Florida Contractor License Types

A Florida contractor license number starts with a few letters. Those letters tell you the trade and whether the license works statewide or only in certain local areas. This guide decodes them.

Who Issues the Licenses

The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) runs two boards for building trades.

• The Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) licenses plumbing, air conditioning, mechanical, roofing, general, building and residential contractors, among others.^2,8
• The Electrical Contractors' Licensing Board licenses electrical and alarm system contractors. It has 11 members: 7 certified electrical contractors, 2 consumer members and 2 certified alarm system contractors.⁷

Florida law says a person must be certified or registered to engage in the business of contracting in the state.⁴ A local business tax receipt is not a contractor license.¹¹

Certified vs Registered

Every CILB license is one of two kinds. The first letter of the code tells you which.

• Certified (code starts with C). The holder passed an examination approved by the board.⁴ A certified contractor may contract in any jurisdiction in Florida.^2,3
• Registered (code starts with R). The holder met local competency rules. A registered contractor may contract only in the counties or cities where those local rules were met, and only for the type of work registered.^2,5

Electrical licenses follow the same rule. Statewide work requires certification. Work on other than a statewide basis requires registration, which covers only the jurisdiction it was issued for.^6,14

Source for all codes: the DBPR code list.¹ Two codes are easy to misread: CCC is roofing, and CPC is pool and spa.

What Each Trade License Covers

Plumbing (CFC, RF)

A plumbing contractor's services are unlimited in the plumbing trade. The scope listed in the law includes sanitary and storm drainage, venting, water supply systems, septic tanks, wells, swimming pool piping, irrigation and solar water heating.³

Air Conditioning and HVAC (CAC, RA, CMC, RM)

Florida has three air conditioning classes and a separate mechanical class.³

The DBPR code list shows Class A and Class B both under the CAC code, with the class marked separately.¹

Roofing (CCC, RC)

A roofing contractor's services are unlimited in the roofing trade. That includes roofing, waterproofing and roof coatings, skylights and required roof-deck attachments.³

General, Building and Residential (CGC, RG, CBC, RB, CRC, RR)

These three form "Division I" of the CILB. All other CILB trades form "Division II".³

• General contractor: unlimited as to the type of work.³
• Building contractor: commercial and residential buildings up to three stories, or non-structural remodeling of any size building.³
• Residential contractor: one-, two- or three-family homes, up to two habitable stories above no more than one uninhabitable story.³

A general, building or residential contractor must subcontract electrical, mechanical, plumbing, roofing, sheet metal, swimming pool and air conditioning work. The exception: the contractor also holds a state license in that trade.⁴

Electrical (EC, ER, ES, ET)

An electrical contractor, also called an unlimited electrical contractor, installs, repairs, alters or designs electrical wiring, fixtures, appliances, raceways and conduit.⁶ A specialty contractor works only in one segment of electrical or alarm work set by board rule.⁶

How to Look Up a License

DBPR tells homeowners to verify a contractor at MyFloridaLicense.com or with the DBPR mobile app.¹² The CILB also lists a phone line: 850.487.1395.²

• Get the license number. Florida law requires it on every offer, bid, contract and ad, and on contractor vehicles that show the company name.⁹
• Read the prefix. Check that the trade matches your job, using the table above.¹
• If the code starts with R, check that the license covers your county or city.⁵
• Check the status. DBPR uses primary codes such as Current, Probation and Suspended, and secondary codes Active and Inactive.¹ A licensee may practice only with an active status license.¹³
• Match the name on the record to the person or company you are hiring. If they differ, ask who the qualifying agent is.⁹
• For workers' compensation, DBPR points to the Construction Policy Tracking Database run by the Florida Department of Financial Services.²

Unlicensed activity can be reported to DBPR at 866-532-1440.¹² The meaning of each status word is in our contractor glossary.

What a License Proves, and What It Does Not

Unlicensed contracting is a first-degree misdemeanor in Florida. A repeat offense, or one during a declared state of emergency, is a third-degree felony.¹¹ More steps before signing are in before you hire and public business records.