Nevada contractor exam FAQ

The Nevada State Contractors Board (NSCB) licenses contracting businesses under NRS Chapter 624. Licenses come in three classes: A for general engineering, B for general building and C for specialty trades, each with subclassifications such as B-2 or C-15A.

Four years of qualifying experience in the last 15, a passing score on the Business and Law (CMS) exam and on the trade exam for your classification, a financial statement, a license bond and the $300 application fee. The Board sets your monetary limit and bond amount.

The largest job you may contract for on one project. Every Nevada license carries one, set by the Board from your financial statement. Raising it later is a separate request backed by new financials.

The Board decides. It can be anywhere from $1,000 to $500,000, depending on the license type, the monetary limit, your financial responsibility, experience and character.

A license created by SB 130 for residential remodeling jobs up to $7,000, labor and materials included. It needs no trade exam, is valid for 2 years and does not allow life-safety trades. The NSCB has accepted applications since March 2026.

Not at the state level. The NSCB licenses electrical contractors (C-2), while Las Vegas, Clark County and Reno require electricians to carry an Electrical Qualifications ID card from Electrical Safety Professionals after an ICC national exam.

PSI, under contract with the NSCB. After the Board verifies your experience it sends an exam eligibility letter, and you book with PSI. Las Vegas tests 7 days a week, Reno on Monday and Wednesday through Saturday, and Elko on a limited schedule.

The Business and Law exam, which PSI calls the Contractor Management Survey. Every applicant takes it. It has 60 scored questions plus 3 unscored ones, 120 minutes for the scored part, and 45 correct (75 percent) to pass.

The CMS is open book with the Construction Business and Law Manual for Nevada, the only reference allowed. Trade exams are closed book except for the code references named in the PSI content outline for your classification.

PSI charges $95 for one exam portion, or $140 when the second portion is the CMS. Two trade exams cost $95 each.

Three times. If you fail the third attempt the application becomes void, and you can reapply after 30 days. Scores are given right after the exam.

Sometimes. The Board can waive it for licensure by endorsement from certain states, for a qualified employee on a license in the same classification within the last four years, and it accepts the NASCLA Commercial General Building exam for the B trade exam. The CMS is still required.

Most candidates do well with three to four weeks for the CMS and four to six weeks for a trade exam, at about an hour a day: learn where things are in the references, then sit timed practice exams in the last week.

Mostly time. Candidates who look up every answer from scratch run out of minutes. On the CMS that means about two minutes a question, so knowing where each topic lives in the Nevada manual is what gets people through.

Highlighting and tabbing saves the hours it takes to mark up the references yourself, and on an open-book exam it saves minutes on every lookup. Check that every book matches the edition in your PSI outline.

Rent if you only need the references for the exam and want to spend less. Buy if you want to keep them for the job or might add a classification later.

Orders are processed, shipped and supported by our fulfillment center, 1 Exam Prep. Buy now opens secure checkout there with the item already in the cart.

Online courses and practice exams arrive by email after purchase, so you can start the same day. Books ship from the fulfillment center; shipping options are shown at checkout.

The all-inclusive option for a Nevada contractor license: exam prep for the trade exam and the CMS, the reference books, help with the NSCB application and the business setup, in one order.

No. The NSCB approves your application and sends an eligibility letter, then you book with PSI. A package gets you ready for the test itself.

Yes. Call (877) 775-9400 or email sales@1examprep.com and say which license you are going for.