Arizona General Contractor License Cost & Requirements (2026)
Arizona's Registrar of Contractors (ROC) does not sell one general contractor license. It licenses by classification and scope: residential, commercial, and dual licenses that carry both. This page prices the KB-1 General Dual, the classification that covers residential and commercial general contracting in a single license, because that is the license most people asking for an 'Arizona general contractor license' actually mean. The first-time state charges are $800 in ROC fees, plus a $370 Recovery Fund assessment that commercial-only licensees never pay.
Two Arizona features shape everything below: a bond priced by your gross volume of work rather than a flat figure, and the Recovery Fund, a state fund standing behind residential work that only residential and dual licensees finance.
Arizona General Contractor Fee Estimator
Regulatory fee breakdown for KB-1 General Dual Building Contractor (Arizona ROC)
Arizona requires a $14,000 surety bond. Its annual premium is set by the surety provider; the board publishes no rate, so it is not included in the total.
Itemized Fee Schedule
Need your $14,000 Surety Bond?
Boards do not sell bonds. Before you buy one, read how a surety bond works, what the premium is based on, and how a bond differs from liability insurance.
Read: Bonds vs Liability InsuranceArizona Registrar of Contractors (AZ ROC)
All applications and exams must be registered directly with this board.
Fee figures on this page were checked against Arizona Registrar of Contractors (ROC) on October 29, 2026. View the official source
Regulatory & Licensing Requirements Summary
| Official License Classification | KB-1 General Dual Building Contractor (Arizona ROC) |
| Minimum Experience | 4 Years (Journeyman / Field Supervisor) |
| Mandatory State Surety Bond | $14,000 Bond Required |
| General Liability Insurance | Not required. The ROC does not require liability insurance for licensure (workers' compensation insurance excepted). |
| Estimated Application Processing Time | Not published by the board |
| Renewal Cycle & CE Requirement | Every 2 year(s), with no continuing education requirement |
Warning: Unlicensed Contracting Penalties in Arizona
Class 1 misdemeanor (§32-1164): a first offense carries a fine of not less than $1,000 (not less than $2,000 for later offenses) and up to 6 months in jail, plus statutory surcharges that currently add about 79%.
Note: In many states, unlicensed contractors also lose the ability to file mechanic's liens or sue for non-payment in civil courts.
Special Statutory Notes for Arizona
Most people who ask for an Arizona general contractor license actually mean this one: the KB-1 General Dual, issued by the Registrar of Contractors (ROC) and covering residential and commercial general contracting under a single license. A general contractor's bond is where the dual structure bites hardest, because it is priced off gross volume on two scales at once.
The smallest dual licensees post $14,000, made up of $9,000 residential (for under $750,000 of residential work) plus $5,000 commercial (for under $150,000 of commercial work), and the bond climbs with volume to as much as $15,000 residential plus $100,000 commercial. A cash deposit can be posted instead of a bond. The qualifying party needs 4 years of practical or management experience in general contracting, at least 2 of them within the last 10 years.
Two exams stand in front of the license, the Arizona Statutes and Rules exam ($54) and the trade exam through PSI ($66), and every person named on the application must pass a background check whose cost the ROC does not publish. Because the KB-1 touches residential work, the Residential Recovery Fund assessment comes with it: $370 with the first license and $270 at every renewal, on top of the renewal fee.
The single-scope general licenses price differently: the commercial-only license runs $200 application / $580 license / $580 renewal with no Recovery Fund, and the residential-only license $180 / $320 / $320 plus the Fund. Arizona requires no continuing education for ROC licenses, and licenses renew every 2 years.
Arizona licenses contractors statewide through the Registrar of Contractors (ROC). A license is required for any project of $1,000 or more in total cost (labor, materials and all other items), and for any work that needs a building permit, however small.
Why this page prices the dual license
ROC's fee rule (R4-9-130) prices each stream separately. A commercial-only general license (the B-1 family) costs $200 to apply and $580 for the two-year license, and pays no Recovery Fund at all, because the fund protects homeowners and commercial clients are outside it. A residential general license applies at $180 with a $320 license fee. The KB-1 dual combines the scopes: $200 application, $480 license, $480 renewal, and the Recovery Fund assessment on top, $370 with the first license and $270 at each renewal.
The qualifying party's experience standard is the same across the general classes: 4 years of practical or management experience in the classification, at least 2 of them within the last 10 years, with training able to substitute for up to 2 of the years. Every person named on the application must pass a background check; ROC does not publish what the check costs, so no figure for it appears on this page.
The Recovery Fund, and a bond that scales with your workload
The Residential Contractors' Recovery Fund (A.R.S. section 32-1132) exists so that homeowners damaged by a licensed residential contractor's work have a state fund to claim against. Only licensees who do residential work pay into it, which is why it attaches to residential and dual licenses and never to commercial-only ones. For a KB-1 holder it is a permanent feature of the license's economics: $370 at the start, $270 inside every renewal cycle, on top of the $480 renewal fee.
The license bond works on volume. Under rule R4-9-112 the bond combines the residential and commercial scales for your gross volume of work. The smallest dual licensees post $14,000: $9,000 on the residential side (for under $750,000 of residential work) plus $5,000 commercial (under $150,000). At the top of the scales the same license can require $15,000 residential plus $100,000 commercial. A cash deposit can be posted instead of a bond. Any page quoting one flat Arizona bond figure for all general contractors has not read the rule.
Mistakes that delay a Arizona GC application
- Quoting the commercial-only price for a dual license, or the dual price for a commercial one. The streams differ by hundreds of dollars and by the Recovery Fund.
- Forgetting the Recovery Fund in the renewal budget. A KB-1 renewal is $480 plus the $270 fund assessment: $750 per cycle, not $480.
- Repeating the old $132 exam total. The Statutes and Rules exam has cost $54 since October 2021, so the two exams total $120, not the pre-2021 $66 plus $66.
- Treating the 60-day rule as a typical wait. Rule R4-9-113 gives ROC up to 60 calendar days to decide on a complete application; it is a deadline the agency works under, not an average processing time.
- Assuming a background check fee is included or published. Every named person must pass one and ROC does not publish its cost.
Arizona GC Licensing FAQ
Do commercial-only Arizona general contractors pay the Recovery Fund?
No. The Recovery Fund protects residential customers, so the assessment ($370 initially, $270 at renewal) attaches only to residential and dual licenses. A commercial-only general license pays the higher license fee instead, $580 for two years, and no fund assessment at all. The KB-1 dual pays the fund because it includes residential scope.
How much is the bond for a KB-1 general dual license?
It depends on your gross volume of work, because rule R4-9-112 scales the bond. The smallest dual licensees post $14,000 combined ($9,000 residential plus $5,000 commercial, stated on one bond). Volume pushes the components up to $15,000 residential and $100,000 commercial at the top of the scales. A cash deposit may be posted instead of a bond.
What exams does an Arizona general contractor take?
Two: the Arizona Statutes and Rules examination, $54 since October 2021, and the trade exam through PSI, $66. The qualifying party must also show 4 years of practical or management experience in the classification, at least 2 years of it within the last 10, and every person named on the application passes a background check.
How long will ROC take to decide on my application?
The honest answer is a rule, not an average. Arizona rule R4-9-113 gives the Registrar up to 60 calendar days to grant or deny a complete new-license application. ROC publishes no typical processing time, so this page reports the 60-day decision deadline rather than an invented estimate.
How much does a General Contractor license cost in Arizona?
The filing and licensing fees on the Arizona General Contractor schedule total approximately $1,170. This consists of a $200 application fee, a $120 examination fee, and a $480 initial license fee. The remaining $370 covers the residential Recovery Fund assessment (initial) ($370). A $14,000 surety bond is also required; its annual premium is set by the surety provider and no official rate is published.
How long does it take to get a General Contractor license in Arizona?
Arizona Registrar of Contractors (AZ ROC) does not publish a fixed end-to-end processing time for this license. Arizona rule R4-9-113 gives the ROC up to 60 calendar days to grant or deny a complete new-license application; that is a decision deadline set by rule, not a typical processing average.
What are the penalties for working as an unlicensed GC in Arizona?
Class 1 misdemeanor (§32-1164): a first offense carries a fine of not less than $1,000 (not less than $2,000 for later offenses) and up to 6 months in jail, plus statutory surcharges that currently add about 79%.
How often do you need to renew a GC license in Arizona?
Licenses must be renewed every 2 year(s) with a renewal fee of $480. No continuing education is required for renewal.