California Contractor License Steps, From Application to License
The sequence CSLB lays out for an original contractor license when exams are required, with a printable checklist. This page lists no fees: CSLB, PSI and other providers set and change them, so each step says who charges and links to where to check.
Before you start
These steps follow CSLB’s exam path: its website has eight numbered pages for it, and Get Licensed to Build summarizes it in seven steps. CSLB has separate application pages for applicants who need no exam or who qualify for an exam waiver; see CSLB’s Application for Original Contractors License page for those paths. Get Licensed to Build also explains who must hold a contractor license and who is exempt.
Sources: Get Licensed to Build, “Seven Steps to Becoming a Licensed Contractor” and “General Requirements”; CSLB Step 1.
Printable California contractor license steps checklist
Details and sources for each step are on the page below. Fees: check CSLB’s list of all fees.
The steps in detail
Confirm who qualifies
CSLB says each license needs a qualifier who directly supervises and controls the construction operations under the license. The qualifier must be at least 18, have a valid Social Security number or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, and have at least four years of journey-level experience (as a journeyperson, foreperson, supervising employee or contractor) in the trade within the past 10 years. If you do not meet that yourself, CSLB says another person who does can serve as your qualifier.
Sources: CSLB Step 1: before applying; Get Licensed to Build, General Requirements, Q1
Choose one classification
A classification is the trade or field your license covers. When exams are required you may apply for only one classification at a time, and after CSLB issues your license you can apply for more. The trade picker on this site maps the work you do to CSLB’s classifications.
Use the trade picker to find your classification.
Sources: CSLB Step 2: applying; Get Licensed to Build, Applying for a License, Q1; CSLB licensing classifications
Get your experience ready to verify
The experience on the application must be verifiable. People with first-hand knowledge of your work must certify it on the Certification of Work Experience, and CSLB says to be prepared to document any experience you claim. Not providing documentation when it is requested can lead to the application being returned or voided, or the license denied. CSLB also investigates the work experience claims on a randomly selected share of applications, and cannot issue a license until that review is complete.
Sources: CSLB Step 3: qualifying experience; Get Licensed to Build, Applying for a License, Q9
Complete, sign and send the application
Complete the Application for Original Contractor’s License. CSLB’s website offers a version you fill in and print, and you can also use a paper copy. Date and sign it; every listed personnel member must sign. Send it to CSLB with the application processing fee and the documents it asks for. CSLB says not to send bonds or the initial license fee with the application. If you need a translator, check the translator box on the application; for a testing accommodation, send CSLB’s Special Accommodation Request form. Who charges: CSLB charges the application processing fee. Check the current amount on CSLB’s fee page.
Sources: CSLB Step 2: applying; Get Licensed to Build, Applying for a License, Q1; CSLB forms and applications; CSLB list of all fees
Correct anything CSLB returns
CSLB returns an application that is insufficient or incomplete. You have 90 days from the return date to supply what is missing and send it back. After that the application becomes void and cannot be reinstated, so you would have to submit a new application.
Sources: CSLB Step 4: application returned; Get Licensed to Build, Applying for a License, Q11
Watch for CSLB’s letters
CSLB sends an acknowledgment letter with a nine-digit application fee number and a four-digit PIN. Keep both: you use them to check your application’s status on CSLB’s website or by phone. After CSLB reviews and accepts the application, you receive the Notice to Schedule an Examination, and CSLB sends instructions for fingerprinting. CSLB says processing times change, and it posts its current processing times online.
Sources: CSLB Step 5: application accepted; Get Licensed to Build, Applying for a License, Q7 to Q10; CSLB processing times
Get fingerprinted with Live Scan
All applicants and each officer, partner, owner and responsible managing employee must be fingerprinted for a criminal background check. After CSLB accepts the application as complete, it mails instructions and a Request for Live Scan Service form. Live Scan services are available at most local police and sheriff departments, and CSLB points to the California Attorney General’s list of locations. CSLB says to return the third copy of the form to CSLB within 90 days after you receive the packet. Who charges: each Live Scan site sets its own fee.
Sources: CSLB Step 6: Live Scan; Get Licensed to Build, Applying for a License, Q13; California Attorney General Live Scan locations
Study for and schedule both exams with PSI
The qualifier must pass two computer-based, multiple-choice exams: Law and Business, and a trade exam for the classification (no trade exam is required for C-61 Limited Specialty), unless an exam waiver applies. CSLB contracts PSI to run the exams. After CSLB sends the Notice to Schedule an Examination, you schedule each exam yourself with PSI and pay PSI directly. CSLB’s study guides list each exam’s content areas, sample questions and recommended study materials. You have 18 months from the date CSLB accepts your application to pass. If you pass one exam and fail the other, the passed result is good for five years. Who charges: PSI charges the exam registration and any rescheduling or re-examination fees.
Build a study schedule or print the exam day checklist.
Sources: CSLB Step 7: studying for the examination; Get Licensed to Build, Licensing Examinations, Q1 and Q6 to Q20; CSLB exam study guides; PSI: schedule a CSLB exam
Complete the asbestos open book exam
Before CSLB can issue a license, the qualifier completes an open book exam on asbestos abatement standards. CSLB says it can be completed any time after the application has been posted, online through CSLB’s website, and must be done before the license is issued.
Sources: CSLB asbestos open book exam; Get Licensed to Build, Applying for a License, Q13
Meet the issuance requirements
After you pass, CSLB sends you a letter (its FAQ calls it the Bond and Fee letter) listing the issuance requirements for your application. Depending on the license, they include the initial license fee, a contractor’s bond or cashier’s check (active licenses), a bond of qualifying individual where it applies, and proof of workers’ compensation insurance or an exemption if you have no employees (active licenses). LLC licenses have additional bond and liability insurance requirements. CSLB does not issue bonds: they come from an insurance agent or a surety company licensed by the California Department of Insurance. CSLB cannot issue the license until every requirement is met, and it recommends sending all required documents together to avoid delays. Who charges: CSLB charges the initial license fee; the bond and insurance providers set their own prices. Check CSLB’s fee page for current fees.
Read more: bond requirements and workers’ compensation (articles on this site).
Sources: CSLB Step 8: issuing my license; Get Licensed to Build, Issuing a License, Q1; Get Licensed to Build, Financial Requirements, Q1 to Q4; CSLB Examinations FAQ; CSLB list of all fees; CSLB surety bond company search
Receive your license
CSLB mails a wall certificate and a plastic pocket license card showing the license details. State law requires you to display the wall certificate in your main office or chief place of business. A contractor license is initially issued for a two-year period.
Sources: CSLB Step 8: issuing my license; Get Licensed to Build, Issuing a License, Q3 and Q4
Who charges what
Amounts are not listed here because they change. Each charge goes to a different party, and CSLB publishes its own fees on its fee page.
- CSLB: the application processing fee and the initial license fee.
- PSI: exam registration, and rescheduling and re-examination fees.
- Each Live Scan site: its own fingerprinting fee.
- Your insurance agent or surety company: the contractor’s bond and any insurance, since CSLB does not issue bonds.
Sources: CSLB list of all fees; CSLB Step 6 (Live Scan sites set their own fees); PSI guide (you pay PSI directly for each exam); Get Licensed to Build, Financial Requirements, Q2 (bonds come from an insurance agent or a licensed surety company).
Official sources
Details on this page come from the documents below, reviewed on November 1, 2026. CSLB updates its requirements and procedures, so confirm anything that affects your application with CSLB.
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