Johnson County, KS Contractor License Renewal

At a glance

Who issues it

Johnson County Contractor Licensing, a division of the Johnson County Department of Planning, Housing and Community Development, issues and tracks 11 types of construction contractor licenses: Class A General, B Building, C Residential, DE Electrical, DF and DFA Fire Protection, DM Mechanical (HVAC, mechanical and refrigeration), DP Plumbing, DR Roofing, DS Swimming Pool and DW Wood Framing. The Contractor Licensing Review Board (CLRB) carries out the county's licensing rules

Where it applies

The county's New Application Instructions (Rev. 1/08/26) list its participating jurisdictions: the cities of De Soto, Edgerton, Fairway, Gardner, Leawood, Lenexa, Merriam, Mission, Mission Hills, Olathe, Overland Park, Prairie Village, Roeland Park, Shawnee and Spring Hill, and unincorporated Johnson County. Unless the regulations provide otherwise, only a licensed contractor may obtain a building permit. Ask the city's building department about anything else it requires

Renews every

Year: contractor licenses are valid for one year, issued on a schedule Johnson County Contractor Licensing sets. The renewal form renews a license for the following calendar year

When to renew

Resolution 076-24 lets a renewal application be submitted from one month before the expiration date through one month after it, with a late fee after that. It requires Contractor Licensing to mail renewal applications no later than one month before expiration to the address you gave it, and not receiving one doesn't excuse a late renewal

Renewal fee

$225 per license type, with no application fee for a renewal. The late fee is $75 per license type: the fees page applies it on Feb. 1, and the renewal form charges it after 2/01. An inactive renewal is $100

Expired over a year

Unless a license is renewed within one year after it expires, the contractor has to make a new application and meet all of the licensing requirements in force at that time

Continuing education

Every Qualifying Individual must complete at least eight hours of continuing education per license classification each calendar year, as required by the CLRB. The renewal form makes it a condition of renewing the company's license(s) for the following calendar year. The county's Single-Day Sessions (April, May, June, August and September, online over Zoom) are free for Johnson County Qualifying Individuals; Last Chance Education runs in November, December, January and February at $30 per credit hour. Register for these in the contractor portal. Courses taken outside the county's own classes aren't credited until a certificate of completion is provided to Contractor Licensing staff (email it to contractor.education@jocogov.org)

Qualifying Individual

The person whose education qualifies the company for the license. A QI must be a full-time employee, which the renewal form defines as 30 hours per week or more. Changing your QI on the renewal form requires additional paperwork; the county's Forms page has a Qualifying Individual (QI) Change Form

Insurance

The company has to keep in force, for the duration of the license, general liability insurance of at least $1,000,000 combined single limit per occurrence and $1,000,000 completed operations, with a certificate of insurance (COI) verifying it. Companies with employees also need workers' compensation as Kansas law requires, with $100,000 employer's liability each occurrence; companies without employees file a notarized Workers' Compensation Waiver instead, which stays in effect for as long as the contractor holds a valid license; hiring employees later means filing proof of workers' compensation coverage

Certificate of insurance

An ACORD form listing Johnson County Contractor Licensing, 111 South Cherry Street, Suite 1000, Olathe, Kansas 66061-3486 as certificate holder, with the insured name and address exactly as the company is listed with the office. The county is to get 30 days' advance written notice by registered mail before coverage or limits are reduced or cancelled. The county's licensed companies list shows a status for each company, such as "Inactive: Insurance Expired"

Inactive license

During the renewal period, a contractor that has completed the year's continuing education can pay $100 to have its license declared inactive. No building permit is issued to a contractor with an inactive license. An inactive license can be renewed each year once all continuing education is done and the renewal fee paid, and made active again at any time by paying the license fee

Renewal form

The Renewal Application asks whether the contractor or any Qualifying Individual has ever had a professional license or registration to perform work as a contractor suspended or revoked in any jurisdiction due to being disciplined, fined, sanctioned or cited, has boxes for no company changes and no QI or permittee changes, and asks you to circle each license type you hold (A, B, C, DE, DF, DFA, DM, DP, DR, DS, DW)

How to pay

Active renewals can be done online through the contractor portal (cls.jocogov.org), or paid by cash (exact amount), check, money order, cashier's check, Visa, Mastercard, Discover or American Express. Contractor Licensing can't take payments over the phone. A company name change costs $25

Contact

Contractor Licensing, 111 S. Cherry, Suite 1000, Olathe, KS 66061: 913-715-2233, Option 1, contractor.licensing@jocogov.org. Education: 913-715-2233, Option 2, contractor.education@jocogov.org

Each license type carries its own fee and its own continuing education: a company holding a Class B and a DM license pays $225 for each, and its Qualifying Individuals owe eight hours of continuing education per license classification.

The county's licensed companies list shows companies with the status "Inactive: Insurance Expired": the certificate on file has to stay current all year, not only at renewal. Track your general liability and workers' compensation renewal dates as closely as the license itself.

How to renew

1. Check your Qualifying Individual's continuing education: at least eight hours per license classification this calendar year. Book a Single-Day Session (April, May, June, August or September; free for Johnson County Qualifying Individuals) or a Last Chance Education class (November to February). An approved outside class counts too, but only once its certificate of completion is emailed to Contractor Education.
2. Ask your agent for a current ACORD certificate showing $1,000,000 general liability per occurrence and $1,000,000 completed operations, with Johnson County Contractor Licensing as certificate holder and your company's name and address exactly as the county lists them. If you have employees, include workers' compensation; if not, the notarized Workers' Compensation Waiver stays in effect while you hold a valid license, until you hire employees and have to file proof of coverage.
3. Watch for the renewal application: the county's rules have it mailed no later than a month before your license expires, and not receiving it doesn't excuse a late renewal.
4. Renew an active license online in the contractor portal at cls.jocogov.org, or with the Renewal Application from the county's Forms page: $225 per license type, or $100 to renew as inactive (continuing education still required, and no building permits).
5. Renew before Feb. 1 to avoid the $75 late fee per license type. Once a license has been expired for more than a year, it takes a new application.

Deadline checklist

• 3 months outCount your Qualifying Individual's continuing education hours for the year: at least eight per license classification. Book what's missing, and email Contractor Education the certificate of completion for any outside class: it isn't credited until then.
• 45 days outAsk your agent for a current ACORD certificate naming Johnson County Contractor Licensing as certificate holder, with your company's name and address exactly as the county lists them.
• 1 month outThe renewal window opens, and the county should have mailed your renewal application by now. Renew in the contractor portal or with the form: $225 per license type.
• Feb. 1The $75 late fee per license type applies from here.
• 1 year lateAfter a year expired, the license takes a new application and every licensing requirement then in force.

Put this renewal in your calendar

Know your expiration date? Download a free calendar file with reminders before it, no sign-up needed. It's made in your browser: nothing you type is sent to us (your browser keeps it only if you follow the sign-up link, for your new ledger). A Google Calendar button sends just that one event to Google.

The file covers one date: once you renew, make a new one. How to add it to your calendar

Frequently asked questions