Oregon Locksmith License Requirements: Exam, Fees, and Background Check

To work as a locksmith in Oregon, you need a locksmith certificate from the Construction Contractors Board (CCB). The Oregon locksmith license requirements come down to three things: pass the CCB’s locksmith exam with a perfect score, clear a criminal background check, and pay $180 in combined application, testing, and certificate fees. If you plan to run a locksmith business rather than work as a technician for someone else, that business needs its own CCB contractor license backed by a $15,000 surety bond.

Who Needs the Certificate

Oregon defines a locksmith as anyone who services, installs, repairs, rebuilds, rekeys, repins, or adjusts locks, lock hardware, safes, vaults, safe deposit boxes, or mechanical and electronic security systems.¹ Do any of that for pay and you need the certificate before you start. Working without one can lead to suspension, revocation, or denial of your ability to work in the trade.²

A handful of situations are carved out under ORS 701.490 and don’t require certification:³

Key duplication at a fixed location, if that’s the only lock-related service offered.
Property owners and their regular employees working on locks at the owner’s property.
Property management companies, real estate property managers, landlords, and their agents working on managed or rented properties.
Tow truck operators dealing with vehicle locks for a certified towing business.
CCB-licensed construction contractors handling lock work incidental to their license scope, provided they don’t advertise as a locksmith.
People working on behalf of a lock manufacturer, wholesaler, distributor, or retailer.

If your situation doesn’t clearly match one of these, assume you need the certificate.

Application and Fees

Applications go through the CCB’s online services portal.⁴ You submit the CCB’s application form, pay the required fees, and provide the CCB license number of the business that employs you or that you own, if applicable.⁵

The fees come as four separate $60 line items:

Application fee: $60, non-refundable.
Testing fee: $60, non-refundable.
Initial two-year certificate: $60.
Two-year renewal: $60.

Your first-time out-of-pocket cost before you receive the certificate is $180. None of the fees are refundable or transferable.⁵

The 100% Exam

The CCB administers the locksmith exam itself, and the passing standard is unusual: every question must be answered correctly.⁵ A 100% threshold is rare in occupational licensing, so prepare accordingly.

There is an alternate route. The statute lets the board accept results from a nationally recognized locksmith certification program in place of its own exam.² Groups such as the ALOA Security Professionals Association run proficiency programs covering key duplication, cylinder servicing, lock bypass, master keying, and key impressioning. If you already hold a national credential, ask the CCB whether it qualifies before you pay for the state test.

Criminal Background Check

The CCB will ask you to provide information for a criminal background check, and refusing to cooperate can result in denial. Treat it as mandatory.⁶

This is where most unexpected delays and denials happen. The board runs a structured fitness determination under OAR 812-030-0110. A conviction for a crime on the board’s potentially disqualifying offenses list (OAR 812-030-0100) within seven years of your application date triggers closer scrutiny.⁶

A qualifying conviction isn’t an automatic bar. The board weighs the nature of the offense, how it relates to locksmith work, whether you’re currently on probation or supervision, the time that has passed, and evidence of rehabilitation. One protection worth knowing: the board cannot deny you based on a conviction that has been expunged under Oregon law or a comparable process in another state.⁶

If You’re Running the Business, You Need Two Things

Oregon separates the individual certificate from the business license. Your personal locksmith certificate authorizes you to do the hands-on work. A locksmith business, whether you own it or operate it, needs its own CCB construction contractor license on top of that.⁵

A residential locksmith services contractor license requires a $15,000 surety bond, which protects customers if the business fails to meet its obligations.⁷ General liability insurance is also required.⁸ If you’ll be an employee of a locksmith business rather than running your own, your employer handles the contractor license and bond, but you still need the individual certificate in your own name.

Keeping the Certificate Active

Locksmith certificates run for two years. Renewal costs $60 through the same CCB portal.⁵ The statute authorizes the board to require continuing education and to suspend or revoke a certificate for failing to meet any CE rule it adopts.²

As of early 2026, the Oregon License Directory lists no continuing education requirement for certified locksmiths. That could change, so check the CCB’s current rules before each renewal cycle. Missing the renewal deadline means you can’t legally perform locksmith work until the certificate is reinstated, and the board may require you to go through the full application process again. The board can also suspend or revoke a certificate at any time for violating the professional conduct standards it sets by rule.²

1
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 701.475 – Definitions for ORS 701.475 to 701.490
2
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 701.485 – Standards of Practice and Professional Conduct
3
Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 701.490 – Exemptions from Certification, Licensure and Other Requirements
4
Construction Contractors Board Online Services. Construction Contractors Board Online Services
5
Oregon Secretary of State. Oregon Administrative Rules Chapter 812 Division 030 – Locksmith Certification
6
Oregon Public Law. Oregon Administrative Rules 812-030-0110 – Fitness Determination, Criminal Offense
7
Oregon Construction Contractors Board. Oregon Construction Contractors Board – CCB License
8
Oregon Construction Contractors Board. Oregon Construction Contractors Board – Licensing