Kentucky to Massachusetts: general contractor license reciprocity
Kentucky does not issue a statewide general contractor license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Massachusetts'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.
Unrestricted CSL by examination (all states; no license recognition and no NASCLA route)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
An out-of-state general or building contractor sits the Massachusetts Unrestricted Construction Supervisor examination like any other candidate. The Board states that Massachusetts does not recognize out-of-state contractor licenses; 780 CMR 110.R5 and the candidate handbook contain no reciprocity, endorsement or examination-waiver provision, and Massachusetts is not among the jurisdictions that accept the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors, so a NASCLA certificate does not replace the Massachusetts examination either. Out-of-state work does count toward eligibility: the applicant must show three years, 36 months of full-time work, in building construction or design within the past ten years, proved by W-2, Schedule C or 1099 forms or by a letter of attestation from an engineer, architect, employer, military supervisor or licensed contractor, with a vocational program or bachelor's degree worth one year and a degree in architecture, engineering, science or a related technology field worth two, up to two years in total. The applicant registers with PSI, pays a $23 application fee and a $65 examination fee, and sits a 75-question open-book examination on the Massachusetts State Building Code: 180 minutes, 70% to pass, results given immediately, unlimited retakes. A passing candidate mails the score report and the $150 license fee to the Division of Occupational Licensure and receives the license card in about 30 days.
Massachusetts has no separate business-and-law examination. Massachusetts administrative responsibilities under 780 CMR are five scored questions inside the Unrestricted examination itself, which also covers plan reading and estimating, general building construction, energy efficiency, accessibility, sitework and foundations, concrete and masonry, moisture protection, structural framing in steel and wood, roofing and exterior walls, associated trades, interior environment, fire protection and OSHA safety. The examination is open book against the 2021 International Building Code, the 2021 International Residential Code, the International Energy Conservation Code, the Massachusetts amendments and stretch codes, the Architectural Access Board regulations at 521 CMR and 29 CFR Part 1926; candidates bring their own copies. A first license runs three years and renews for two-year terms at $100, with 12 hours of continuing education per cycle. One examination-free route exists and it is a Massachusetts one, not an out-of-state one: 780 CMR 110.R5.2.1 lets a person holding a current Massachusetts building official certification under 780 CMR 110.R7 apply for an Unrestricted license without testing. A CSL is not required for swimming pools, signs or tents, for projects subject to construction control, for agricultural buildings closed to the public, or for work inside a state-licensed trade such as wiring, plumbing, gas fitting, fire protection, pipefitting, HVAC or refrigeration. A contractor who also works on existing owner-occupied homes of one to four units needs the separate Home Improvement Contractor registration described on the residential level of this page.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
- Typical processing
- About 30 days
What you must already have
- You must document at least 3 years of qualifying work experience.The experience need not be continuous and need not have been gained in Massachusetts. Education substitutes for up to two of the three years: a three- or four-year vocational school program in building construction, or a bachelor's, master's or doctoral degree, counts as one year; a degree in architecture, science, engineering or a related technology field counts as two. Union affiliation alone is not accepted, and active military service relevant to construction may be counted.
- At least 18 years old on the day of the examination, and of good moral character as determined by the Board of Building Regulations and Standards.
- Has not already passed an examination in, or held a license in, the Unrestricted class. The exception is an applicant whose license has been expired for more than two years, or who has been ordered to re-examine after a hearing.
- A notarized signature on the examination registration form confirming that the information given is true and that all Massachusetts state tax returns have been filed and state taxes paid.
What you'll do to get licensed in Massachusetts
- 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..
- 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..
- 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..
- 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..
- 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..
- 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..
- 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..
- 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..
- 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.
What you'll need to buy or arrange
Exam preparation
Most boards contract PSI, Prov, or ICC for exams. Check which code edition the exam is written to before buying a prep course.
- Trade exam
- Exam fee · $65
Continuing education
Renewals usually need approved CE hours, often on the latest NEC. Reciprocal licensees are rarely exempt.
- Continuing education
Liability insurance
Some states require proof of general liability or workers' compensation coverage at licensing time.
- Insurance · if applicable
How Massachusetts licenses general contractors
Massachusetts general contractor · “Construction Supervisor License, Unrestricted”
Statewide license
The broadest contractor credential Massachusetts issues is the Unrestricted Construction Supervisor License (CSL), and it is not split residential against commercial the way most states split their general and residential tiers. The Unrestricted CSL covers construction, reconstruction, alteration, repair, removal and demolition of buildings of any use containing less than 35,000 cubic feet of enclosed space, together with one- and two-family dwellings of any size, agricultural buildings and retaining walls under ten feet, so it is the commercial and mixed-use tier as well as the homes tier. Above 35,000 cubic feet there is no contractor license to hold: the Board states that a registered design professional, an engineer or architect, controls the construction of larger buildings and 'a construction supervisor license is not required for larger projects since the RDP is considered the licensed person for the project'. There are also six Specialty CSL classes - masonry, roof covering, windows and siding, solid fuel-burning appliances, demolition and insulation - each carrying the same building-size scope within its own trade. Like the homes-only class, the Unrestricted CSL is held by a person rather than by a business: M.G.L. c. 143, § 94(i) has the Board issue licenses 'to individuals engaged as construction supervisors', so a contractor moving to Massachusetts applies in their own name rather than qualifying a company, and every building permit application names that individual and their license number. Massachusetts publishes no dollar limits and no classification tiers beyond these, and the Board states that 'Massachusetts does not recognize out of state contractor licenses'.
Why Kentucky has nothing to transfer
Kentucky general contractor · “General or commercial building contractor license or registration (city- or county-issued)”
Licensed by cities and counties
Issued by No state authority; cities and counties license or register commercial building contractors
Kentucky has no statewide general, commercial or unlimited building contractor license, so there is nothing at state level for an out-of-state general contractor's license to transfer into, no qualifying party to designate with the state and no NASCLA route to take. The Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction licenses the trades instead - its home page says it "licenses/certifies plumbers, electricians, boiler contractors, sprinkler and/or fire alarm contractors and building inspectors", and 815 KAR adds HVAC licensing, elevator safety, boilers and pressure vessels, manufactured homes and home inspectors, with no chapter for building contractors anywhere in the title. Commercial building is controlled through local permitting, and the requirements are administrative rather than technical. Louisville Metro issues a Building Type A - Commercial license for $125 a year on a liability certificate, a workers' compensation filing and a Jefferson County occupational license number, with no exam and no bond. Lexington-Fayette registers a general contractor who "performs commercial, industrial, public works, and/or residential construction of larger than four-family homes" under its Contractors Registration Ordinance, and unregistered contractors cannot obtain building permits there. Bowling Green and Warren County run a joint Contractors Licensing Board whose $250 General Contractors License covers construction management and permit pulling, while telling applicants plainly that the license does not warrant that they are qualified. Owensboro and Covington require only an occupational business license and insurance. A commercial builder arriving in Kentucky therefore registers jurisdiction by jurisdiction and makes sure the plumbing, electrical, HVAC, boiler and fire-protection scope is performed under the correct HBC state licenses.
How local licensing works in Kentucky
How local licensing works. Kentucky has no state general contractor board, no state business-and-law exam for builders and no statewide reciprocity for commercial construction. Every rule that binds a general contractor is either a trade license from the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction, the Kentucky Building Code in 815 KAR Chapter 007, or a local ordinance. Find the building department with jurisdiction over the site first, then register there before bidding. A registration in one Kentucky jurisdiction is worth nothing in the next, and an out-of-state general contractor license is worth nothing in any of them.
Louisville Metro (Jefferson County). The Office of Construction Review licenses building contractors for the merged city-county. License A covers "one or more permitted projects during a calendar year" and License B a single permitted project; the work scopes are Building A-Residential, Building A-Residential/Commercial, Building A-Commercial and Building B. Building Type A is "for building contractors seeking to obtain multiple permits within Louisville Jefferson County" at $125 a year on a term running 1 January to 31 December; Building Type B is $50 and is limited to one permit per person or company per renewal year. The filing is a certificate of liability insurance with the Office of Construction Review as certificate holder, workers' compensation and unemployment insurance or a notarized affidavit where the contractor has no covered employees, an Occupational License Number from the Revenue Commission of Jefferson County, and the application through the Metro business portal. The six-hour continuing education requirement attaches to the scopes that include housing - Building A-R, Building A-RC and Building B - so a contractor registered purely as Building A-Commercial is the one building class without it. Renewals must include a subcontractor list. There is no exam, experience review, bond or financial statement on any building class. 444 S. 5th St., Suite 100, (502) 574-3321.
Lexington-Fayette Urban County. The Division of Building Inspection registers every contractor under the Contractors Registration Ordinance, and "unregistered contractors cannot obtain building permits." The commercial class, under Ordinance 5-90(a)(1), is the general contractor, who "performs commercial, industrial, public works, and/or residential construction of larger than four-family homes (4-plex); and may supervise, arrange, and/or perform wholly or partly more than two building trades or crafts." A firm that concentrates on one or two trades registers as a specialty contractor instead. The filing is a Home Office Certificate ($10) or Certificate of Occupancy ($25) where the business address is in Fayette County, an occupational business license from Revenue, general liability and workers' compensation insurance with LFUCG named as certificate holder, and the online Contractor Registration Application with those two documents uploaded. No exam, experience or bond is required. The published Building Inspection fee schedule covers permits and lists no contractor registration fee, so confirm the amount with the division. 101 E. Vine St., (859) 258-3770.
Bowling Green and Warren County. One joint Contractors Licensing Board serves the city and the county under Ordinance 91-58 WC and Ordinance 91-25 BG. The General Contractors License, $250 and non-refundable, is required of anyone "doing any type of general contract work in Bowling Green / Warren County including pulling permits for building or remodeling, construction management, or if you would have two or more subcontractors per job." The Specialty Contractors License is $100 and covers subcontract work or a job with at most one subcontractor. Insurance is the substantive test: a certificate naming the board as certificate holder with general liability of at least $100,000 per occurrence, workers' compensation shown on the certificate or a notarized Affidavit of Exemption, and a notarized Partnership Agreement for partnerships. Licenses are non-transferable, renewals are annual and pro-rated mid-year, and a change of ownership voids the license. There is no exam or experience requirement; the board states that it "does not warrant that you are otherwise qualified to perform your trade or specialty by the issuance of its license." A city occupational license is needed for work inside Bowling Green and a county one for work outside it. 1141 State Street, Suite 200, 270-781-3530.
Owensboro and Daviess County. There is no contractor license here. The Owensboro Metropolitan Planning Commission's Building & Electrical Division issues building, electrical, HVAC, sign and parking lot permits and certificates of occupancy for Owensboro-Daviess County under the Kentucky Building Code and the National Electrical Code, and issues no contractor credential; demolition permits come from City of Owensboro Public Works. A commercial builder registers with the city's Occupational License Division before doing business inside the city limits, with a minimum license fee of $75 at registration. 101 East 4th Street, 270-687-5600.
Covington and Kenton County (Northern Kentucky). Planning and Development Services of Kenton County is the building department, and it requires that "all contractors must obtain and maintain a Kenton County occupational license and provide proof of Kentucky workers' compensation insurance coverage", plus the HBC state license "for electrical, HVAC, plumbing, and fire suppression work", with copies of all of it on file "before any permits can be issued." There is no general contractor license, exam or bond. In Covington a zoning permit precedes the building permit, and a certificate of appropriateness is needed first inside a historic preservation overlay. PDS, 1840 Simon Kenton Way, Suite 3400, Covington, 859-331-8980.
What does and does not travel. An out-of-state general contractor license, a NASCLA Accredited Examination and out-of-state project experience carry no weight in any Kentucky jurisdiction, because none of them tests or qualifies commercial builders. Kentucky is not a NASCLA participating state, and no Kentucky city on this page accepts an examination in place of its own filing. What does matter is holding, or employing someone who holds, the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction license for each state-licensed trade in scope - plumbing, electrical, HVAC, boilers, fire sprinklers and fire alarms - because those licenses are statewide, are the only Kentucky construction credentials with reciprocity rules of their own, and are separately demanded by several of the local building departments above.
- Louisville Metro / Jefferson County (Office of Construction Review - Building A-Commercial licenses)
- Lexington-Fayette Urban County (Division of Building Inspection - general contractor registration under Ord. 5-90(a))
- Bowling Green and Warren County (joint Contractors Licensing Board - $250 General Contractors License)
- Owensboro and Daviess County (Owensboro Metropolitan Planning Commission - permits only; city occupational license)
- Covington and Kenton County (Planning and Development Services of Kenton County - occupational license and insurance only)
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Massachusetts general contractor exam if I'm licensed in Kentucky?
- Yes. Massachusetts requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Massachusetts general contractor license from Kentucky?
- Published fees on this path total $238, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Kentucky work hours count in Massachusetts?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Massachusetts's eligibility requirements.
- How long does the application take?
- The board's published or typical processing time is about 30 days.
- Does it work the other way, from Massachusetts to Kentucky?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Massachusetts to Kentucky, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- 780 CMR 110.R5 - Licensing of Construction Supervisors (Tenth Edition, Massachusetts State Building Code) · 780 CMR 110.R5 · Massachusetts Board of Building Regulations and Standards · Admin Rule · verified September 17, 2026
- 801 CMR 4.02 - Fees for licenses, permits and services to be charged by state agencies (item 39, Construction Supervisor License) · 801 CMR 4.02(39) · Massachusetts Executive Office for Administration and Finance · Admin Rule · verified September 17, 2026
- Construction Supervisor Licensing Candidate Handbook (examination eligibility, fees and content outlines) · Massachusetts Division of Occupational Licensure / PSI Services LLC · Form · verified September 17, 2026
- Continuing education for construction supervisors · Massachusetts Division of Occupational Licensure, Board of Building Regulations and Standards · Agency Page · verified September 17, 2026
- Construction Supervisor Licensing - Board of Building Regulations and Standards · Massachusetts Division of Occupational Licensure, Board of Building Regulations and Standards · Agency Page · verified September 17, 2026
- Learn about different Construction Supervisor Licenses · Massachusetts Division of Occupational Licensure, Board of Building Regulations and Standards · Agency Page · verified September 17, 2026
- When is a Construction Supervisor License required? (includes the Board's out-of-state position) · Massachusetts Division of Occupational Licensure, Board of Building Regulations and Standards · Agency Page · verified September 17, 2026
- MGL Chapter 143, Section 94 - Board of Building Regulations and Standards; powers and duties · M.G.L. c. 143, § 94(a), (i), (m), (n) · Massachusetts General Court · Statute · verified September 17, 2026
- NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors · National Association of State Contractors Licensing Agencies · Other · verified September 17, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.