Rhode Island runs on registration, not licensing, for most construction work.
Requirements checked against the Rhode Island Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board (Department of Business Regulation) published requirements on September 29, 2026.
| Licensing board | Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board (CRLB), State Building Office, Department of Business Regulation; registration, not a license or exam |
|---|---|
| License required when | Registration required for all contracting on residential or commercial structures; casual minor work under $500 with no advertising as a contractor is exempt |
| What the state calls the qualifier | None; registration attaches to the business or individual, no qualifying individual role |
| NASCLA exam accepted | no |
| Reciprocity and endorsement | Not stated |
| Exam waivers | Not applicable; no GC exam exists to waive, every contractor must register regardless of other licenses |
| Experience required | None for general contractor registration |
| Application and exam fees | $150 registration fee |
| Renewal | Valid one year, renews annually at 150 dollars, plus a 50 dollar late fee if expired |
| Time to license | Not published |
| Bond and financial requirements | General liability of at least $500,000 naming the CRLB; workers compensation if employees; no bond or net worth |
| Penalty for unlicensed work | Cannot pull a building permit in any of the 39 cities and towns; civil and criminal penalties |
| Time to replace a qualifier | Not applicable; no qualifying individual to replace |
| Companies one qualifier may qualify | Not applicable; no qualifier concept and no published limit |
Facts checked on July 14, 2026.
Each line was checked against the state board’s published requirements on the date shown. Not stated means the board material we reviewed did not state it, so we do not guess. Boards change rules; confirm the current figure with the board before you file.
Every contractor and subcontractor building, repairing, demolishing, or moving residential or commercial structures must register with the Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board, which operates within the Department of Business Regulation. There is no exam and no qualifying agent requirement attached to the registration. Separate true licenses exist for categories the board oversees, including commercial roofing, home inspection, underground utility work, and well drilling, while electricians and plumbers are licensed by the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training.
Rhode Island does not license general contractors. Contractors and subcontractors must register with the Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board (CRLB), part of the Department of Business Regulation. Registration attaches directly to the business or individual, not to a separate qualifying individual, so there is no license here for a qualifying agent to qualify a company against.
There is one registration category for general contracting, not a tiered system based on dollar value or structure height. The board splits residential from commercial work for one purpose: a required 5 hour pre registration course. Anyone registering to do residential work must complete a state approved 5 hour pre registration course; anyone whose work is exclusively on commercial structures is exempt from that course (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board general contractor registration apply page). Outside that course exemption, the same $150 registration covers residential and commercial contractors alike, with no separate commercial contractor license carrying its own fee schedule or dollar ceiling.
Separately from general contractor registration, the CRLB also issues true licenses, each with its own exam and fee, for four specialty categories: Commercial Roofing, Home Inspector and Associate Home Inspector, Underground Utility, and Water Filtration, Well Drilling, and Pump Installer (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board licenses page). Commercial Roofing requires passing a PSI administered exam, an OSHA safety course, general liability insurance of $2,000,000, and an initial license fee of $400 for a 2 year term, and it covers commercial and industrial roofing rather than residential buildings of four units or fewer (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board licenses commercial roofing license apply page; the $180 PSI exam fee comes from the PSI candidate bulletin rather than from this apply page itself). Anyone doing only commercial roofing in Rhode Island needs this specific license rather than the general $150 registration. Underground Utility also runs through PSI, carries a $1,000,000 general liability insurance minimum, and an initial license fee of $200 for a 2 year term (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board licenses underground utility license apply page). Water Filtration, Well Drilling, and Pump Installer also runs through PSI, carries a $500,000 general liability insurance minimum matching the general registration floor, and an initial license fee of $200 for a 2 year term (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board licenses water filtration, well drilling, and pump installer license apply page). The exam fee for Underground Utility and for Water Filtration, Well Drilling, and Pump Installer is not stated in the board materials reviewed for this page, so confirm the current PSI fee at scheduling rather than assuming it matches Commercial Roofing's confirmed $180.
There is none for general contractor registration. Registration attaches to the business or the individual contractor directly, not to a named qualifying individual or responsible managing employee the way Florida, Georgia, or the Carolinas structure their licenses (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board apply page; the underlying statute, Rhode Island General Laws title 5 chapter 65, uses the word person throughout with no separate qualifier role, Justia copy of section 5 65 2). Because there is no qualifier concept, there is also no published rule on how many companies one person may be tied to, and no replacement deadline, since there is no qualifying individual to replace.
One nuance worth knowing: incorporated businesses, LLCs and corporations, must already be registered with the Rhode Island Secretary of State and must include that Business Identification Number on the CRLB application (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board apply page). Out of state applicants must additionally appoint a registered agent physically located in Rhode Island, at a street address, available during business hours to accept legal documents (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board apply page, corroborated by the registered agent exemption language in Rhode Island General Laws section 5 65 2, Justia).
Not applicable to general contractor registration, since there is no qualifying individual to replace. For the DLT administered trade licenses, electrical, plumbing, and HVAC and refrigeration, a statutory replacement deadline for a departing master or journeyperson is not stated in the regulations reviewed for this page. Anyone whose plan depends on that answer should confirm directly with DLT's Professional Regulation unit before relying on a specific number of days.
Of the three specialty licenses CRLB issues that require an exam, Commercial Roofing, Underground Utility, and Water Filtration, Well Drilling, and Pump Installer all run through PSI, confirmed directly on each license's own apply page. The separate DLT trade boards covering electricians, plumbers, and HVAC and refrigeration mechanics administer their own exams in house rather than through PSI or Pearson VUE (Rhode Island Labor and Training professional regulation and safety page, which lists exam and results portals directly under the Department of Labor and Training with no named outside vendor).
No. Rhode Island does not appear on NASCLA's own current participating state agencies list (NASCLA commercial exam participating state agencies page, checked September 2026; the list currently names 20 agencies across Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, the Virgin Islands, Virginia, and West Virginia, and Rhode Island is not one of them). This lines up with Rhode Island having no general contractor exam of its own for a NASCLA transcript to substitute into. Some marketing sites claim Rhode Island accepts NASCLA; that claim does not hold up against NASCLA's own list and should not be relied on.
Rhode Island has no general contractor exam, so there is no single general contractor bulletin the way Florida or Georgia have. The four exams that actually matter in Rhode Island split into two families that work completely differently. The Commercial Roofing License Exam and the Underground Utility License Exam are both CRLB specialty licenses run by an outside vendor, PSI Services LLC, using the same candidate information bulletin: computer delivered, open book, with a published content outline and reference list. The Electrician exam and the Plumbing exam are run directly by the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training's own Board of Examiners, in writing, at DLT's own building, with none of PSI's open book, tabbing, or reference list apparatus, and DLT's own published materials for these exams include far less candidate facing detail than PSI's bulletins do.
Commercial Roofing License Exam: PSI Services LLC holds the contract with the CRLB to deliver this exam. A candidate schedules online at PSI Exams or by phone at (855) 746-8173; PSI registrars are available Monday through Friday 7:30 am to 10:00 pm and Saturday and Sunday 9:00 am to 5:30 pm Eastern, and a candidate must already show as eligible in PSI's system under the DPS ID number the CRLB assigned before a sitting can be booked. The exam runs 50 questions in 120 minutes, and passing is 70 percent, 35 of 50 correct. It is open book. The bulletin's own content outline breaks the 50 questions out as General Roofing Knowledge 5 items, Low Slope Roofing 4, Steep Slope Roofing 12, Architectural Metal Roofing Systems and Sheet Metal Flashing 10, Moisture and Energy Control 7, Repairs and Reroofing 6, and Safety 6. The reference list printed in the bulletin names the Code of Federal Regulations 29 CFR Part 1926 (OSHA, with latest amendments), or PSI's own CFR 1926 Selections booklet as an alternative; the NRCA Roofing Manual volumes Steep Slope Roof Systems 2017, Membrane Roofing Systems 2019, Metal Panel and SPF Roof Systems 2016, and Architectural Metal Flashing, Condensation and Air Leakage Control, and Reroofing 2018; Roofing Construction and Estimating by Daniel Atcheson, 1995 (Craftsman Book Company); the State of Rhode Island Building Code SBC 1, 2019, first printing July 2013 (International Code Council and NASCLA); and the State of Rhode Island Plumbing Code 2019 (International Code Council). Except for the two code books, later editions of the other references are acceptable per the bulletin's own language.
Underground Utility License Exam: same vendor, same scheduling path as Commercial Roofing, same PSI account and phone number. The exam runs 40 questions in 100 minutes, passing is 70 percent, 28 of 40 correct, and it is open book. The content outline names eight subject areas: General Knowledge; Safety and the Code of Federal Regulations; Underground Utilities Concrete Pipe Installation; Underground Utilities Ductile Pipe Installation; Excavating and Grading; Backflow; RI Dig Laws; and Underground Sewer Pipes. The printed item counts for those areas (5, 6, 4, 4, 8, 3, 5, 5) sum correctly to the 40 total questions, though the exact count tied to each specific area is worth confirming against the live bulletin before quoting it precisely. The reference list is the same OSHA CFR 1926 or PSI Selections choice as above, plus Concrete Pipe and Box Culvert Installation, 2007 (American Concrete Pipe Association); the DIPRA Installation Guide for Ductile Iron Pipe, 2007, revised 2012 (Ductile Iron Pipe Research Association); Pipe and Excavation Contracting by Dave Roberts, 2011 (Craftsman Book Company); the State of Rhode Island Plumbing Code 2019; and Rhode Island General Laws Title 39 Chapter 39 1.2, Excavation Near Underground Utility Facilities.
For both PSI run CRLB exams, references may be highlighted, underlined, or indexed before the sitting but may not be written in; only permanent tabs are allowed, and temporary tabs such as Post it notes must be removed before the exam starts or the candidate cannot begin. No test center is listed inside Rhode Island itself in this bulletin. The named centers nearest the state are West Hartford CT, Milford CT, Auburn MA, Boston MA (Charlestown), Fall River MA, and West Springfield MA, and a candidate can request an out of state sitting elsewhere in PSI's national network through the Out of State Request Form at the back of the bulletin. Neither exam mentions a remote or online proctoring option in the bulletin, so treat both as in person, computer delivered, center only testing. A candidate may cancel or reschedule without losing the fee if PSI receives notice at least 2 days before the appointment; missing the appointment, canceling late, arriving after the start time, or failing to present the required two forms of signature bearing identification (one with a photo; a student or employee ID does not count) all forfeit the fee. A candidate who does not pass must reschedule and pay the exam fee again in full before a licensure application can go in. The bulletin's own payment section lists a $180 examination fee, non refundable and non transferable, valid one year from the date of payment, printed once ahead of the individual license sections rather than broken out separately per license type, so confirm the live fee for Underground Utility specifically at scheduling rather than assuming it matches Commercial Roofing's confirmed $180. This bulletin is copyrighted 2020 and printed as last revised 11/1/2020. This is the version currently hosted on the board's site, last replaced December 30, 2021 according to the file's own metadata.
Electrician exam, Rhode Island Board of Examiners of Electricians: there is no outside testing vendor here. DLT's own Professional Regulations Unit, Division of Workforce Regulation and Safety, administers this exam directly out of 1511 Pontiac Avenue, Building 70, Cranston RI 02920. A candidate applies on paper with a notarized application and employer verified experience statement (Journeyperson requires 4 years and 576 hours of related instruction; Contractor and Master requires 6 years plus a Journeyperson license held at least 2 years), and the application must reach DLT at least 15 working days before the scheduled exam date under regulation 260 RICR 30 15 7. Passing is 70 percent average; a candidate scoring 60 to 69 percent may request a review of the exam with board members. The regulation states plainly that all examinations are conducted in writing, answers must be in ink unless otherwise specified, and any candidate found referring to notes or books during the exam, except by board permission, will be disqualified, so this is a closed book exam, the opposite of the PSI run CRLB exams above. Exams are based on the National Electrical Code edition current at the time of testing. A question count, time limit, or numbered content outline is not stated in the regulation or on DLT's own pages, so no specific number of questions or hours should be quoted for this exam. Sources outside DLT and the regulation describe figures ranging from 80 to 100 questions over roughly 240 minutes; treat those as unverified and confirm directly with DLT's Professional Regulation unit, (401) 462-8580, before relying on a number. DLT's recommended study material is simply the current National Electrical Code book, latest state approved edition, plus general trade knowledge, which is a study aid rather than an in-exam reference list, since no references are permitted in the room. The application and exam processing fee is $75, non refundable, paid by check or money order to the RI Department of Labor and Training (credit cards accepted in person only), separate from the license fee charged only after passing, which varies by classification, for example $240 for a 2 year Electrical Contractor A license.
Plumbing exam, Rhode Island Board of Examiners of Plumbers: administered the same way as the electrician exam, directly by DLT at the same Cranston building, with no outside vendor. A Journeyperson applicant needs 4 years, 8,000 hours, of on the job training within a 5 year period including 576 hours of state approved training; a Master applicant needs a Journeyperson license held at least 1 year. The application must reach DLT at least 15 days before the scheduled exam date under regulation 260 RICR 30 15 9, and that same regulation states exams are given at least three times a year at a time and place the Director sets. On passing score, the regulation states only that the Board itself determines the passing score of each written exam it administers; it does not print a numeric threshold the way the electrician regulation prints 70 percent outright, so the current number should be confirmed with DLT rather than assumed to match the electrician exam. Whether the exam is open or closed book is not stated in the regulation for this specific exam; given the same board structure and the same in-writing exam language used elsewhere in DLT's regulations, closed book is the reasonable working assumption, though it is not stated in so many words for plumbing specifically. A question count, time limit, and numbered content outline are not stated in the regulation or on DLT's own pages; a source outside DLT describes 50 multiple choice questions touching vents, fixtures, drainage, and administrative rules, but that figure is not confirmed against a DLT publication, so it should be treated loosely. The application and exam fee is $75, separate from the license fee charged after passing. A candidate who fails may retake by paying the fee again for each attempt, and a candidate who is denied a license can appeal to the Board within 30 days for a review, both per 260 RICR 30 15 9; a cap on the number of retakes is not stated in the regulations reviewed for this page.
For both DLT run trade exams, the only test location identified in the materials reviewed for this page is DLT's own Cranston building; there is no neighboring state option and no remote or online proctoring mentioned anywhere, the reverse of the PSI run CRLB exams above, where Rhode Island itself has no center and everything runs out of state or by request. Anyone whose plan depends on the exact question count, time limit, or topic by topic weighting for either the electrician or the plumbing exam should know that level of detail is not included in the materials reviewed for this page, and that the number should be confirmed by phone with DLT's Professional Regulation unit rather than taken from an unofficial source.
Primary sources for this section: the State of Rhode Island Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board's Contractor Licensure Examinations Candidate Information Bulletin, published by PSI Services LLC, copyright 2020, last revised 11/1/2020, hosted at Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board; the Rhode Island Board of Examiners of Electricians regulation 260 RICR 30 15 7 and the Rhode Island Licensing of Plumbers, Irrigators and Water System Installers regulation 260 RICR 30 15 9, both at Rhode Island Code of Regulations; and the RI DLT Electrician and Mechanical Trade application packets and the DLT Trade License Exam Study Material page, all at Rhode Island Labor and Training, checked July 14, 2026.
None, for general contractor registration. There is no minimum years of experience, no net worth statement, and no surety bond required. A figure circulating elsewhere claims a $20,000 bond applies; that figure is not stated in the board materials reviewed for this page, so it should not be treated as confirmed. The only financial requirements are insurance: a Certificate of General Liability Insurance of at least $500,000 naming the CRLB as certificate holder, plus a Certificate of Workers' Compensation Insurance if the applicant has employees, also naming the CRLB (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board general contractor registration apply page). The registration fee itself is $150. The apply page also requires a clear copy of a valid government issued photo ID, such as a driver's license, state ID, passport photo page, or military ID (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board general contractor registration apply page). A source outside the board dates this photo ID requirement to a July 2025 rule addition; that date is not confirmed in the board materials reviewed for this page, so it should be verified with the board directly.
A turnaround time for processing a complete new registration application is not stated in the board materials reviewed for this page. Confirm current processing time by calling the board directly, 401 921 1590, before expecting a specific number of days or weeks. One deadline is documented, and it cuts the other way: an incomplete application is rejected after three months if not completed (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board general contractor registration apply page), so a complete, correct packet should be submitted rather than a partial one. What is documented is the renewal cycle: registration is valid for one year and renews annually (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board contractor registration FAQ page). Per the CRLB renewal page (renewal page), checked September 29, 2026, the registration is valid one year, renews annually at $150, plus a $50 late fee if expired.
None. The board's own FAQ states plainly that no reciprocity exists and that anyone performing contracting work in Rhode Island must register with the CRLB regardless of where they already hold a license (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board contractor registration FAQ page). There is no general contractor exam here for another state's license to waive in the first place, so reciprocity is not really the right frame; the practical rule is that Rhode Island requires its own registration no matter what a contractor already holds elsewhere.
Registration is not required for a person doing under $500 of casual, minor work with no advertising as a contractor; a homeowner working on their own single dwelling unit property, occupied or not; employees of an already registered contractor; material suppliers who do not fabricate or install; and licensed electricians and plumbers working within the scope of their own DLT trade license (Rhode Island General Laws section 5 65 2, Justia, corroborated by the Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board FAQ page). Operating without registration blocks a contractor from pulling a building permit in any of Rhode Island's 39 cities and towns and exposes them to civil and criminal penalties (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board FAQ page; Rhode Island General Laws section 5 65 19 sets the penalty structure, Justia). Anyone with a specific penalty question should confirm the details directly with the board.
Electrical work is licensed separately from CRLB registration, by the Board of Examiners of Electricians under the Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training (DLT) (Rhode Island Labor and Training professional regulation page, and the board's own regulation text at Rhode Island Code of Regulations, part 260 RICR 30 15 7). Renewal requires 15 hours of continuing education. Applicants for several certificate types must be at least 21 years old, and applications for an exam must be filed at least 15 working days before the exam date.
Plumbing is licensed separately by the State Board of Examination of Plumbers, also under DLT (Rhode Island Labor and Training professional regulation page). A contractor whose scope includes plumbing must hold, or employ someone who holds, this license in addition to any CRLB registration; a licensed plumber working within the scope of that license is itself exempt from separate CRLB registration.
HVAC and refrigeration work is licensed by DLT's Professional Regulation unit as well, under the bureau that also covers pipefitters, refrigeration technicians, sprinkler fitters, sheet metal workers, and oil heat contractors (Rhode Island Code of Regulations, part 260 RICR 30 15 2, the Bureau of Pipefitters, Refrigeration Technicians, Sprinklerfitters, Sheet Metal Workers and Oil Heat Contractors). Every classification except the Master Mechanical Contractor license requires passing an exam; DLT charges $75 per exam sitting across these mechanical trades.
Rhode Island has no license or exam for general contracting. Every contractor and subcontractor who builds, alters, repairs, demolishes, or moves a residential or commercial structure must instead register with the Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board (CRLB), a unit of the State Building Office inside the Department of Business Regulation (Rhode Island Contractors Registration Board, Rhode Island Business Regulation contractors and building design fire professionals board page). This registration is based on insurance coverage and a course requirement rather than a competency exam. Because the registration attaches directly to the business or individual contractor rather than to a separate credential, there is no license in Rhode Island for a qualifying agent to qualify a company against.
Official Licensing Authority
All contractor license applications, renewals, and qualifying agent changes must go through this board.
We place a licensed qualifying agent with your company as a full time W-2 employee and prepare the qualifier filing with the Rhode Island Contractors' Registration and Licensing Board (Department of Business Regulation). Tell us your trade and what you have going on, and pick a time for a discovery call. Or call 615-219-2110.
Provide your information for a compliance assessment.
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