The contractor LLC, state by state.
Construction carries a regulated stack. The LLC is the easy layer. After it come the contractor license where the state requires one, workers compensation, general liability, and bonding for many license classes. Which of those apply, and who issues them, depends on the state and on the trade. Pick yours for the licensing model, the classes and the sequence.
Four things that differ by state.
Forming the entity is the same exercise everywhere. What sits on top of it is not, and for construction that layer decides what you can bid on and who has to approve you first.
State level or trade level
Some states license general contractors directly through a state board. Others have no state-level general contractor license and license specific trades instead, plumbing, electrical, HVAC and irrigation among them. That single difference changes who you apply to before the first job.
License classes and trades
Where licensing exists it is divided into classes tied to trades and scope of work. The class you hold decides the work you can take on, so the application is not only about qualifying, it is about qualifying for the right thing the first time.
Bonding requirements by class
Bonding attaches to many license classes and is treated as a condition of the license rather than an optional extra. It is arranged alongside insurance, before work starts, which is why it belongs inside the licensing step and not somewhere after it.
Workers comp and liability
Workers compensation and general liability sit in the same stack as the license and the bond. The crew decides how much of it applies, and whether the people on site are employees or subcontractors is a classification question with paperwork of its own.
The entity is the simple part. The license stack is the project.
Pick your state.
Each state page covers construction in that state: how contractors are licensed there, the classes and trades involved, bonding, workers comp and general liability, subcontractor handling, and the order the whole stack is built in.
A clean handoff, in four steps.
You tell us the trade and the state. We check what that state licenses, form the entity, get the EIN and banking in place, and take the license, bond and insurance from there.
Check your trade
Start with the state and the trade. That tells you whether there is a state-level license, which class covers your work, and what has to exist before an application can be made.
Form the LLC
We file the entity with the state and put the registered agent in place, so the license application, the bond and the contracts all have a company behind them.
EIN and banking
The EIN comes next, then the business bank account. Both are needed before bonding, insurance and payroll can attach to the company rather than to you personally.
License, bond, insure
The license application, the bond and the insurance run together, and subcontractor paperwork follows. Renewals then run on two calendars, one for the license and one for the entity.
One entity, one stack, one calendar. Built in the right order.
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The questions people ask before they build.
Do I need a contractor license in every state?
There is no single national answer. Some states license general contractors at state level through a board. Others have no state-level general contractor license and license specific trades instead, plumbing, electrical, HVAC and irrigation among them. Your state page covers which model applies where you work and which body issues the license, which is the first thing to establish before anything else is filed.
Does an LLC replace a contractor license?
No. They do different jobs. The LLC is the legal entity: it puts the business on the state's record and separates it from you. The license is permission to do the work, issued by the state or the trade board. Most contractors need both, and the usual sequence is to establish what the license requires first, then form the entity that will hold it.
What are license classes?
Licensing is generally divided into classes tied to trades and scope of work, so the license you hold defines the work you can take on. That makes the class part of the business plan rather than an administrative detail: applying for the wrong one means qualifying for work you do not do. Each state page sets out the classes that state uses.
Why is bonding part of this?
Bonding attaches to many license classes and is treated as a condition of holding the license, not as an optional add-on. It is arranged in the same phase as insurance, before work starts. Which classes require it and what the bond has to cover are set by the state, so the requirement is covered on the state page alongside the license itself.
How do subcontractors change the picture?
They add a classification question and a paperwork trail. Whether the people on site are employees or subcontractors affects workers compensation and the reporting that follows, and the answer is tested rather than chosen: what matters is how the working arrangement actually runs. Subcontractor compliance is a step in its own right on every state page for that reason.
What happens after the license is issued?
Two calendars start. The license has its own renewal cycle, run by the board or agency that issued it, and the LLC has its own obligations with the state that formed it. They are not on the same schedule and missing either one causes problems the other cannot fix. Keeping both current is the ongoing part of running a licensed trade.
Keep going, in order.
Industry & niche LLCs
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Open the index → IndexAll 51 state guides
Every filing a business does, organised by jurisdiction.
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