Denver Contractor Licensing: Supervisor Certificates, Applications, and Fees
By Gabriel Giner · Editorial standards
Denver’s construction licensing process separates the qualified supervisor from the licensed contracting business. For the construction classes discussed here, the supervisor certificate must be approved before the contractor-license application. Holding an ICC exam result alone does not complete either approval.
against the official sources cited below. .
Choose the class using scope and documented experience
| Construction class | Published experience starting point | Exam |
|---|---|---|
| A | Seven years of commercial-building experience, including qualifying high-rise ground-up work. | ICC F11 |
| B | Four years of commercial-building experience, including qualifying ground-up buildings 55–75 feet high. | ICC F12 |
| B-2 | Four years of commercial-building experience, including ground-up buildings up to 40 feet high. | ICC F12 |
| C | Two years of qualifying residential fieldwork covering foundations, framing, and roofing. | ICC F13 |
These are the published starting points, not substitutes for the detailed role, project-age, scope, and education-substitution rules. B-2’s work scope uses a highest-floor or occupiable-roof limit of 30 feet; do not confuse that scope with the separate experience description. Read the exact class before selecting an exam.
Official sources: Denver: construction supervisor experience and examinations.
Prepare evidence that demonstrates the requested class
Denver requires notarized experience letters identifying duties, project addresses, and construction dates. Owners cannot act as their own references. The Class C instructions specify projects within ten years, although the page’s general letter-format instructions refer to fifteen years. Use the tighter class-specific wording for a Class C submission, or obtain clarification before relying on older work.
Build a project index that maps each letter to the required experience. For a residential applicant, show where foundation, framing, and roofing experience appears. Years spent in the industry, without evidence of the required work and role, do not explain why the applicant qualifies for that class.
Official sources: Denver: construction supervisor experience and examinations.
Apply for the contractor license after the supervisor approval
The business application requires a Supervisor Statement of Responsibility and the appropriate Secretary of State documents. If the supervisor is not an owner, officer, partner, member, or sole proprietor, Denver also requires a company-letterhead statement naming that person supervisor of record, signed by an authorized company principal.
For online filing, use e-permits, select Contractor Licensing, and apply for the appropriate license. Denver publishes an approximate 14–20-business-day application review period. This is the agency’s estimate, not a guaranteed completion date.
Electrical and plumbing applicants use separate state-credential documentation. Right-of-way and sewer applicants are directed to a different application route. Those pathways should not be priced or described as ordinary Class A, B, or C construction applications.
Official sources: Denver: contractor application and supporting documents.
Budget the certificate and business license separately
Denver’s fee page lists $250 for the named Class A, B, C, and specialty D construction licenses, renewed every three years, and $60 for a supervisor certificate, also on a three-year cycle. For an applicant who needs one of those licenses and one supervisor certificate, the combined city charge is $310. That arithmetic excludes the ICC examination and document-preparation costs.
The fee table does not separately name B-2. Do not infer an unlisted price from its relationship to Class B; use the fee assigned by the city for that application. Online applicants are prompted to pay after approval.
Official sources: Denver: contractor license and certificate fees; Denver: contractor application and supporting documents.
Renew the supervisor certificate before the business license
When the certificate and license expire around the same time, Denver instructs applicants to renew the supervisor certificate first and use separate checks if mailing both payments. Online business-license renewal opens 30 days before expiration. Expired licenses require renewal in person or by mail; expiration beyond a year requires reinstatement.
The renewal file includes current photo identification and a current periodic report or trade-name registration, with additional documents for changed ownership or license types. Denver does not mail renewal notices. Put both expiration dates in the business calendar and retain the approvals separately.
Official sources: Denver: renewal sequence and documents.
Primary Sources
- Denver: construction supervisor experience and examinations
- Denver: contractor application and supporting documents
- Denver: contractor license and certificate fees
- Denver: renewal sequence and documents
The requirements above come from the cited agencies and official rules. Examples, budgeting distinctions, and document-organization suggestions are editorial guidance, not additional agency requirements.
Found a discrepancy? Send a correction with the page address and the official source.