Virginia Contractor License Classifications

If you want to work as a contractor in the State of Virginia, then you need to earn a license. And you should apply for the license through the Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation․

Any individual who wants to work on the construction, removal, repair, or improvements will need a Contractor’s license in Virginia.

The contractor’s license consists of two parts. First is the class of the license, which indicates what size of contracts you may take. And the second is a specialty that determines the sphere of working as a contractor.

In this article, you will get some information about the different types and classifications of VA contractor’s license.

Class A Contractor License

You will need to get this license if you are going to take projects worth $120,000- $750,000 annually. You should show that your business has a net with a value of $45,000. The qualified applicant for this license should have at least 5 years of experience.

Here are the Class A contractor license qualifications:

• You should be at least 18 years old.
• Complete Pre-licensing course that lasts 8 hours.
• You must be a full-time employer of the firm.
• Pass the three parts of the VA Business Law exam.
• Complete one of the specialty exams.
• You should have 5 years’ experience.

Class B Contractor License

You should have a Class B contractor’s license if your projects are worth $10,000-$119,999. Or  if the value of all the projects done within a 12- month period is $150,000-$749,999. You should show that your company’s net is about $15,000.

And here you may see all the required qualifications for the Class B contractor license:

• You should be at least 18 years old.
• Complete the pre-licensing educational process with the duration of 8 hours.
• Pass the first and the second parts of the Virginia Business Law exam.
• Succeed in the specialty exam, too.
• You must have 3 years of experience.

Class C Contractor License

You need to apply for this license if the value of your projects is more than $1000 but less than $10,000. And the total value of your projects should be less than $150,000 annually.

In this part you may see the related qualifications for Class C:

• You must be 18 years old.
• Complete an 8-hour pre-licensing course.
• You should be a full-time employer of that firm.
• Get the related specialty.
• 2 years of experience is a must.

You need to consider that exceeding the monetary limit of your license class will cause its revocation according to the rules of DPOR.

How to become a contractor in Virginia?

There are certain steps to complete to become a contractor in the State of Virginia.

1. State a business entity in Virginia: All the legal forms of business entities are accepted by the Virginia Board of Contractors. For example, LLC, sole proprietorship, corporation, and partnership.
2. Give a name to your business entity and get its registration done.
3. Decide what type of license your company needs.
4. Identify officers or partners, that will be responsible for the management.
5. Choose partners and employees who will be qualified individuals of the license.
6. Complete pre-licensing educational courses.
7. Prepare the completed application.
8. Send the completed application to the Board paying the needed fee.
9. Wait for the application to proceed. This will take about 30 days.

The application fee for Class A license is $385, for Class B it is $370 and for Class C it is $235. You need to consider paying an annual business fee which costs $50.

After earning the license you should consider its renewal every 2 years.

What are the different license classifications and specialties?

Besides your Class A, B, C license, you can also get a specialty and license classification. You may earn these appointments with your DPOR license.

There are more than 40 specialties for the contractor’s license in Virginia. At this point, you will know about the larger specialties that contain some smaller specialties.

Commercial Building Contractor (CBC)

This type of specialty should be obtained by the individual who is going to take projects related to the construction, remodeling, improvement, removal. But this specialty does not cover electrical, plumbing, gas fitting, or other services. If you are going to perform other services that are not related to these specialties, then you need to get all the other specialties beforehand.

Home Improvement Contractor (HIC)

The home improvement contractor’s license is required for an individual who wants to do the framing work. So this includes repairs or improvements to a family residential buildings, and structures belonging to the real property. Also this license will allow you to perform remodeling, repair, and improvement.

Residential Building Contractor (RBC)

A residential building contractor takes projects related to the remodeling, repair, removal, improvement in both dwellings and townhouses. Like the CBC license, it is called a general contractor or builder’s license. So only the individuals that have these two specialties may manage structural members of buildings and new constructions.

Highway/Heavy Contractor (H/H)

You may work on the bridge, drainage system, parking lots, public transit systems with your H/H license specialty. And this includes also roads, dams, street construction, repair, improvement, or demolition.