Last updated: August 28th, 2026
I wanted to take a moment to discuss the different types of contractors license application waivers. I’m often asked, “Do I get a waiver of the exam since I’ve been working my trade for the last decade?” No. The waiver requirements are very specific. I’ve included the law text below, but I will break it down for you here.
Business and Professions Code Section 7065.1(a) provides for a waiver when an individual has been listed on the official records of a licensee for five of the previous seven years and meets the other requirements of the law. However, CSLB currently states that the Registrar has suspended waivers under Section 7065.1(a). This waiver is therefore not currently being granted.
This waiver may allow an immediate family member to obtain a new license to continue an existing family contracting business. The individual license must have been active and in good standing for five of the seven years immediately preceding the application, and the qualifying family member must have been actively engaged in the business for five of those seven years. The license must be needed to continue the existing family business because of the absence or death of the licensee, and the new license must be in the same classification or classifications.
Immediate family is interpreted to be “a spouse, father, mother, brother, sister, son, daughter, stepson, stepdaughter, grandson, granddaughter, son-in-law, or daughter-in-law.”
This type of exam waiver is not very well known. It applies to an employee of a corporation or limited liability company who is replacing the company’s former qualifying individual. The applicant must have been continuously employed by the corporation or LLC in a supervisory capacity in the same classification for five of the seven years immediately preceding the application. The company must also have held an active license in good standing in that classification for five of the previous seven years and must not have requested this type of waiver within the past five years. Supporting documentation of the applicant’s employment and supervisory experience may be required.
This is separate from the waivers under Section 7065.1. Under Business and Professions Code Section 7065, no examination is required if, within the five years immediately preceding the application, the qualifying individual either personally passed the required examinations for the same classification or served as the qualifying individual for a licensee whose license was in good standing in the same classification.
Those are some of the primary examination waiver provisions that may apply. Eligibility depends on the specific circumstances, and requesting a waiver does not automatically mean CSLB will grant it. If you think you might fit into one of these, feel free to email me with your specific situation and I’ll determine if you qualify.
Important current note: Section 7065.1(a) remains in the statutory language below, but CSLB currently states that the Registrar has suspended waivers under subsection (a). CSLB currently permits waiver requests under subsections (b) and (c), subject to the requirements of those provisions.
7065.1. Notwithstanding Section 7065, the registrar may waive the examination for a contractor’s license under any of the following circumstances: (a) The qualifying individual has, for five of the seven years immediately preceding the application for licensure, been listed on the official records of the board as a member of the personnel of any licensee who held a license, which was active and in good standing, in the same classification being applied for, and who during the period listed on the license has been actively engaged in a licensee’ s construction activities in the same classification within which the applicant applies for a license. (b) The qualifying individual is an immediate member of the family of a licensee whose individual license was active and in good standing for five of the seven years immediately preceding the application for licensure, and the qualifying individual is able to show all of the following: (1) The qualifying individual has been actively engaged in the licensee’s business for five of the seven years immediately preceding the application for licensure. (2) The license is required to continue the existing family business in the event of the absence or death of the licensee. (3) An application is made for a new license in the same classifications in which the licensee is or was licensed. (c) The qualifying individual is an employee of a corporation or a limited liability company seeking to replace its former qualifying individual and has been employed by that corporation or limited liability company under the following conditions: (1) For five of the seven years immediately preceding the application for licensure, the qualifying individual has been continually employed by the corporation or limited liability company in a supervisory capacity in the same classifications being applied for. (2) For five of the seven years immediately preceding the application for licensure, the corporation or limited liability company has held an active license in good standing in the same classifications being applied for. (3) The corporation or limited liability company has not requested a waiver under this subdivision within the past five years. For purposes of this section, employees of a corporation or limited liability company shall include, but not be limited to, the officers of a corporation and the officers and managers of a limited liability company.
