License and Registrations

A contractor is any person or entity that undertakes to, attempts to, submits a price or bid for, offers to construct/supervise/oversee/direct/assume charge of any project for which the total project cost is $25,000. 

A person or entity describing themselves as a contractor must have submitted evidence of qualifications to the State Board, be licensed by the State of TN as such, and have a monetary limitation sufficient to support the total project value.

In limited cases, there are exemptions to state licensure requirements.

If you want to get your license and start your own general contracting business, you must make sure you have all of your documents in order. Tennessee requires financial statements for all applicants, a letter of reference and proof of workers' compensation and general liability insurance. 

You'll also need to establish your business and file it with the Tennessee Secretary of State's Office. With your paperwork ready, you can begin the application process. 

Everyone applying for a general contractor license in Tennessee will have to take and pass the state's Business and Law exam. Additionally, depending on what sort of license classification you are applying for, you might also need to take a particular trade exam.

Additional information on applying for a contractors license can be found on the State of Tennessee website. There are several City of Knoxville license types that will require you to hold a valid State of TN license.

Learn More

All individuals who will hold permits in the City of Knoxville are required to have a license or registration appropriate for the work they perform. If you do not have a contractors license but want to perform work under an exemption, that information has to be documented also. Having a unique 'homeowner contractor' registration is needed to ensure the City is in compliance with State requirements and enables us to provide requested audit information about permitting in the jurisdiction.

The system will allow you to associate your license to your ACA credentials to help speed up the application process on future permits and will collect all of your applications into a single location to help you keep things organized and simplify invoicing and record keeping.

All individuals who will hold permits in the City of Knoxville are required to have a license or registration appropriate for the work they perform. If you do not have a contractors license but want to perform work under an exemption, that information has to be documented also. Having a unique 'unlicensed contractor' registration is needed to ensure the City is in compliance with State requirements, enables us to provide requested audit information about permitting in the jurisdiction, and will allow us to help applicants show 'experience' to the State when they are applying for State licensure.

The system will allow you to associate your license to your ACA credentials to help speed up the application process on future permits and will collect all of your applications into a single location to help you keep things organized and simplify invoicing and record keeping.

A City of Knoxville Contractor is fully license by the State of Tennessee in their trade. We will verify that they have all appropriate credentials and issue their City licensed based on their state qualifications.

A City of Knoxville Installer is an individual who has passed a State of Tennessee approved exam demonstrating competency in their trade and has provided evidence to the City that they have a minimum of 4 years experience performing work in their trade. These individuals are typically in the process of meeting the state requirement for a full contractors license but a capable of performing smaller jobs. This license is limited to jobs where the total job cost of materials and labor is less than $25,000.

The adopting ordinance for the International Plumbing Code was amended in 2022 to bring City of Knoxville licensing requirements in line with the regulations set forth by the State of TN licensing board.

The meetings and public posting for these changes were published in the first quarter of 2022 year; changes were reviewed and approved by City Council in two separate public hearings in March. The amendment to ordinance provides for two types of plumbing license which allow the holder to be issued permits – one license through reciprocity of a State of TN CMC or CMC-A license, the other is a limited license based on a State of TN LLP license and documented experience.

Similar changes were made to all mechanical and electrical licenses; gas licenses were eliminated completely and the requirement for permitting rolled into the plumbing and/or mechanical license.

The Journeyman license was originally created to recognize an individual as working under the supervision of another licensed contractor; it did not impart any rights to hold permits or perform work outside of said supervision. This license type is also not supported by the State of TN licensing board and did not impart rights outside of this jurisdiction.

 As such, the Journeyman license type was not carried over and became invalid with adoption of City ordinance O-33-2022 on March 22, 2022. The City of Knoxville no longer licenses the Journeyman license type.

In order for a license to be issued to an individual, evidence must be provided by the applicant that they hold one of the above referenced State of TN licenses – the easiest path being the Installer license based on the State LLP. Details on how to acquire the LLP license can be found at https://www.tn.gov/commerce/regboards/llp.html.

A good rule of thumb is to assume that a licensed contractor is required. There are particular instances were exemptions apply that would allow someone who is not licensed by the State to pull permits for work. Some examples (but not all scenarios) would be:

• Building work on an IRC residential project where the job cost, including materials and labor, does not exceed $3,000.
• Building work on an IBC commercial project where the job cost, including materials and labor, does not exceed $25,000.
• Work being performed by a residential property owner, at their primary residence (not secondary property or rental) and where they are performing all work themselves (no hired help).
• Work being performed by a residential property owner, at other than their primary residence, where the job cost, including materials and labor, does not exceed $3,000.
• These exemptions will not apply and a contractor will be required when a property is:
  • a manufactured home,
  • a townhouse or condominium,
  • condemned or placarded as unfit for human habitation,
  • a fire-damaged building,
  • for rent, lease, or sale (or will be) when the permit is issued to a homeowner contractor.

A licensed electrical or gas contractor/installer is required to pull a permit to perform the safety inspection of their respective systems. These permits may not be issued to the holder of a homeowner contractor license or unlicensed contractor license.

TCA §680-01-.11 provides a means for contractors to combine their monetary limitations in order to undertake a large project than each would otherwise be able to perform as separate contractors. Issuance of a permit for work as a joint venture will be dependent upon the follow:

1. All members of the joint venture must have the appropriate State of TN license classification which would allow them to bid the project individually,
2. The combined monetary limitations on such classifications must be equal to or greater than the total cost of the project involving such classifications,
3. A declaration of joint venture form must be completed and submitted to the City of Knoxville showing an appropriate level of risk/profit for members when evaluated against individual licenses,
4. A copy of the signed contract for work must be submitted with the application showing that the work was bid and contracted in the name of the joint venture (not a singular member of the joint venture).

Declaration of Joint Venture(PDF, 159KB)

Registrations for building contractor and individuals performing work under a State of TN exemption do not have associated fees. MEP contractor and installer license fees are incurred at license issuance and renewal (license will be valid for 365 days from fee payment).