What jobs can a handyman do without a contractor license in Virginia?

Without a contractor licence, a handyman in Virginia can take on jobs where the single contract or project is worth under $1,000, and only work outside the licensed trades. Electrical, plumbing, HVAC and gas work need a licensed tradesman at any price. Paid work that disturbs old paint in a pre-1978 home needs EPA lead-safe certification at any price, too. Above $1,000, the business needs a DPOR contractor licence of the right class and specialty.

Where the licence starts

Virginia law defines a contractor as anyone who, for a fixed price, commission, fee or percentage, bids on or accepts work to build, remove, repair or improve a building or structure permanently annexed to real property, or any other improvement to real property.^[1] The Code says that no person may engage in, or offer to engage in, contracting work in Virginia without a licence,^[2] and the smallest licence, Class C, starts where the total value referred to in a single contract or project is over $1,000.^[1] When a contractor does the work, the contract price is prima facie evidence of its value.^[1]

The Board for Contractors' consumer guide puts the line at work valued at $1,000 or more.^[9] The safe reading for a homeowner is that a job priced at $1,000 or more should go to a licensed business.

Two things follow from "single contract or project":

• The whole job counts. A list of small repairs quoted as one job is one contract. If it comes to more than $1,000, it is licensed work, even though each task alone is small.
• Splitting does not help. Breaking one project into several invoices under $1,000 does not change that the licence test is the value of a single contract or project. A handyman who offers to split the bill is telling you the job needs a licence.

What an unlicensed handyman can usually take on

Below the $1,000 line, and outside the trades below, the common handyman list is generally open to an unlicensed handyman: hanging shelves, pictures and curtain rods, patching small drywall holes, touch-up painting, caulking, rehanging doors, adjusting cabinet hinges, replacing a towel bar, assembling furniture, and similar work.

Many of those jobs also need no building permit. Virginia's building code lists the application of paint or wallpaper, the installation or replacement of cabinetry or trim, and the installation or replacement of floor finishes among ordinary repairs that need no permit application.^[10] Where a permit is needed, anyone applying for a building permit must show the building official a contractor licence or file a written statement that they are not subject to licensure,^[10] so permit work is where an unlicensed handyman usually runs out of road.

What needs a licence at any price

Electrical, plumbing and HVAC. Virginia defines a tradesman as anyone who does electrical, plumbing or HVAC work for the public for pay, and no individual may do that work without a tradesman licence unless working under the supervision of a licensed tradesman in that specialty.^[5][6] There is no dollar threshold in that rule. Swapping a light fixture, adding an outlet or replacing a faucet is a job for a licensed trade, whatever it costs. See whether a handyman can replace light fixtures in Virginia.

Gas. Gas fitting has its own licence: no individual may work as a liquefied petroleum gas fitter or natural gas fitter provider without one.^[5][6] A gas dryer or range hookup is not handyman work; see who can hook up a gas dryer or range.

Paint in an older home. Under the EPA's renovation rule, anyone paid to do work that disturbs painted surfaces in a home built before 1978 must be certified, and its workers trained, in lead-safe work practices.^[11] The EPA adds: "This includes all firms, even sole proprietorships."^[11] That is a federal certification, separate from a Virginia contractor licence, and it applies to a $100 job as much as a $10,000 one.

Working under a licensed contractor

There is one more route. Virginia's exemptions include work valued at $25,000 or less per project done on behalf of a properly licensed contractor that holds a residential building, commercial building or home improvement licence.^[3] Even then, construction services that require an individual licence or certification must still be done by someone who holds it.^[3] If an unlicensed handyman says they are working under someone else's licence, the contract should be with that licensed business, and you should look that business up.

What a licensed handyman business holds

A Virginia contractor licence has two parts: the class (A, B or C), which sets the value of the contracts the business may take, and the classification or specialty, which sets the type of work.^[8] For general repair work the relevant specialty is home improvement. The home improvement (HIC) specialty covers repairs and improvements to dwellings and townhouses, but does not provide for electrical, plumbing, HVAC or gas fitting work.^[7] So even a licensed handyman sends the wiring and the pipes to a licensed trade.

Why it matters to you

Contracting or bidding without a licence, or without the proper class of licence for the value of the work, is a Class 1 misdemeanor,^[4] and the law adds a fine of up to $500 for each day of the violation.^[4] That is the contractor's problem. Yours is recourse. If you hire someone who does not hold a licence, the Board for Contractors may not be able to help you resolve a complaint,^[9] while hiring a licensed contractor makes you eligible for compensation from the Contractor Transaction Recovery Fund in case of improper or dishonest conduct.^[9] More in whether it is illegal to hire an unlicensed contractor in Virginia and how the recovery fund works.

To check a licence, use DPOR's lookup or call the Board for Contractors; how to check if a contractor is licensed in Virginia walks through it. A good written list keeps the total and the trade items clear from the start; see how to write a handyman to-do list.

Stop and call a pro if

• Any item involves wiring, a breaker, an outlet, a light fixture, a pipe, a faucet, a water heater, a gas line or a furnace. That is licensed trade work at any price.
• The work needs a building permit, or changes a wall, a framed opening, a stair, a deck or the roof.
• The whole job comes to $1,000 or more and the business cannot give you a DPOR licence number that checks out for the class and type of work.
• The house was built before 1978, the work will sand, scrape or cut through paint, and the business is not EPA lead-safe certified.

Getting quotes on Loclis

On Loclis you describe the job once and local businesses quote it. The directory lists DPOR-licensed businesses from the state register with licence number, class and retrieval date, and a link to DPOR's lookup. Plumbing, HVAC, electrical and gas work need a licence on Loclis at any job size, and an unlicensed quote for them is refused. You can browse odd jobs, find handyman businesses around Blacksburg, or read the other handyman answers.