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West Virginia: under $5,000 a job without a contractor license

By Yossi Grunwald, founder of Workeey · Updated

In West Virginia a job under $5,000 on a home needs no state contractor license. Plumbing, electrical and HVAC: state license. Read from West Virginia's own pages, checked November 6, 2026.

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The limit in West Virginia

The limit: Under $5,000 per job (homes). In short: under $5,000 per job for residential work (under $25,000 for commercial work); painting and landscaping need no contractor license at any value.

What counts: "where the cost of the undertaking is $5,000 or more for residential work or $25,000 or more for commercial work" — the statute says "cost of the undertaking" and does not split labor from materials. The state's words do not say whether materials count toward the limit.

Conditions: below the threshold the person is not a "contractor" under the Act; plumbing, electrical and HVAC work still need the separate state trade licenses at any value; painting and landscaping are excluded from the definition of contractor regardless of value; an owner personally doing work on property they own or lease is excluded.

Licenses in West Virginia

General contractors: State license. State contractor license from the WV Contractor Licensing Board required where the cost of the undertaking is $5,000 or more for residential work or $25,000 or more for commercial work. Classifications include general, residential, electrical, plumbing, HVAC and specialty. Written contract required for work of $10,000 or more including materials and labor (§ 30-42-10(b)). The old $2,500 threshold was in repealed Chapter 21, Article 11.

Plumbing: State license. Licensed by the Commissioner of Labor (Division of Labor): "a person performing or offering to perform plumbing work in this state shall have a license issued by the Commissioner of Labor" (W. Va. Code § 21-14-3(a)); journeyman, master, plumber-in-training levels (§ 21-14-2). Plumbing contractor is also a § 30-42 classification.

Electrical: State license. Licensed by the State Fire Marshal: no electrical work for compensation unless the person "possesses a license and a certificate issued by the State Fire Marshal" (W. Va. Code § 29-3B-2). Owner/immediate-family property exempt (§ 29-3B-3(a)(1)).

HVAC: State license. HVAC technician license from the Commissioner of Labor required since Jan 1, 2016 for anyone performing or offering to perform work on a heating, ventilating and cooling system (W. Va. Code § 21-16-3(a)); homeowners on their own single-family dwelling and routine maintenance are exempt. HVAC contractor is also a § 30-42 classification.

Your license number in West Virginia

Your license number: Licensed contractors must show the number on advertising and contracts. None of these rules names invoices.

In the rule's words: “The contractor's license number shall be included in all contracting advertisements and all fully executed and binding contracts.” (W. Va. Code § 30-42-6(b))

Where West Virginia's own pages disagree

The legislature's code site lists two bills that would have exempted drywall work, but its bill-status pages show both stalled. The law as it stands has no drywall exemption, so drywall work is still covered.

West Virginia's board, and when this was checked

The board: West Virginia Contractor Licensing Board. As of November 6, 2026. Dates on the state's pages: wvclboard.wv.gov statutes page: Page Updated 7/31/2024 and SB65 (2026) last action 02/23/26, not enacted.

This is a summary of each state's own pages as of November 6, 2026, not legal advice. Rules change, and cities and counties add licenses of their own. Check with your state's board, linked on this page, before you rely on it.

Compare West Virginia with every state's limit.

Next door to West Virginia

Official sources for West Virginia

11 of West Virginia's own pages, each quoted with its link:

  • W. Va. Code § 30-42-3. Definitions. (§ 30-42-3): “...to construct, alter, repair, add to, subtract from, improve, move, wreck, or demolish any building... where the cost of the undertaking is $5,000 or more for residential work or $25,000 or more for commercial work.”
  • W. Va. Code § 30-42-3. Definitions. (exclusions) (§ 30-42-3): “A person who performs landscaping or painting services for commercial or residential customers.”
  • W. Va. Code § 30-42-3. Definitions. (exclusions) (§ 30-42-3): “A person who personally performs construction work on the site of real property which the person owns or leases.”
  • W. Va. Code § 30-42-6 (§ 30-42-6(a)): “No person may engage in this state in any activity as a contractor or submit a bid to perform work as a contractor, as defined in this article, unless that person holds a license issued under the provisions of this article.”
  • W. Va. Code § 30-42-6(b) (§ 30-42-6(b)): “The contractor's license number shall be included in all contracting advertisements and all fully executed and binding contracts.”
  • W. Va. Code § 30-42-10. Prerequisites to obtaining building permit; mandatory written contracts. (§ 30-42-10(b)): “No person licensed under the provisions of this article may perform contracting work of an aggregate value of $10,000 or more, including materials and labor, without a written contract...”
  • W. Va. Code § 21-14-3 (§ 21-14-3(a)): “On and after January 1, 2009, a person performing or offering to perform plumbing work in this state shall have a license issued by the Commissioner of Labor, in accordance with the provisions of this article.”
  • W. Va. Code § 29-3B-2 (§ 29-3B-2): “no electrical work may be performed, offered, or engaged in for compensation or hire within the state of West Virginia by any person, firm, or corporation unless such person, firm, or corporation possesses a license and a certificate issued by the State Fire Marshal”
  • W. Va. Code § 21-16-3 (§ 21-16-3(a)): “On and after January 1, 2016, a person performing or offering to perform work on a heating, ventilating, and cooling system in this state shall have a license issued by the Commissioner of Labor...”
  • [W. Va. Code § 21-11-3. Definitions. [Repealed.]](https://code.wvlegislature.gov/21-11-3/) (§ 21-11-3): “[Repealed.]”
  • SB 65 (2026 RS) bill history: “Removing persons who perform drywall services from definition of "contractor" in Contractor Licensing Act”

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