New York · Roofing licensing · official-source guide
New York issues no statewide roofing or general contractor license. Home improvement work, which state law defines to include roofing, is licensed locally: New York City requires a Home Improvement Contractor License from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, and Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester counties run separate programs. General Business Law Article 36-A sets roofing-specific contract, insurance, and storm-claim rules statewide regardless of locality.
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New York has no state agency that issues a roofing license or a general contractor license. The state does regulate roofing work through General Business Law Article 36-A, the Home Improvement Contracts law, which defines a roofing contractor as any person, firm, or corporation engaged in the business of roofing, gutter, downspout, or siding services for a fee, including nonresident contractors, independent contractors, day laborers, and subcontractors who solicit roofing-related construction, installation, renovation, repair, maintenance, alteration, or waterproofing. Section 770 also defines home improvement to include the construction, replacement, or improvement of roofing on residential property. That statute sets contract, insurance, and claim-handling rules that apply to every roofing contractor in the state, but it does not create a licensing board and does not issue license numbers. Actual licensing of home improvement and roofing contractors happens at the city and county level. New York City requires a Home Improvement Contractor License from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection for residential roofing work, and Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester counties each run their own separate home improvement licensing programs with their own applications and fees. A roofing contractor who works across several of these jurisdictions in the same year, for example a crew that takes storm-damage jobs in both Nassau County and New York City, may need a separate license in each one. Outside New York City and the counties that license home improvement contractors, there is currently no confirmed local licensing requirement specific to roofing, though the state contract and insurance rules under Article 36-A still apply to the work. Contractors and homeowners should check with the city or county where the job site is located before assuming a license from one place is valid in another.
In New York City, roofing work on residential property is regulated as home improvement work under the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection. DCWP states that a Home Improvement Contractor License is required to do construction, repair, remodeling, or other home improvement work on residential land or buildings in the city, and General Business Law Section 770 specifically lists roofing among the categories of work that count as home improvement. The Department of Buildings separately requires contractors to submit their Home Improvement Contractor license number when filing Alteration Type 1, 2, or 3 permit applications for one, two, three, or four family homes, co-op units, condo units, or rented apartment units, and Local Law 21 of 1968 is the legal basis for that requirement. The requirement covers construction contractors as well as Professional Engineers or Registered Architects who hire a contractor under a design-build arrangement. DOB lists specific exemptions from needing the HIC license: a Professional Engineer or Registered Architect who does not have a design-build contract, a subcontractor, a homeowner performing their own work, a contractor working on a new building or fulfilling a new-building completion guarantee, and anyone performing work in a residence owned or controlled by a government agency. Licensed plumbers, architects, engineers, and other professionals who already hold a required state or city license are also exempt when the work is exclusively within the scope of that license. A roofing contractor working as a subcontractor to a general contractor who holds the HIC license is therefore not separately required to hold one for that job, but a roofing company that contracts directly with a homeowner in New York City for roof repair or replacement needs its own Home Improvement Contractor License before signing that contract.
DCWP publishes a sliding fee schedule for a new Home Improvement Contractor License that depends on when in the two-year licensing cycle the application is filed. The fee is 200 dollars for new applications filed from March 1 to August 31 of an odd-numbered year, 150 dollars for applications filed from September 1 of an odd-numbered year to February 28 or 29 of the following even-numbered year, 100 dollars for applications filed from March 1 to August 31 of an even-numbered year, and 50 dollars for applications filed from September 1 of an even-numbered year to February 28 of the following odd-numbered year. Renewal costs 250 dollars regardless of when it is filed. Every applicant must also either enroll in the Home Improvement Trust Fund for a 200 dollar fee or post a 20,000 dollar surety bond, or a third-party bond, naming DCWP as the certificate holder and matching the business name and address on the application. If the Home Improvement Exam has to be retaken after two failed attempts, DCWP charges a 50 dollar fee per additional attempt, since the base license fee already covers two exam attempts. Applicants pay a nonrefundable 2 percent convenience fee when paying by credit card, and fingerprint processing through IdentoGO carries its own separate per-person fee. These figures apply specifically to the New York City license; Nassau, Suffolk, and Westchester counties set and publish their own separate fee schedules for their home improvement licenses, and this brief was not able to confirm those county-level dollar amounts from each county's own site at the time of writing.
Sourcesnyc-business.nyc.gov
A New York City Home Improvement Contractor License application requires a completed Basic License Application with business identification numbers, contact information for the business and its owner, and the criminal and civil history of owners, partners, shareholders, and officers. Applicants must provide a New York State Sales Tax Identification Number, proof of the business address, and proof of home address for each individual named on the application. Proof of workers compensation insurance is required, either an insurance certificate naming DCWP as certificate holder or a Certificate of Attestation of Exemption from the Workers Compensation Board for applicants who qualify for exemption. Because roofing and other home improvement work can disturb lead-based paint in older buildings, applicants must also submit proof of EPA Renovation, Repair, and Painting certification and EPA Lead-Based Paint Activities certification, or a signed Home Improvement Contractor Affirmation if one or both certifications do not apply to the business. Every sole proprietor, general partner, corporate officer, principal, director, member, and any shareholder owning 10 percent or more of company stock must be fingerprinted through IdentoGO. Only one principal in the company needs to pass the DCWP Home Improvement Exam, administered through ExamBuilder; the applicant can schedule the exam 24 hours after DCWP has processed the application and required documents, and has 60 days from that point to pass it. DCWP reviews the full application and, within two weeks of receiving all required materials, sends a letter approving the license, requesting more information, or denying the application with an explanation of why and instructions for reapplying.
Sourcesnyc-business.nyc.gov
A New York City Home Improvement Contractor License is valid for up to two years and expires on February 28 of odd-numbered years, regardless of when during the cycle it was issued, which is why the new-application fee is prorated on a sliding scale tied to that same two-year cycle. DCWP mails a renewal application and instructions before the license expires, and a contractor who plans to keep operating must submit the renewal application, required documents, and the 250 dollar renewal fee at least 15 days before the license expires. The DCWP page describing this license does not state a continuing education requirement for renewal, and none was found in the material reviewed for this brief; renewal appears to depend on the paperwork, fee, and any required insurance or bond documentation staying current rather than on additional coursework or a repeat exam. A licensee must notify DCWP whenever its information changes, either by calling 311 or visiting the DCWP Licensing Center, and in-person visits to the Licensing Center are limited to applicants who have a disability and need an in-person accommodation. DCWP requires licensees to follow all New York City laws and rules, including the Consumer Protection Law and Rules published on the city's Public Access Portal. Because the license is tied to the individuals named on it as well as the business, a change in ownership, in the officers who hold 10 percent or more of company stock, or in the person who passed the Home Improvement Exam can affect whether the existing license remains valid and may require an update or a new application rather than a routine renewal.
Sourcesnyc-business.nyc.gov
Outside New York City, several of the state's largest downstate counties run their own home improvement licensing programs rather than deferring to a state license or to New York City's license. Nassau County issues its own Home Improvement License through its county government, with an application process separate from DCWP's. Suffolk County licenses home improvement contractors through its Department of Consumer Affairs, which also publishes forms for a Home Improvement Salesperson license and references a public contractor lookup tool. Westchester County licenses home improvement contractors through its Department of Consumer Protection under the county's home contractor licensing law, and that department also flags EPA lead-safe certification as a requirement for contractors doing renovation, repair, or painting work in homes, child care facilities, or schools built before 1978, which can apply to roof repair on older residential buildings. This brief could not confirm the specific fee, bond, or insurance amounts each of these three counties charges from their own sites at the time of writing, so no dollar figures for Nassau, Suffolk, or Westchester are given here; contractors should confirm current fees directly with each county's consumer affairs or consumer protection office. Because New York City, Nassau County, Suffolk County, and Westchester County each run independent licensing programs with their own applications, none of these jurisdictions has been confirmed to automatically recognize a license issued by one of the others. A roofing contractor licensed in New York City is not shown by any source reviewed here to be automatically licensed in Nassau, Suffolk, or Westchester County, or the reverse, so a contractor working across county lines should expect to hold a separate, valid license for each jurisdiction where it takes roofing jobs.
Sourcesnassaucountyny.gov 1suffolkcountyny.gov 2consumer.westchestercountyny.gov 3
Even where no local license is required, or in addition to one where it is, General Business Law Article 36-A applies to every home improvement contractor and every roofing contractor doing business in New York State. Section 770 defines the key terms: an owner is a homeowner, cooperative shareholder, residential tenant, or custom home purchaser; a home improvement contractor is a person, firm, or corporation that undertakes home improvement work for a fee where the total price of all its contracts with all customers exceeds 1,500 dollars in any 12 consecutive months; and a home improvement contract is an agreement for home improvement work whose aggregate price, including labor, services, and materials, exceeds 500 dollars. Roofing contractor is defined separately and more broadly than home improvement contractor in general, covering anyone who engages in or solicits roofing, gutter, downspout, or siding work for a fee, including nonresident contractors, independent contractors, day laborers, and subcontractors. The definition excludes a person who only demolishes a structure or cleans up debris that happens to contain roofing material, and it excludes anyone building a new home or housing development. It also excludes an owner or farm property owner who personally performs the work, or has employees perform it, on their own property without hiring a roofing contractor, and it excludes authorized government employees performing work on government property. Article 36-A does not set experience, training, or education prerequisites for becoming a roofing contractor; its requirements instead attach to how the contractor writes contracts, handles deposits and progress payments, discloses insurance, and deals with a homeowner's property insurance claim, which the following sections cover in detail.
Sourcesnysenate.gov
Section 771 of the General Business Law requires every home improvement contract, including a roofing contract, to be in writing and signed by all parties. The written contract must state the contractor's name, address, telephone number, and license number if the contractor is required to hold one. It must give the approximate or estimated start and substantial completion dates, note any contingencies that could change those dates, and say whether the parties have agreed that a definite completion date is of the essence. The contract must describe the work and materials, including make and model information where relevant, and state the agreed price. It must include a specific, bold-face notice warning the owner that an unpaid contractor, subcontractor, or materialman may file a mechanic's lien against the property, that paying the contract price before a lien is filed can affect the owner's ability to discharge that lien, and that the owner may need to contact an attorney about lien rights. The contract must also disclose that the contractor is legally required to deposit advance payments in accordance with Lien Law Section 71-a, or, in place of that deposit, may instead post a bond, contract of indemnity, or irrevocable letter of credit guaranteeing the payments are returned or properly applied. If the contract calls for progress payments before substantial completion, it must include a schedule showing the dollar amount of each payment tied to a specific stage of completed work or delivered materials, and each payment must bear a reasonable relationship to the work or materials it covers. Finally, Section 771 gives the owner a right to cancel the contract until midnight of the third business day after signing, exercised by giving the contractor written notice of cancellation.
Sourcesnysenate.gov
Section 771-b of the General Business Law layers additional, roofing-specific requirements on top of the general contract rules in Section 771. Every roofing contractor must use a written contract that meets Section 771's requirements before starting roofing, gutter, downspout, or siding work, and that contract must also name the contractor's insurer, the type of coverage, and the policy limits. A roofing contractor may not require an owner to pay a deposit for the work or materials at all, which is a stricter rule than the general deposit and bonding option available to other home improvement contractors under Section 771. A roofing contractor also may not mandate a particular form of payment as a condition of starting the work. Instead, the contractor may invoice for the materials portion of the project once the materials are delivered to the property, as long as the material cost is disclosed to the owner in writing before that payment is due, and may invoice for the remainder of the project once all contracted work is successfully completed. The statute also bars a roofing contractor from abandoning or failing to perform a contract without justification, from deviating from agreed plans or specifications without the owner's consent, and from failing to pay for materials or services once the contractor has received sufficient funds from the owner to cover them. Roofing contractors must follow the building code that applies where the property is located. These rules apply regardless of whether the job also requires a New York City, Nassau, Suffolk, or Westchester County home improvement license, so a contractor can be in full local license standing and still violate state law by collecting a deposit or abandoning a job.
Sourcesnysenate.gov
Section 771-b sets specific insurance requirements for roofing contractors that apply statewide in any political subdivision that does not already impose its own insurance requirement for roofing contracts. Every roofing contractor must provide the owner with adequate proof of insurance covering two things. First, a certificate of workers compensation insurance covering all of the contractor's employees; a roofing contractor with no employees must instead provide a Certificate of Attestation of Exemption, form CE-200, from the New York State Workers Compensation Board. Second, certificates of general liability and property damage insurance meeting minimum limits set directly in the statute: 100,000 dollars per person and 300,000 dollars per occurrence for bodily injury, and 50,000 dollars for each occurrence and in the aggregate for property damage. These are the statewide floor; a city or county that has its own insurance requirement for roofing or home improvement contracts, such as the workers compensation proof New York City's DCWP already requires as part of its Home Improvement Contractor License application, can apply its own requirement instead of or in addition to this state minimum. The contract itself must name the insurer, describe the type of coverage, and state the policy limits, so a homeowner reviewing a proposed roofing contract can check the insurance section against these statutory minimums before signing. Because the requirement is written into the definition of the roofing contractor's statutory responsibilities rather than into a licensing statute, it applies to a roofing contractor's work in New York regardless of whether that contractor also happens to be exempt from a local licensing requirement, for example when working strictly as a subcontractor.
New York gives homeowners a specific cancellation right for roofing contracts tied to property and casualty insurance claims, which matters most after hail, wind, or other storm damage. Under Section 771-b, an owner who has signed a written roofing contract to be paid through an insurance claim may cancel that contract until midnight of the third business day after the owner receives written notice from the insurer that all or part of the claim is not a covered loss. Cancellation takes effect when the owner gives the roofing contractor written notice; if sent by registered or certified mail, notice is considered given once it is properly addressed, postage prepaid, and deposited in a mailbox, and the notice only needs to make clear the owner does not intend to be bound. This claim-denial cancellation right does not apply when the owner initiated contact with the contractor to meet a genuine emergency and the owner gives the contractor a separate, dated, handwritten statement describing the emergency and expressly waiving the three-day right to cancel. Within 10 days after a valid cancellation, the roofing contractor must return any payments, partial payments, deposits, or notes of indebtedness the owner provided, except that a contractor who performed emergency work the owner acknowledged in writing as necessary to prevent damage to the property may keep the reasonable value of that emergency work; any contract clause charging a fee for anything besides that emergency work is not enforceable against an owner who cancelled under this provision. Section 771-b also bars a roofing contractor from advertising or promising to pay or rebate any portion of an insurance deductible as an inducement to sign a contract, including through discounts, gift cards, referral fees, or other items of value paid to the insured or anyone associated with the property.
Sourcesnysenate.gov
New York law draws a clear line between estimating and repairing storm damage, which a roofing contractor may do, and reporting, adjusting, or negotiating an insurance claim on a homeowner's behalf, which requires a separate public adjuster license the roofing contractor does not hold. Section 771-b states that a roofing contractor shall not perform the reporting, adjusting, or negotiating of a claim on behalf of the owner, and shall not receive compensation for referring the owner to any entity that does report, adjust, or negotiate a claim on the owner's behalf. The statute does allow a roofing contractor to communicate with an insurance company representative and share technical knowledge about the damage when the insurer initiates that communication. A 2008 opinion from the Office of General Counsel at what is now the Department of Financial Services examined a roofing company that specialized in storm-damage claims, offered homeowners an opinion on whether damage looked storm-related, gave the homeowner a signed repair estimate the homeowner could submit to the insurer, and was sometimes present when the insurer's adjuster inspected the roof, but did not file the claim, did not negotiate with the insurer, and charged the homeowner nothing for dealing with the insurer. The opinion concluded that company's specific activities did not require public adjuster licensure. A public adjuster license itself is issued by the Department of Financial Services, not by any roofing or home improvement licensing body, and requires passing a New York State examination; the Department's fee schedule lists a 100 dollar fee for a full two-year licensing period, covering the period from January 1 of an odd-numbered year through December 31 of the following even-numbered year, or 50 dollars for a shorter period. A roofing contractor who crosses the line into negotiating a claim for a fee risks operating as an unlicensed public adjuster in addition to violating Section 771-b.
Not everyone doing roofing work in New York needs a home improvement or roofing contractor license, and the exemptions differ slightly between the state definitions and New York City's permit rules. Under General Business Law Section 770, the definition of roofing contractor excludes an owner or farm property owner who personally performs roofing work, or whose own employees perform it, on property that owner holds, as long as no outside roofing contractor is hired. It also excludes an authorized employee or representative of the United States government, New York State, or a political subdivision who is doing the work on government-owned property. The roofing contractor definition further excludes anyone whose role is limited to demolishing a structure or cleaning up construction waste and debris that happens to contain roofing material, and anyone engaged in building a new home or housing development rather than repairing or altering an existing one. Separately, New York City's Department of Buildings lists who does not need a Home Improvement Contractor License to pull a covered permit: a Professional Engineer or Registered Architect without a design-build contract, a subcontractor working under a licensed general contractor, a homeowner performing work on their own home, a contractor working on a new building or fulfilling a new-building completion guarantee, anyone working in a residence owned or controlled by a government agency, and licensed plumbers, architects, engineers, or other professionals whose work stays within the scope of a license they already hold under state or city law. These exemptions mean a roofing crew working strictly as a subcontractor to a licensed general contractor, or a homeowner reroofing a house they live in without hiring outside help, generally falls outside the licensing requirement, even though the state's contract, insurance, and claim-handling rules in Article 36-A can still apply to a paid roofing contractor on that same job.
Sourcesnysenate.gov 1nyc.gov 2
New York's home improvement statute ties license and contact information to the written contract rather than to advertising in general. Section 771 requires every home improvement contract, including a roofing contract, to state the contractor's name, address, telephone number, and license number if the contractor is required to hold one, so a homeowner reviewing a contract can check that information before signing. On the insurance side, Section 771-b imposes a specific advertising restriction on roofing contractors: it prohibits advertising or promising to pay or rebate any portion of an insurance deductible as an inducement to buy roofing goods or services, and defines that prohibited inducement broadly to include any allowance, discount against the contractor's fees, or payment of compensation, a gift, a prize, a bonus, a coupon, a credit, or a referral fee to the insured or anyone associated with the property. In practice, this means a roofing contractor's marketing cannot promise to waive or cover a homeowner's insurance deductible as a way to win the job. Separately, the New York City Department of Buildings requires a contractor to provide its Home Improvement Contractor license number, and to present the license or a copy for validation, when applying for an Alteration Type 1, 2, or 3 permit that covers home improvement work on a one to four family home, co-op unit, condo unit, or rented apartment unit, which functions as a form of mandatory license display at the permitting stage even where it is not printed directly on an advertisement. This brief could not confirm, from the primary sources reviewed, a specific New York City or state rule requiring the license number to appear on every printed or digital advertisement, on company vehicles, or on written estimates, or a specific dollar penalty for omitting it from advertising; those items are listed in the unsourced section below rather than stated as fact here.
New York City requires a Home Improvement Contractor License before a contractor may lawfully sign a residential home improvement or roofing contract in the city, and before a Department of Buildings permit covering that work can be issued, since the permit application itself calls for the license number to be entered and the license or a copy to be presented for validation. This brief could not confirm a specific criminal penalty classification or a specific civil fine amount for operating without that license from a primary DCWP or DOB source at the time of writing, so no such figure is stated here; that gap is listed in the unsourced section below. What the sources reviewed do confirm is that DCWP administers the license application, exam, fingerprinting, bond or trust fund enrollment, and renewal process described earlier in this brief, and that a permit application which requires an HIC number cannot be validated without one. Homeowners in New York City can check a contractor's license status before signing a contract using DCWP's Check License Status tool, which lets a consumer search by license number or business name to confirm whether a Home Improvement Contractor License is active. This brief could not confirm a separate, public online license lookup tool for Nassau County or Westchester County from their own sites at the time of writing; Suffolk County's Consumer Affairs department does reference a public contractor lookup resource, but this brief could not confirm its exact search URL and current status well enough to publish it here, so that gap is also listed below. Homeowners working with a roofing contractor outside New York City should ask the contractor directly for its county license number and confirm it with that county's consumer affairs or consumer protection office by phone before signing a contract, particularly after a storm when unlicensed crews commonly solicit work door to door.
These are common details other guides publish about New York, but we could not verify them from the agency source. Confirm them directly before relying on them.
No. New York has no state board that licenses roofing contractors. General Business Law Article 36-A sets statewide contract, insurance, and storm-claim rules for roofing work, but the actual license comes from a city or county, most commonly New York City's Department of Consumer and Worker Protection.
A roofing company that contracts directly with a homeowner in New York City needs a Home Improvement Contractor License from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, since state law defines roofing as home improvement work covered by that license.
DCWP's new-application fee slides from 50 to 200 dollars depending on when in the two-year cycle you apply, plus a 200 dollar Trust Fund Enrollment fee or a 20,000 dollar surety bond. Renewal costs 250 dollars regardless of timing.
Yes. Each county runs its own separate home improvement licensing program through its own consumer affairs or consumer protection office, and none of them has been confirmed to automatically honor a license issued by New York City or by another county.
No. General Business Law Section 771-b bars a roofing contractor from requiring an owner to pay any deposit for work or materials, and from mandating a particular form of payment before starting the job, which is stricter than the general home improvement deposit rules.
No. Section 771-b prohibits a roofing contractor from advertising or promising to pay or rebate any portion of an insurance deductible as an inducement to sign, including through discounts, gifts, or referral fees.
Yes, in most cases. If you signed a roofing contract to be paid through a property insurance claim, you may cancel until midnight of the third business day after the insurer tells you in writing that all or part of the claim is not covered, unless you signed a written emergency waiver.
No. Section 771-b bars a roofing contractor from reporting, adjusting, or negotiating a claim on the owner's behalf, and from taking a referral fee for sending the owner to someone who does. That activity requires a separate public adjuster license from the Department of Financial Services.
Where no city or county sets its own requirement, Section 771-b requires proof of workers compensation coverage, or a CE-200 exemption certificate, plus general liability and property damage insurance of at least 100,000 dollars per person and 300,000 dollars per occurrence for bodily injury and 50,000 dollars per occurrence and aggregate for property damage.
No. The Department of Buildings exempts subcontractors working under a licensed general contractor from needing their own Home Improvement Contractor License for that job, though the roofing contractor's state-law responsibilities under Article 36-A can still apply.
Use DCWP's Check License Status tool to search by license number or business name before signing a contract. For roofing contractors outside New York City, call the relevant county's consumer affairs or consumer protection office directly to confirm the license.
Yes. Section 771 requires every home improvement contract, including roofing, to be a signed writing that states the contractor's name, address, phone number, license number if applicable, work description, price, and specific notices about liens and the right to cancel.
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