Contractor licensing · MD

Contractor licensing in Maryland

The agencies that license the work, set the workers compensation trigger and register the business, with a link to each one.

Checked 2026-07-28

An Arkansas contractor taking work in Maryland deals with the same four questions everywhere: who licenses the trade, when a licence is actually required, when workers compensation kicks in, and where the business registers. Below is Maryland's answer to each, with the agency's own link.

Licensing

Maryland Home Improvement Commission (MHIC), Maryland Department of Labor

MHIC licenses and regulates home improvement contractors and salespersons; only MHIC-licensed contractors may contract with homeowners for residential alteration, remodeling, repair, or replacement work. Subcontractors may work under a licensed contractor. Since June 1, 2024, licensees must carry $500,000 general liability insurance.

https://www.labor.maryland.gov/license/mhic/

Workers compensation

Maryland Workers' Compensation Commission

Every Maryland employer with one or more employees must provide workers' compensation coverage for employees, with few exceptions (per WCC employer Q&A).

https://www.wcc.state.md.us/

Business registration

Maryland State Department of Assessments and Taxation (SDAT) via Maryland Business Express

https://businessexpress.maryland.gov/

Tax registration

Comptroller of Maryland

https://mdtaxconnect.gov/

New hire reporting

Most states require newly hired employees to be reported within a short window of their start date.

https://mdnewhire.com/

Still to confirm. mdtaxconnect.gov and mdnewhire.com are JavaScript portals; roles confirmed via marylandcomptroller.gov and dhs.maryland.gov (20-day deadline). MHIC page states no minimum contract dollar threshold.
These are pointers to each state's own agencies, checked on the date shown, not legal advice and not a substitute for asking the board directly. Rules change and thresholds move. The agency link is always the authority.

Maine · All fifty states · Massachusetts

Starting or running the business itself is covered in the contractor business guide. Arkansas licence records for Benton and Washington counties are in the contractor directory.

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