You may be talented, experienced, and skilled, but if you work in the state of Florida as a contractor without a license, you could be fined and arrested on misdemeanor or felony charges. It is illegal to work as a contractor unlicensed in Florida and many other states. In fact, it is a criminal offense to work in Florida as a contractor without the proper license.
In Florida, there are nine ways you can get in trouble (or get caught) for working without a license. You only need to be caught and found guilty of one of the following to be convicted.
- You falsely say or your company is licensed, when your/it are not.
- You pretend to be a certificate holder or registrant of a license.
- You present someone else’s certificate or registrations.
- You give false or forged evidence to the Contractor Licensing Board of having a license when you don’t.
- You use and work under a certificate or registration that has been suspended or revoked.
- You operate a contracting business after 60 days of termination.
- You perform work that requires a building permit without the getting a building permit.
- You disregard or violate municipal or county ordinances related to uncertified/unregistered licenses.
- You advertise yourself or business as an available registered contractor when you are not.
The Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) gives contractors a certificate of competency to contractors who earn it in Florida. A registration in Florida is a registration with the DBPR in accordance with Florida statues.
If found guilty of unlicensed contracting work in Florida, a person is usually charged with a first-degree misdemeanor – penalties of up to one year of probation or prison and a $1,000 fine.
If the unlicensed contractor has been convicted before, he/she could be charged with a third-degree felony. This felony has penalties of up to five years in prison or probation and a $5,000 fine, and court-ordered restitution when the victim claims the work performed was sub-par and caused a loss of some sort due to the contractor being unlicensed.
If the unlicensed contractor pleads guilty, he/she will have a permanent criminal record that can ruin a chance of obtaining a contractor license in the future.
As you can see, obtaining a contractor’s license is important and necessary. You don’t want to ruin your career and future by practicing without one.
If you’re looking to get your Florida contractor’s license, we can help. We are a Florida contractor licensing company that specializes in getting our clients their licenses fast and easy. We know the process of getting the applications into the Board. If you are ready to get contractor license, click our Florida contractor’s license page to learn more or call 239-777-1028 to get started on a contractor license application with us.