Where the license number has to appear, by state
If your state requires it, put the number everywhere you ask for work: website, every ad, social profiles, business cards, estimates, contracts and trucks. The details below are what each law says; this page covers only places whose text was checked on an official site.
| Place | Ads | Online | Trucks |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | All forms of advertising | "Any electronic transmission" counts | Name and number; size set by trade |
| Florida | Every ad, "regardless of medium" | Included | Only if the truck shows your name or contracting artwork |
| Arizona | All published ads, with "ROC" before the number | Online ad may link to a site that shows it | Not in the section below |
| Nevada | All advertising | "On the Internet" counts | Markings on a vehicle count as advertising |
| Texas (HVAC only) | Ads for A/C or refrigeration work | Not addressed separately | Company name and license number |
| Quebec | Any advertising, with "RBQ licence:" | Websites and social networks | Vehicles that show the business name |
Not covered here: other states, and Texas general contractors. Check your own licensing board.
California: CSLB advertising rules
The statute is one sentence:
"Every person licensed pursuant to this chapter shall include his license number in: (a) all construction contracts; (b) subcontracts and calls for bid; and (c) all forms of advertising, as prescribed by the registrar of contractors, used by such a person." (California B&P Code 7030.5)
The regulation defines advertising to include "any card, contract proposal, sign, billboard, lettering on vehicles ... brochure, pamphlet, circular, newspaper, magazine, airwave or any electronic transmission" (16 CCR 861, in the CSLB Law Book). The Contractors State License Board lists "any website or post that solicits business on the Internet" among the forms of advertising, and puts the civil penalty "between $100 and $1,000 for a first offense" (CSLB Advertising Guidelines).
Trucks have two rules:
| Contractor | What to show | Letter size |
|---|---|---|
| C-36 plumbing, C-45 sign, C-57 well drilling | Name, permanent business address, license number, each side | At least 1½ inches high |
| All other licensed contractors | Business name and license number, clearly visible | 72-point font or ¾ inch high and wide |
Both apply to commercially registered vehicles (B&P 7029.5, B&P 7029.6).
The CSLB guide adds two rules that trip up ads: don't advertise work outside your license classification, and don't say you are bonded (CSLB Advertising Guidelines).
Florida
"The registration or certification number of each contractor shall appear in each offer of services, business proposal, bid, contract, or advertisement, regardless of medium, as defined by board rule, used by that contractor or business organization in the practice of contracting." (Florida Statutes 489.119(5)(b))
Business stationery and promotional items such as pencils or clothing are not "advertisement". Trucks: if a vehicle shows your name or artwork that suggests contracting, the number "must be conspicuously and legibly displayed" with it, but the law creates no duty to letter a truck. A first offense gets a notice of noncompliance; fines can follow if you don't fix it within 30 days (same section).
Arizona
The number must be "preceded by the acronym "ROC"" and placed on bids, estimates, "all published advertising", and:
"On all broadcast, internet or billboard advertising, unless the broadcast, internet or billboard advertising includes a website's uniform resource locator that directly links to a website that prominently displays the licensee's name and license number." (Arizona Revised Statutes 32-1124(B))
So in Arizona, an online ad that links to a site showing your name and ROC number in a prominent place meets the rule.
Nevada
"All advertising by a licensed contractor must include the name of the contractor's company and the number of the contractor's license." (NRS 624.720(4))
Advertising includes "any sign or marking on a motor vehicle" and anything "on the Internet". An unlicensed person who advertises construction work must say in the ad that they are not licensed. The board can order unlawful ads stopped and the phone number in them disconnected (same section).
Texas: HVAC contractors
Texas air conditioning and refrigeration contractors licensed by TDLR have their own rule, 16 Texas Administrative Code 75.71. TDLR lists two violations of it: "Failed to include license number in advertisement which requires the license number" (75.71(h)), and "Failed to display or incorrectly displayed the company name and license number on vehicles which require it" (75.71(g)) (TDLR: ACR penalties and sanctions). The rule's text sets the exceptions and the letter size; read it on the Texas Secretary of State's Administrative Code site before you letter a truck.
Canada: Quebec
Quebec's Régie du bâtiment (RBQ) requires the number in a set format, "RBQ licence: XXXX-XXXX-XX" (in French, « Licence RBQ : XXXX-XXXX-XX »), on "any type of advertising, including your business cards", and online: "If you advertise your services on your website, professional or personal social networks, you must indicate your licence number." Vehicles that display the business name must show it too (RBQ: Displaying your licence). Members of the master electricians' or master pipe mechanics' corporations are exempt, because those corporations' logos identify them, and so are contractors based outside Quebec.
Where to put it online
- Website: in the footer of every page, and on the contact and about pages.
- Google Business Profile and social profiles: in the business description.
- Search ads: where the law has no online exception, the number goes in the ad. A responsive search ad description holds "up to 90 characters" (Google Ads Help: About responsive search ads), enough for "CA Lic. #123456" beside your offer.
- Local Services Ads: Google itself "verifies that advertisers hold applicable state, provincial and/or country-level licenses" (Local Services Help), so use the same license in your ads.
Example
California HVAC company
Its truck shows the company name and "Lic. #1234567" in ¾-inch letters. The website footer, Facebook page, yard signs and Google ad description all carry the same number.
Arizona roofer running Google ads
Its search ads link to a landing page that shows "ROC 123456" prominently. Under 32-1124(B)(4), the ads themselves can skip the number; its printed door hangers can't.
Montreal renovation contractor
Its Instagram bio, website and business cards read "Licence RBQ : 1234-5678-90". A plain phone-book line with only name, address and phone would not need it.
Different for you?
- Roofing ads after a storm: the insurance-claim solicitation laws.
- Building a site that books jobs: HVAC and plumbing website.
- Signing up for Local Services Ads: Google Guaranteed vs Google Screened.
- Moving company instead: the USDOT and MC numbers you must show.
- Want every page and ad checked for it: Website.