Michigan Contractor License Requirements
Michigan licenses residential construction work through a Residential Builder or Maintenance & Alteration Contractor license — no surety bond, and (despite what several third-party guides claim) no fixed years-of-experience requirement for new applicants. Here’s what LARA’s Bureau of Construction Codes actually requires, and where a few commonly-repeated figures still need a direct check.
- Quick facts
- Residential Builder vs. Maintenance & Alteration
- Steps to get licensed
- Renewal and continuing education
- FAQ
- Penalty for unlicensed contracting
- Reciprocity with other states
Quick facts
| Regulator | Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), Bureau of Construction Codes |
|---|---|
| License types | Residential Builder (RB) and Residential Maintenance & Alteration (M&A) Contractor are separate individual license classes (MCL 339.2401(a)/(b)) |
| Prelicensure education | 60-hour LARA-approved prelicensure course, required for anyone not already licensed before June 1, 2008. There is no separate years-of-experience requirement for initial applicants — the “3 years of experience” figure repeated on many third-party sites actually describes who may serve as a prelicensure course instructor, per LARA’s own Builder Prelicensure Course Packet, not a requirement for license applicants themselves |
| Exam | PSI-administered, two parts: Business & Law (50 questions) and Residential Trades (110 questions), commonly reported passing scores around 72% and 73% respectively — cross-referenced from secondary sources and a PSI candidate bulletin this environment could not fetch directly this run (proctor2.psionline.com was blocked at the network level), not independently confirmed against a primary LARA/PSI document |
| Application fee | $195 for an individual Residential Builder or M&A Contractor license, per LARA’s official fee schedule |
| Bond | None required |
| Insurance | Minimum $100,000 per-occurrence general liability coverage reported under MCL 339.2412 by multiple cross-referenced sources — the statute page itself (legislature.mi.gov) was unreachable this run (503 errors and a certificate error), so this figure is not independently primary-confirmed; verify directly with LARA before relying on it |
| Renewal | $150 every 3 years, per LARA’s official fee schedule. The license is commonly reported to expire May 31 of the third year, with a 60-day grace period and a $170 late-renewal fee ($20 more than on-time renewal) — the expiration date itself is cross-referenced, not independently confirmed this run, though the $150/$170 fee figures both come directly from LARA’s own fee schedule |
| Reciprocity | None. LARA’s own Residential Builder FAQ states plainly: “Michigan does not hold reciprocal agreements with any other State” |
Residential Builder vs. Maintenance & Alteration
Michigan splits residential licensing into two individual license classes rather than issuing one general “contractor” license. A Residential Builder (RB) license covers new construction and full remodeling of a residential structure. A Residential Maintenance & Alteration (M&A) Contractor license is narrower — repair, alteration, and similar work rather than ground-up building. Both are governed by the same statute (MCL 339.2401) and go through the same LARA application process, prelicensure course, and PSI exam; you choose your class based on the scope of work you intend to perform.
If you’re operating as a sole proprietor, your individual license covers your work. If you form a corporation, LLC, or partnership, that entity is treated as a separate legal person under the law and needs its own company license (a $195 fee, separate from the individual application fee) — and a licensed individual has to serve as the company’s “Qualifying Officer.” Michigan doesn’t recognize any other state’s contractor license by reciprocity, so out-of-state applicants go through the full Michigan process regardless of where else they’re already licensed.
Steps to get licensed
- Complete the 60-hour LARA-approved prelicensure course (skip this if you were already licensed before June 1, 2008). You must attend the entire length of whatever course you enroll in to get credit — a six-hour course can’t be used for partial credit toward the requirement.
- Decide your license class — Residential Builder or Maintenance & Alteration Contractor — based on the scope of work you’ll perform.
- Register for and pass the PSI exam, covering Business & Law and your chosen trade section.
- Submit your application and the $195 fee to LARA’s Bureau of Construction Codes, along with proof of general liability insurance and, where applicable, workers’ compensation coverage.
- If forming a corporation, LLC, or partnership, separately register the business and obtain a company license, with a licensed individual serving as Qualifying Officer.
- Maintain a place of business in Michigan; non-residents must also file a Consent to Service of Process with LARA (MCL 339.2406).
Renewal and continuing education
Residential Builder and M&A licenses renew every 3 years for a $150 fee, per LARA’s official fee schedule. Missing the deadline but renewing within a 60-day grace period costs $170 instead (the $20 late-fee difference is confirmed directly on LARA’s fee schedule, even though the exact expiration-date rule — commonly reported as May 31 of the third year — isn’t independently confirmed this run). If your license lapses for more than 61 days but less than 3 years, you can still relicense by filing the relicensure application and fees ($185) and remaining of good moral character. If it lapses for more than 3 years, relicensure requires completing the full 60-hour prelicensure course again and passing the current license exam — effectively starting over.
Continuing education requirements are widely reported to depend on when you were first licensed: licensees from before January 1, 2009 need 3 hours per 3-year cycle, while those licensed on or after that date reportedly need 21 hours per cycle for their first two cycles (42 hours over the first six years) before dropping to 3 hours per cycle. These CE figures come from cross-referenced secondary sources, not a direct statute or LARA page fetch this run — confirm your specific CE obligation with LARA before your renewal deadline.
Does Michigan require 3 years of experience to get a residential builder license?
No — this is a common misconception repeated on several third-party licensing sites. LARA’s own Builder Prelicensure Course Packet shows that “3 years of experience” is actually one of the qualifications for someone to teach a prelicensure course, not a requirement for license applicants. To get licensed yourself, you need the 60-hour prelicensure course (unless licensed before June 1, 2008) and a passing PSI exam score — no independent work-experience threshold applies to applicants.
Do I need a bond to become a licensed contractor in Michigan?
No. Michigan doesn’t require a surety bond for a Residential Builder or M&A Contractor license. It does require proof of general liability insurance (commonly reported at a $100,000 per-occurrence minimum) submitted with your application and maintained throughout your license term.
Can I use my out-of-state contractor license to work in Michigan?
No. LARA’s own FAQ states that Michigan does not hold reciprocal licensing agreements with any other state. If you’re licensed elsewhere and want to work in Michigan, you still need to complete Michigan’s own prelicensure course (if applicable) and pass its exam, the same as any first-time applicant.
Penalty for unlicensed contracting
Under MCL 339.601, acting as a residential builder or M&A contractor without a license is a misdemeanor. For a person specifically unlicensed as a residential builder or M&A contractor, a first offense is reportedly punishable by a fine of $5,000 to $25,000 and/or up to 1 year in jail; a second or subsequent offense carries the same fine range with up to 2 years in jail. Because legislature.mi.gov was unreachable this run, these specific figures are cross-referenced from independent secondary summaries of the statute rather than fetched directly — treat them as a strong indication of the penalty’s scale rather than a word-for-word statute quote.
There’s also a real contract-law consequence beyond the criminal penalty. In Epps v. 4 Quarters Restoration, LLC, 498 Mich. 518 (2015), the Michigan Supreme Court held that a homeowner’s contract with an unlicensed residential contractor is voidable at the homeowner’s option — not automatically void from the start, refining the stricter “void” language from the Court’s earlier decision in Stokes v. Millen Roofing Co. (2002). Separately, MCL 339.2412 bars an unlicensed contractor from suing to collect payment under the contract at all, though it doesn’t stop them from defending against a claim, and it doesn’t give the homeowner an independent right to sue for damages based solely on the licensing violation. This case-law summary is cross-referenced from independent legal-analysis sources, since the court opinion itself was unreachable from this research environment this run.
Reciprocity with other states
Michigan does not offer reciprocity with any other state for its Residential Builder or M&A Contractor licenses. LARA’s own Residential Builder FAQ is explicit on this point, so an out-of-state license — no matter how similar the other state’s requirements — doesn’t shortcut any part of Michigan’s prelicensure course, exam, or application process.