

Contractors licensed in one state cannot just take projects in another state, even if it offers reciprocity. On paper, it sounds like an open border policy, but that’s not exactly the case. This saves the contractor time and money and allows them to get to work and expand their business faster. Instead of requiring a licensed contractor to go through the licensing process again, the new state recognizes the contractor’s license issued in another state. For that reason, many states offer contractor license reciprocity. Getting that contractor license is worth it, but it’s not something you’d want to do every time you perform work in a new state. Getting a license can be expensive and time-consuming, as some states require classes, years of experience, tests, and other stipulations to weed out unqualified license applicants. Of course, contractor license reciprocity isn’t quite that simple.ĭepending on the state and the type of business you run, you most likely need to get a license to perform construction work in your state.

Each state recognizes the driver’s license of every other state: that’s reciprocity. Consider the way states treat your driver’s license: You don’t need to prove that you can drive in each state. State-by-State Contractor License ReciprocityĬontractor license reciprocity is when states recognize a license acquired in another state, without requiring the contractor to go through all of the steps to get a new license.What is contractor license reciprocity?.
