Alabama · Checked October 22, 2026
License above a job-value threshold. Alabama has no single roofing license. Residential roofing over $2,500 needs a Residential Roofer license from the Home Builders Licensure Board (HBLB), and broader residential work over $10,000 needs an HBLB home builder license. Commercial, industrial or public roofing at $100,000 or more needs a license from the Licensing Board for General Contractors (LBGC).
Checked in part. The load-bearing facts on this page (regime, threshold, exam) are sourced below, but one or more figures for Alabama could not be confirmed on a primary board or statute page in the October 22, 2026 pass. Anything unconfirmed is printed as “Not published” — never estimated. Confirm the open figures with the board before you file.
| Item | Alabama |
|---|---|
| Regime | State license above thresholds — Residential Roofer (HBLB) / Commercial General Contractor (LBGC) |
| Exam | None. The roofer license has no written exam. The HBLB Unlimited home builder path and LBGC commercial path do require exams (HBLB exams via Prov; LBGC exams via PSI), including business/project-management and trade/skills components. |
| Experience | No formal years-of-experience requirement and no exam for the Residential Roofer license; the application packet requires a local (municipal/county) contractor license and the $10,000 bond. Commercial LBGC applicants are classified on experience, equipment and financial statement. |
| Application fee | $100 not-returned application processing fee (HBLB Residential Roofer) |
| License / registration fee | $150 annual license fee (HBLB Residential Roofer) |
| Total state cost | $250 total for a new HBLB Residential Roofer license. LBGC commercial: $300 prime contractor application / $150 subcontractor application, renewals $200 / $100. Exam fees, where they apply, are paid separately to Prov (HBLB) or PSI (LBGC). — Roofer renewal is $150 per year, due by November 30, plus the bond premium. |
| Bond | $10,000 license/permit surety bond naming the Home Builders Licensure Board as obligee is required for the HBLB Residential Roofer license. No blanket state bond for LBGC commercial prime contractors; bid limit is set from the financial statement. |
| Insurance minimums | No state-set general liability minimum published for the HBLB Residential Roofer license in this pass. LBGC commercial applicants must submit proof of general liability and workers' compensation insurance with the application. |
| Who qualifies | HBLB licenses a business through a designated qualifying representative (DQR); a new DQR must show a passing home builders exam score or an existing home builders license where the license type requires it. The roofer license itself has no exam-taking qualifier. |
| Timeline | Residential Roofer applications are processed by the HBLB on a rolling basis; secondary guides report about 4-6 weeks when the packet, local license and bond are complete. LBGC commercial applications are reviewed at quarterly board meetings, so allow a full quarter. |
| Renewal | Annual. HBLB Roofer: $150 by November 30, bond renewed, and six credit hours of continuing education where applicable; $50 late fee after November 30. LBGC licenses renew annually (prime $200, subcontractor $100). |
| Credential | Scope | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Residential Roofer (HBLB) | residential | For residential roofing where the cost of the undertaking exceeds $2,500. Unlimited HBLB home builder licensees may do residential roofing without a separate roofer license; Limited licensees still need the roofer license. |
| Home Builder — Unlimited / Limited (HBLB) | residential | For residential construction, remodeling or improvement over $10,000 on structures not over three floors and not more than four units. |
| General Contractor — Prime or Subcontractor, Building Construction classifications (LBGC) | commercial | For commercial, industrial and public work at $100,000 or more; bid limits are set from the applicant's CPA financial statement. |
License trigger: $2,500 — Residential roofing: total cost of the undertaking including labor and materials exceeds $2,500 (Ala. Code §34-14A-2). Other triggers: general residential work over $10,000 (HBLB); commercial/industrial/public work $100,000 or more (LBGC).. Changed recently: the commercial threshold was $50,000 until Act 2024-277 raised it to $100,000 effective October 1, 2024 — the HBLB's own FAQ now states $100,000, and older guides still printing $50,000 are stale. Splitting a job into smaller contracts to stay under a threshold is not permitted.
LBGC: a subcontractor whose portion of a commercial project is $100,000 or more must hold its own LBGC license. HBLB: a roofer working strictly as a subcontractor under a licensed contractor who holds the prime contract/permit generally does not need a separate HBLB license, but a direct contract with the homeowner over $2,500 triggers the Residential Roofer license.
State license governs above the thresholds; local business licenses and building permits still apply, and an HBLB roofer applicant must already hold a local municipal/county contractor license.
No specific deductible-waiver statute found. no state statute specifically banning deductible waivers found in this pass; general insurance-fraud and unfair-practices law still applies Note: Ala. Code §§8-36-1 to 8-36-2 (Residential Roofing Consumer Protection Act) does regulate insurance-paid residential roofing contracts — 5-business-day cancellation after an insurer's denial/insufficiency notice, no payment (except emergency services) before that period expires, and a ban on representing or negotiating an insurance claim — but the text reviewed contains no deductible-waiver ban. An older secondary survey listing Alabama as banning deductible rebates could not be tied to a current statute in this pass.
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