How To Get A Louisiana Contractor License

Published on September 24, 2019 by Sara Chauvette

How do I get my Louisiana Residential Contractor License?

There are two steps in getting licensed as residential or commercial building contractor in the State of Louisiana:

Submit an application to the State Licensing Board for Contractors along with the supporting documents. You can obtain an application at the State web site: http://www.lslbc.louisiana.gov/default.htm
Upon receipt of the application, the State Licensing Board for Contractors will send you an examination scheduling notice with the date of your exam. You will be required to pass a Business and Law exam and the Trade exam for the license you are seeking.

Any construction project of $50,000 or more ($1 or more for hazardous) must be performed by a licensed contractor, even the home owners themselves. There are no provisions in the law to prevent an owner from applying for and being issued a contractor’s license.

What type of work requires a residential contractor license?

The Residential Contractor license is required to build a fixed building or structure three stories or less where the cost is $75,000 or more and it is used by another as a residence, including duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes.

Are the Louisiana contractor exams open book?

No, it is a CLOSED BOOK exam. A Calculator will be provided for your use during examination.

The following is an outline of the subject areas (in descending order of weight) that will be covered in the exam:

Rough Carpentry 26%
Interior and Exterior Finish 20%
Concrete and Rebar 19%
Associated Trades 10%
Excavation and Site Work 9%
Roofing 6%
Masonry 5%
Plans and Specifications 5%

The examination is made up of 80 multiple-choice questions which are equally weighted. You will have four hours to complete this examination.

Is the NASCLA Accredited Commercial Contractor license accepted in Louisiana?

Yes. The NASCLA-Accredited Exam replaces the Trades exam for Commercial Contractors. When you pass the NASCLA Accredited Examination for Commercial General Building Contractors, you will be listed in the NASCLA National Examination Database. You will then have this information available for the following states which accept the NASCLA Accredited Examination: AL, AR, GA, LA, MS, NV, NC, OR, SC, TN, UT, US Virgin Islands, VA, and WV. You may also need to take each states’ specific business/law/project management exam in addition to the NASCLA exam.

How can I study for the Louisiana contractor exams?