New Mexico Contractor License Requirements
Every figure below was read off the CID or the statute, and the sentence it came from is listed at the bottom of this page. Where a figure could not be verified this page says so rather than showing a number.
What the state requires
- Licence
- GB-98 General Building contractor licence (GB-2 for residential up to four family units)
- Issued by
- Construction Industries Division, New Mexico Regulation and Licensing DepartmentNMSA 1978 §§ 60-13-1 to 60-13-59 (Construction Industries Licensing Act); 14.5.5, 14.6.3 and 14.6.6 NMAC
- Exam
- Business and law examination plus the GB-98 trade examination, taken by the qualifying party; passing score 75% or higherPSI
- Exam fee
- No verified figure$30 non-refundable licence application fee, plus $30 again for each additional classification. The basic fee for an initial licence or renewal in GA-98, GB-2, GB-98, GF-98, EE-98 or MM-98 is $100.00 per year or $200.00 for two years per classification; any other classification is $50 per year or $100 for two years. Re-review of a failed GB-98 or business-and-law exam is $25, a special review after two failures $40. The exam fee itself is set by CID's designee and is not fixed in 14.5.5 NMAC, so exam_fee_usd is null. Military service members and veterans pay no licence fee for the first three years.
- Application fee
- $30
- Initial licence fee
- $200
- Licence bond
- $10,000Flat $10,000 for every classification - it is NOT tiered. Both the statute (NMSA 1978 § 60-13-49) and the rule (14.6.3.8(C)(1) NMAC) state one figure, at initial licensure and as a condition of each renewal. The bond must be underwritten by a corporate surety authorised in New Mexico and must cover the entire period of licensure. Payments from it may only cure CID-certified code violations the licensee caused and did not correct, and claims must be made within two years of final inspection or of issuance of a certificate of occupancy, whichever is earlier. The carrier must give CID and the licensee 30 days' notice before cancelling, and a lapse triggers immediate cancellation of the licence.
- General liability
- Not requiredCID requires no general liability policy as a licensing condition; the $10,000 bond is the statutory 'proof of responsibility'. Failure to comply with the workers' compensation laws under NMSA 1978 § 60-13-23 is listed as an event that makes a licence invalid.
- Workers compensation
- Required
- Experience
- 4 yearsGB-98 requires four years of foreman-level practical or related trade experience, of which two years must be commercial. The qualifying party cannot sit the exam until documenting four years of satisfactory work experience within the ten years immediately prior to application. Accredited technical training counts as one-half year per year and may not exceed half the total requirement. GB-2 residential requires two years of foreman-level experience.
- Continuing education
- No continuing education requiredNo continuing education requirement for contractor licences in 14.6.3 NMAC.
- Renewal
- Every 2 years
- NASCLA exam
- AcceptedThe bureau chief may waive the state-specific written trade exam for a qualifying party who has passed the NASCLA accredited examination at the passing score, provided all other qualifying-party and journeyman requirements are met. It is a waiver of the trade exam, not of the business and law exam.
What people get wrong
The brief for this batch said the New Mexico bond is tiered by classification. It is not. Statute and rule both fix a single $10,000 bond for every classification, from GS specialty to GB-98, and third-party pages that present tiers are wrong. A GB-98 may bid as prime on a mechanical, plumbing or electrical project that includes GB-98 work regardless of percentage, but must subcontract the out-of-scope trades to separately licensed entities, and may not prime a project whose major portion by dollar amount falls under a GA classification or GF-1/2/3/4/6/8/9. The licence is issued to the business entity and is qualified by an individual qualifying party; losing the qualifying party automatically cancels the licence, with work in progress allowed to continue no more than 120 days.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need a contractor licence in New Mexico?
- Yes. New Mexico issues a state general contractor licence — GB-98 General Building contractor licence (GB-2 for residential up to four family units) — through the Construction Industries Division, New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department. The brief for this batch said the New Mexico bond is tiered by classification. It is not. Statute and rule both fix a single $10,000 bond for every classification, from GS specialty to GB-98, and third-party pages that present tiers are wrong. A GB-98 may bid as prime on a mechanical, plumbing or electrical project that includes GB-98 work regardless of percentage, but must subcontract the out-of-scope trades to separately licensed entities, and may not prime a project whose major portion by dollar amount falls under a GA classification or GF-1/2/3/4/6/8/9. The licence is issued to the business entity and is qualified by an individual qualifying party; losing the qualifying party automatically cancels the licence, with work in progress allowed to continue no more than 120 days.
- How much is the New Mexico contractor licence bond?
- $10,000. Flat $10,000 for every classification - it is NOT tiered. Both the statute (NMSA 1978 § 60-13-49) and the rule (14.6.3.8(C)(1) NMAC) state one figure, at initial licensure and as a condition of each renewal. The bond must be underwritten by a corporate surety authorised in New Mexico and must cover the entire period of licensure. Payments from it may only cure CID-certified code violations the licensee caused and did not correct, and claims must be made within two years of final inspection or of issuance of a certificate of occupancy, whichever is earlier. The carrier must give CID and the licensee 30 days' notice before cancelling, and a lapse triggers immediate cancellation of the licence.
- Does New Mexico accept the NASCLA exam?
- Yes. The bureau chief may waive the state-specific written trade exam for a qualifying party who has passed the NASCLA accredited examination at the passing score, provided all other qualifying-party and journeyman requirements are met. It is a waiver of the trade exam, not of the business and law exam.
Sources
“Upon initial licensure and as a condition of renewal each applicant shall furnish to the division a bond in the amount of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) underwritten by a corporate surety authorized to transact business in New Mexico.”
https://www.srca.nm.gov/parts/title14/14.006.0003.html“No applicant for a qualifying party certificate is eligible to take a qualifying examination until providing satisfactory work experience, as to four years within the 10 years immediately prior to application, documentation to the division. A passing exam score is seventy-five percent or higher.”
https://www.srca.nm.gov/parts/title14/14.006.0003.html“The bureau chief may waive the state specific written trade exam requirement for a qualifying party who has passed the general construction, electrical, or electrical journeyman, national association of state contractors licensing agencies (NASCLA) accredited examination at the passing exam score”
https://www.srca.nm.gov/parts/title14/14.006.0003.html“GB-98. General building. Requires four years of foreman level practical or related trade experience of which at two years must be commercial experience. Erect, alter, repair or demolish residential and commercial buildings, and certain structures; includes all work authorized by the GB-2, GF-5, GF-7 and GS classifications”
https://www.srca.nm.gov/parts/title14/14.006.0006.html“Each applicant for an initial contractor's license shall pay a non-refundable license application fee of $30.00 in addition to any other required fees. The basic fee for an initial license or for renewal of a license for the GA-98, GB-2, GB-98, GF-98, EE-98 or MM-98 classification shall be $100.00 per year, or $200.00 for two years, for each such classification.”
https://www.srca.nm.gov/parts/title14/14.005.0005.html“Proof of responsibility shall be a bond of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) acceptable to the director and underwritten by a corporate surety authorized to transact business in New Mexico.”
https://www.rld.nm.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Article-13-CILA-7.1.21.pdf“Contractor's licenses shall expire two years after the issuance date or as determined by the division, but in no instance less than one year, and shall be renewable upon application to the division and payment of the prescribed renewal fee”
https://www.rld.nm.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Article-13-CILA-7.1.21.pdf“New Mexico Construction Industries Division”
https://www.nascla.org/nascla-commercial-exam-participating-state-agencies
Then there is the exam
Practise New Mexico exam questions free, with explanations that cite the reference book and section.