Louisiana — statewide
Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors
In short
Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors issues 6 permits we publish for Louisiana — statewide, last verified 2026-09-04. Each carries the fee as the agency publishes it, with a link to the schedule it was read from.
What this agency issues
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Plumbing Licensing (transitioning to a single board)only if it applies to you | Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors | $50 to $190 for the individual journeyman or master plumber's license, plus a separate $100 contractor license for the plumbing business itself | annual for the individual license; the contractor license elects one, two or three years | 2026-09-04 |
| Mechanical (HVAC) Contractor Licenseonly if it applies to you | Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors | $100 capped by statute; renewal is capped the same way | the licensee elects a one, two or three year renewal cycle | 2026-09-04 |
| Commercial Contractor Licenseonly if it applies to you | Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors | $100 capped by statute; renewal is capped the same way | the licensee elects a one, two or three year renewal cycle | 2026-09-04 |
| Home Improvement Registrationonly if it applies to you | Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors | $50 capped by statute | annual only — an insurance-dependent registration | 2026-09-04 |
| Residential Contractor Licenseonly if it applies to you | Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors | $100 capped by statute; renewal is capped the same way | annual only — insurance-dependent licenses cannot elect a multi-year renewal | 2026-09-04 |
| Electrical Contractor Licenseonly if it applies to you | Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors | $100 capped by statute; renewal is capped the same way | the licensee elects a one, two or three year renewal cycle | 2026-09-04 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
About each permit
Plumbing Licensing (transitioning to a single board)
Plumbing is licensed on two layers at once, and the second layer is mid-transition into the first. A separate State Plumbing Board still licenses the individual tradesperson — a journeyman's application and exam run $135 with a $50 initial license, a master plumber $110 with a $190 active license, renewed annually by 31 December — while the general contractors board separately licenses the plumbing business itself once a project reaches $10,000, on the same statutory caps as its other trades, and exempts a business from its own trade exam if the applicant already holds the board's Master Plumber license. That two-board structure is being dismantled: the plumbing board relocated into the contractors board's own building on 1 September 2026 under a 2026 act, and full legal consolidation into a single agency lands on 1 January 2027, which is likely to reshape both the fee schedule and the training-hour requirements shortly after. Confirm the current structure directly before publishing anything dated after that changeover.
Mechanical (HVAC) Contractor License
Mechanical work worth $10,000 or more needs this license, on the same fee caps as the board's other major classifications. Heating, air conditioning, ventilation, duct work and refrigeration sit inside it as a subclassification rather than as their own separate board, so an HVAC business is licensed as a mechanical contractor rather than under a distinct HVAC category, still at the same $10,000 threshold.
Commercial Contractor License
Commercial work needs this license once the project's value reaches $50,000, under the board's general Building Construction classification. The fees are statutory caps rather than fixed points — an examination fee of no more than $50, a license fee of no more than $100 and a renewal of no more than $100 — and unlike residential work below, a commercial licensee may choose to renew for one, two or three years at a time rather than being locked into an annual cycle. A contractor not domiciled in Louisiana can be charged a further surcharge of up to $400.
Home Improvement Registration
A distinct, lower tier sitting between ordinary handywork and full residential contracting: work on an existing home worth $7,500 or more but under $50,000 needs this registration rather than the full residential contractor license, and a home improvement registrant may not perform work that is structurally integral to the building. The fee cap is lower too, no more than $50. Like the residential license above, it depends on insurance certification and so renews annually rather than on a multi-year cycle.
Residential Contractor License
The board's own current material states two thresholds for this license: the amended statute defining a residential contractor sets it at $50,000, while the board's bundled administrative rules, last formally amended in 2023, still state $75,000 for the same category. Both figures are recorded here; treat $50,000 as the statutory floor and confirm with the board before relying on either. The board's material is consistent on the insurance requirement, recently raised: a residential applicant must carry at least $500,000 of liability insurance, up from a prior $100,000 minimum, and because that insurance certification is a condition of the license, it cannot be renewed for more than one year at a time the way a commercial license can.
Electrical Contractor License
Electrical contracting work worth $10,000 or more needs this license, priced on the same statutory caps as the general commercial license — no more than $50 to examine, $100 to obtain and $100 to renew. Its most distinctive feature is what it does once held: state law excludes a statewide-licensed electrical contractor, and that contractor's own employees, from any local municipal or parish examination or certification requirement, letting a licensed contractor bid and perform work in any jurisdiction in the state on the strength of this one credential. A local government may still license electricians who are not working for a statewide-licensed contractor, and may still require its own business license and inspect the work.
Contact
- Jurisdiction
- Louisiana — statewide
- Phone
- (225) 765-2301
- Website
- lslbc.gov/
Contact details are taken from the agency’s own site or its published fee schedule. Where we have not verified a phone number we leave it blank rather than guess.
Sources
Every fee and term above was read from one of these government pages on the date shown.
- Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors — consolidated contractors licensing law and rules, effective 1 August 2026Louisiana State Licensing Board for Contractors · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
- State Plumbing Board of Louisiana — individual plumber license fee scheduleState Plumbing Board of Louisiana · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
- State Plumbing Board of Louisiana — notice of relocation into LSLBC's building and the Act 908 consolidation timelineState Plumbing Board of Louisiana · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
Other Louisiana statewide offices
- Louisiana Secretary of State, Commercial Division
- Louisiana Department of Health, Office of Public Health, Retail Food Program
- Louisiana Board of Barber Examiners
- Louisiana Board of Veterinary Medicine
- Louisiana Department of Education, Early Childhood Division
- Louisiana Department of Revenue, Central Registration Section
- Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission
- Louisiana State Board of Cosmetology
- Louisiana State Police, Transportation and Environmental Safety Section
Louisiana jurisdictions
Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.