Iowa to Massachusetts: general contractor license reciprocity

1. 1Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Massachusetts Unrestricted Construction Supervisor examination, administered by PSI: 75 questions, 180 minutes, 70% to pass (a cutscore of 53), open book, taken at a PSI center in Auburn, Charlestown, Fall River, Lawrence or West Springfield or at any PSI center elsewhere in the United States. Results are given immediately and there is no limit on retakes. PSI takes up to two weeks to review an examination application, and the approved application stays on file for two years..
2. 2Application fee. Pay the application fee ($23). Non-refundable examination application fee paid to PSI when the registration form and the experience documentation are filed..
3. 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($65). Non-refundable examination fee paid to PSI when the examination is scheduled. An appointment can be moved without losing the fee if the notice reaches PSI two days before the test date..
4. 4License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($150). Initial Unrestricted Construction Supervisor license fee, mailed with the passing score report to the Division of Occupational Licensure within one year of passing the examination (801 CMR 4.02(39)(a)). The first license runs three years; renewals are $100 for a two-year term, and a renewal filed more than one year but less than two years after expiry carries a $100 late fee. A license more than two years past expiry cannot be renewed and the examination must be taken again..
5. 5Other. Documentation of the three years of experience filed with the examination application: W-2, IRS Schedule C or 1099 forms covering the equivalent of three years of full-time work, or, instead of tax records, a letter of attestation from an engineer, architect, employer, military supervisor or licensed contractor. Where education is used for part of the experience, a copy of the diploma or degree is filed as well..
6. 6Continuing education. Complete continuing education. Renewal condition rather than an entry requirement: an Unrestricted construction supervisor completes 12 hours of Board-approved continuing education in each two-year renewal cycle, made up of four hours of code review and at least one hour each of workplace safety, business practices and workers' compensation, energy and, in the first renewal cycle only, lead safe practices, with the balance as approved electives. No more than six of the hours may be taken online; the rest must be classroom based. Courses should be finished at least 60 days before the license expires, and a certificate used for one renewal cannot be used again. A Specialty license carries six hours per cycle on the same pattern..
7. 7Background check. Complete a background check. There is no fingerprint or criminal record check for the Construction Supervisor License itself, but under 780 CMR 110.R5.2.9.2 the Board may require an applicant or licensee to disclose any conviction, felony or misdemeanour, or any civil finding made against them by a court, by another state or federal agency, or by a licensing board in another jurisdiction, either at application or at the next renewal..
8. 8Insurance. Carry the required insurance (if applicable). The Construction Supervisor License carries no surety bond, financial statement, net worth, working capital or general liability insurance requirement; 780 CMR 110.R5 sets none and the fee schedule collects only the application, examination and license fees. Workers' compensation obligations apply to the business independently of the license, and owners, lenders and general contractors commonly require liability coverage by contract..
9. 9Other. On-site obligations that come with the license: the license holder must carry the license card at all times during construction work on any site and produce it if a building official asks; every building permit application must carry the supervisor's name, signature, license number and license category; and if that supervisor stops supervising the work, the work must stop until a successor license holder is substituted on the building department's records. The license holder is fully responsible for all work supervised, even when they are a subcontractor rather than the permit holder, and must notify the building official in writing of any violation discovered under the permit..

Published fees on this path total $238, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.