What Are Minnesota's Contractor Licensing Rules?

Is a contractor license required in Minnesota?

It depends on the kind of work. Minnesota has no statewide general or commercial contractor license — a business doing commercial construction is governed by state building codes and local permits, not a state license, regardless of project size. What Minnesota licenses statewide is residential construction, split into three separate categories: Residential Building Contractor (the broadest authority), Residential Remodeler (narrower), and Residential Roofer. There's no single universal per-project dollar threshold covering all of these — licensing depends on the type of work and which specific category applies, though a $15,000 annual gross receipts exemption historically applies to certain residential specialty contractors specifically. Commercial contractors still generally have to complete DLI's separate Construction Contractor Registration Program — a lighter requirement than a license, but a real statewide step most commercial builders can't skip.

Which agency regulates it?

The Department of Labor and Industry (DLI) licenses Residential Building Contractors, Remodelers, and Roofers. Electrical and plumbing are regulated separately within the same overall structure — a Board of Electricity and a Plumbing Board each participate in their respective trade's regulatory framework, though neither operates as a fully independent licensing agency outside DLI's structure. Minnesota has no universal statewide HVAC contractor license at all; mechanical work falls under state mechanical code requirements, local licensing, or whichever of the electrical or plumbing licenses actually applies to the specific work being done.

Where can you find the actual laws?

Residential contractor licensing is Minnesota Statutes Chapter 326B, §§ 326B.801 through 326B.885 — licensing requirements are § 326B.802, exemptions are § 326B.805, and the qualifying person rules sit in § 326B.805, subd. 4. The baseline misdemeanor penalty for unlicensed work is § 326B.082, subd. 16, while § 326B.845 sets a separate gross misdemeanor penalty specifically for violating a commissioner's order and voids lien rights for knowing violations. Electrical licensing is §§ 326B.31 through 326B.399, and plumbing is §§ 326B.41 through 326B.49. DLI publishes its own current licensing instructions and exam information directly.

What does it take to get licensed?

Every residential contractor business names a Qualifying Person who satisfies the exam and education requirements on the company's behalf. Who's eligible depends on how the business is structured — for an LLC, the qualifying person has to be a chief manager or a managing employee; for a corporation, an owner, officer, or managing employee. If the qualifying person is a managing employee rather than an owner, they have to be a genuine, regular employee who actively works in residential contracting or remodeling for the business. One qualifying person can cover more than one corporation or LLC, but only where there's at least 25% common ownership between them — not an open-ended arrangement. Applicants disclose any prior professional license discipline, criminal convictions, and unsatisfied judgments or bankruptcies tied to the qualifying person specifically, not just the business. Continuing education has historically run around 14 hours every two years, and general liability insurance is required, though the exact current minimum coverage figures need direct confirmation.

What are the penalties for operating without a license?

Real, and structured in two steps rather than one flat penalty. Operating without the required residential license is a misdemeanor on its own. If DLI actually issues a specific order — a cease-and-desist or compliance order — and the contractor keeps operating in defiance of it, the violation escalates to a gross misdemeanor. Separately, knowingly violating the licensing provisions voids an unlicensed contractor's mechanics lien rights entirely — the lien itself becomes void, though this doesn't affect the lien rights of material suppliers or properly licensed contractors. DLI also has real administrative teeth: penalties up to $10,000 per violation in administrative and licensing orders, a separate $5,000-per-day civil penalty specifically for violating a stop-work order, and a $1,000 penalty for obstructing or failing to cooperate with a DLI investigation.

Does Minnesota have reciprocity with other states?

No, not for residential contractor licensing. DLI's own licensing guidance states directly that Minnesota has no reciprocal agreements with other states for Residential Building Contractor, Residential Remodeler, Residential Roofer, or Manufactured Home Installer licenses — an applicant certified elsewhere still has to apply in Minnesota and sit for the exam like anyone else, with no waiver for the exam itself. Electrical licensing is the exception: Minnesota does participate in trade-specific reciprocity arrangements for individual electrician credentials, separate from the business-level contractor licenses discussed above.

Is it legal to rent or lease a license in Minnesota?

No. "Qualifying Person" is Minnesota's actual term, and the law ties the role directly to the business's own structure — a chief manager or managing employee for an LLC, an owner, officer, or managing employee for a corporation — and a managing employee specifically has to be a real, regular employee actively doing residential contracting or remodeling work for that business, not simply named on an application. The 25% common-ownership requirement for qualifying more than one business reinforces this: it's built specifically to prevent one person from attaching their credentials to unrelated companies for a fee, since real ownership has to connect the businesses involved. Every application also screens the qualifying person's own disciplinary and criminal history directly, not just the business's.

How do you find a qualifier or a business in Minnesota?

findQualifier.com is a public, searchable board of licensed professionals advertising their availability to work as a qualifier, by state and trade. Browse available qualifiers in Minnesota, browse Minnesota businesses looking to hire, or post a listing.