), certified elevator/accessibility mechanic, water well systems provider (trainee/journeyman/master — 1/3/6 years, § 54.1-1129.1) and certified automatic fire sprinkler inspector. Terms: electrical, gas, LPG, natural-gas-fitter-provider, HVAC and plumbing licences run THREE years from month-end; all others TWO years (18VAC50-30-120 A-B). CE: plumbing/electrical/HVAC 3 hours per designation, gas fitters 1 hour, elevator/accessibility mechanics 8 hours (§ 54.1-1133; 18VAC50-30-120 C). Fees: original $150, renewal $160 (18VAC50-30-90/-100).
18VAC50-22-62 C: the RBEA firm licence requires a general-liability insurance minimum of $500,000, required again at renewal (18VAC50-22-130; disciplinary ground 35 for firms). Fees: initial firm licence $240, renewal $220 (18VAC50-22-100/-140). The individual RBEA counterpart carries a $100,000 GL minimum (18VAC50-30-46 A 4) at $150 initial / $150 renewal.
09 Fees
Every amount below comes from 18VAC50-22 (the codified schedule), the current application forms or the board page. Amounts no official page read publishes are withheld by name — never guessed.
| Fee | Amount | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Class C contractor licence — biennial renewal (18VAC50-22-140) | $220 | S-VA-REGS |
| Class A contractor licence — initial (18VAC50-22-100) | $400 | S-VA-REGS |
| Class B contractor licence — initial (18VAC50-22-100) | $380 | S-VA-REGS |
| Class C contractor licence — initial (18VAC50-22-100) | $235 | S-VA-REGS |
| Recovery Fund assessment — each initial application (§ 54.1-1119) | $25 | S-VA-REGS |
| Technology Fee — $7.25/year, charged $14.50 per two-year licence term (2026 HB 30) | $14.50 | S-VA-DPOR-BOARD |
| Class A application — form total ($400 + $25 + $14.50) | $439.50 | S-VA-APPLIC |
| Class B application — form total ($380 + $25 + $14.50) | $419.50 | S-VA-APPLIC |
| Class C application — form total ($235 + $25 + $14.50) | $274.50 | S-VA-APPLIC |
| Temporary contractor's licence — temp component (A501-2703LIC-v13) | $85 | S-VA-TEMPAPP |
| Class A contractor licence — biennial renewal (18VAC50-22-140) | $270 | S-VA-REGS |
| Class B contractor licence — biennial renewal (18VAC50-22-140) | $260 | S-VA-REGS |
| Recovery Fund assessment — each contractor renewal | $30 | S-VA-REGS |
| Class A reinstatement (INCLUDES the renewal fee) + $30 RF | $550 | S-VA-REGS |
| Class B reinstatement (INCLUDES the renewal fee) + $30 RF | $550 | S-VA-REGS |
| Class C reinstatement (INCLUDES the renewal fee) + $30 RF | $460 | S-VA-REGS |
| RBEA firm licence — initial (18VAC50-22-100) | $240 | S-VA-REGS |
| PSI Designated Employee examination ($40 one portion / $72 two / $85 three) | $72 | S-VA-DPOR-BOARD |
| Original tradesman licence (or LPG / natural-gas-fitter-provider) — 18VAC50-30 | $150 | S-VA-TRADEREGS |
| Tradesman licence renewal — 18VAC50-30 | $160 | S-VA-TRADEREGS |
- Withheld by name — every locality's licence fee and BPOL amount (LOCAL_AUTHORITY_REQUIRED), Workers' Compensation Act costs, and ULR application details (NOT_VERIFIED). (Rule VA-FEES.) S-VA-REGS
10 What this means for your project
- May require: Class B Contractor (single contract $30,000–$149,999 or $250K–$1M/12 months)
- Alternative: Class C Contractor (single contract $1,001–$29,999 or < $250K/12 months)
- May require: Tradesman Licence (journeyman/master — electrical, plumbing, HVAC, gas fitting …)
- Alternative: Class C Contractor (single contract $1,001–$29,999 or < $250K/12 months)
- May require: Tradesman Licence (journeyman/master — electrical, plumbing, HVAC, gas fitting …)
- Alternative: Class C Contractor (single contract $1,001–$29,999 or < $250K/12 months)
- May require: Class C Contractor (single contract $1,001–$29,999 or < $250K/12 months)
- Alternative: Class B Contractor (single contract $30,000–$149,999 or $250K–$1M/12 months)
- Alternative: Tradesman Licence (journeyman/master — electrical, plumbing, HVAC, gas fitting …)
- May require: Class C Contractor (single contract $1,001–$29,999 or < $250K/12 months)
- May require: Tradesman Licence (journeyman/master — electrical, plumbing, HVAC, gas fitting …)
- May require: Class B Contractor (single contract $30,000–$149,999 or $250K–$1M/12 months)
- Alternative: Class A Contractor (single contract ≥ $150,000 or ≥ $1M/12 months — no upper limit)
11 Verified absences and the disclosed conflict
- No examination for a Class C firm licence — A501-27LIC Q13: "Class C applicants skip to question 19." (Rule VA-EXAM.) S-VA-APPLIC
- No surety bond for licensure — the only surety bond is the optional net-worth evidence form. (Rule VA-NO-BOND.) S-VA-APPLIC
- No general liability for A/B/C — the RBEA firm's $500,000 is the chapter's only GL requirement. (Rule VA-NO-INSURANCE.) S-VA-APPLIC
- No routine CE for contractor firms — CE belongs to the tradesmen article; the Board may order remedial education only as discipline. S-VA-REGS
- One disclosed conflict — CONFLICT-VA-001 — the temporary licence's fee reads $50 (booklet), $60 (regulation table) and $85 (the current form v13 of 08/01/2026); resolved to $85 by recency — the operative form postdates HB 30's Technology Fee.