Iowa Contractor License Bond (General Use)
What it is & who requires it
Contractors working in Iowa. Settle three questions before buying anything, because for most contractors the answer to the last one is nothing. First: is your principal place of business in Iowa? If it is, you register with the state, show workers’ compensation coverage and an unemployment insurance number, pay a small annual fee, and post no state bond at all. If it is not, you file the state out-of-state contractor bond, and a branch office in Iowa does not change that. Second: are you in a trade the state licenses? Plumbing, mechanical, HVAC-refrigeration, sheet metal and hydronic contractors are licensed and bonded by the state board, and that license preempts municipal licensing for those trades outright. Electricians are licensed by the state and are not bonded by it, because the board that could require a bond never has. Third: does your city license contracting? Only one of the seventeen Iowa cities read for this directory does, and it sets its sums by class of work in a single table. Several of the largest cities in the state, including the second-largest, take no contractor bond of any kind.
Obligee: The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing and the small number of Iowa cities that license contracting as a trade. Citation: Iowa Code ch. 91C (Construction Contractors); Iowa Code § 105.19 and § 105.17; Iowa Code ch. 103; IAC 481—Ch. 465; IAC 481—431.3(3); Davenport Municipal Code § 15.30.170 and Table III-A; Bettendorf City Code § 10-2-2; Fort Dodge Municipal Code §§ 14.24.070 and 14.26.170.
Bond amount
Set by the obligee — the exact amount is confirmed automatically when you start your bond in our portal, or call 317-942-0549.
How to get it
This bond is individually underwritten, so it is not issued instantly. Request a quote and a licensed producer follows up to walk you through it.
Request a bond quote
Tell us about the bond and the project. A licensed producer follows up — these bonds are individually underwritten, so they are not issued instantly.
Term & renewal
Term: The state bond is continuous until the surety cancels on thirty days’ notice; municipal bonds usually run with an annual license.
Renewal: State registration renews annually; the plumbing and mechanical license runs three years; city licenses renew annually.
Filing
Where a filing exists it goes to the state department, the state board, or a city building department or clerk, depending on which of the three routes applies. The state out-of-state bond must be on the department’s own form. Two habits will save money here. Do not carry a figure between Iowa cities: the same trade is bonded at very different sums a few kilometers apart, and in one metropolitan area two neighboring cities run the same model ordinance with one word different, so one publishes a price and the other does not. And do not assume a city bond is owed at all for plumbing or mechanical work, because state law made municipal licensing provisions for those trades null and void in 2009 and two cities are still carrying them on their books.
Source
This bond requirement is corroborated by multiple public sources; The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing and the small number of Iowa cities that license contracting as a trade sets the exact amount, which we confirm when you start your bond.
Related Iowa bonds
Frequently asked questions
- Who requires the Iowa Contractor License Bond (General Use)?
- It’s required by The Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing and the small number of Iowa cities that license contracting as a trade (Iowa Code ch. 91C (Construction Contractors); Iowa Code § 105.19 and § 105.17; Iowa Code ch. 103; IAC 481—Ch. 465; IAC 481—431.3(3); Davenport Municipal Code § 15.30.170 and Table III-A; Bettendorf City Code § 10-2-2; Fort Dodge Municipal Code §§ 14.24.070 and 14.26.170). Contractors working in Iowa. Settle three questions before buying anything, because for most contractors the answer to the last one is nothing. First: is your principal place of business in Iowa? If it is, you register with the state, show workers’ compensation coverage and an unemployment insurance number, pay a small annual fee, and post no state bond at all. If it is not, you file the state out-of-state contractor bond, and a branch office in Iowa does not change that. Second: are you in a trade the state licenses? Plumbing, mechanical, HVAC-refrigeration, sheet metal and hydronic contractors are licensed and bonded by the state board, and that license preempts municipal licensing for those trades outright. Electricians are licensed by the state and are not bonded by it, because the board that could require a bond never has. Third: does your city license contracting? Only one of the seventeen Iowa cities read for this directory does, and it sets its sums by class of work in a single table. Several of the largest cities in the state, including the second-largest, take no contractor bond of any kind.
- How much is the Iowa Contractor License Bond (General Use)?
- Set by the obligee — the exact amount is confirmed automatically when you start your bond in our portal, or call 317-942-0549.
- How do I get the Iowa Contractor License Bond (General Use)?
- This bond is individually underwritten, so it is not issued instantly. Request a quote and a licensed producer follows up to walk you through it.
- What is the term?
- The state bond is continuous until the surety cancels on thirty days’ notice; municipal bonds usually run with an annual license. Renewal: State registration renews annually; the plumbing and mechanical license runs three years; city licenses renew annually.
- Is this bond insurance for me?
- No. It protects the obligee and the public — not you. If a valid claim is paid, you repay the surety.
- How is this requirement verified?
- This bond requirement is corroborated by multiple public sources. The obligee sets the exact amount, which we confirm automatically when you start your bond in the portal or with a producer.
