Oregon Contractor License Requirements
Every figure below was read off the CCB 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
- Residential General Contractor (RGC); Commercial General Contractor Level 1 (CGC1) or Level 2 (CGC2)
- Issued by
- Oregon Construction Contractors BoardOr. Rev. Stat. ch. 701
- Exam
- The Oregon CCB exam, 80 multiple choice questions, based on the NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management (Oregon version); passing score 70 percent. Taken by the business's responsible managing individual (RMI) after 16 hours of pre-license training.PSI
- Exam fee
- No verified figureThe $400 license fee covers the full two-year licence; there is no separate initial licence fee on top of the application. The fee was $325 for applications received by 6/30/2025 and $400 from 7/1/2025. The $60 test fee is paid to PSI. The licence must be applied for within 24 months of passing the test.
- Application fee
- $400
- Initial licence fee
- $0
- Licence bond
- $25,000bond_amount_usd is the Residential General Contractor bond, $25,000. The endorsement decides the figure and residential and commercial bonds are different instruments: Commercial General Contractor Level 1 must post an $80,000 commercial bond, Level 2 a $25,000 commercial bond. Residential Specialty is $20,000 and Residential Limited $15,000. A business endorsed for both residential and commercial work must carry TWO bonds, one of each kind, but only ONE liability policy, in the higher of the two amounts. All CCB minimum bond amounts rose by $5,000 on January 1, 2024 under HB 2922.
- General liability
- $500,000gl_insurance_amount_usd is the Residential General Contractor figure, $500,000 per occurrence. Commercial General Contractor Level 1 needs $2 million aggregate and Level 2 $1 million aggregate. Residential Specialty is $300,000 per occurrence and Residential Limited $100,000. The policy must cover general liability, personal injury and property damage including products and completed operations, with the CCB named as certificate holder. Workers' compensation coverage is required only if the business will have employees, not of every licensee.
- Workers compensation
- Not required
- Experience
- None requiredNo experience is required for a residential endorsement - the gate is the 16-hour training plus the exam. Commercial endorsements do require it: a Commercial General Contractor Level 1 must have key employees with 8 years of combined construction experience and a Level 2 must have 4 years. An apprenticeship or a construction-related bachelor's degree may substitute for up to three years, a bachelor's or master's in business, finance or economics for up to two, an associate's in construction or building management for up to one.
- Continuing education
- 8 hours every two yearsce_hours is the residential renewal figure for a contractor licensed six or more years: 3 hours of CCB laws, regulations and business practices plus 5 hours of other approved courses. A residential contractor licensed less than six years needs 16 hours - the same 3 hours plus 13 hours of other approved courses. Commercial CE is counted per key employee instead: Level 2 general or specialty contractors need 32 hours completed by key employees, and Level 1 needs 16 hours for 1 key employee, 32 for 2, 48 for 3, 64 for 4 and 80 for 5 or more.
- Renewal
- Every 2 years
- NASCLA exam
- AcceptedNASCLA lists the Oregon Construction Contractors Board among the agencies that accept the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors. Note this is separate from the ordinary Oregon route: the CCB's own 80-question exam is merely based on the NASCLA guidebook, it is not the NASCLA accredited exam.
What people get wrong
Oregon licenses the business, not the individual, and the endorsement - residential vs commercial, and Level 1 vs Level 2 on the commercial side - changes the bond, the insurance and the experience requirement all at once. A contractor working both sides posts two separate bonds. The single most common mistake is assuming there is one Oregon bond figure: the residential general bond is $25,000 and the commercial general Level 1 bond is $80,000, and neither substitutes for the other.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need a contractor licence in Oregon?
- Yes. Oregon issues a state general contractor licence — Residential General Contractor (RGC); Commercial General Contractor Level 1 (CGC1) or Level 2 (CGC2) — through the Oregon Construction Contractors Board. Oregon licenses the business, not the individual, and the endorsement - residential vs commercial, and Level 1 vs Level 2 on the commercial side - changes the bond, the insurance and the experience requirement all at once. A contractor working both sides posts two separate bonds. The single most common mistake is assuming there is one Oregon bond figure: the residential general bond is $25,000 and the commercial general Level 1 bond is $80,000, and neither substitutes for the other.
- How much is the Oregon contractor licence bond?
- $25,000. bond_amount_usd is the Residential General Contractor bond, $25,000. The endorsement decides the figure and residential and commercial bonds are different instruments: Commercial General Contractor Level 1 must post an $80,000 commercial bond, Level 2 a $25,000 commercial bond. Residential Specialty is $20,000 and Residential Limited $15,000. A business endorsed for both residential and commercial work must carry TWO bonds, one of each kind, but only ONE liability policy, in the higher of the two amounts. All CCB minimum bond amounts rose by $5,000 on January 1, 2024 under HB 2922.
- How much continuing education does Oregon require?
- 8 hours every two years. ce_hours is the residential renewal figure for a contractor licensed six or more years: 3 hours of CCB laws, regulations and business practices plus 5 hours of other approved courses. A residential contractor licensed less than six years needs 16 hours - the same 3 hours plus 13 hours of other approved courses. Commercial CE is counted per key employee instead: Level 2 general or specialty contractors need 32 hours completed by key employees, and Level 1 needs 16 hours for 1 key employee, 32 for 2, 48 for 3, 64 for 4 and 80 for 5 or more.
- Does Oregon accept the NASCLA exam?
- Yes. NASCLA lists the Oregon Construction Contractors Board among the agencies that accept the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors. Note this is separate from the ordinary Oregon route: the CCB's own 80-question exam is merely based on the NASCLA guidebook, it is not the NASCLA accredited exam.
Sources
“Residential General Contractor (RGC) ... $25,000 Residential bond ... $500,000 per occurrence insurance”
https://www.oregon.gov/ccb/Documents/Endorsement%20Chart.pdf“Commercial General Contractor Level 1 (CGC1) ... $80,000 Commercial bond ... $2 million aggregate insurance ... Commercial General Contractor Level 2 (CGC2) ... $25,000 Commercial bond ... $1 million aggregate insurance”
https://www.oregon.gov/ccb/Documents/Endorsement%20Chart.pdf“A Level 1 contractor must have 8 years of construction experience. A Level 2 contractor must have 4 years of construction experience”
https://www.oregon.gov/ccb/Documents/Endorsement%20Chart.pdf“Complete at least 16 hours of pre-license training from an approved pre-license education provider and pass the Oregon exam. ... $325 (if received by 6/30/2025) ... $400 (beginning 7/1/2025)”
https://www.oregon.gov/ccb/Pages/CCB%20License.aspx“3 hours of CCB laws, regulations and business practices classes PLUS 5 hours of other approved courses if you have been licensed by the CCB six or more years OR 13 hours of other approved courses if you have been licensed by the CCB less than six years”
https://www.oregon.gov/ccb/Pages/Continuing-Education.aspx“For most licenses, an RMI must complete a 16-hour training course. ... The test is based on the NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management (Oregon version). ... A passing score is 70 percent.”
https://www.oregon.gov/ccb/Documents/Guide%20to%20becoming%20a%20lic%20contractor.pdf“All states listed below will accept the NASCLA Accredited Examination For Commercial General Building Contractors. ... Oregon Construction Contractors Board”
https://www.nascla.org/nascla-commercial-exam-participating-state-agencies
Then there is the exam
Practise Oregon exam questions free, with explanations that cite the reference book and section.