Washington contractor registration: L&I, bonds and specialty vs. general
Washington requires contractors to register with Labor & Industries and post a continuous surety bond: $30,000 for general contractors and $15,000 for specialty contractors.
Washington's Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) registers construction contractors under chapter 18.27 RCW. Electrical contractors are licensed separately by L&I under chapter 19.28 RCW.
Bond amounts
Under RCW 18.27.040, every applicant must file a surety bond of $30,000 as a general contractor or $15,000 as a specialty contractor. The bond is continuous, names the State of Washington as obligee, and is conditioned on paying workers, taxes and suppliers. If the surety cancels the bond, the registration is suspended automatically until a new bond is filed.
What the data shows
This site's Washington directory is built from L&I's contractor license data on data.wa.gov. It lists 44,484 general contractors, 13,675 specialty contractors, 4,310 electrical contractors and 1,809 plumbing contractors with active Washington records. King, Snohomish and Pierce counties have the most.
WSDOT work
Registration is separate from WSDOT prequalification, which the department requires before it will issue bidding proposals. See how to bid WSDOT contracts.
Summary for general information, reviewed 2026-10-30. Not legal advice; check the source before relying on a deadline or threshold.
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