Virginia Contractor License: Class C Over $1,000, B $30,000, A $150,000 and 2026 DPOR Fees
If you want to become a contractor in Virginia, the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR) decides whether your firm needs a license, which class fits your work, and what the firm must prove before it is issued one. This guide covers the virginia contractor license requirements in the order most readers need them: who must be licensed, how the classes work, what the firm must show, what it costs, and where the exemptions and penalties apply.
Informational content only. This guide is not legal or tax advice. Contractor licensing depends on the facts of your contracts, owners and trades. Before you bid large or mixed work, talk with a Virginia attorney or CPA, and confirm current rules with DPOR and the Code of Virginia.
Who Needs a Virginia Contractor License
Under Va. Code 54.1-1100, 54.1-1103 and 54.1-1115, you need a license if you contract to perform or manage the construction, removal, repair or improvement of real property owned or controlled by someone else, and the work is over $1,000 on one contract or project. "Value" means fair market value, and the contract price is prima facie evidence of it.
The license is issued to the firm. Your business entity holds it, and a qualified individual (QI) stands behind it. The State Corporation Commission (SCC) forms the entity but issues no contractor license.
Virginia Contractor License Classes
Since July 1, 2025, your class depends on the size of one contract or on total work in any 12 months. Confirm the effective date and the 12-month test with DPOR before you rely on them.
| Class | One contract | Or total work in 12 months |
|---|---|---|
| Class C | Over $1,000 to under $30,000 | Under $250,000 |
| Class B | $30,000 to under $150,000 | $250,000 to under $1 million |
| Class A | $150,000 or more | $1 million or more |
Water well and landscape irrigation contractors are the exception. Under 54.1-1103 C they still use the older tiers, and they must be licensed at any amount. Do not apply the older tier amounts to any other trade.
What Your Firm Must Show
The firm must meet the requirements in 18VAC50-22-40, -50 and -60:
- Qualified individual. The QI must be 18 or older and a full-time employee or member of responsible management. The QI needs one year of experience in the classification or specialty for Class C, three years for Class B and five years for Class A. The QI also needs the prerequisite license or a board-approved exam for that classification.
- Basic business course. One member of responsible management must complete a 6-hour board-approved basic business course under 18VAC50-22-300. This applies since September 1, 2025.
- Designated employee. Class B and Class A firms also need a designated employee who passed the business exam (54.1-1106 and 54.1-1108). Ask DPOR whether any exemption applies to your firm.
- Net worth. Class C requires none. Class B requires $15,000 and Class A requires $45,000, shown by a financial statement, a CPA review or an audit. A $50,000 surety bond can be posted instead.
- Disclosures. Applicants disclose felonies, recent non-marijuana misdemeanors, and past-due debts, judgments, tax obligations, bond defaults and bankruptcies.
Exams. Class C is not exempt from testing. Under 18VAC50-22-40 B 4, the QI must complete a board-approved exam wherever no prerequisite license applies. Confirm which exam steps apply to your trade with DPOR. Exam vendors set their own fees, capped at $200 per element under 18VAC50-22-80.
Virginia Contractor License Fees (2026 DPOR Schedule)
These fees come from 18VAC50-22-100 and -140:
| Item | Class C | Class B | Class A |
|---|---|---|---|
| Initial license fee | $235 | $380 | $400 |
| Initial Recovery Fund assessment | $25 | $25 | $25 |
| Renewal fee (every 2 years) | $220 | $260 | $270 |
| Renewal Recovery Fund assessment | $30 | $30 | $30 |
Added together, an initial Class C license costs $260, a Class B costs $405 and a Class A costs $425, before exam fees. Renewal every two years costs $250, $290 and $300. Adding a classification or specialty, or changing the designated employee or QI, costs $125 each. A temporary license costs $60.
DPOR has announced a $7.25 per year technology fee on certain fees effective July 1, 2026. Confirm with DPOR which fees it applies to, because it is not part of the figures above.
Classifications and Specialties
Under 18VAC50-22-20 and -30, the main classifications are:
- Residential building (RBC), covering dwellings and townhouses
- Commercial building (CBC)
- Highway and heavy
- Electrical (ELE), plumbing (PLB) and HVAC (HVA)
- Fire sprinkler
Specialties include roofing (ROC), painting (PTC) and home improvement (HIC). RBC and CBC do not cover electrical, plumbing, HVAC or gas fitting work.
Electrical, plumbing and HVAC contractors must name a master tradesman as qualifier, even at Class C (54.1-1100 and 18VAC50-22-61). A journeyman cannot qualify the firm. Our separate tradesman license guide explains how that master license works.
Exemptions Under 54.1-1101 A
The licensing requirement does not apply to:
- Work on your own single primary residence, once in 24 months
- Repair of your own commercial or industrial property
- Landlord work on dwellings
- Owner-developers who hire a licensed contractor
- Federal and government work
- Work of $25,000 or less per project done for a properly licensed RBC, CBC or home improvement contractor
The last exemption does not remove individual licensing. Any work that needs an individual license, such as electrical or plumbing, still needs that person licensed.
Penalties and Enforcement
Under 54.1-1115, contracting without a required license is a Class 1 misdemeanor, with a fine of up to $500 per day. In consumer transactions, the Consumer Protection Act also applies.
An unlicensed contractor cannot enforce the contract, unless the contractor performed in good faith without knowing a license was required.
Permits and local business licenses for contractors must show your license number or an exemption statement (54.1-1111). Local permit offices check for this before issuing permits.
Local BPOL: A Local Tax, Not a State License
Virginia has no general statewide business license, and the SCC issues none. The local license most contractors encounter is the Business, Professional and Occupational License (BPOL). It is a local license tax under Va. Code 58.1-3700 and following, administered by each city, county or town, usually through the Commissioner of the Revenue.
BPOL is not universal. Under 58.1-3704, a locality may levy no general license. Counties such as Stafford, Rockingham, Bedford, Washington, Montgomery, Louisa and Fluvanna have no general county license, and towns can displace the county tax. Localities set their own rates and filing deadlines, so do not assume another locality's figures apply to you.
Population sets a statutory floor on what a locality may require. A locality with more than 50,000 people cannot require a license for businesses with gross receipts under $100,000. A locality with 25,000 to 50,000 people cannot require one under $50,000. No statutory floor applies to localities under 25,000. Localities over 50,000 may waive the license up to $200,000 in gross receipts. Verify that waiver ceiling with the locality's Commissioner of the Revenue.
Changes Coming January 1, 2027
The 2026 legislation (cc. 851 and 852) takes effect January 1, 2027, and covers the written-contract rule below. The two local tax rules after it are long-standing law, listed here because contractors ask about them:
- Written contracts. The Board must require written contracts for residential work. Solar contract disclosures are also required under 54.1-1117.1. Check the Board's regulations for the required terms, because this guide does not set them.
- BPOL rate cap. Contractor BPOL rates are capped at 16 cents per $100 of gross receipts under 58.1-3706. Confirm how your locality applies the cap.
- Home office rule. A contractor taxed at a home office owes another locality only once work performed there tops $25,000 in a year (58.1-3715).
Steps to Become a Contractor in Virginia
- Pick your class by your largest single contract and your total work in 12 months.
- Form your entity through the SCC Clerk's Information System. An LLC files Articles of Organization (Form LLC1011) for $100. A corporation files Articles of Incorporation (Form SCC619) for $75. A name can be reserved for $10 for 120 days.
- Confirm your QI meets the experience requirement and the exam requirement for your classification, and schedule the 6-hour business course.
- Prepare proof of net worth or a $50,000 surety bond if you are applying for Class B or Class A.
- Apply with DPOR and pay the fees listed above, plus exam vendor fees.
- Check local BPOL with the Commissioner of the Revenue in every city, county or town where you will work.
- Track your SCC obligations. An LLC pays a $50 annual registration fee to the SCC and files no annual report. A corporation's annual report and registration fee depend on its authorized shares, so check the SCC annual fee schedule.
This guide is informational and is not legal or tax advice. For complex ownership, multi-trade or large-project work, consult a qualified Virginia attorney or CPA before you sign contracts or file your application.