Virginia contractor license requirements
What you need before your first paid job in Virginia, one page for each trade. The license, the least insurance you must carry, whether the state asks for a bond, when you charge sales tax, and the deadlines that protect your right to be paid.
Plumbing in Virginia
- License you need
- Class A Contractor license, specialty Plumbing (PLB)Renews not published
- Workers' comp
- Requiredonce you regularly have more than two workers, part-time or full-time
- Credit score
- None
- You need a state license for any plumbing job worth more than $1,000. Class C covers jobs up to $30,000, Class B up to $150,000, and Class A has no ceiling. Total work in a year also moves you up a class.
- The state sets no liability insurance minimum for the license. Instead a Class A firm must show $45,000 of net worth and a Class B firm $15,000, or post a $50,000 bond in place of either.
HVAC in Virginia
- License you need
- Class A Contractor license, specialty Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVA)Renews not published
- Workers' comp
- Requiredonce you regularly have more than two workers, part-time or full-time
- Credit score
- None
- The class of business license depends on money, not equipment size. A single HVAC job of $150,000 or more needs Class A. Under $30,000 needs only Class C. Anything over $1,000 needs a license.
- There is a residential HVAC mechanic license you can earn with 2 years of work and 160 hours of classes. Hold it for 3 years and you can sit the master exam without ever holding a journeyman card.
Electrical in Virginia
- License you need
- Class A Contractor license, specialty Electrical (ELE)Renews not published
- Workers' comp
- Requiredonce you regularly have more than two workers, part-time or full-time
- Credit score
- None
- Virginia licenses you twice. The business gets a contractor license from the Board for Contractors, and the person gets a tradesman license. You need both, and they renew on different clocks.
- Your contractor class is set by money, not skill. Class C is for small jobs, Class B up to $150,000, Class A for anything larger.
Across states
Can you charge sales tax on labor? The rule in 25 states. Which states tax the work itself, which tax only the parts, and how a repair differs from a new install.