Texas does not issue a statewide handyman license. Electrical work, plumbing, and air conditioning and refrigeration contracting still require the state license for that trade.
What Texas licenses, and what it does not
The license follows the task. “Handyman” on an invoice does not create a state license, and it does not cancel one.
The Office of the Governor’s Business Permit Office says Texas does not require a general license. A business registers with the Secretary of State or a county clerk, and that certificate stands in for the “general business license” other states issue. The office does not issue licenses. Trade-by-trade rules are in the 2026-2027 Texas Business Licenses and Permits Guide, updated December 2025.
That guide says general contractors are not required to obtain a license to practice in Texas. They may still have to meet county or city rules.
Texas Law Help says Texas does not require general contractors to be licensed or bonded, and that they must be a state-registered business. Ask the local building department about extra rules.
TDLR says anyone who performs or offers non-exempt electrical work must be licensed and must work through a licensed electrical contractor. Its air conditioning page says contractors who install, repair, or maintain air conditioning, refrigeration, or heating systems need a TDLR license, and the company must employ one in each permanent office. Plumbing is licensed by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners. Its consumer page starts with the responsible master plumber.
Work a handyman can do without a state license
Texas publishes no approved list of handyman tasks. A task needs a state license when it meets one of the statutory definitions.
Electrical work, in Section 1305.002, is labor or material used in installing, maintaining, or extending an electrical wiring system and the equipment used with electrical energy in, on, or attached to a building. Plumbing, in Section 1301.002, includes fixtures and piping that supply water, other liquid, or gas, or that carry away sewage, and the installation, repair, service, or maintenance of that equipment. Air conditioning and refrigeration contracting, in Section 1302.002, is performing or offering to perform the design, installation, repair, maintenance, service, or modification of equipment in an environmental air conditioning system, a commercial refrigeration system, or a process cooling or heating system.
Painting a room does not meet those definitions, and the state guide lists no painting license for general contractors. Open a circuit or move a faucet on that visit, and the matching definition covers that part.
Chapter 1302 leaves a few tasks outside the air conditioning license. A portable or self-contained ductless unit of three tons of cooling or less is one. A residential refrigerator, freezer, or ice machine is another. A vent hood of the type commonly used in residential or commercial kitchens is a third, though new wiring on that hood is still electrical work under Chapter 1305. Other air conditioning and refrigeration contracting needs the license in Section 1302.251.
The owner exemptions do not cover a hired handyman. Section 1305.003(a)(6) can cover electrical work by the person who owns and lives in the dwelling, when a city ordinance does not regulate that work. Section 1302.053 covers air conditioning work in a building the person owns solely as a home.
Electrical, plumbing, and air-conditioning work
Electrical
Section 1305.151 requires the appropriate license before a person or business performs or offers electrical work, unless Section 1305.003 exempts it. Non-exempt work goes through a licensed electrical contractor. Performing electrical work without a license is an offense, and Chapter 1305 classifies it as a Class C misdemeanor.
A plumber licensed or registered under Chapter 1301 may connect a water heater, disposer, dishwasher, or clothes washer on an existing circuit, under Section 1305.003(a)(21). That exemption names a plumber. Section 1305.159 lets an electrical contractor carry workers’ compensation or elect not to. Ask which applies, then look the license up with the steps in Texas contractor license lookup.
Plumbing
Section 1301.351 says a person may not do plumbing without the proper license, registration, or endorsement and supervision by a licensed person. Anyone who advertises or offers plumbing must secure a responsible master plumber. Master plumber numbers begin with M. Confirm the license and the certificate of insurance on the board’s consumer page.
Section 1301.552 requires coverage of not less than $300,000 of commercial general liability for all claims arising in a one-year period, when a city requires a plumbing permit. Section 1301.702 caps an administrative penalty at $5,000 per violation. Each day a violation continues or occurs is a separate violation. The board does not set prices. Put the responsible master plumber’s license number, and the board’s name, address, and phone, on the written estimate and the invoice.
A faucet, toilet, water line, or drain repair is plumbing under Section 1301.002.
Air conditioning and refrigeration
Section 1302.251 requires the contractor license, and that license is valid statewide. The holder does not also need a city air conditioning license under the same subchapter. Cities may still require a permit. Section 1302.052 says even exempt work can need a municipal permit, inspection, or approval.
The company must employ a license holder full time in each permanent office, with the license assigned to that company. If it does not, Section 1302.252 says it may not collect a fee or enforce the contract.
A Class A license covers any size of equipment within its endorsement. A Class B license covers equipment of not more than 25 tons of cooling capacity, or 1.5 million British thermal units per hour of heating output. The endorsement is environmental air conditioning, commercial refrigeration and process cooling or heating, or both. Section 1302.254 bars work the license is not endorsed for.
Section 1302.255 requires an applicant for that air-conditioning license to be at least 18, with 48 months of practical experience under a licensed contractor in the preceding 72 months, or a technician certification held for the preceding 12 months plus 36 months of experience in the preceding 48 months. Section 1302.102 tells the commission to set insurance requirements by rule. The statute does not state a dollar amount. Ask for the certificate and confirm it with the insurer named on it.
City rules, permits, and insurance
Cities across the Dallas–Fort Worth metro set their own permit and registration rules. Before the job starts, call your city’s building inspection or permitting office. Ask whether the work needs a permit, whether the person doing it must register with the city, and who pulls the permit. Put the answer in the written scope.
Texas Law Help says to ask for current certificates covering personal liability, workers’ compensation, and property damage. Without them, it says you could be held liable for injuries or damages during the project. There is no statewide handyman policy minimum, because there is no statewide handyman license. Use the plumbing figure above, $300,000 for claims in a one-year period, when the work is plumbing. Ask an electrical contractor whether workers’ compensation is in place or has been declined.
How to check before someone comes to the house
Write the tasks down. A toilet fill valve is plumbing and needs a responsible master plumber. Paint on the same wall is finish work. Ask your city whether the paint, any patch, or the plumbing needs a permit.
Get the license number before the appointment. Texas contractor license lookup walks through TDLR’s active license search for electrical and air conditioning licenses, and the plumbing board’s search. Match the name to the company at the door, and match the license type to the task.
Texas Law Help says the written estimate should list the work, materials, completion date, and price. It says the contract should name the contractor, include the license number when one applies, say who pulls permits, and explain change orders. It also says most legitimate bids for the same scope should fall in a fairly close range, to be wary of a much lower price, and to pay for finished work rather than the full amount up front. The longer list is in questions to ask a contractor before hiring.
On a homestead, Texas Law Help says the contract must warn that you may lose legal ownership rights if you fail to meet it, and that leaving the warning out may invalidate a lien. If the improvement exceeds $5,000, the same guide says payments go into a construction account. On a residential project of four units or less, if there is a good-faith dispute about whether the work was performed in a proper manner, Texas Law Help says the most that can be withheld is 110% of the difference between what one side claims is owed and what the paying side thinks is owed.
A three-business-day cancellation line, which Texas Law Help says belongs in a contract signed at your home, does not automatically cover a licensed electrician, plumber, or air conditioning contractor you called. Chapters 1305, 1301, and 1302 say Business and Commerce Code Chapter 601 does not apply when you started that transaction, except for a broken express warranty or a negligent installation that violates a building code. Read the contract, and keep a copy.
Someone at the house should know the scope and should wait for you before approving extra work. Who can do that is in do I need to be home for a contractor. If you will be at work, At Home with Bell keeps a founding list for a Bell Rep, 21 or older, who checks the service provider’s ID and credentials and sends a visit summary. Soft launch January 2027, exclusively in the Dallas–Fort Worth metro. Booking is not open, and nothing is charged until the first booking. Visit details are in the FAQ.
Sources
- Hiring a Contractor, Texas Law Help
- Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1305, Electricians
- Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1301, Plumbing License Law
- Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1302, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors
- Electricians, Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
- Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors, Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation
- TDLR Active License Search
- Consumer Information, Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners
- Business Permit Office, Office of the Governor
- 2026-2027 Texas Business Licenses and Permits Guide