What Can a Handyman Do Without a License? The Dollar Limits in Every State

Quick answer: Nineteen states exempt small jobs from contractor licensing below a per-job dollar amount, ranging from $500 in Washington to $10,000 in Alaska; five more set a higher license line, and five measure annual receipts instead. California's limit is $1,000 (raised from $500 in 2025), Florida's is $2,500, Utah's is $7,000 (raised from $3,000 in 2025), and Arizona, Nevada, Oregon and Virginia are all $1,000. Seven states and the District of Columbia require registration or a license for any amount. Thirteen states have no statewide general-contractor license at all and leave it to cities and counties. In every state, electrical, plumbing, HVAC and gas work require a trade license regardless of price, and nearly every exemption is lost if you advertise as a contractor or split a job to stay under the line.

How to read a threshold

A handyman exemption is a sentence in a licensing statute that says, roughly, "this chapter does not apply to work under $X." The sentence always carries fine print, and the fine print decides whether you are exempt.

Basis. Most states measure the "aggregate contract price for labor and materials and all other items." A $900 labor-only quote for a $2,000 job is not under California's $1,000 limit; the materials count. Minnesota, Nebraska, New Mexico, Iowa and Pennsylvania measure annual receipts instead of a per-job price.

Anti-splitting. Nearly every per-job exemption says it "does not apply when the work is only a part of a larger or major operation" or when "a division of the operation is made in contracts of amounts less than" the limit "for the purpose of evasion." Two $900 contracts for one $1,800 bathroom are one $1,800 job.

Advertising. California, Arizona, Florida, Oregon, Washington, Alaska and New Mexico strip the exemption from anyone who "advertises or puts out a sign or card or other device that might indicate to the public that the person is a contractor." A Google Business Profile that says "licensed contractor" ends the exemption. Arizona allows advertising only if it discloses that you are not licensed.

Permits. California, Arizona, Nevada, Hawaii and Utah deny the exemption to any work that requires a building permit, whatever the price.

Employees. California's exemption is lost if you "employ another person to perform, or assist in performing, the work." Montana's new law exempts "an independent contractor who has no employees" at any price.

Trades. No exemption covers electrical, plumbing, HVAC or gas work. Nevada's statute names "plumbing, electrical, refrigeration, heating or air-conditioning" explicitly; Utah's lists plumbing, electrical, HVAC, gas appliances, fire protection, alarms and radon systems; New Mexico's excludes "electrical wiring, plumbing or gas fitting." Where a statute is silent, the separate trade-licensing act still applies.

Errata: what the ranking pages get wrong

Verified against statute text 2026-10-24 and 2026-10-25.

The table

Confidence: H = statute or board text read; M = official summary, legislature PDF or code mirror read; L = city rules known only from secondary sources.

3a. States with a per-job dollar exemption

3b. States with a higher-dollar license line (handyman-scale work is below it)

3c. States that measure annual receipts, not job price

3d. Registration or license required for any amount

3e. No statewide general-contractor or handyman license (cities and counties decide)

Maine has no state general-contractor license; its home construction contract statute (10 M.R.S. §1487) applies to jobs over $3,000 but is a contract law, not a licensing law.

The conditions, state by state, in the statute's words

California (B&P §7048). The exemption covers work where the "aggregate contract price for labor, materials, and all other items is less than one thousand dollars ($1,000)," provided the work "is of casual, minor, or inconsequential nature, and the work or operation does not require a building permit." It "does not apply in a case wherein the work of construction is only a part of a larger or major operation," nor where "a division of the operation is made in contracts of amounts less than one thousand dollars ($1,000) for the purpose of evasion." It is lost by anyone who "employs another person to perform, or assist in performing, the work or operation" or who "advertises or puts out a sign or card or other device that might indicate to the public that the person is a contractor." Contracting without a license is a misdemeanor (§7028) and bars any suit to collect (§7031).

Arizona (A.R.S. §32-1121(A)(14)). Exempt: "any work or operation on one undertaking or project by one or more contracts, for which the aggregate contract price, including labor, materials and all other items … is less than $1,000." Not exempt if a local building permit is required, if the work is "part of a larger or major operation," if contracts are divided under $1,000 to evade, or if the person advertises without disclosing that they are not a licensed contractor.

Florida (§489.103(9)). Exempt: "work or operation of a casual, minor, or inconsequential nature in which the aggregate contract price for labor, materials, and all other items is less than $2,500." Not exempt where the work "is a part of a larger or major operation, whether undertaken by the same or a different contractor, or in which a division of the operation is made in contracts of amounts less than $2,500 for the purpose of evading this part or otherwise," nor "to a person who advertises that he or she is a contractor or otherwise represents that he or she is qualified to engage in contracting."

Nevada (NRS §624.031(6)). Exempt: "any work to repair or maintain property the value of which is less than $1,000, including labor and materials, unless: (a) A building permit is required to perform the work; (b) The work is of a type performed by a plumbing, electrical, refrigeration, heating or air-conditioning contractor; (c) The work is of a type performed by a contractor licensed in a classification … that significantly affects the health, safety and welfare of members of the general public." Note "repair or maintain": new work is not covered.

Oregon (ORS §701.010(4)). Exempt when the "aggregate price of all of that person's contracts for labor, materials and all other items is less than $1,000" and the work is "of a casual, minor or inconsequential nature." "This subsection does not apply to a person who advertises or puts out any sign or card or other device that might indicate to the public that the person is a contractor."

Washington (RCW §18.27.090(9)). Exempt: "any work or operation on one undertaking or project by one or more contracts, the aggregate contract price of which for labor and materials and all other items is less than five hundred dollars," if casual, minor or inconsequential, not part of a larger operation, not split to evade, and the person does not advertise as a contractor. An unregistered contractor "may not bring or maintain any action in any court of this state for the collection of compensation" (§18.27.080).

Utah (§58-55-305(1)(h)). Exempt: "a person engaged in the alteration, repair, remodeling, or addition to or improvement of a building with a contracted or agreed value of less than $7,000," "including all changes or additions to the contracted or agreed upon work." Electrical, plumbing, HVAC, gas, fire-protection, alarm and radon work must be done by licensed trades regardless. Above $3,000 the person must file "a one-time affirmation" with the Division confirming liability insurance and, with employees, workers' compensation.

Idaho (§54-5205(2)(f)). Exempt: "work on one (1) undertaking or project considered casual, minor, or inconsequential, whether by one (1) or more contracts, the aggregate contract price of which, for labor and materials and all other items, is less than two thousand dollars ($2,000)," except "when the work or construction is part of a larger construction project … or in which a division of the operation is made into contracts of amounts of less than two thousand dollars ($2,000) for the purpose of evasion of this chapter or otherwise."

Michigan (MCL §339.2403). Exempt: "a person that is working on 1 undertaking or project by 1 or more contracts, if the aggregate contract price for the labor, material, and any other items for the undertaking or project is less than $600.00," unless part of a larger operation or split to circumvent licensing.

Georgia (§43-41-2, §43-41-17(b)). A residential contractor is anyone who undertakes residential work "where the total value of the work or activity or of the compensation to be received by the contractor for such activity or work, whichever is the higher, exceeds $2,500.00." A contract with an unlicensed contractor "shall be unenforceable in law or in equity by the unlicensed contractor," and "no lien or bond claim shall exist in favor of the unlicensed contractor for any labor, services, or materials provided."

Virginia (§54.1-1100, §54.1-1115). A Class C license is required when "the total value referred to in a single contract or project is over $1,000." An unlicensed contractor's contract "shall not be enforceable by the unlicensed contractor undertaking the work unless the unlicensed contractor (i) gives substantial performance within the terms of the contract in good faith and (ii) did not have actual knowledge that a license or certificate was required."

Montana (§37-45-104, effective 2026-01-01). The chapter does not apply "to an independent contractor who has no employees. However, an independent contractor may voluntarily elect to register under this chapter," nor to casual work with an aggregate price "less than $2,500 a job," nor to an owner working on the owner's property. Otherwise, "an individual or business entity may not engage in business as a construction contractor without a current license from the department" (§37-45-201).

New Mexico (§60-13-3(D)(14)). Exempt: casual, minor or inconsequential work on "one undertaking or project at a time that, in the aggregate or singly, does not exceed seven thousand two hundred dollars ($7,200) compensation a year," if the person "does not advertise or maintain a sign, card or other device which would indicate to the public that he is qualified to engage in the business of contracting" and files "annually with the division, on a form prescribed by the division, a declaration." The exemption "shall not apply to any undertaking or project pertaining to the installation, connection or repair of electrical wiring, plumbing or gas fitting."

Alaska (AS 08.18.161). Exempt: "work on one project under one or more contracts, the aggregate contract price of which for labor and materials and all other items is less than $10,000," not part of a larger operation, not split to evade, and not for a person who advertises as a contractor. "A contractor who performs work priced at $2,500 or more, under this exemption, shall nevertheless keep in force public liability and property damage insurance." Alaska also offers a "General Contractor – Handyman" registration for jobs up to $10,000 with a $5,000 bond.

Alabama (§34-14A-2). A residential home builder license is required when "the cost of the undertaking exceeds ten thousand dollars ($10,000)," and for roofing when it "exceeds two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500)." "Anyone who engages or offers to engage in any acts described in this subdivision, through advertising or otherwise, shall be deemed to have engaged in the business of residential home building."

Arkansas (§17-25-513(3)). Exempt: "a person or entity acting as a residential building contractor or a home improvement contractor on any project, when the cost of the work done or to be done does not exceed two thousand dollars ($2,000)," unless "the construction work necessary to complete the project is divided into separate contracts of amounts less than two thousand dollars ($2,000)."

North Dakota (§43-07-02). "A person may not engage in the business nor act in the capacity of a contractor within this state when the cost, value, or price per job exceeds the sum of four thousand dollars nor may that person maintain any claim, action, suit, or proceeding in any court of this state related to the person's business or capacity as a contractor without first having a license." Unlicensed contracting "is guilty of a class A misdemeanor."

South Carolina (§40-59-20, §40-59-30(B)). Residential builders are licensed "when the cost of the undertaking exceeds five thousand dollars"; residential specialty contractors (carpenters, painters, drywall, masonry, siding, stucco, solar; and licensed plumbers, electricians and HVAC installers) "when the undertakings exceed five hundred dollars." An unlicensed person "may not file a mechanics' lien or bring an action at law or in equity to enforce the provisions of a contract."

Hawaii (HRS §444-2(4)). Exempt: "any project or operation for which the aggregate contract price for labor and materials is not more than $1,500." "This exemption shall not apply in any case where a building permit is required regardless of the aggregate contract price." A bill to raise the figure to $2,500 (HB 846) was introduced in January 2025 and carried over to the 2026 session without passing; as of October 2026 it had not been enacted, and pages already quoting $2,500 are ahead of the law.

What "no license needed" does not mean

An exemption from the contractor-licensing act is not an exemption from everything else.

• Trade licenses. Every state licenses electrical and plumbing work separately, and most license HVAC and gas. The handyman exemption never reaches them. Several statutes say so in terms (Nevada, Utah, New Mexico, Florida); the rest leave it to the trade acts.
• Permits. If the job needs a building permit, the exemption is gone in California, Arizona, Nevada, Hawaii and Utah, and in practice everywhere, because permit offices require a licensed or registered contractor to pull the permit (Wisconsin's entire regime is built on this).
• Contract statutes. Illinois requires a written contract for home repair over $1,000 and a consumer-rights pamphlet. Pennsylvania's contract rules reach every "home improvement" over $500 even for a contractor who falls under the $5,000 registration exemption. See our companion reference on required contract terms and deposit limits.
• Local registration. In the thirteen local-rule states and in cities like New York, Chicago and Kansas City, the city license is the only license, and it may have no dollar floor.
• Collection. In California, Georgia, Virginia, Washington, South Carolina, North Dakota, Michigan and others, an unlicensed contractor cannot use the courts to collect. If a job that should have been licensed goes unpaid, the exemption question becomes the whole case.

Method and limits

We began with the fifty-state lists on the pages that rank for this question, then read the cited section at each state's statute host or licensing board. Where a cited section did not say what the page claimed, we recorded the discrepancy in section 2. For states with no statewide license we relied on the licensing board's own statement where one exists (Oklahoma's is explicit) and on the trade-licensing statutes otherwise; local ordinance details for those states come from secondary sources and are marked L.

Rows are dated because this area moves: California (2025), Utah (2025), Montana (2026), Louisiana (2024), Alabama (2024), South Carolina (2022) and Vermont (2022) all changed within four years, and Hawaii has a bill pending. We re-verify quarterly.

Last verified 2026-10-26. Not legal advice.