New Mexico to Maryland: residential contractor license reciprocity

1. 1Law / code exam. Pass a law, rules, or code exam. Maryland Home Improvement Contractor examination, administered by PSI Examination Services: 55 questions, two hours, computer-based, passing score 70 percent, based on the laws and regulations governing the operation of a home improvement business and the sale of home improvement work. Test centers are in Baltimore, College Park, Salisbury, Frederick, Hagerstown, Lanham and Crofton, with appointments Monday through Friday. Register with PSI on 1-800-367-1565 or through its website by selecting Maryland and then MD Home Improvement. Content is drawn from the 5th edition of the Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management, and community colleges offer optional prep courses. A passing score expires if no license application follows within two years..
2. 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. The same single examination also serves as Maryland's competency test. Business Regulation §8-302(f)(2) requires the examination to test both the applicant's knowledge of the law about home improvement and the applicant's competency to engage in the licensed occupation, so there is no separate trade paper to sit and none to be waived. It cannot be satisfied by an examination passed in another state..
3. 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($63). Standard PSI examination fee, payable each time the examination is taken.
4. 4Application fee. Pay the application fee ($281.25). Original contractor license application fee for a two-year license, in effect since August 1, 2024. An additional $281.25 is charged for each additional company location. Renewal is also $281.25 every two years..
5. 5Application fee. Pay the application fee ($22.50). Processing fee charged with an original contractor license application.
6. 6Other. Home Improvement Guaranty Fund assessment, paid before the Commission issues the license. The Fund compensates homeowners for actual losses caused by a licensed contractor, up to the amount the homeowner paid that contractor and no more than $30,000 per claimant and $250,000 across all claimants for one contractor. The assessment is $175 at each two-year renewal, and the Commission may levy a further $50 assessment, capped at $150 in a calendar year, if pending claims threaten to take the Fund below $1,000,000. A license is suspended if an assessment goes unpaid for 60 days. ($100).
7. 7Financial responsibility. Show financial responsibility. Proof of financial solvency judged on the applicant's personal assets: a completed MHIC Personal Financial Statement, three months of recent personal bank statements and a full individual credit report from a Commission-approved agency, with a co-owner signature page where assets are jointly owned. The Commission weighs total assets, liabilities and net worth against the scope and size of the business, does not count business assets, and publishes no dollar threshold; call the licensing team on 410-230-6231 before assuming a figure. Financial information filed with the Commission is confidential and is not a public record. A credit report is required again at every renewal..
8. 8Surety bond. Post a surety bond ($30,000) (if applicable). Surety bond, required only if the applicant does not meet the financial solvency guidelines. The Commission publishes bond templates in two amounts, $30,000 and $100,000, and its application checklist tells an applicant who is short of solvency by $30,000 to execute the $30,000 bond. An indemnitor may be used instead of a bond. The Commission decides which remedy and which amount fits a given shortfall, so confirm the figure with the licensing team before buying a bond..
9. 9Insurance. Carry the required insurance ($500,000). General liability insurance of at least $500,000, required of applicants and licensees alike since June 1, 2024 under Business Regulation §8-302.1. The certificate holder box must read MHIC, 100 S Charles St., Tower 1, Baltimore, MD 21201. The coverage must be in force at all times, proof is filed again at every renewal, the Commission may not renew without it, and the contractor must notify the Commission at least 10 days before any cancellation takes effect. Several older pages on the Commission's website still show a $50,000 figure; the statutory minimum is $500,000..
10. 10Business license. Obtain a business license. Registration with the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation, which out-of-state contractors must complete as well. A corporate applicant files its articles of incorporation and a Certificate of Good Standing with the application. A contractor trading under a trade name must first clear the name with the Commission, because a name identical or confusingly similar to an existing licensee's will be refused, then register it with SDAT and file the certificate of trade name registration with the license application..
11. 11Other. A personal photograph with the application: a clear copy of a driver's license or a photograph of the applicant is accepted..
12. 12Other. Home Builder registration if you will build new homes. The MHIC license does not cover new home construction; the Maryland Home Builder Registration Act requires anyone acting as a home builder to register with the Home Builder Registration Unit of the Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Protection Division, 200 St. Paul Place, Baltimore MD 21202, 410-576-6573 or 877-259-4525. Initial registration is $800 with an application, an information form for each principal and a legal proceedings form where applicable; renewal is $400, $800 or $1,200 depending on how many permits were issued in the preceding year, and a sales representative registers for $300. A builder that constructs new homes for sale to the public must carry at least $100,000 in general liability insurance. There is no builder examination. (if applicable).
13. 13Other. A county new home builder license where you will build. Montgomery County Code Chapter 31C requires a Montgomery County Building Contractor's New Home Builder's License before contracting to build a new home there, and the county states that a Maryland-issued license does not excuse it: the application carries an $805 non-refundable fee plus a $250 State Guaranty Fund fee, three material supplier references, a bank reference, $500,000 liability insurance and workers' compensation, and a description of building experience, and is approved by a five-member Board of Registration in about 45 to 60 days. Prince George's County requires its own Building Contractor's License, approved by a Board of Registration for Building Contractors, to build any new residential home from the ground up. Neither county holds an examination. (if applicable).

Published fees on this path total $366.75, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.