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Handyman License Requirements in Albuquerque, NM

By , Founder of Bulletproof Handyman · New Mexico rules checked November 2, 2026 · Albuquerque local rules checked November 2, 2026

Albuquerque: City Business License required ($35/yr per place of business, Planning Dept business license section, NM TRD certificate required); applies to contractors working on job sites inside city limits even if based elsewhere. Unincorporated Bernalillo County: county business registration/license required, incl. out-of-county contractors working there.

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Albuquerque requirements

Albuquerque: City Business License required ($35/yr per place of business, Planning Dept business license section, NM TRD certificate required); applies to contractors working on job sites inside city limits even if based elsewhere. Unincorporated Bernalillo County: county business registration/license required, incl. out-of-county contractors working there.

Source link: cabq.gov · cabq.gov · bernco.gov · checked November 2, 2026

Local business license

Required

  • Name: City of Albuquerque Business License (Business License Ordinance, ROA 13-1, replaced Business Registration effective July 1, 2025)
  • Office: City of Albuquerque Planning Department, Business License/Registration section (fee paid to City Treasurer)
  • Fee: $35 per Place of Business per year (plus fire & life safety fee for commercial locations); requires current NM TRD registration certificate
"Beginning on July 1, 2025, all persons are required to obtain a Business License in order to operate a Place of Business within the City's municipal boundaries. ... Unless a construction contractor has at least one permanent location within the city, "Place of business" includes a construction site located within the City of Albuquerque. ... $35 per license."

Source: cabq.gov · checked November 2, 2026

Local contractor or handyman license

Our check could not confirm this from an official page, so we don't state it. Ask the city or county office.

County: Bernalillo County

The New Mexico rule

Regulator: New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department (RLD), Construction Industries Division (CID); License applications are handled through PSI.

$7,200 a year
New Mexico earnings figure

60-13-3(B)(14): exempt is an individual who works on one undertaking or project at a time that, 'in the aggregate or singly, does not exceed seven thousand two hundred dollars ($7,200) compensation a year' ('does not exceed', so AT OR BELOW $7,200), for casual, minor or inconsequential work 'such as handyman repairs'. Conditions: (a) the work is not part of a larger operation; (b) no advertising, sign or card suggesting the person is a contractor; (c) the person files an annual declaration with CID (the Handyman Certificate). The exemption never covers electrical wiring, plumbing or gas fitting.

What counts toward it: other: total compensation per YEAR (all handyman contracts combined, 'in the aggregate or singly'), not a per-job limit. The statute says 'compensation' and does not say whether materials count.

"an individual who works on one undertaking or project at a time that, in the aggregate or singly, does not exceed seven thousand two hundred dollars ($7,200) compensation a year, the work being casual, minor or inconsequential, such as handyman repairs"

Source: rld.nm.gov · checked November 2, 2026

State registration

Handyman: an annual declaration filed with CID on its form (Handyman Certificate; 14.6.2.8 NMAC). Licensed contractors: a $10,000 corporate surety bond as proof of responsibility (60-13-49), plus classification exams and a qualifying party. Statute copy used is RLD's 2021 compilation.

Source: rld.nm.gov · rld.nm.gov · checked November 2, 2026

Insurance and bond

Licensed contractors: $10,000 bond (60-13-49(B)). Trade bureaus may also require a reasonable bond by regulation. Cities may not require an additional license bond from a CID-licensed contractor (60-13-51). Handyman exemption: no bond found.

Source: rld.nm.gov · checked November 2, 2026

Forming an LLC in New Mexico

State filing fee: $50.

Source: enterprise.sos.nm.gov · checked November 2, 2026

What to do, in order

  1. Read the New Mexico rule and confirm with New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department (RLD), Construction Industries Division (CID); License applications are handled through PSI..
  2. Line up the Albuquerque items listed on this page.
  3. Get your insurance and rate in place before the first paid job.

Nearby places

Rules change. This page shows what official sources said on the dates above. It is not legal advice.