Illinois Roofing Contractor License Cost & Requirements (2026)
Illinois licenses exactly two construction trades at state level, and roofing is one of them. Under the Roofing Industry Licensing Act (225 ILCS 335), every roofing contractor in the state, from a two-person residential crew to a commercial roofing company, holds a license from the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR). The license belongs to the business, not to the roofer personally, and it stands or falls on one named individual: the qualifying party who passed the state examination.
This page was rebuilt in October 2026 from the Act, IDFPR's rules (68 Ill. Adm. Code 1460) and Continental Testing Services' current examination schedule. The license comes in two tiers that cost exactly the same in fees and differ in bond and scope, and the commonest ways to lose it have nothing to do with roofing at all: a lapsed bond cancels it without a hearing, and a departed qualifying party switches it off.
Illinois Roofing Contractor Fee Estimator
Regulatory fee breakdown for Roofing Contractor License — Limited or Unlimited (IDFPR)
Illinois requires a $10,000 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 $10,000 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 InsuranceIllinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR)
All applications and exams must be registered directly with this board.
Fee figures on this page were checked against Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) — Roofing Contractor on October 30, 2026. View the official source
Regulatory & Licensing Requirements Summary
| Official License Classification | Roofing Contractor License — Limited or Unlimited (IDFPR) |
| Minimum Experience | 0 Years (Journeyman / Field Supervisor) |
| Mandatory State Surety Bond | $10,000 Bond Required |
| General Liability Insurance | Roofing only: $500,000 per occurrence bodily injury / $250,000 per occurrence property damage (68 Ill. Adm. Code Part 1460). No state GL mandate for general contractors or plumbing. |
| 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 Illinois
Illinois licenses only a few trades at state level. For roofing, the state's main contractor license: unlicensed practice is a Class A misdemeanor on a first offense and a Class 4 felony on later offenses, and IDFPR can impose a civil penalty of up to $10,000 per offense (225 ILCS 335/10, 335/10a).
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 Illinois
Licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) under the Roofing Industry Licensing Act (225 ILCS 335) and its rules at 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1460. The license belongs to the business and is held through a designated qualifying party (owner, partner, corporate officer or full-time employee) who passes the state examination. Two tiers: Limited covers residential properties of 8 units or fewer and requires a $10,000 surety bond.
Unlimited covers residential of any size plus commercial and industrial work and requires a $25,000 bond. The bond shown in the calculator is the Limited tier's. Both bonds are continuous (Limited on form BD-LRF, Unlimited on form BD-URF), the surety must give the Division 60 days' written notice before cancelling, and a lapse lets IDFPR cancel the license without a hearing.
The application fee is $125 to IDFPR for either tier, and the qualifying party examination, administered by Continental Testing Services, is $248 whichever of the three exams is taken (Residential. Commercial/Industrial, which requires passing Residential first. Or the combined Residential, Commercial and Industrial exam). The passing score is 70%. Older IDFPR reference sheets showing a $226 exam fee are out of date.
Applicants also file an insurance certificate (form RF-INS) evidencing at least $500,000 per occurrence for personal injury and $250,000 per occurrence for property damage, and employers carry workers' compensation insurance and an unemployment insurance account. There is no formal experience requirement and no continuing education. Licenses expire on December 31 of odd-numbered years. Renewal is $125 per two-year cycle (the rules state it as $62.50 per year).
Illinois licenses roofing at state level through IDFPR and plumbing through the Department of Public Health. General contractors are licensed locally, for example by the City of Chicago.
Limited or Unlimited: the tier is about buildings, not dollars
A Limited license covers roofing on residential properties of eight units or fewer. An Unlimited license covers residential buildings of any size plus commercial and industrial work.
The split turns on building type and unit count, not on contract value, which produces results that surprise people: an expensive designer roof on a single-family house is Limited work, while a modest tear-off on a twelve-unit block is not, because the building has more than eight units. The fees are identical either way, a $125 application to IDFPR; what changes is the bond, $10,000 for Limited and $25,000 for Unlimited.
One boundary matters for firms that do more than roofing. Illinois has no state general contractor license, and holding yourself out as a general contractor, locally registered or not, does not authorize roofing. The roofing license is required in its own right, including for general contractors who self-perform roof work, and working without it is a criminal offense under the Act, with IDFPR civil penalties available on top.
The qualifying party and the $248 exam
Every licensee designates a qualifying party, an owner, partner, corporate officer or full-time employee, who applies to Continental Testing Services, IDFPR's examination vendor, and passes the written examination with a score of at least 70%. There are three exams: Residential, for the Limited license; Commercial/Industrial, an upgrade that can only be taken after the Residential exam is passed; and a combined Residential, Commercial and Industrial exam, for the Unlimited license.
The current fee is $248 whichever exam you take. Older IDFPR reference sheets quoting $226 are still circulating in PDFs and prep-school materials; they are out of date. There is no formal experience requirement to sit the exam: the test, built on roofing practice and Illinois roofing law, is the gate.
The dependency cuts both ways. If the qualifying party leaves the business, the license becomes inoperable: IDFPR must be notified and a replacement designated within 30 business days, and the replacement then has seven months to pass the examination. A company whose license hangs on one person's exam result carries a single point of failure, and the established firms in this trade quietly get a second person qualified early for exactly that reason.
Bond, insurance, and the December 31 rhythm
The financial filings are where this license is won and lost. The surety bond, on form BD-LRF for Limited or BD-URF for Unlimited, must be continuous: the surety cannot cancel it without giving the Division 60 days' written notice, and if the bond lapses, the rules allow IDFPR to cancel the license without a hearing.
Insurance is evidenced on the state's certificate form with minimums of $500,000 per occurrence for personal injury and $250,000 per occurrence for property damage, and any firm with employees also carries workers' compensation insurance and maintains an unemployment insurance account with the Department of Employment Security.
Licenses expire on December 31 of odd-numbered years; the current cycle ends on December 31, 2027. Renewal costs $125 for the two-year cycle, stated in the rules as $62.50 per year, and includes a certifying statement that the bond and insurance continue in force. There is no continuing education requirement. The license number has to appear on the business's contracts, bid proposals, vehicles and advertising, which makes its absence the easiest violation in the Act for a competitor or a homeowner to spot.
Mistakes that delay a Illinois Roofer application
- Assuming a general contractor registration covers roofing: Illinois has no state GC license, and the roofing license is required in its own right, including for general contractors who self-perform roofs.
- Taking a ten-unit residential re-roof on a Limited license: the tier turns on the unit count (eight or fewer), not on the contract price.
- Budgeting from the old $226 exam fee: Continental Testing Services' current fee is $248 for every roofing examination.
- Treating the bond as one-time paperwork: it must stay continuous, and a lapse lets IDFPR cancel the license without a hearing.
- Saying nothing when the qualifying party leaves: the license is inoperable until a replacement is designated within 30 business days and passes the exam within seven months.
- Leaving the license number off contracts, bid proposals, vehicles and advertising, where the Act requires it to appear.
Illinois Roofer Licensing FAQ
What does an Illinois roofing license cost in total?
In state and exam fees, $373: a $125 application fee to IDFPR plus the $248 qualifying party examination fee paid to Continental Testing Services. On top of that come the surety bond ($10,000 for a Limited license, $25,000 for Unlimited; you pay a premium, not the face amount) and the required liability insurance. Renewal is $125 every two years, with licenses expiring on December 31 of odd-numbered years.
Who holds the Illinois roofing license, the person or the company?
The company. IDFPR licenses the roofing business, and the license works through a designated qualifying party: an owner, partner, corporate officer or full-time employee who has passed the state examination. If that person leaves, the license becomes inoperable until a replacement is designated within 30 business days and passes the exam within seven months.
What is the difference between Limited and Unlimited roofing licenses?
Scope and bond. Limited covers residential properties of eight units or fewer, with a $10,000 continuous surety bond. Unlimited covers residential buildings of any size plus commercial and industrial roofing, with a $25,000 bond. The application fee ($125) and exam fee ($248) are the same for both; the tier is decided by the buildings you roof, not by contract value.
How hard is the Illinois roofing exam, and who runs it?
It is a written examination administered by Continental Testing Services, IDFPR's vendor, offered on scheduled dates at Hillside and Springfield. The passing score is 70%. There are three versions: Residential (for Limited), Commercial/Industrial (an upgrade, taken after Residential is passed), and the combined Residential, Commercial and Industrial exam (for Unlimited). The fee is $248 for any of them, and no formal experience is required to sit.
Does a general contractor need a roofing license in Illinois?
Yes, to perform roofing. Illinois has no state general contractor license at all, and the Roofing Industry Licensing Act requires the roofing license in its own right, including for general contractors who self-perform roof work rather than subcontracting it. Roofing without the license is a criminal offense under the Act, separate from any local contractor registration the firm holds.
What happens if the roofing bond lapses?
The license can be cancelled without a hearing. The bond must be continuous: the surety has to give IDFPR 60 days' written notice before cancelling, which is the window to replace it. Letting the bond lapse is the most avoidable way to lose an Illinois roofing license, because no exam failure or complaint is involved, just an expired filing.
How much does a Roofing Contractor license cost in Illinois?
The filing and licensing fees on the Illinois Roofing Contractor schedule total approximately $373. This consists of a $125 application fee, a $248 examination fee, and a $0 initial license fee. A $10,000 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 Roofing Contractor license in Illinois?
Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) does not publish a fixed end-to-end processing time for this license. IDFPR publishes no processing average. The pacing item is the examination itself: Continental Testing Services offers the roofing exams on scheduled dates through the year at Hillside and Springfield, with registration closing roughly four weeks before each date.
What are the penalties for working as an unlicensed Roofer in Illinois?
Illinois licenses only a few trades at state level. For roofing, the state's main contractor license: unlicensed practice is a Class A misdemeanor on a first offense and a Class 4 felony on later offenses, and IDFPR can impose a civil penalty of up to $10,000 per offense (225 ILCS 335/10, 335/10a).
How often do you need to renew a Roofer license in Illinois?
Licenses must be renewed every 2 year(s) with a renewal fee of $125. No continuing education is required for renewal.