HOME IMPROVEMENT CONTRACTOR (100)

DCA Licensing Center
42 Broadway, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10004
For more information, call 311.

A person or business must have a Home Improvement Contractor license if engaged in the construction, repair, remodeling or addition to any land or building used as a residence. This includes, but is not limited to, the construction, replacement or improvement of driveways, swimming pools, terraces, patios, landscaping, fences, porches, garages, basements and other improvements to structures or upon land that is adjacent to a home or apartment building. This description is only a general explanation of which businesses need to have a Home Improvement Contractor license.

Note: New York City businesses must comply with all relevant federal, state, and City laws and rules. All laws and rules of the City of New York, including the Consumer Protection Law and Rules, are accessible using the Public Access Portal. For convenience, sections of the New York City Licensing Law (and Rules, if enacted) are available as a downloadable handout. The Law (and Rules) are current as of January 2009.

Please note that businesses are responsible for knowing and complying with the most current laws, including any City Council amendments. The Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA) is not responsible for errors or omissions in the handout. The information is not legal advice. You can only obtain legal advice from a lawyer.

Below are the requirements for a Home Improvement Contractor license. All required documents must be submitted when filing your application. Applications must be filed in person at the DCA Licensing Center, 42 Broadway, 5th floor, in Manhattan between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and between 9:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

You may not begin to work as a Home Improvement Contractor until you have received your license document.

To speed processing of your application, please submit documents in the order listed below.

• Basic License Application (download).

*ATTENTION NEW LICENSE APPLICANT: You can complete the Basic License Application online using a fillable PDF file, then print a bar-coded form for scanning into our system once you arrive at the Licensing Center. Learn more

• For Sole Proprietorships, submit a copy of your Business Certificate, certified as a true and accurate copy by the County Clerk of the borough in which your business is located. The address appearing on your Business Certificate must be identical to the address for which you are seeking a license. If you are a sole proprietor doing business under your own name, and not a trade or Doing Business As (DBA) name, you do not need a Business Certificate.

• For Partnerships, submit a copy of your Partnership Certificate, certified as a true and accurate copy by the County Clerk of the borough in which your business is located. The address appearing on your Partnership Certificate must be identical to the address for which you are seeking a license.

• For Corporations, submit a stamped Certificate of Incorporation or a Filing Receipt. If applicable, you must also submit your corporation's Assumed Name Certificate. These certificates must be stamped by the New York State Secretary of State. For more information, contact the New York State Secretary of State’s Division of Corporations and Records at (518) 473-2492.

If your business is an out-of-state corporation, you must obtain a Certificate of Doing Business in Good Standing from your home state’s Secretary of State and file this with an application for Authority to Conduct Business in New York with the New York State Secretary of State. A filing receipt from the New York State Secretary of State will be accepted as proof.

• Sales Tax Identification Number. This is the 9, 10, or 11-digit number on your New York State Department of Taxation and Finance Certificate of Authority. You must enter this number on the Basic License Application form. To obtain an application for a Certificate of Authority, visit the NYS Department of Taxation and Finance online or call toll-free (800) 698-2909. Allow four to six weeks after applying to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance to receive your Certificate of Authority.

• Photo ID of the person submitting the application. Acceptable identification includes:
  
  -a driver's license or a non-driver's ID issued by a State Department of Motor Vehicles
  -a passport
  -an alien card/green card
  -a license or permit issued by a government agency
  -if applicant is a city, state or federal employee, an employee identification card
  

• Proof of business address. You must provide a complete, legible photocopy of two (2) of the following documents:
  
  -utility bill, dated within the last 90 days (telephone, gas, electric, cable, water)
  -current lease or deed, or current rent or mortgage bill
  -bank statement, dated within the last 90 days

  For example, you may submit photocopies of 1) a utility bill and 2) your current lease. Please do not submit two (2) of the same type of document, e.g., two utility bills.

• Proof of current home address (if different from business address). For each proprietor, partner, director, corporate officer and each stockholder owning 10% or more of company stock, you must provide a complete, legible photocopy of at least two (2) of the following documents:
  
  -utility bill, dated within the last 90 days (telephone, gas, electric, cable, or water)
  -current lease or deed, or current rent or mortgage bill
  -driver's license
  -bank statement, dated within the last 90 days

• If you live at another person's address, you must submit:

  1) a signed notarized letter from this person stating that you live with that person

  2) proof of address of that person (as outlined above) containing that person's full name and address.

• Fingerprints. All sole proprietors, partners, directors, corporate officers and stockholders who own 10% or more of a corporate applicant must be fingerprinted. Each person to be fingerprinted must come in person with Photo ID to the DCA Licensing Center at 42 Broadway, 5th floor, in Manhattan. Each person to be fingerprinted must pay a processing fee of $75 by Check (corporate or personal) or Postal Money Order, payable to NYC Department of Consumer Affairs. (Cash will not be accepted.) Your fingerprints will be checked for any criminal records that you may have. Note that a conviction will not necessarily prevent you from being granted a license. However, failure to reveal a conviction can constitute grounds for the denial of your application.
  

• Contractual Compliance Agreement. (download) Note: The applicant should keep the Contractual Compliance Checklist.
  

• Workers' Compensation Insurance. Must name the Department of Consumer Affairs as a Certificate Holder. This insurance may be obtained from a private insurance carrier or the New York State Insurance Fund Office at 199 Church Street in Manhattan: (212) 312-9000. If you are exempt from Workers' Compensation Insurance, you must complete the attached Affidavit Claiming Exemption form. (download)
  

• $20,000 Continuous Performance Bond, properly signed and notarized, and a bond receipt showing that the bond has been paid in full and does not expire prior to the end of the licensing period. For a list of bonding companies in the area, click here.

  In lieu of a bond, you may join our Trust Fund. The fee for joining the Trust Fund is $200. The Trust Fund fee can be paid by check or money order to the Department of Consumer Affairs. This contribution is non-refundable. If you choose to join the Fund, please COMPLETE AND SIGN THE ATTACHED TRUST FUND APPLICATION (download).

• Written Exam. Upon the review and acceptance of your Home Improvement Contractor license application, you must take the Home Improvement Contractor Exam. Note: The DCA urges applicants to arrive at the Licensing Center early to ensure that you have ample time to file your application and take the Written Exam. Written exams are not administered after 2 p.m. Fifty (50) minutes is allowed for this exam, which has 30 questions. A passing grade of 70% is required before the license is granted. Be sure that you have carefully reviewed the Home Improvement Business Examination Guide, which is also attached to the Home Improvement Salesperson's application.
  

• Home Improvement Salesperson’s License. At least one of the proprietors, partners, owners or corporate officers of the applicant must have a Department of Consumer Affairs Home Improvement Salesperson license or have submitted an application for a Home Improvement Salesperson license OR the applicant must employ a licensed Home Improvement Salesperson. Please enter on the attached Roster of Employees form the license number of each person associated with the business who is licensed by the DCA as a Home Improvement Salesperson.
  

• Roster of Employees  (download).
  

• Indicate on the Roster of Employees form whether you will be hauling or transporting waste resulting from the operation of your business. If yes, you will need to obtain a Commercial Refuse Class One Self Hauler's license. Contact the New York City Business Integrity Commission by calling 311.
  

• If your business is a SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP, the proprietor must submit a Notarized Child Support Certification Form (download). If your business is a PARTNERSHIP, each partner must submit a Notarized Child Support Certification Form.
  

• License Fee must be paid by check or money order payable to NYC Department of Consumer Affairs. The chart below lists the amount due depending upon when your license application is filed. Note: An odd year is any year ending in an odd digit, for example, 2005, 2007, etc. An even year is any year ending in an even digit, for example, 2006, 2008, etc.