Hiring a Contractor | Virginia

How to check a contractor's license in Virginia before you hire

The state's free lookup tells you whether a contractor is licensed, for how large a job, and whether the Board for Contractors has ever disciplined them. It takes about two minutes.

By the Mosaic Design & Build team · Updated October 9, 2026

To check a contractor's license in Virginia, search the business name or license number in the DPOR License Lookup at dpor.virginia.gov. Confirm the license is active, that its class covers the dollar value of your job (Class A for $150,000 or more, Class B for $30,000 up to $150,000, Class C for jobs over $1,000 and under $30,000), and that no disciplinary actions are on file.

Why does a Virginia contractor license matter?

Virginia requires a contractor license for any project totaling more than $1,000, according to the Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation (DPOR). That covers nearly every remodeling job a homeowner will ever hire out. The license is issued by the Board for Contractors, and it is the one credential that gives you rights if the job goes wrong.

Three protections depend on it. First, the Board can discipline a licensed contractor, and the threat of losing a license gets phone calls returned. Second, a licensed contractor has to follow the Board's rules on written contracts, permits and change orders. Third, the Virginia Contractor Transaction Recovery Fund pays claims only when the contractor was licensed at the time of the work.

Hire an unlicensed contractor and all three disappear. You can still sue, but a court judgment against someone with no assets and no license to lose is hard to collect. In Northern Virginia the risk is higher than elsewhere in the state, because crews cross the river from Maryland and the District every day. A Maryland or DC license does not cover work on a house in Virginia.

What do Class A, Class B and Class C mean?

The class sets the largest single contract a contractor may legally accept. DPOR's consumer guidance, revised effective July 1, 2025, puts the lines at $30,000 and $150,000. A contractor who takes a job above their class is working outside their license, and that is grounds for Board discipline.

Source: DPOR Board for Contractors consumer information, effective July 1, 2025. Remodel examples are illustrations; your job's contract total decides the class.
License class	Single contract value	Typical remodeling work at that size
Class C	Over $1,000 and under $30,000	Hall bathroom refresh, small deck, flooring, a repair
Class B	$30,000 up to $150,000	Kitchen remodel, finished basement, screened porch, small addition
Class A	$150,000 or more	Large additions, whole-house renovations, custom homes

The General Assembly raised these limits in 2025 so they would track current construction costs. Older articles still quote lower figures, so check the date on anything you read.

Class matters most on mid-size jobs that grow. A basement that starts at $28,000 and picks up a bathroom and a wet bar can cross $30,000 before the drywall goes up. If your contractor holds a Class C license, they cannot legally take it across that line. Ask about the class at the first meeting, and ask what happens if the scope expands.

Specialties and classifications

Every license also lists what kind of work it covers. For a house, look for a building classification such as Residential Building (RBC) or a specialty such as Home Improvement Contracting (HIC). Electrical, plumbing and HVAC work each have their own classification. A general contractor does not need to hold all of them personally, but the electrician and plumber they bring to your house should be licensed for their trade.

How do you look up a contractor on DPOR?

The lookup is free and needs no account. You can search by business name, by an individual's name or by license number. Have the contractor's business card or proposal next to you, because the details on the screen should match the details on paper.

Open the License Lookup. Go to dpor.virginia.gov and choose License Lookup, or use the direct link in the sources below.
Search the exact business name. Use the legal name from the proposal. Many companies trade under a shorter name than the one on the license, so try the license number if the name returns nothing.
Check the status. You want an active license with an expiration date in the future. An expired license is a reason to pause until it is renewed.
Check the class. Compare it with the total on your proposal, using the table above.
Check the classifications. Make sure residential building or home improvement work is listed.
Check the name and address. They should match the proposal. A different company name is a question to ask, since licenses belong to a specific business and cannot be lent to another one.
Look for disciplinary history. DPOR describes the lookup as the place to verify license status and check disciplinary history. Closed disciplinary files can also be requested from the agency.

Do the same lookup for any trade contractor you hire directly, such as an electrician adding a car charger or a plumber replacing a water heater. And do it again if a job is delayed for months before starting. A license that was active in March can lapse by September.

Home renovation contractor reviewing a remodeling project with Northern Virginia homeowners — The name on the proposal, the name on the license and the name on the permit should all be the same company.

What must a Virginia remodeling contract include?

Virginia's Board for Contractors regulation 18VAC50-22-260 requires a written contract for residential work, signed by both sides before work starts or any payment is accepted. It lists eleven minimum elements. A contract that leaves several of them out tells you how carefully the contractor follows the rest of the rules.

When work will begin and the estimated completion date
The total cost, or for cost-plus and time-and-materials jobs, how the price is calculated
A schedule of progress payments, including the amount of the down payment
A list of the specified materials and the work you asked for
A plain-language clause about delays outside the contractor's control
A statement that the contractor will comply with local building permit, inspection and zoning requirements
Each side's cancellation rights
Your signed acknowledgment that you received DPOR's consumer protection statement
The contractor's name, address, license number, license class and classifications
A requirement that any change to cost, materials, scope or completion date be in writing and signed by everyone
Notice that the Virginia Contractor Transaction Recovery Fund exists and how to contact the Board about it

You are also entitled to a fully signed copy before work begins. Keep it with your permit and your payment records.

How much should the down payment be?

The Board for Contractors recommends an initial down payment of about 10 percent of the contract total. For jobs that need custom-made items, such as cabinets built to order, it recommends about 30 percent. A contractor who asks for half the money before ordering anything is asking you to finance their business.

After the deposit, payments should follow finished work. Tie each one to a milestone you can see: rough-in inspections passed, cabinets installed, final inspection approved. Hold a meaningful final payment until the punch list is done.

A license is not insurance

The DPOR lookup shows licensing, not coverage. Ask separately for a certificate of general liability insurance and proof of workers' compensation, sent to you directly by the contractor's insurance agent. If a worker is hurt on your property and the contractor has no coverage, the claim can land on you.

Who should pull the building permit?

The contractor should. Fairfax County's permit guidance says that when you hire a contractor, the contractor must be listed on the permit as the responsible party. The Board for Contractors also treats failing to obtain a required building permit or inspection as a prohibited act that can cost a contractor their license.

Be careful with any contractor who asks you to apply for the permit in your own name as an owner-builder. Sometimes the reason is innocent. Often it means the contractor is unlicensed, holds the wrong class for the job, or wants the responsibility for code compliance to sit with you. Whoever is named on the permit answers to the county inspector.

"You don't need a permit for this" deserves the same caution. Fairfax County requires permits for kitchen renovations, bathroom remodels, finished basements, decks and additions. Loudoun and Prince William have similar lists. Unpermitted work tends to surface when you sell, when a buyer's inspector notices a basement bathroom that the county has no record of. Our guide to addition setbacks and permits explains what the counties review.

What are the red flags when hiring a contractor?

Most contractor problems show warning signs before the contract is signed. Any one of the patterns below is reason to slow down and ask more questions.

No license number on the proposal. Virginia requires it in the contract. Its absence on early paperwork is worth a question.
A price that jumps the class line. A Class C contractor quoting $45,000 is offering work they cannot legally accept.
Pressure to sign today. A fair price is still fair next week.
Cash only, or checks made out to an individual. Payments should go to the licensed business.
A large deposit. Well beyond the Board's 10 to 30 percent guidance, with no materials ordered.
No physical address. A local office and a history in the area make a contractor easier to find later.
Reluctance about permits. Covered above. It rarely ends well.
A contract with no dates. Start and estimated completion dates are required elements.

A single red flag has an explanation sometimes. Several together usually have the same one.

Questions worth asking at the first meeting

Good contractors expect these and answer them without hesitation. Ask for the license number and class. Ask who will be on site every day and who you call with a problem. Ask how change orders are priced and how hidden damage is handled. Ask for two or three recent projects similar to yours, with homeowners you can call. Then go and look at the work if you can. Our project pages show finished jobs by type, and a contractor's portfolio should let you do the same.

Local remodeling crew working on a Northern Virginia home improvement project — Ask who will be on site each day. The company you sign with should be the company that shows up.

What can you do if a licensed contractor lets you down?

Start with the contractor, in writing. If that fails, Virginia gives you two routes: a complaint to DPOR and, after a court judgment, a claim on the Contractor Transaction Recovery Fund. The Fund now pays up to $30,000 per claim, up from $20,000 before July 2025.

Filing a complaint with DPOR

Complaints go through the agency's Report a Licensee page. DPOR investigates and the Board for Contractors can fine a contractor or suspend or revoke the license. The Board cannot order a refund. Getting money back generally means going to court, which is why the paper trail matters: the signed contract, change orders, payment records, photos and every email.

How the Recovery Fund works

The Fund is a last resort paid for by assessments on licensed contractors, with no tax money involved. DPOR lists several conditions, and filing a claim does not guarantee payment.

You need a Virginia court judgment against the contractor, and the contractor must have been licensed when the conduct happened.
The judgment must rest on improper or dishonest conduct, such as fraud, material misrepresentation, gross negligence or an intentional building code violation. An ordinary breach of contract does not qualify.
The work must involve a residence in Virginia.
You must first try to collect from the contractor's assets.
The claim form has to be filed within 12 months after the judgment becomes final.

The Fund pays a maximum of $30,000 per claim and no more than $100,000 against any one contractor in a two-year period. If several homeowners file against the same contractor and the total exceeds that cap, the payments are prorated. The lesson is plain. The Fund helps, but checking the license before you sign protects you far better than anything available afterward.

What else should you check besides the license?

A valid license tells you a contractor is allowed to do the work. It does not tell you whether they do it well. Three more checks take under an hour and fill in the rest of the picture.

Reviews, read properly. Read the negative reviews first and look at how the company responded. Every contractor with enough jobs has an unhappy customer. What matters is whether the problem was fixed.

Trade memberships. Groups such as the Northern Virginia Building Industry Association, the Home Builders Association of Virginia and the National Association of Home Builders do not guarantee quality, but membership shows a company that plans to be around. A Better Business Bureau profile shows how complaints were resolved.

Work like yours. A contractor who builds fine decks may never have underpinned a foundation. If you are planning an addition, ask to see additions. If you want a finished basement, ask how they handle moisture before they frame a wall. The contractor checklist in our kitchen remodel guide has more questions by project type.

Where Mosaic Design & Build stands

We would rather you check us than take our word. Mosaic Design & Build has worked from Sterling since 2017 as a general contractor on additions, kitchens and baths, whole-house renovations and custom homes. We are a BBB accredited business and a member of NVBIA, HBAV and NAHB. Ask for our license number before the first visit and run it through the lookup yourself. More about the company is on our about page.

Frequently asked questions

How do I verify a contractor's license in Virginia?

Use the free License Lookup on the Virginia DPOR website. Search by business name or license number, then confirm the license is active, the class covers your contract amount, the classifications include residential or home improvement work, and the name and address match your proposal. The same tool shows disciplinary history.

Do contractors need a license in Virginia for small jobs?

Yes, for most of them. DPOR states that a valid contractor license is required for projects totaling more than $1,000. A Class C license covers jobs over $1,000 and under $30,000. Electrical, plumbing and HVAC work also require the tradesperson to hold the right trade license.

What is the difference between Class A, B and C contractors in Virginia?

The class limits the size of a single contract. As of July 1, 2025, Class C covers projects over $1,000 and under $30,000, Class B covers $30,000 up to $150,000, and Class A covers $150,000 or more. A kitchen remodel often needs Class B; a large addition or custom home needs Class A.

Can a Maryland or DC contractor work on my Virginia home?

Only with a Virginia license. Licenses issued by Maryland or the District of Columbia do not authorize work in Virginia. Many regional companies hold licenses in more than one jurisdiction, so ask for the Virginia number specifically and check it on the DPOR License Lookup before you sign.

How much deposit can a contractor ask for in Virginia?

The Board for Contractors recommends an initial down payment of about 10 percent of the contract, or about 30 percent when the job needs custom-made items. That is guidance, so read any larger request carefully. The down payment amount and the progress payment schedule must be written into the contract.

What is the Virginia Contractor Transaction Recovery Fund?

It is a state fund, paid for by licensed contractors, that compensates homeowners who win a court judgment against a licensed contractor for improper or dishonest conduct and cannot collect. It pays up to $30,000 per claim. Claims against unlicensed contractors are not eligible, and ordinary breach of contract does not qualify.

Sources

This article is general information for homeowners, not legal advice. License limits and Fund rules change, so confirm current details with DPOR.

How to check a contractor’s license in Virginia before you hire