West Virginia Contractor License Requirements
Every figure below was read off the WVCLB 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
- West Virginia Contractor License — General Building Contractor classification
- Issued by
- West Virginia Contractor Licensing Board (administered by the West Virginia Division of Labor)W. Va. Code § 30-42-1 et seq.; 28 CSR 2 (West Virginia Contractor Licensing Act)
- Exam
- Two exams: the General Building Contractor classification exam (80 questions, 3 hours) and the Contractor Licensing Act / West Virginia business and law exam. A score of at least 70% is required on each.Prov
- Exam fee
- No verified figureThe license fee is an annual $90, paid at the time of application and again at each renewal; the same $90 covers the license regardless of how many classifications it carries. A sole proprietor electrical contractor holding an electrician's license pays $20 a year. Late renewal (more than 15 calendar days past expiration) adds a $25 penalty; a duplicate license is $10. Exams cost $59.95 each, first attempt or retake, paid directly to Prov — a non-whole figure, so the numeric exam_fee_usd field is left null.
- Application fee
- $90
- Initial licence fee
- $90
- Licence bond
- Not requiredThere is no fixed-amount contractor license bond. What the board checks instead is wage bond compliance under W. Va. Code § 21-5-14 — a wage bond status affidavit is filed with the license application, and the bond amount depends on the contractor's payroll, so no single figure applies.
- General liability
- Not required28 CSR 2 sets no general liability minimum. Licensure and renewal turn on compliance with the workers' compensation provisions of W. Va. Code § 23-1-1 et seq. and unemployment compensation — an entity on the Workers Compensation Default List or the Unemployment Compensation Default List loses the qualifier relief in § 28-2-4.5.
- Workers compensation
- Required
- Experience
- No verified figure28 CSR 2 imposes no minimum years of experience. Competency is demonstrated entirely by examination: a qualifier who is a member of responsible management or a full-time employee must pass each required classification exam plus the West Virginia business and law exam.
- Continuing education
- No continuing education requiredNo continuing education requirement in 28 CSR 2 for the contractor license.
- Renewal
- Every year
- NASCLA exam
- AcceptedNASCLA lists the West Virginia Contractors Licensing Board, Division of Labor among the agencies accepting the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors. Note that the West Virginia business and law exam is separate and is required regardless.
What people get wrong
West Virginia does have a real state contractor license board, and the license is cheap ($90 a year) but the exam load is the cost: a classification exam for every classification the firm wants plus the West Virginia business and law exam, 70% to pass, $59.95 a sitting. The General Building Contractor classification is explicitly commercial/industrial and it does NOT carry electrical, plumbing, HVAC, piping or general engineering work except on a residential structure — those need their own classifications. Bids must carry the contractor license number on their face, and building officials may not issue permits to an unlicensed contractor. The board's own site (wvclboard.wv.gov) would not resolve from this network, so the rule text was read from the Secretary of State's Code of State Rules (28 CSR 2, effective May 4 2026) and the exam facts from the board's Prov candidate bulletin on labor.wv.gov. W. Va. Code § 30-42 itself could not be read — code.wvlegislature.gov returned 403 to every request.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need a contractor licence in West Virginia?
- Yes. West Virginia issues a state general contractor licence — West Virginia Contractor License — General Building Contractor classification — through the West Virginia Contractor Licensing Board (administered by the West Virginia Division of Labor). West Virginia does have a real state contractor license board, and the license is cheap ($90 a year) but the exam load is the cost: a classification exam for every classification the firm wants plus the West Virginia business and law exam, 70% to pass, $59.95 a sitting. The General Building Contractor classification is explicitly commercial/industrial and it does NOT carry electrical, plumbing, HVAC, piping or general engineering work except on a residential structure — those need their own classifications. Bids must carry the contractor license number on their face, and building officials may not issue permits to an unlicensed contractor. The board's own site (wvclboard.wv.gov) would not resolve from this network, so the rule text was read from the Secretary of State's Code of State Rules (28 CSR 2, effective May 4 2026) and the exam facts from the board's Prov candidate bulletin on labor.wv.gov. W. Va. Code § 30-42 itself could not be read — code.wvlegislature.gov returned 403 to every request.
- Does West Virginia accept the NASCLA exam?
- Yes. NASCLA lists the West Virginia Contractors Licensing Board, Division of Labor among the agencies accepting the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors. Note that the West Virginia business and law exam is separate and is required regardless.
Sources
“3.18. "General building contractor" means a contractor whose principal business is in connection with any structures built, being built, or to be built for the support, shelter and enclosure of persons, animals, chattels, or movable property of any kind, requiring in the construction the use of more than two contractor classifications, or a person who supervises the whole or any part of the construction.”
https://apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=58823&Format=PDF“5.5. Except as provided in 5.5.1, 5.5.2, and 5.5.3 of this section, any person desiring a license must, at the time of application, pay the annual fee of $90, as established by the Board.”
https://apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=58823&Format=PDF“5.3. Except as otherwise provided in 5.3.1 and 5.3.2 of this section, all applicants must pass a written examination in each contractor classification for which they seek licensure, as set forth in the Act and section 6 of this rule, and a West Virginia business and law examination.”
https://apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=58823&Format=PDF“6.1. Any person desiring a license under the provisions of the Act and this rule must take the examinations required by the Board and receive a score of at least 70% on each examination in order to qualify for a license.”
https://apps.sos.wv.gov/adlaw/csr/readfile.aspx?DocId=58823&Format=PDF“All examinations for the State of West Virginia Contractor Licensing Board are delivered in computerized format. All examinations cost $59.95 each, whether taking for the first time or retaking.”
https://labor.wv.gov/media/243/download?inline=“West Virginia law requires that each business operating in the construction industry be licensed. To become licensed, a company representative must demonstrate competency by passing the required exam(s) in the field of construction for which licensure is being sought.”
https://labor.wv.gov/media/243/download?inline=“At this time, we also perform administrative and enforcement duties for the Contractor Licensing Board - Contractor Licensing Act.”
https://labor.wv.gov/licensing“West Virginia Contractors Licensing Board, Division of Labor”
https://www.nascla.org/nascla-commercial-exam-participating-state-agencies
Then there is the exam
Practise West Virginia exam questions free, with explanations that cite the reference book and section.