How to Get a Class C Contractors License in Virginia

To get a Class C contractor’s license in Virginia, you register your business, choose a specialty classification, designate a qualified individual with at least two years of trade experience who passes the board-approved exam, complete an eight-hour pre-license education course, and file an application with the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR) with $260 in fees. Class C covers single contracts between $1,000 and $29,999, or total work under $250,000 in any 12-month period.¹

Confirm Class C Is the Right License

Virginia licenses contractors by the size of the contracts they take. Class C is the smallest tier: single contracts over $1,000 but under $30,000, or annual volume under $250,000. Class B covers single contracts from $30,000 to under $150,000, or annual volume from $250,000 to under $1 million. Class A applies at $150,000 per contract or $1 million per year and up.¹

Any construction, repair, removal, or improvement work on someone else’s property over $1,000 requires a license, and the rule applies to general contractors, subcontractors, and specialty trades including electricians, plumbers, and HVAC technicians.² If your business crosses a threshold mid-year, you need to upgrade before taking on the larger work.

Class C skips two things Class A and B applicants must submit: a financial statement and a surety bond.³ That’s what makes it the entry point for most new contracting businesses.

Register Your Business Entity

Before DPOR will process an application, your business has to exist on paper. LLCs, corporations, and partnerships register with the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC).⁴ Sole proprietors don’t need SCC entity registration, but if you plan to operate under any name other than your own legal name, you must file an assumed name certificate with the clerk of the SCC.⁵

If you’ll have employees, get an Employer Identification Number from the IRS. The online application issues an EIN immediately, but the session times out after 15 minutes of inactivity, so gather your business details first.⁶

Choose Your Specialty Classification

A Class C license is not generic. Your application must name each specialty you’ll work in, and your qualified individual has to meet the requirements for that specific specialty. DPOR recognizes dozens, including electrical (ELE), plumbing (PLB), HVAC (HVA), residential building (RBC), home improvement (HIC), and roofing (RFG), plus narrower categories like alternative energy systems, asphalt paving, fire alarm systems, and accessibility services.³ Picking the wrong classification is one of the fastest ways to get an application returned.

You can list more than one specialty on the same Class C license. Each additional specialty needs a qualified individual who meets that specialty’s experience and exam requirements.

Designate a Qualified Individual and Take the Trade Exam

Every specialty needs a designated qualified individual (QI) with at least two years of verifiable experience in that trade. The QI can be the business owner or a full-time employee. Expect to document the experience through project records, employment history, or verification forms from previous employers.

This is the step Class C applicants most often misunderstand. The QI must pass a board-approved examination for the specialty being requested.⁷ Some trades that already require separate state licensure or certification have alternate exam pathways, and the miscellaneous contracting (MSC) specialty is an exception where the board reviews QI experience documentation instead of requiring an exam.

What Class C applicants don’t have to take is the separate business and law exam that Class A and B applicants must pass. That’s a real distinction, and it isn’t the same as no exam at all.

Complete the Eight-Hour Pre-License Course

Every new contractor applicant in Virginia, Class C included, must finish an eight-hour pre-license education course before a license is issued.⁸ For Class C, the course has to be completed by a member of responsible management, which means the person who controls the business operations.

The course is general, not trade-specific: it covers Virginia’s contracting regulations, business management basics, and the statutory requirements every contractor has to know. A board-approved advanced contractor course also satisfies the requirement. This education sits on top of the QI’s trade exam, not in place of it.⁹

File the DPOR Application and Pay the Fees

The application goes to DPOR’s Board for Contractors. You’ll provide business details, ownership information, each specialty you’re requesting, and the QI assigned to each. You must also disclose any past disciplinary actions or criminal convictions.

The application fee is $235, and Virginia adds a $25 Recovery Fund assessment to every new contractor license application, for a total of $260.¹⁰ The application fee is non-refundable. Incomplete applications and mismatched specialty selections are the common causes of delay.

After You’re Licensed

A Class C license is valid for two years. DPOR sends a renewal notice roughly 45 days before expiration, but the deadline is your responsibility. If the license expires, you cannot legally perform any contracting work until you reinstate it.

During the license period, keep your information current with DPOR. That includes changes to business structure, ownership, contact details, and your designated qualified individual. Virginia also requires contractors to show their license number on contracts and promotional materials.

Penalties for Working Without a License

Contracting without a valid license is a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 12 months in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.¹¹¹² On top of that, the statute imposes an additional fine of up to $500 per day for each day you perform work without the proper license or class of license. The Board for Contractors can issue cease-and-desist orders that stop your work until you’re licensed. Virginia courts are also unlikely to enforce a contract entered into by an unlicensed contractor, so a client who refuses to pay may leave you with no legal recourse.

Two Obligations That Catch New Class C Contractors

EPA Lead-Safe Certification for Pre-1978 Homes

If any of your work involves renovating, repairing, or painting in homes or child-occupied buildings built before 1978, federal law requires your firm to be EPA Lead-Safe certified before starting.¹³ It hits kitchen and bath remodelers, window replacers, and interior painters working in older housing stock.

Firm certification costs $300 and lasts five years.¹⁴ At least one certified renovator, trained through an EPA-accredited course, must be on every job. Work practice rules require posted warning signs, plastic sheeting to seal the work area, HEPA-filtered vacuums and sanders, and cleaning verification when the job ends. Open-flame torching of painted surfaces is prohibited, and heat guns can only be used below 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit.¹³ Before starting work in a pre-1978 home, you must give the homeowner the EPA “Renovate Right” pamphlet and get written acknowledgment no more than 60 days before work begins. Keep the compliance records for at least three years after the project ends.

Self-Employment Tax and Quarterly Estimates

Most Class C contractors run as sole proprietors or small businesses, so the IRS treats net income as self-employment income. The combined self-employment tax rate is 15.3%, covering both halves of Social Security (12.4%) and Medicare (2.9%).¹⁵ The Social Security portion applies to the first $184,500 of net earnings in 2026.¹⁶

If you expect to owe $1,000 or more in federal taxes for the year, the IRS generally requires quarterly estimated payments.¹⁷ For 2026, payments are due April 15, June 15, and September 15, with the final quarter due January 15, 2027.¹⁸ If you pay any subcontractor $600 or more during the year, you must file Form 1099-NEC reporting that payment to the IRS.¹⁹

1
Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Title 54.1 Chapter 11 – Section 54.1-1100 Definitions
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Title 54.1 Chapter 11 – Section 54.1-1111 Prerequisites to Obtaining Business License
3
Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation. Board for Contractors
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Virginia Department of Taxation. Register a Business in Virginia
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Title 59.1 Chapter 5 – Transacting Business Under Assumed Name
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Internal Revenue Service. Get an Employer Identification Number
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 18VAC50-22-40 Requirements for a Class C License
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Title 54.1 Chapter 11 – Article 1 Regulation of Contractors – Section 54.1-1102
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Virginia Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation. Virginia Board for Contractors Pre-License Education
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Administrative Code 18VAC50-22-100 Fees
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Title 54.1 Chapter 11 – Section 54.1-1115 Prohibited Acts
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code Title 18.2 Chapter 1 – Section 18.2-11 Punishment for Conviction of Misdemeanor
13
eCFR. Title 40 Part 745 Subpart E – Residential Property Renovation
14
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. EPA Certification Program: Fees for Renovation Firms and Abatement Firms
15
Internal Revenue Service. Self-Employment Tax (Social Security and Medicare Taxes)
16
Social Security Administration. Contribution and Benefit Base
17
Internal Revenue Service. Underpayment of Estimated Tax by Individuals Penalty
18
Internal Revenue Service. Publication 509 (2026), Tax Calendars
19
Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Forms 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC