Alabama Contractor License (AL) Education, Exam Prep, Books

The first step to take for your contractor license in Alabama is to complete the application, available online or by calling the Alabama Licensing Board for General Contractors at (334) 272-5030.  You must then pass the Business and Law exam. 

Once you have passed the exam you will need to ensure the following criteria has been met:

• Net worth of minimum working capital of applicants – business or as individuals- should be $10,000 or more.
• Prime Contractor Applicants must submit with the application a statement book completed by a Certified Public Accountant or board approved public accountant. This book includes:
  • • Confidential Financial Statement
    • Equipment Questionnaire
    • Experience Statement  
• General liability insurance 
• Application and all accompanying documents must be submitted to the board at least 30 days before their quarterly meeting. Meeting dates and deadlines are available on their site.
• All applicants must receive a passing score on  the Business and Project Management and Skill Test Examination on the classification in which they are applying.
• If your business is registered as a corporation, you must register your business with the Alabama Secretary of State and provide a registration certificate with your application.

Our online exam prep is available to help you pass your Alabama state exam. We also offer application processing assistance.  @Home Prep’s Alabama training for exam prep courses, continuing education credits and other courses is approved at both the state and industry level.

The state of Alabama references a “general contractor” license as a “prime contractor” license and issues two licenses for general contracting work:

Prime Contractor – License for those performing commercial or industrial projects worth more than $50,000 or any prime contractors seeking to do residential projects more than $10,000

Subcontractor – Anyone performing work for a licensed general contractor if the work exceeds $50,000.

An Alabama Home Builders license is required for any residential project that exceeds $10,000 or more in value. All electrical, plumbing, and hvac contractors, administrators, and journeymen are also required to be licensed.

A PrimeContractor Application fee is $300 

A Subcontractor Application fee is $150

A Prime Contractor Renewal Fee is $200

A Subcontractor Renewal fee is $100

Per Alabama state law, you don’t need an Alabama handyman license for projects worth less than $50,000. That is the limit set for a contractors license and it’s generally recommended that you begin with smaller handyman projects to build up on skills and experience.

Your application will depend on having experience in the field and if you apply for a speciality license you will need to list experience in that field as well.

Alabama does have Reciprocity with Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas and Louisiana. You have to be licensed for 3 years consecutively with the same classification you are wanting in Alabama.

The form needed is included in the Prime Application and under the form section of website, called Out State License Verification. It must be submitted with a current copy of your license in that state.