Ask for the license number, look it up on the state’s DBPR portal, and confirm the status reads active and unexpired. In Pinellas County there is a second step: state-certified contractors are also required to register with the county before working there, so a valid state license alone does not mean the contractor is authorized at your address.
The whole process takes a few minutes. It is the cheapest due diligence available on a project that will cost tens of thousands of dollars.
Step one: get the number, in writing
A licensed contractor will give you the license number without hesitation and will usually have it on the estimate, the business card and the website. Reluctance to provide it is the answer to the question.
Florida license numbers carry a prefix that tells you the classification. CGC is a Certified General Contractor, the broadest scope. CBC is a Certified Building Contractor. CRC is a Certified Residential Contractor. All three are certified licenses issued by the state’s Construction Industry Licensing Board and valid statewide. Registered licenses carry different prefixes and are valid only in the jurisdiction that issued them.
Get the number itself, not a screenshot of a license card. Cards are easy to fabricate and a number can be checked against the source.
Step two: look it up on the state registry
The Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation maintains a public “Verify a Licensee” search at myfloridalicense.com. It is free, it requires no account, and it returns the authoritative record.
Search by license number for an exact match, or by name if you only have the company. The record will show the license type, the status, the expiration date and the address of record.
Read four things:
Status. Active is what you want. Current, null and void, delinquent, suspended and inactive all mean something different, and none of them mean you can proceed.
Expiration. Florida construction licenses run on a two-year cycle, and the deadline depends on the type. The DBPR states that certified contractors renew on August 31 of every even-numbered year, and registered contractors on August 31 of every odd-numbered year. The next certified deadline is August 31, 2026. A license expiring during your project is not necessarily a problem, but it is worth asking about.
Classification. Confirm the license covers the work. A contractor certified for one scope cannot legally pull permits outside it, and a homeowner who finds this out at permit review has lost weeks.
The name on the record. The license belongs to a qualifying individual, not to a company. Confirm that the person holding it is actually associated with the business you are hiring. A company operating under someone else’s license without that person’s genuine involvement is a recognized form of fraud in this industry.
Step three: check the county, if you are in Pinellas
This is the step most guides skip, and it is the one that catches people out locally.
Pinellas County requires state-certified contractors to register their license with the county and provide proof of insurance before working there. The registration runs through the Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board, which has regulated construction and home improvement contractors across the county and all its municipalities since 1973.
The board maintains a contractor search tool, and advises homeowners to ask for a contractor’s name and license number and verify their eligibility to work in Pinellas County before hiring. You can reach it through the county’s contractor licensing department.
So the complete check in Pinellas is: active state license, correct classification, and current county registration. A contractor can clear the first two and fail the third.
Hillsborough County handles this differently. If the project is in Tampa or unincorporated Hillsborough, the state check is the primary one, with local requirements depending on the jurisdiction.
Step four: confirm insurance separately
The license record will not tell you what you most need to know about risk. Ask for a certificate of insurance issued directly by the insurer or the agent, naming you as certificate holder, showing general liability and workers’ compensation.
A certificate the contractor emails you as a PDF they already had is worth less than one the agent sends. The difference is whether the coverage is current, and that is exactly what you are checking.
Workers’ compensation matters more than homeowners realize. If an uninsured worker is injured on your property, the exposure can land on you.
What the license record does not tell you
A clean license is a floor, not a recommendation. It confirms someone passed an exam, carried insurance and paid their renewal fees. It says nothing about whether they finish on schedule, communicate during the job, or stand behind the work afterward.
For that, the useful checks are different. Ask for addresses of completed projects in your area rather than a photo gallery. Ask who will actually be on site day to day and whether the trades are employees or subcontractors. Ask what the warranty covers and get it in the contract rather than in conversation. The Pinellas board also investigates consumer complaints, and a complaint history is part of the public picture.
The quick version
Get the license number in writing. Check it on myfloridalicense.com for active status, matching classification and a name you can tie to the business. In Pinellas, confirm county registration through the PCCLB. Get a certificate of insurance from the agent, not the contractor. Then start asking the questions the license cannot answer.
Limarcar Remodeling holds Florida license CGC1534789, and you can run every step above against it. More about the business is on our about page, and the work itself is in our project gallery.
Frequently asked questions
Where do I check a Florida contractor license? The Department of Business and Professional Regulation runs a free public lookup called Verify a Licensee at myfloridalicense.com. It is the authoritative source for state-issued licenses.
What does the CGC prefix mean? Certified General Contractor. It is a statewide certification with the broadest residential and commercial scope among general contracting classifications.
What is the difference between a certified and a registered contractor? A certified contractor is licensed by the state and may work anywhere in Florida, subject to local registration requirements. A registered contractor is licensed to work only in the jurisdiction that issued the license. The two also renew on different schedules: certified in even-numbered years, registered in odd-numbered years, both on August 31.
Does a state license let a contractor work anywhere in Florida? Not without meeting local requirements. Pinellas County requires state-certified contractors to register with the county before working there, and other jurisdictions have their own rules.
Is a handyman required to be licensed? It depends on the work. Minor repairs and cosmetic work generally fall outside licensing requirements, while electrical, plumbing, structural and mechanical work does not. The dividing line is narrower than most people assume, and permitted work always requires a licensed contractor.
What happens if I hire an unlicensed contractor? The practical risks are that the work cannot be permitted or inspected, your insurer may deny claims related to it, you may be liable for injuries on the property, and unpermitted work surfaces as a problem when you sell. Recourse after something goes wrong is also far more limited.
Limarcar Remodeling is a licensed general contractor (CGC1534789) serving St. Petersburg and Tampa Bay. This article describes the verification process in general terms. The DBPR and the Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board are the authorities on license status and local registration.