Oregon · Remodeling licensing · official-source guide
Oregon licenses remodeling at the state level through the Construction Contractors Board. Multi-trade remodelers need a residential general contractor endorsement. The headline requirement is 16 hours of approved pre-license training plus the Oregon exam, backed by a $25,000 surety bond and at least $500,000 in general liability insurance before the board issues the license.
Verified against agency sources on 2026-10-05. Rules and fees change; confirm with the named authority before relying on this guide.
Oregon licenses remodeling at the state level. The Construction Contractors Board issues the license, and there is no separate city or county remodeling license layered on top of it. ORS 701.021 states that a person or joint venture that undertakes, offers to undertake or submits a bid to do work as a contractor must hold a current license issued by the board and an appropriate endorsement. Remodeling a house is work that improves real property, so it falls inside that rule. The CCB lists carpentry, floor covering, painting, siding, roofing, concrete, repair of attached appliances and handyman work among the activities that require a license. Gutter cleaning, pressure washing for cleaning purposes and debris cleanup do not. Local government is the checkpoint rather than a second licensing authority. ORS 701.325 bars a city, county or state agency from issuing a building permit to a person who needs a CCB license unless that person holds a current, valid license properly endorsed for the work to be performed. The permit office must take a signed statement from the applicant giving the license number and confirming the license is in full force and effect, and the agency must list that license number on the permit it issues. A city or county that requires a business license for construction work must also collect a signed statement from the applicant about CCB licensing. Because of that chain, a remodeler who lets a license lapse cannot pull permits anywhere in the state, which stops the job before demolition starts. The board can be reached at 503-378-4621.
A CCB license is not generic. It carries an endorsement that sets the scope of work you may bid and perform. ORS 701.021 lists the residential endorsements: residential general contractor, residential specialty contractor, residential limited contractor, residential developer, residential locksmith services contractor, residential restoration contractor, home inspector services contractor, home services contractor and home energy performance score contractor. The board's endorsement chart defines the scopes. A residential general contractor may supervise, arrange for, or perform an unlimited number of unrelated building trades on any residential or small commercial structure, and may also do anything a residential specialty contractor does. A residential specialty contractor performs work involving one or two unrelated building trades, or three or more unrelated trades on a single property when the contract for labor and materials is $2,500 or less. A residential limited contractor may handle an unlimited number of trades, but only if it certifies that it expects gross sales under $40,000 from the construction business in the coming year, will not contract for work above $5,000, and will not perform work worth more than $5,000 per job site per year. Full-scope remodeling, where you tear out a kitchen and coordinate framing, electrical, plumbing, tile and finish work, is multi-trade work. That points to the residential general contractor endorsement. A residential endorsement also covers small commercial structures, which the chart defines as a nonresidential building of 10,000 square feet or less and not more than 20 feet high, or any size building whose entire contract price does not exceed $250,000. Changing endorsements later costs $20.
The license requirement attaches to the business, not only to the person swinging the hammer. Anyone who works for pay on construction activity that improves real property needs a CCB license, and that includes advertising, offering, bidding and arranging for the work as well as performing it. The board investigates working without a license, hiring unlicensed subcontractors, working outside the proper endorsement, and working without the required bond or insurance. A remodeler who hires an unlicensed sub is exposed alongside that sub. The exemptions are narrow and easy to misread. ORS 701.010 exempts a person whose total contracts for labor, materials and all other items come to less than $1,000 and whose work is of a casual, minor or inconsequential nature. That exemption disappears the moment the person advertises or puts out any sign, card or other device that might indicate to the public that the person is a contractor. In other words, you cannot run small jobs under the threshold and still market yourself as a remodeler. An owner who contracts for work to be performed by a licensed contractor is also outside the rule. Qualified real estate property managers are exempt in limited circumstances, and the board notes that the exemption does not remove the need for licensed tradespeople or a lead-based paint renovator certification. Electrical, plumbing, boiler, elevator and manufactured dwelling work is licensed separately by the Oregon Building Codes Division, so a remodeler either employs those license holders or subcontracts to firms that hold them.
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Oregon front-loads the requirement into training rather than years of documented field experience. To get a CCB license you must be at least 18 years old and complete at least 16 hours of pre-license training from a board-approved provider, then pass the Oregon exam. The person who takes the training and passes the test becomes the responsible managing individual for the license. The RMI may be an owner, officer, partner or employee of the business, and must have management or supervisory authority over the construction activities of the business. One person may be listed as the RMI employee on only one license at a time, and the RMI must clear a background check after the application is submitted. Most endorsements require an RMI. The board lists residential developer, residential locksmith services contractor, home inspector services contractor, home services contractor, home energy performance score contractor and residential restoration contractor as endorsements that do not need one. A remodeling business holding a residential general or residential specialty endorsement does need one. If the RMI leaves, the business must notify the CCB in writing immediately and file an RMI change form. A temporary RMI designation is valid for a maximum of 14 days, which is why the board suggests qualifying more than one person. There is a long-service alternative: an owner, officer, member or RMI may qualify by providing Oregon license numbers they have been continuously associated with from before July 1, 2000 to the application date, with no lapse longer than 24 months.
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After the 16-hour training, the provider notifies the testing vendor, PSI, so you can schedule the exam. If you do not hear from PSI within a few days, the board tells you to contact your pre-license provider. The exam is based on the Oregon version of the NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management, second edition. A Spanish translation of the manual is available. The cost of the manual may be bundled into the training fee, so the board advises checking with the provider, and it can also be bought through NASCLA. The test is open book. You may use the manual, and you may highlight, underline, tab and handwrite notes in it before the testing session, but you may not write in it during the exam and you may not carry loose paper into the testing facility. There are 80 multiple choice questions. A passing score is 70 percent, which is 56 correct answers. You have three hours. The exam costs $60, paid to the exam provider. You get your score immediately. If you fail, you can reschedule, pay again and retest. Applicants who already passed the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors do not have to complete the 16-hour pre-license training, but they still must pass the Oregon exam on laws, rules and business practices, and they must send a NASCLA transcript to ccbeducation@ccb.oregon.gov to become eligible to sit for it. You must apply for the license within 24 months of passing the test.
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The board publishes its fee schedule on the license page. The exam costs $60 and is paid directly to the exam provider. The CCB initial application fee is $400 for a two-year license beginning July 1, 2025. License renewal, which comes every two years, is also $400. An endorsement change costs $20. Inactivating a license costs $20, and reactivating it costs $20. A flagging application runs on the same schedule as the main application, at $400 beginning July 1, 2025. Several add-on certifications carry their own fees. The lead-based paint application is $50 and renews annually at $50. The home energy assessor certification application is $100 and renews annually at $100. The Oregon certified home inspector application is $150 and renews every two years at $150. Locksmith application, exam, initial certification and two-year renewal are each $60. Those published fees are only part of the real cost of entry. You also pay the pre-license training provider, the surety bond premium, the general liability insurance premium, Oregon Secretary of State filing fees for your corporation, LLC or assumed business name, and workers compensation premium if you have employees. Application fees may be paid online with a credit card, debit card or ACH e-check, and a completed application must be uploaded at the time the fees are paid. The board warns that applications may take six to eight weeks to process, so a remodeler planning a spring start should file in winter.
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Oregon law requires every CCB contractor to file a surety bond. ORS 701.068 directs an applicant for issuance or renewal to file a bond with one or more corporate sureties authorized to do business in the state, in the amount set by ORS 701.081 for residential endorsements. ORS 701.081 sets a $25,000 bond for a residential general contractor, $20,000 for a residential specialty contractor, $15,000 for a residential limited contractor, and $25,000 for a residential developer. The board's own fee and bond page lists the same figures. A contractor endorsed for both residential and commercial work must file two bonds, one for each endorsement. The bond is a promise by the bonding company to pay all or part of a CCB final order if the contractor does not pay it. The mechanics matter. The bond must be issued on a CCB bond form and no other form is accepted. It must carry the original signature of the bond company's attorney-in-fact, and if a power of attorney form is attached you must not remove it. The bond must be issued in the full legal name of the sole proprietor, or all partner names, or the entity name as filed with the Oregon Corporation Division. It is not valid until the CCB receives it and puts it into effect, and it must reach the board no later than 60 days from the date the bond company signed it. All bonds must be continuous until canceled. Submit the bond with the application, not separately.
Oregon law requires contractors to carry general liability insurance, and the minimum is set by endorsement. ORS 701.081 requires not less than $500,000 for a residential general contractor, not less than $300,000 for a residential specialty contractor, and not less than $100,000 for a residential limited contractor. The board states the same amounts per occurrence. Residential developer is $500,000 per occurrence. Only one certificate of insurance is required even for a dual endorsement, and when a contractor holds both residential and commercial endorsements the policy must meet the higher of the two amounts. The certificate must name the Construction Contractors Board as certificate holder at PO Box 14140, Salem, OR 97309, must be issued in the full legal name used at the Oregon Corporation Division, and must state that products and completed operations coverage is included. Policies, billings, receipts and statements are not accepted in place of a certificate. The coverage must be carried for the whole license period, and the board can suspend a license or fine a contractor who drops it. The board is blunt that general liability does not reimburse a homeowner for poor work or construction defects, though it may cover damage caused by faulty work. Workers compensation is required if the business has employees. Businesses without employees are generally exempt, and some family-owned entities remain exempt, with family defined as parents, spouses, siblings, children, children-in-law and grandchildren. The Workers Compensation Division can be reached at 503-947-7815.
This is the part of Oregon law most likely to catch an out-of-state remodeler. ORS 701.305 says a contractor may not perform work to construct, improve or repair a residential structure or zero-lot-line dwelling for a property owner without a written contract if the aggregate contract price exceeds $2,000. If a job started under $2,000 and grows past it, you must mail or otherwise deliver a written contract no later than five days after you knew or should reasonably have known the price would exceed $2,000. Failure to have a written contract does not void the contract, but it is a violation. The board also requires standard contractual terms, in clear words of common understanding, in any contract that must be written. On top of the contract, the board requires three consumer notices on residential work whenever the total contract exceeds $2,000: the Information Notice to Owner About Construction Liens, the Consumer Protection Notice, and the Notice of Procedure. You must retain proof the owner received them. The board accepts three methods: include the notices in full inside the written contract, keep signed copies, or deliver the notices and include an unambiguous acknowledgment phrase in the contract that the owner initials. Keep that proof for two years after the contract is entered into. ORS 701.315 adds that a residential contract may not contain a provision limiting the right to file a CCB complaint, though it may require mediation or arbitration. ORS 701.312 lets the board put a contractor on probation for taking a deposit above 50 percent and then failing to perform or refund.
Oregon gives residential property owners two separate cancellation rights, and a remodeler should price and schedule around both. The first is the one-day right. Under ORS 701.310, a property owner who enters into an initial written contract for the construction, improvement or repair of a residential structure or zero-lot-line dwelling on property the owner owns may cancel by delivering written notice of cancellation any time before 12 midnight at the end of the next business day. The notice may be in any written form, or by any means readily converted to written form, including fax, email and regular mail, and it only has to state the owner's intention to cancel. Three carve-outs apply: the right does not reach a contract where both parties agree work is to begin before the cancellation period expires, a contract after the contractor has substantially begun the work, or a modification of an initial contract made after the initial cancellation period has expired. The board notes that the contractor has no notice duty for this one-day right. The second is the three-day right under ORS 83.720 for a home solicitation contract. A construction contract falls under it when the contractor or the contractor's agent made a personal solicitation and the offer was accepted somewhere other than the contractor's permanent place of business. Meeting a customer in a restaurant and signing there is the board's own example. It applies to remodeling and repair contracts, not to construction of a new house. Here the owner must be given notice of the right to rescind, regardless of who initiated the contact.
A CCB license runs for two years and renews for $400. The board pushes online renewal through a contractor account, where you complete the renewal form, pay and update business information. Residential contractors must finish continuing education before the board will renew. Unless exempt, every residential contractor needs, in each two-year license period, three hours of CCB laws, regulations and business practices classes, plus five hours of other approved courses if the business has been CCB licensed for six or more years, or 13 hours of other approved courses if it has been licensed less than six years. No credit is given for more than three hours of CCB classes. The three-hour requirement can be met with a live class, including live webinars, or as three one-hour classes inside your online services account. Other courses generally must appear in the board's course catalog, with an exception for courses from accredited colleges and universities or state or federal agencies that relate to business practices or your trade and run at least an hour. The board only has records of courses taken from the board itself, so send certificates to cecerts@ccb.oregon.gov with your CCB number on them. Contractors licensed for both commercial and residential work follow the commercial education rules instead. Several license holders are exempt, including architects, engineers, electricians, plumbers and developers, plus boiler, elevator, pump installation, renewable energy and limited sign contractors, and certain grounds contractors who also hold a construction contractor license. If a license has been expired or lapsed for more than two years, do not take continuing education; you must reapply and retake the training and test.
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Oregon treats your license number as part of your marketing, not as paperwork in a drawer. The board states that all contractors must include their CCB license number on everything from business cards to site signs, and that the number should carry the letters CCB followed by the number, written as CCB #123456. The board specifically lists where the number is required: business cards, written bids, building-related contracts, advertising including websites, telephone book, newspaper, radio and television ads, business letterhead, business signs at construction sites, written inspection reports, and business vehicles with signage. The board says you may also include the words licensed and bonded. CCB numbers are encouraged but not required on promotional items where including them is impractical, such as pens, pencils, bug deflectors and refrigerator magnets, and they are not required on clothing or uniforms for sports teams sponsored by construction businesses. The penalty is specific. The board states that violating OAR 812-003-0120 by failing to provide a CCB number can bring a fine of up to $400, and failing to display a CCB license number on most advertising is one of the violations its field investigators pursue. Misuse of a number is worse. Under ORS 701.990, intentional use of a contractor license number without the license holder's authorization is a Class A misdemeanor, and use of a license number with or without authorization with intent to deceive the public is also a Class A misdemeanor. Advertising outside your endorsement scope is its own violation, since the board investigates contractors working on projects without the proper endorsement.
The money penalty and the lost remedy are two different problems, and the second one is usually the larger. On penalties, ORS 701.992 provides that any person who violates any provision of chapter 701 or any rule adopted by the board shall pay into the General Fund a civil penalty in an amount determined by the board of not more than $5,000 for each offense, imposed as provided in ORS 183.745, and the section says it is in addition to and not in lieu of any other penalty or sanction provided by law. ORS 701.990 makes violation of ORS 701.021, the license requirement itself, a Class A misdemeanor. A different and harsher schedule applies to certain violations: a penalty of not less than $500 and not more than $1,000 for a first offense, not less than $1,000 and not more than $2,000 for a second, license suspension for six months on a third, suspension for three years on a fourth, and revocation on a fifth. Then there is ORS 701.131. An unlicensed contractor may not perfect a construction lien, file a complaint with the board, or commence an arbitration or a court claim in Oregon for compensation for the work or for breach of the contract, unless the contractor held a valid license properly endorsed for the work both when the contract was bid or signed and continuously while performing it. There are narrow exceptions the board, arbitrator or court may apply. In practice an unlicensed remodeler who finishes a job and does not get paid has no collection route.
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Most remodeling in Oregon touches older housing, which brings a second license into play. Oregon enforces federal Environmental Protection Agency rules for contractors working on housing or child-occupied facilities built before 1978, and the board states that only contractors licensed for lead-based paint renovation can bid or work on pre-1978 homes. The training and license must be in place before you bid, not before you start. Homes and child-occupied buildings such as daycare centers, preschools and kindergarten rooms built before 1978 are presumed to contain lead paint unless testing shows otherwise. The board defines renovation by surface area disturbed: more than six square feet of painted surface per room for interior work, or more than 20 square feet of painted surface for exterior work. That sweeps in flooring, windows, gutters, siding and painting projects, and the board says window replacement counts as renovation. To get the lead-based paint renovation license, at least one owner or employee must complete the eight-hour Renovation, Repair and Painting training from an accredited provider; the Oregon Health Authority maintains the training calendar and the provider list. You must already hold a CCB license for the lead license to attach to. The application fee is $50 and annual renewal is $50. The board also notes a four-hour refresher course before the five-year certificate expires, and that you need a current RRP certificate and an active CCB number to renew. Separate certifications exist for lead inspection and lead abatement contractors. Contractors must give the homeowner the EPA renovation pamphlet before work begins on target housing.
No Oregon city issues its own remodeling contractor license, because the CCB license is statewide. What cities control is permits, inspections and local business tax registration. ORS 701.325 ties the two together: a city, county or state agency may not issue a building permit to a person required to be licensed unless that person holds a current, valid CCB license properly endorsed for the work, and the agency must list the license number on the permit. In Portland, Portland Permitting and Development runs that counter. The city states that the State Building Code requires permits for certain types of work, that permits are designed to help ensure licensed contractors do the work when required, and that lack of permits and inspection approvals may void insurance and can surface as a correction demand when the property is sold. Portland separates residential permitting for one and two-family homes from commercial permitting for buildings with three or more dwelling units, and it issues separate trade permits for plumbing, electrical and heating and cooling work. Its Development Services Center sits at 1900 SW Fourth Avenue, and general permitting questions go to 503-823-7300. The city offers free 15-minute appointments for permit, code and zoning questions, which is a practical first stop on an unusual remodel. One Portland rule bites seasonally: extra erosion control measures apply for seven months on sites with ground-disturbing activity. Where a homeowner pulls the permit as an exempt owner, ORS 701.325 requires the permit office to give them the Information Notice to Property Owners About Construction Responsibilities and to collect a signed statement naming their residential general contractor and that contractor's CCB license number and expiration date.
The board runs a public license search at search.ccb.state.or.us. The board tells homeowners that checking a license shows whether the contractor is actively licensed and bonded, whether proof of liability insurance was submitted at licensing and at renewal, whether the contractor is licensed to work on pre-1978 homes that could contain lead-based paint, whether it carries workers compensation insurance, and whether it had complaints or disciplinary actions filed with the CCB in the past 10 years. Homeowners can also call 503-378-4621. The board makes a point that matters commercially: if it cannot find your license number, you may lose work because people think you are unlicensed. On claims, the board can mediate disputes only when the contractor was licensed during the project. A property owner must first send a 30-day pre-complaint notice by certified mail to the contractor's address of record, then file the complaint form with proof of mailing. A $50 statutory processing fee applies to most complaints once the board confirms jurisdiction, and a dispute analyst usually assigns the file to mediation. Filing deadlines are strict and vary by claim type and structure. The board states plainly that the only path to access a contractor's bond is a signed judgment from the court, that the amount available through a bond is limited, and that multiple people may be seeking restitution from it. Small claims court caps a judgment at $10,000, and the residential bond does not cover attorney fees.
These are common details other guides publish about Oregon, but we could not verify them from the agency source. Confirm them directly before relying on them.
Yes. ORS 701.021 requires anyone who undertakes, offers to undertake or bids work as a contractor to hold a current Construction Contractors Board license with an appropriate endorsement. Remodeling improves real property, so it is covered. Advertising or bidding without the license is itself a violation, and no city will issue you a building permit.
The residential general contractor endorsement. The board's endorsement chart says it covers an unlimited number of unrelated building trades on residential or small commercial projects. A residential specialty contractor is limited to one or two unrelated trades, or three or more on one property when the labor and materials contract is $2,500 or less.
The board lists a $400 initial application fee for a two-year license beginning July 1, 2025, plus a $60 exam fee paid to the exam provider. Renewal every two years is $400. An endorsement change, inactivation or reactivation is $20 each. Bond premium, insurance premium and training costs are separate.
ORS 701.081 sets $25,000 for a residential general contractor and $20,000 for a residential specialty contractor. A residential limited contractor posts $15,000. The bond must be on a CCB form, signed by the surety's attorney-in-fact, and reach the board within 60 days of signing. It stays continuous until canceled.
ORS 701.081 requires not less than $500,000 for a residential general contractor, not less than $300,000 for a residential specialty contractor, and not less than $100,000 for a residential limited contractor. The certificate must name the Construction Contractors Board as certificate holder and state that products and completed operations coverage is included.
Yes. After 16 hours of approved pre-license training you take the Oregon exam through PSI. It has 80 multiple choice questions, a three-hour limit, and a passing score of 70 percent, which is 56 correct. It is open book using the Oregon NASCLA manual, and it costs $60.
Whenever the aggregate contract price exceeds $2,000, under ORS 701.305. If a job starts below that and grows past it, you must deliver a written contract within five days of knowing the price will exceed $2,000. Missing paperwork does not void the contract, but it is a violation of the chapter.
Yes. Under ORS 701.310 an owner may cancel an initial written residential contract by written notice before midnight at the end of the next business day, unless work has substantially begun or both parties agreed work starts sooner. A separate three-day right applies to home solicitation contracts signed away from your business.
The board points homeowners to the contractor's surety bond rather than to a state payout account. It states that the only path to access a bond is a signed court judgment, that the amount available is limited, and that multiple claimants may be seeking restitution from the same bond at once.
Residential contractors need three hours of CCB laws, regulations and business practices classes each two-year period, plus five hours of other approved courses if licensed six or more years, or 13 hours if licensed less than six years. No credit is given beyond three hours of CCB classes.
The board requires it on business cards, written bids, building-related contracts, advertising including websites and newspaper, radio and television ads, business letterhead, site signs, written inspection reports, and business vehicles with signage. Write it as CCB followed by the number. You may add the words licensed and bonded.
The board states that violating OAR 812-003-0120 by failing to provide a CCB number can bring a fine of up to $400. Failing to display the number on most advertising is one of the violations its field investigators pursue, alongside unlicensed work and work outside your endorsement scope.
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