Reciprocity

California Reciprocity – Exam Requirements:

If you have a valid contractor license from, Arizona, Nevada or Utah, you may be eligible for a California contractor license without having to take the trade portion of the exam.

the contractor agencies of California, Arizona, Nevada, and Utah all have formal reciprocity agreements. The CSLB believes that reciprocity among respective licensing programs is a valuable benefit. Thus specified classifications where the practice and licensing requirements are either identical or fundamentally indistinguishable in each state with California qualify for reciprocity, which makes it easier to get a license.

REMEMBER – CSLB may waive the Trade portion of the exam, but retains the right to require the Trade exam.
IMPORTANT – If the applicant is granted reciprocity, they will still be required to take the Law & Business portion of CSLB’s exam.

Reciprocity requirements are the same for each state:

  1. The contractor must be applying for a license in a classification that appears on that state’s Reciprocal Classifications List.
  2. They also must have held an active license in good standing in one of the reciprocal states for the previous five years.
  3. As well as submit to CSLB the Request for Verification of License form. (This form must be completed by the licensing entity under which the applicant is already licensed.)
  4. Then you must complete the Application for Original Contractor’s License.

Reciprocal Classifications List:

The column to the left includes the license class codes and category descriptions for each state. The column to the right lists the corresponding license classification for California. For example, a C-7 Carpentry license in Arizona corresponds to a C-5 Framing and Rough Carpentry license in California.

The following are the Reciprocal License Classifications for CALIFORNIA, ARIZONA, NEVADA, and UTAH.

State Class Code & Description
CALIFORNIA A GENERAL ENGINEERING
Arizona A General Engineering
Arizona A-19 Electrical & Transmission Lines
Arizona KA Dual Engineering
Nevada A Electrical & Transmission Lines
Nevada A-19 Electrical & Transmission Lines
CALIFORNIA B GENERAL BUILDING
Arizona B General Residential Contractor
Arizona B-1 General Residential Contractor
Arizona B-2 General Small Commercial Contractor
Arizona B-3 Commercial Re-modeler & Repair Contractor
Arizona C-61 Limited Remodeling & Repair
Arizona KB-1 Dual Building Contractor
Arizona KB-2 Dual Residential & Small Commercial
Arizona L-61 Carpentry, Remodeling & Repairs
Nevada B General Building
Nevada B100 General Building Contractor
Nevada R100 Residential & Small Commercial Contractor
CALIFORNIA C-4 BOILER, HOT WATER & STEAM FITTING
Arizona C-4 Boilers Including Solar
Arizona C-4R Boilers
Arizona K-4 Boilers, Steamfitting & Process Piping
Arizona K-74 Boilers, Steamfitting & Process Piping Including Solar
Arizona L-4 Boilers, Steamfitting & Process Piping
Arizona L-74 Boilers, Steamfitting & Process Piping Including Solar
Nevada C-1a Boilers
CALIFORNIA C-5 FRAMING & ROUGH CARPENTRY
Arizona C-7 Carpentry
Arizona K-7 Carpentry
Arizona K-61 Carpentry, Remodeling & Repairs
Arizona B-3 Commercial Remodeler & Repair Contractor
Arizona C-61 Limited Remodeling & Repair
Arizona L-7 Carpentry
Arizona L-61 Carpentry, Remodeling & Repairs
Nevada C-3 Carpentry, Maintenance & Minor Repairs (excluding C-3c Cabinets & Millwork)
Nevada C-3a Carpentry, Remodeling & Repairs
CALIFORNIA C-6 CABINET, MILLWORK & FINISH CARPENTRY
Arizona K-61 Carpentry, Remodeling & Repairs
Nevada C-3b Finish Carpentry
CALIFORNIA C-7 LOW VOLTAGE SYSTEMS
Nevada C-2d Low Voltage
CALIFORNIA C-8 CONCRETE
Arizona C-9 Concrete
Arizona K-9 Concrete
Arizona L-9 Concrete
Nevada C-5 Concrete
CALIFORNIA C-10 ELECTRICAL
Arizona C-11 Electrical
Arizona K-11 Electrical
Arizona L-11 Electrical
CALIFORNIA C-11 ELEVATORS
Arizona C-18 Elevators
Arizona K-12 Elevators
Arizona L-12 Elevators
Nevada C-7 Elevation & Conveyance
CALIFORNIA C-12 EARTHWORK & PAVING
Nevada A-16 Paving of Street, Driveways & Parking Lots
CALIFORNIA C-16 FIRE PROTECTION
Arizona C-16 Fire Protection Systems
Arizona K-16 Fire Protection Systems
Arizona L-16 Fire Protection Systems
Nevada C-41 Fire Protection
Utah S370 Fire Suppression Systems Control
CALIFORNIA C-20 C-20 HVAC – WARM AIR HEATING, VENTILATING & AIR CONDITIONING
Arizona C-39 Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Including Solar
Arizona C-39R Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
Arizona K-39 Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
Arizona K-79 Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Including Solar
Arizona L-39 Air Conditioning & Refrigeration
Arizona L-79 Air Conditioning & Refrigeration, Including Solar
Nevada C-1f Heating Cooling & Circulating Air
Nevada C-21 Refrigeration & Air Conditioning
Utah S350 HVAC Contractor
CALIFORNIA C-27 LANDSCAPING
Arizona A-21 Landscaping & Irrigation Systems
Arizona K-21 Landscaping & Irrigation Systems
Nevada C-10 Landscaping
CALIFORNIA C-29 MASONRY
Arizona K-31 Masonry
Arizona L-31 Masonry
Nevada C-18 Masonry
Utah S360 General Masonry Contractor
CALIFORNIA C-33 PAINTING & DECORATING
Nevada C-4 Painting & Decorating
CALIFORNIA C-34 PIPELINE
Arizona C-37R Sewers, Drains & Pipe Laying
Nevada A-15 Sewers, Drains & Pipes
Nevada A-19 Pipeline & Conduits
Nevada A-20 Industrial Pipeline
CALIFORNIA C-35 LATHING & PLASTERING
Nevada C-17 Painting & Decorating
CALIFORNIA C-36 PLUMBING
Arizona C-37 Plumbing Including Solar
Arizona C-37R Plumbing
Arizona K-37 Plumbing
Arizona K-77 Plumbing Including Solar
Arizona L-37 Plumbing
Arizona L-77 Plumbing Including Solar
CALIFORNIA C-38 REFRIGERATION
Arizona L-49 Commerical, Industrial Refrigeration
Nevada S-360 Refrigeration
Utah S-360 Refrigeration Contractor
CALIFORNIA C-39 ROOFING
Arizona C-42 Roofing
Arizona K-42 Roofing
Arizona L-42 Roofing
Nevada C-15 Roofing & Siding
Utah S-280 General Roofing Contractor
CALIFORNIA C-42 SANITATION SYSTEMS
Arizona A-12 Sewers, Drains & Pipe Laying
Nevada A-15 Sewers, Drains & Pipes
CALIFORNIA C-43 SHEET METAL
Arizona C-1e Sheet Metal
Arizona C-21e Solar Air Conditioning
CALIFORNIA C-45 ELECTRICAL SIGN
Nevada C-6 Masonry
Nevada C-6b Masonry
CALIFORNIA C-47 GENERAL MANUFACTURED HOUSING
Arizona C-68 Mobile Home Remodeling & Repair
CALIFORNIA C-50 REINFORCING STEEL
Arizona K-62 Reinforcing Bar & Wire Mesh
Arizona L-62 Reinforcing Bar & Wire Mesh
CALIFORNIA C-51 STRUCTURAL STEEL
Arizona A-11 Steel & Aluminum Erection
Arizona C-17 Structural Steel & Aluminum
Utah S360 Steel Erection Contractor
CALIFORNIA C-53 SWIMMING POOL
Arizona A-9 Swimming Pools
Arizona A-21 Swimming Pools, Including Solar
Arizona B-5 General Swimming Pool Contractor
Arizona B-6 General Swimming Pool Contractor, Including Solar
Arizona KA-5 Dual Swimming Pool Contractor
Arizona KA-6 Dual Swimming Pool Contractor, Including Solar
Nevada A-10 Swimming Pools
CALIFORNIA C54 TILE (CERAMIC & MOSAIC)
Nevada C-20 Masonry
Nevada C-6b Masonry
CALIFORNIA C-57 WELL DRILLING
Nevada C-23 Drilling Wells