LicensebyState

Colorado to Washington: general contractor license reciprocity

No credit· Start overVerified September 17, 2026· 15 sources

Colorado does not issue a statewide general contractor license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Washington's standard path for out-of-state applicants.

Your origin state does not issue a statewide license at this level, so there is no license to transfer. The destination's standard out-of-state path is shown; expect to meet it in full.

Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.

Everyone registers the same way; an out-of-state contractor license transfers nothing

Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.

A commercial or general contractor licensed in another state gains nothing from that license in Washington and loses nothing by not having one. L&I does not evaluate out-of-state credentials for contractor registration, publishes no reciprocity or endorsement route, and has nothing to waive, because Washington holds no contractor examination and sets no experience requirement. Washington is not one of the state agencies that accept the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors, for the same reason. An arriving contractor therefore follows the ordinary route: file a Business License Application with the Department of Revenue for a UBI (after filing with the Secretary of State if the business is a corporation, LLP or LLC, including one formed in another state), file a continuous $30,000 contractor surety bond or an assigned savings account for that amount with the State of Washington as obligee, file a certificate of general liability insurance naming L&I as certificate holder, submit the notarized Application for Construction Contractor Registration (F625-001-000) with a notarized affidavit from every principal, and pay $150.20 for a two-year registration. The business name must match exactly across the application, the bond and the insurance certificate. Applications mailed to Olympia take about three to four weeks to process; applications completed at a local L&I office are handled at the counter, and the registration card arrives about two weeks later.

An out-of-state business should also contact L&I's extraterritorial specialists at [email protected] or 360-902-4817 about reporting hours worked in Washington: L&I has workers' compensation reciprocal agreements with several neighboring states, but those agreements are about industrial insurance rather than licensing, and the construction industry is carved out of some of them. The statutory bond is a consumer-protection device, not a measure of capacity, so a large commercial contractor may still need far higher bonds by contract or under the public works statutes; the figures here are only what registration requires. Public agencies may not contract with an unregistered contractor (RCW 18.27.111).

At a glance

Trade exam
Waived
Law / code exam
Not required
Out-of-state hours
Do not count
Typical processing
About 28 days

What you must already have

  • Every owner, member, partner and corporate officer must be at least 18 and provide a Social Security number or individual taxpayer identification number, a government-issued photo ID number and a residential address, and must sign the application before a notary public.RCW 18.27.030(1)(a) and (g), with the age and notarization requirements stated in the instructions to form F625-001-000.
  • The application is denied if a principal has an unsatisfied final judgment for work subject to chapter 18.27 RCW or owes certain unpaid debts to L&I, or if the business is a successor operating with all or part of the assets of a previously registered entity under substantially common ownership, management or control that has such a judgment or debt.
  • No examination result, trade experience, education, apprenticeship or financial statement is asked for at any point, so an out-of-state license, a NASCLA examination transcript and documented years in business are all equally irrelevant to the decision.

What you'll do to get licensed in Washington

  1. 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($150.20). Contractor registration issuance fee (WAC 296-200A-900(1)). The registration is valid for two years from issuance and renews for the same $150.20; reinstatement after a suspension costs $70.90 and a duplicate certificate costs $16.50. L&I mails a renewal notice no more than 45 days before expiry, and it is the contractor's duty to notify the department in writing within ten days of any change of address..
  2. 2Surety bond. Post a surety bond ($30,000). Continuous Contractor's Surety Bond (F625-003-000) in the sum of $30,000 for a general contractor, issued by a surety insurer meeting chapter 48.28 RCW and naming the State of Washington as obligee. The original, uncorrected bond must be filed with L&I with the bonding company's seal, or filed electronically by the surety, and it must carry the exact business name on file. An assigned savings account for the same amount (form F625-008-000) held at a bank, savings and loan or credit union with a Washington branch may be posted instead. The bond answers claims by workers, the state for taxes and contributions, suppliers and customers; cancellation suspends the registration automatically, and a contractor that switches from a general to a specialty registration may not reduce the bond amount for two years..
  3. 3Insurance. Carry the required insurance ($250,000). General liability insurance of $200,000 public liability and $50,000 property damage, or a $250,000 combined single limit policy, written in the exact business name with L&I named as certificate holder. The statute states it as $50,000 for property damage, $100,000 for injury or death to any one person and $200,000 for injury or death to more than one person. Certificates reach L&I by mail, through the designated insurance agent portal or in person, never by email or fax, and an assigned account in the statutory amounts may be filed instead as proof of financial responsibility. Cancellation or expiry automatically suspends the registration..
  4. 4Business license. Obtain a business license. A Washington Business License Application filed with the Department of Revenue Business Licensing Service, producing the nine-digit Uniform Business Identifier (UBI) required on the registration application and required to stay active and valid throughout. A corporation, limited partnership, LLP or LLC formed in another state registers with the Washington Secretary of State first, and a copy of the Secretary of State certificate is filed with L&I. L&I will not process the registration until it verifies that the business license application has been filed and an excise tax account is open. The Department of Revenue's application fee varies with the endorsements the business needs and is not published as a single figure; see dor.wa.gov for the current processing fee..
  5. 5Other. Notarized Application for Construction Contractor Registration (F625-001-000), with an individually notarized affidavit of signature from each owner, member, partner and corporate officer. All signatures must be original, so a copy or an emailed application is not accepted; file it in person at a local L&I office or mail it to Contractor Registration, PO Box 44450, Olympia WA 98504-4450 with the bond, the insurance certificate and the fee..
  6. 6Other. Workers' compensation coverage and an employment security department number if the business will have employees in Washington; a business with no Washington employees may substitute its UBI account number. An applicant domiciled in a state or Canadian province covered by an extraterritorial workers' compensation agreement may file that jurisdiction's certificate of coverage instead of opening a Washington industrial insurance account (RCW 18.27.030(1)(c)(iii)). An employer identification number is needed from the IRS unless the applicant is a sole proprietor with no employees..
  7. 7Other. Model Disclosure Statement, Notice to Customer (F625-030-000), required on every residential job of $1,000 or more and on commercial projects of $1,000 to $60,000; failing to give it can cost the contractor its lien rights. The registration number must appear on all business communications, including advertising, bids, estimates and business cards, and a city, town or county may not issue a building permit without verifying that the contractor is registered..
  8. 8Other. Separate trade licensing where the work calls for it. Contractor registration does not authorize plumbing, electrical, elevator, boiler, asbestos or mobile home installation work; each carries its own education, examination and licensing requirements, and electrical contracting is licensed under chapter 19.28 RCW rather than as a registration specialty. A general contractor may meet these by subcontracting to, or employing, the appropriately licensed firm or certified tradesperson. (if applicable).

Published fees on this path total $150.20, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.

What you'll need to buy or arrange

Surety bond

A license or contractor bond is bought from a surety, not the state. Price is a small percentage of the bond amount and depends on your credit.

  • Surety bond · $30,000

Liability insurance

Some states require proof of general liability or workers' compensation coverage at licensing time.

  • Insurance · $250,000

Business registration

If you plan to contract in your own name, budget for a business license or entity registration on top of the trade license.

  • Business license

How Washington licenses general contractors

Washington general contractor · “General Contractor Registration”

Statewide license

Verified September 17, 2026· 7 sources

Issued by Washington State Department of Labor & Industries, Contractor Registration

Washington's unlimited tier is the General contractor registration issued by the Department of Labor & Industries, and it is the same credential described at the residential level: one registration covers both house and commercial work, because Washington draws no residential/commercial line. A general contractor is defined by trade breadth rather than by market or contract value: it is a contractor 'whose business operations require the use of more than one building trade or craft upon a single job or project or under a single building permit', including anyone who superintends or consults on such work, while a specialty contractor is limited to one of 63 named trades and may subcontract only work incidental to that trade. There is no dollar cap, no classification letter and no project-size tier on a general registration. Washington does not examine contractors at all: chapter 18.27 RCW and chapter 296-200A WAC contain no trade exam, no business-and-law exam, no experience requirement, no net worth or financial statement test and no qualifying party, and L&I's application asks for none of them. What the state requires is a registered business with money behind it, which the department verifies rather than judges: a Uniform Business Identifier from the Department of Revenue, a continuous $30,000 surety bond (or an assigned savings account for the same amount), general liability insurance of $200,000 public liability and $50,000 property damage or $250,000 combined single limit, a notarized application signed by every owner, member, partner and officer, and $150.20 for two years. Registration is required of every contractor with almost no threshold: the only general exemption is work on a single project whose total price for labor, materials and everything else is under $500, and even that is lost if the person advertises as a contractor. Registration is statewide and exclusive; RCW 18.27.130 bars any city or county from issuing its own contractor registration, license or bond, though a city may still charge a general business license fee and a gross receipts tax, and a building department must verify a contractor's registration before it issues a permit.

Moving to WashingtonLeaving Washington

Why Colorado has nothing to transfer

Colorado general contractor · “General / Building contractor license (Class A or B in most jurisdictions)”

Licensed by cities and counties

Verified September 17, 2026· 18 sources

Colorado has no statewide general or commercial building contractor license. DORA licenses electricians and plumbers through its Division of Professions and Occupations but states on its own consumer page that general contractors are not licensed at the state level and that you should check with the city; the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department says the same thing in its exam notice. Unlimited and commercial building work is therefore licensed by each city, county or regional building department, typically as a Class A (unlimited) and Class B (limited commercial or under a height or storey cap) pair: Denver issues General Contractor Class A and Building Contractor Class B, Colorado Springs issues Building Contractor A-1, A-2, B-1 and B-2, Fort Collins issues Classes A, B, C1 and C2, and Aurora issues a single Commercial Building Contractor license. The license is held by the business and qualified by an individual who holds the supervisor certificate and has passed the relevant exam, so the person moving states applies for the certificate and the company applies for the license. The common thread is the ICC National Standard General Building Contractor (A) and Building Contractor (B) examinations, which nearly every Colorado jurisdiction requires, and a license must be obtained separately in each jurisdiction where the contractor will pull permits.

How local licensing works in Colorado

How local licensing works. Each Colorado jurisdiction licenses building contractors under its own ordinance and building code, and there is no state board above them. Class letters and size thresholds differ from place to place, so a Class B in Fort Collins is not a Class B in Colorado Springs. What is consistent is the exam: most jurisdictions require an ICC National Standard contractor examination, open book and multiple choice through Pearson VUE, and the Pikes Peak notice explains why that matters - "with successful passage of an ICC contractor exam, contractors can be secure in the knowledge that their results may be honored by many jurisdictions in Colorado and throughout the United States. However, each jurisdiction has the right to determine if this exam is acceptable." The same exam appears as W11, F11 or G11 for the unlimited (A) tier and W12, F12 or G12 for the limited (B) tier, depending on which code edition the jurisdiction has adopted, and departments generally require results from the current or a recent code year. The notice also warns that "passing an ICC contractor exam is NOT a license to practice and does not guarantee licensing in any jurisdiction."

Denver. The individual first earns a supervisor certificate. Class A covers "to erect, add to, alter, demolish, or repair any building or structure" and needs seven years of notarized commercial experience including ground-up high-rise work over 75 feet plus ICC exam #F11. Class B covers any building classified as less than a high rise and needs four years of notarized commercial experience on ground-up builds of 55 to 75 feet plus ICC exam #F12; Class B-2 caps the highest floor level or occupiable roof at 30 feet, with four years of experience including ground-up projects up to 40 feet, also on ICC #F12. Certificates cost $60 and renew every three years. The company then buys the General Contractor Class A or Building Contractor Class B license at $250 for three years. Denver states it "does not accept or reciprocate contractor licenses and/or certificates from other counties or states."

Colorado Springs, El Paso County and nearby towns (Pikes Peak Regional Building Department). Building Contractor A-1 covers "the construction, alteration and repair of any type or size of structure permitted by the Regional Building Code"; A-2 is the same except Group A, E and I occupancies over 30,000 square feet and any building requiring Type I construction; B-1 covers all occupancies except Groups A, E, I and H and Type I construction; B-2 covers nonstructural remodeling plus Group B, F, M or S buildings up to one storey and 7,500 square feet and Group R buildings up to 16 units and two storeys. License fees are $200 for A-1 and A-2, $175 for B-1 and B-2, on top of a $50 non-refundable application fee, and each of these classes requires an exam. Applicants supply three reference forms documenting experience, copies of all licenses held inside or outside Colorado, liability insurance naming PPRBD, workers' compensation, a Colorado certificate of good standing and a name-based judicial record check. Files close three weeks before the monthly Licensing Committee meeting, the Board of Review approves the following week, and the license must be claimed within 60 days. PPRBD accepts ICC National Standardized or ICC Colorado Standard exams passed on or after January 1, 2016 and states that "no out-of-state exams will be accepted."

Aurora. A single Commercial Building Contractor license "Requires ICC General Building Contractor 'A' OR 'B' Certification"; the supervisor license fee is $131 and the license fee is $392, plus registration and three job references. Limited Building Commercial and Demolition contractors register with three years of documented experience instead.

Fort Collins. Class A and A(DR) cover any building or structure; Class B and B(DR) cover new builds up to and including five storeys; Class C1 and C2 cover new builds up to three storeys and multi-family housing projects; E(C) covers nonstructural commercial alterations. Classes A and B require ICC exam G11 over the 2018 IBC plus the concrete manual, and Classes C1, C2 and E(C) require ICC exam G12, with G11 also accepted in place of G12. Every general contractor class also needs three project verifications with permits and final inspection records signed by someone unconnected to the applicant, and general liability of $1,000,000 per person with $2,000,000 per accident, property damage and aggregate. A new license with supervisor certificate is $300 for a two-year term including a $75 non-refundable application fee; renewals are $225. The city adopted the 2024 ICC codes with amendments in December 2025 and requires exam results from a current code year.

Boulder. Class A covers "the construction, alteration, wrecking, or repair of any type or size of building or structure permitted in the City of Boulder" and requires the ICC A Contractors certificate; Class B covers commercial and residential buildings of construction types V, IV, III-B and II-B and requires the ICC B certificate. New Class A and Class B applicants must also document education, training or years of experience in non-residential construction. Boulder states that it "does not accept reciprocal licenses from other jurisdictions," and its license covers work inside city limits only.

Jefferson County. Class A (labeled 2018 G11) covers "the construction, alteration, tenant finish or repair of any type of structure permitted by the Building Code" and Class B (2018 G12) covers commercial buildings and single- or multi-dwelling buildings up to three storeys. The county accepts "proof that you have passed an appropriate ICC exam within the last 3 years or ... a copy of a valid license issued from an ICC participating jurisdiction." The fee is $50 and licenses renew annually.

Arapahoe County. Building Contractor Class A (commercial) and Class B (commercial/residential) each cost $360 and require the matching ICC certification "or equivalent" certification by a recognized state or national certification entity; Class D specialty is $84. Insurance must carry a $2,000,000 general aggregate and $1,000,000 each occurrence, with the county as an additional holder.

Lakewood. Class A-1 Unlimited Commercial is "only issued to contractors with experience in building high-rise construction"; A-2 Limited Commercial is limited to two-storey commercial or four-storey R occupancies; A-4 covers commercial and residential remodeling not exceeding 30 percent of the original structure. A-1 and A-2 applicants attach any ICC certifications they or their employees hold. Fees are $150 for the first probationary year and $400 for each subsequent three-year renewal.

Douglas County. Unincorporated Douglas County registers general contractors rather than licensing them and states that it "has no testing requirements." Registration needs the application, workers' compensation proof or an exemption statement and business liability insurance naming the Building Division; fees are currently waived.

Out-of-state holders. None of the jurisdictions reviewed will convert another state's general contractor license into a Colorado one. Denver and Boulder rule it out in writing, and PPRBD will not accept exam results earned out of state. What does carry across is the ICC National Standard contractor certification: pass the (A) or (B) exam on a code edition the jurisdiction currently accepts and it will usually satisfy the testing requirement in Denver, Colorado Springs, Aurora, Fort Collins, Boulder, Jefferson County and Arapahoe County, though each department still verifies experience, references or project history separately and charges its own fee. Jefferson County goes further and accepts a current license from another ICC participating jurisdiction in place of the exam. Check the required class, exam code year and fee with each building department before applying, and expect to hold a license in every jurisdiction where you pull permits.

Moving to ColoradoLeaving Colorado

Common questions

Do I have to take the Washington general contractor exam if I'm licensed in Colorado?
No. The trade exam is waived on this path.
What does it cost to get a Washington general contractor license from Colorado?
Published fees on this path total $150.20, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
Do my Colorado work hours count in Washington?
No. Washington does not credit out-of-state hours on this path.
How long does the application take?
The board's published or typical processing time is about 28 days.
Does it work the other way, from Washington to Colorado?
Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Washington to Colorado, the mechanism is not applicable.

Sources

  1. NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors · National Association of State Contractors Licensing Agencies · Other · verified September 17, 2026
  2. NASCLA Commercial Exam - Participating State Agencies · National Association of State Contractors Licensing Agencies · Other · verified September 17, 2026
  3. Washington Department of Revenue - Apply for a business license (UBI number) · Washington State Department of Revenue, Business Licensing Service · Agency Page · verified September 17, 2026
  4. L&I Form F625-001-000 - Application for Construction Contractor Registration (rev. 07-2026) · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Form · verified September 17, 2026
  5. L&I - Register as a Contractor · Washington State Department of Labor & Industries · Agency Page · verified September 17, 2026
  6. RCW 18.27.010 - Definitions (contractor, general contractor, specialty contractor) · RCW 18.27.010 · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 17, 2026
  7. RCW 18.27.030 - Application for registration - Grounds for denial and suspension · RCW 18.27.030 · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 17, 2026
  8. RCW 18.27.040 - Bond or other security required · RCW 18.27.040 · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 17, 2026
  9. RCW 18.27.050 - Insurance or financial responsibility required · RCW 18.27.050 · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 17, 2026
  10. RCW 18.27.060 - Certificate of registration - Issuance, duration, renewal - Suspension · RCW 18.27.060 · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 17, 2026
  11. Chapter 18.27 RCW - Registration of Contractors (full chapter text) · Chapter 18.27 RCW · Washington State Legislature · Statute · verified September 17, 2026
  12. WAC 296-200A-016 - Definitions of the specialty contractor classifications for the purpose of contractor registration only · WAC 296-200A-016; WAC 296-200A-015 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 17, 2026
  13. WAC 296-200A-025 - How does a contractor register, renew, reregister or reinstate its registration? · WAC 296-200A-025 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 17, 2026
  14. WAC 296-200A-030 - How much are the surety bond or savings account amounts? · WAC 296-200A-030 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 17, 2026
  15. WAC 296-200A-900 - What fees does the department charge contractors for issuance, renewal, reregistration, and reinstatement of certificates of registration? · WAC 296-200A-900 · Washington State Legislature · Admin Rule · verified September 17, 2026

Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.

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