General Contractor Licensing and Registration
North Dakota licenses contractors at the state level through the Secretary of State, and this domain tests whether you know when a license is required, what a complete application contains, and what an unlicensed contractor risks.
When a license is required
Under NDCC ch. 43-07, a person who contracts to build, alter, or repair real property for another must hold a North Dakota contractor's license. The obligation attaches before bidding or offering to contract, not merely before starting work, and it reaches general and specialty trades alike. The license belongs to the named individual or legal entity; it does not migrate with a trade, a crew, or a supervisor from one business to another.
Application mechanics
- Identify the applicant exactly as registered with the Secretary of State, including entity type.
- List owners, officers, and the individual responsible for directing the work.
- Give the business address and trade classification, and pay the required fee.
- Out-of-state applicants register as foreign entities and consent to service of process through the Secretary of State.
- Once issued, the license number appears on bids, contracts, permits, and advertising.
Worked example
A handyman forms an LLC and advertises cabinet installation. He files articles of organization, obtains the LLC's contractor license, but keeps running ads under the personal license number he held as a sole proprietor. The advertising is noncompliant: the number must match the licensed entity, and the personal credential does not cover contracts signed in the LLC's name.
Traps
Assuming a license is project-specific; assuming an out-of-state contractor license transfers into North Dakota; treating a skilled employee's experience as the entity's credential; overlooking the rule that generally bars an unlicensed contractor from suing to collect the contract price.