Contractor Licensing by State
Does Texas license general contractors?
No. Texas has no statewide general contractor license. Here is what the state actually regulates, what your city requires on top, and what to check when there is no license to check.
Get a Free QuoteNo. Texas has no statewide general contractor license.
Texas licenses a handful of specific trades at state level. General contracting is not one of them. Where a general contractor faces any gate at all, it is a city ordinance, and the four largest cities do not agree with each other.
“In the State of Texas, anyone can be a General Contractor, including homeowners, and a state license is not required.”
— City of Austin, Development Services DepartmentWhat Texas does license
These construction occupations do require a state licence. Doing this work unlicensed is unlawful anywhere in Texas, regardless of city.
Electricians
Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR). Licensed at several levels -- apprentice, journeyman, master -- with a separate business-level Electrical Contractor licence. A contracting company must employ a Master Electrician of Record. Official page →
Air conditioning and refrigeration
TDLR. Anyone installing, repairing or maintaining air conditioning, refrigeration or heating systems needs a TDLR licence, issued as a Contractor Licence with registered and certified technician tiers beneath it. Official page →
Plumbers
Not TDLR -- plumbing has its own agency, the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners, which has regulated the trade since 1947. Licence types run from Apprentice through Journeyman to Responsible Master Plumber. Official page →
Elevators, boilers, water wells
TDLR also licenses elevator and escalator safety, boiler safety, and water well drillers and pump installers. Official page →
What it does not
None of these are licensed by the State of Texas:
- General contracting
- Remodelling
- Roofing
- Framing
- Concrete and foundations
- Carpentry
- Painting
- Drywall
City rules, which is where it actually bites
This is where the real rules live, and they are not consistent. Your contractor being “registered” means something different in each of these cities -- and in one of them it means nothing at all.
Houston
Houston does not require a general contractor licence or registration to pull a building permit. Trade contractors -- electrical, plumbing, mechanical -- must register their state licence with the city. There is a voluntary roofing registration that requires proof of general liability insurance. For a general contractor, “registered with the City of Houston” is not a meaningful claim. Official page →
Dallas
Dallas City Code Chapter 52 makes it unlawful to build, alter, repair or demolish in the city without a valid city registration, and an unregistered contractor may not obtain a permit. Residential contractors doing remodelling or additions to a single-family or duplex home must additionally hold a home repair licence under Chapter 50. Registration runs one year. Official page →
San Antonio
San Antonio requires a valid registration card for residential construction and home improvement work, backed by general liability insurance and an approved FBI background check. Its Contractor Connect programme then tiers registrants -- Registered, Registered Plus, and Premier, the top tier requiring a residential ICC certification. It is the only one of the four cities with a public consumer-facing directory, though the city notes the tool is not designed to recommend contractors. Official page →
Austin
A general contractor must hold an AB+C Portal account and register before being assigned to a building permit. Registration is a web form and a letter of authorisation -- no state licence, no exam. General contractors register once; trade contractors must update annually and must hold the applicable state licence. Official page →
Registered with the city is not the same as vetted
This is the misunderstanding that costs people money, and Dallas answers it in its own municipal code. Chapter 52 grants contractors the rights of registration and then says plainly that in doing so, the city makes no statement of the technical competency of those registered, and that no manner of licence is being offered. Registration proves a form was filed and a fee was paid. In most Texas cities nobody has assessed whether the contractor can build.
What to check instead
With no state licence to lean on, these are what actually tell you something. Take them in order.
- Can they pull the permit themselves, in their own name?In a state with no licensing gate, this is the closest thing to a competence signal. A contractor who asks you to pull the permit as the homeowner is moving the liability onto you, and often doing it because they cannot register with the city.
- General liability insurance, verified with the carrierTexas does not require a residential general contractor to carry it. Ask for the certificate and phone the insurer -- a certificate is a PDF and PDFs are easy to edit.
- Workers' compensation -- and read this one carefullyTexas is the only state where workers' compensation is broadly optional for private employers. A contractor can advertise “licensed and insured” in Texas with no workers' compensation at all. If an uninsured worker is hurt on your property, that exposure can land on you. Employers who opt out must notify the state and tell their employees in writing that they are not covered.
- The trade licences beneath your general contractorEven where the general contractor needs nothing, the electrician, plumber and HVAC contractor on your job all need state licences. Those you can verify for free, and they are worth verifying.
- A written contract before any work or materials arriveIn Texas this is not just prudence -- for a homestead it is tied to the mechanic's lien rules described below.
The lien risk is the part most homeowners miss
Under Chapter 53 of the Texas Property Code, unpaid subcontractors and material suppliers can place a lien on your home even if you have already paid your general contractor in full. If your contractor takes your money and does not pay the lumber yard, the lumber yard's claim attaches to your house, not to the contractor.
- Texas requires the owner to reserve a percentage of the contract price during the work and for a period after completion. Failing to hold that retainage can expose you to claims you would otherwise have been protected from.
- Homestead property carries extra requirements that exist to protect you: the contract must be in writing, signed before any labour or material is furnished, signed by both spouses if the owner is married, and filed with the county clerk.
- The original contractor must give you a prescribed written disclosure of your rights before the contract is signed.
- Lien deadline mechanics were amended by the Legislature in 2025, so any deadline table published before then may be out of date.
Texas Property Code, Chapter 53 →
If the work goes wrong, there is a step before suing
Chapter 27 of the Texas Property Code -- the Residential Construction Liability Act -- requires you to give the contractor written notice before filing suit and to allow an inspection and a chance to make a settlement offer. Skip it and the court can pause your case. Reject a reasonable offer and your recovery can be capped at the value of that offer. Your contract is required to carry a notice telling you this.
Texas Property Code, Chapter 27 →
How to verify what can be verified
What you can actually check, and what each one proves.
| TDLR License Search | Free | Covers electricians, air conditioning and refrigeration, elevator contractors and water well drillers. Does not cover general contractors, plumbers or roofers. Shows active licences only. |
| Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners | Free | The official plumbing licence check. Also shows whether a Responsible Master Plumber has a certificate of insurance on file. |
| Texas Comptroller franchise tax status | Free | Confirms a business entity is in good standing on franchise tax. It says nothing about competence, insurance or licensing. |
| Texas Secretary of State entity search | Paid, per search | Confirms the entity exists, its status and its registered agent. It does not prove the entity is the one that will do your work. |
| TDLR complaints | Free | Only covers TDLR-regulated programmes. A complaint about a general contractor has nowhere to land here. |
Three things people get wrong
“I need to get my Texas contractor licence.”
There is no such credential for general contracting. If a site is selling you a “Texas contractor licence,” it is selling something the state does not issue. The state's own verification tools are free, or a dollar.
“The state used to license builders, so something must exist.”
The Texas Residential Construction Commission did exist. It was abolished in 2009 and no successor licensing body was created.
“Unlicensed contractors are illegal in Texas.”
It depends entirely on the work and the city. Electrical, plumbing and HVAC work without the state licence is unlawful statewide. Acting as a general contractor is unlawful only where a city ordinance requires registration -- and in Houston, not at all.
Reviewed August 2026. Licensing rules change — After each biennial legislative session; the 90th Texas Legislature convenes January 2027. This page is general information for homeowners, not legal advice, and 9Builders is not a law firm. Verify anything that matters to your project against the official sources linked above, or with an attorney. 9Builders builds in the California Bay Area and is not a Texas contractor.