Georgia Contractor Business and Law Exam Guide: O.C.G.A. Title 43, Chapter 41

Georgia Business and Law Exam at a Glance

Here is what the current PSI candidate information bulletin (updated April 28, 2025) says about the Georgia Business and Law exam:

• Who takes it: every candidate for any residential or general contractor license, whether as an individual or as a qualifying agent.
• Questions and time: 50 scored questions in 120 minutes. PSI may add one to ten unscored experimental items, and they count against your time.
• Passing score: 70% (35 correct). Your score appears on screen as soon as you finish.
• Open book: yes. The one allowed reference is the Georgia-NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management, 3rd Edition.
• Fee: $60 for the Business and Law exam.
• Calculator: a silent, nonprinting, non-programmable calculator is allowed.

You only need to pass Business and Law once. After that it counts for every other residential and general contractor license. You also need to pass the trade exam for your license class.

Georgia Contractor License Types Under O.C.G.A. § 43-41-2

Georgia's contractor law, O.C.G.A. Title 43, Chapter 41, sets up three license classes. The Residential-Basic license covers detached one- and two-family homes and one-family townhouses "not over three stories in height", plus their accessory buildings. The Residential-Light Commercial license covers that work plus multifamily and multiuse light commercial buildings. Those buildings must be under four stories and under 25,000 square feet of interior floor space, and built of wood or light gauge metal frame, brick veneer, or prefabricated or manufactured construction. Pre-engineered steel buildings can go up to 50,000 square feet. The Commercial General Contractor license has no limit on the type of work, apart from any financial tier the board sets.

A residential license is needed when the value of the work or the pay, "whichever is the higher, exceeds $2,500.00". Neither class can do Chapter 14 trade work itself. Electrical, plumbing, conditioned air, low voltage and utility work must be done by a Chapter 14 licensee.

Georgia Contractor License Eligibility and Requirements

O.C.G.A. § 43-41-6 sets the eligibility rules. All applicants must be at least 21 and of good character, and must be qualified in "competency, ability, integrity, and financial responsibility".

• Residential-Basic: at least two years of verifiable experience under a licensed residential contractor, or substantially similar experience. An employer or another person with knowledge must verify it by affidavit under oath.
• Residential-Light Commercial and Commercial General: one of three routes. You need a bachelor's degree in engineering, architecture, construction management, building construction or an accepted field. Or you need four years combined of college credits and experience. Or you need four years of construction experience. For the experience route, at least two years must be with a residential contractor (light commercial) or a commercial general contractor. For commercial, at least one year must also be in administration, estimating, supervision, project management or similar work.
• Financial proof: every applicant needs general liability insurance and workers' compensation. Commercial applicants must also show a minimum net worth and their tax payments. If you apply as a qualifying agent, the proof covers the business, not you personally.

Georgia Contractor Exam Cost and Fees

The PSI bulletin lists these exam fees:

• $60: Business and Law.
• $72: Residential-Basic or Residential-Light Commercial trade exam, for an individual or a qualifying agent.
• $106: the NASCLA-accredited exam for General Contractor or General Contractor Limited Tier.

The board also charges an application fee under its rules. You pay it when you apply through the Secretary of State, not to PSI. Budget for the NASCLA guide as well, since it is the only book allowed in the testing room.

How to Register and Schedule the Georgia Business and Law Exam

1. Apply to the board through the Georgia Secretary of State's licensing office. The board's Residential and Commercial General Contractors FAQ covers applications.
2. Wait for your Exam Approval Letter. You are eligible to test for one year from the date of that letter.
3. Register and pay with PSI online or by phone at (855) 744-0314. Online registration lets you book as soon as one day ahead.
4. To cancel or reschedule without losing your fee, PSI must receive your notice at least two days before the exam. A voicemail does not count.
5. Bring valid photo ID with your signature, plus your unmarked, permanently tabbed reference book.

Georgia Business and Law Exam Content Outline

The bulletin splits the 50 questions across these topics:

• Licensing Requirements: 5 questions
• Estimating and Bidding: 7 questions
• Business Organization and Financial Management: 7 questions
• Tax Laws: 5 questions
• Labor Laws: 5 questions
• Project Management and Lien Law: 6 questions
• Contracts: 6 questions
• Risk Management: 4 questions
• Environmental and Safety: 5 questions

For comparison, the Residential-Basic trade exam has 80 questions in 200 minutes, and the Residential-Light Commercial exam has 90 questions in 230 minutes. The NASCLA general contractor exam has 115 questions in 330 minutes. All of them need 70% to pass.

Key Georgia Licensing Law Rules to Know (O.C.G.A. 43-41)

The Licensing Requirements questions test Georgia's statute. These are the rules that come up most:

• The board: 15 members appointed by the Governor for five-year terms, attached to the Secretary of State. The residential division has 8 members and the commercial general contractor division has 7. Each division meets at least once every two months (§ 43-41-3).
• Qualifying agents: a business needs at least one. When information on the application changes, the business must report it within 45 days. If the only qualifying agent leaves, the business has 180 days to replace them. All qualifying agents share responsibility "jointly and equally" (§ 43-41-9).
• Changes to your own details: tell the division in writing within 30 days (§ 43-41-6(e)(4)).
• Renewal: every two years, with a six-month late renewal window. After that, the license has to be reinstated (§ 43-41-6).
• Warranty: a written warranty is required on every single-family home contract over $2,500 (§ 43-41-7).
• Discipline: fines of up to $5,000 per violation, suspensions of up to one year, and a project is presumed abandoned after 90 days (§ 43-41-16).
• Criminal penalty: unlicensed contracting is a misdemeanor, with a fine of not less than $1,000 or three months in prison (§ 43-41-12).
• Unlicensed contracts: contracts signed on or after July 1, 2008 cannot be enforced by the unlicensed contractor, and they have no lien or bond claim (§ 43-41-17(b)).
• Exemptions: include GDOT-qualified road contractors and Chapter 14 licensees doing incidental work up to "the greater of $10,000.00 or 25 percent". They also cover disclosed non-structural repairs, owner-builders (with a 24-month resale rule), agricultural buildings and manufactured homes (§ 43-41-17).

How Georgia Differs From Other States

• Georgia allows open book with one reference, the Georgia-NASCLA guide. Louisiana, by contrast, runs its Business and Law exam in the board's own portal.
• The residential threshold is low at $2,500. Compare $7,500 for Louisiana home improvement work.
• Once you hold a state license, you can work statewide. Local governments cannot add new licensing requirements, apart from limited local requirements that were already in effect on July 1, 2004.
• Reciprocity is granted only where the other state offers Georgians "a similar privilege" (§ 43-41-5).

Georgia Business and Law Exam Study Plan (Two Weeks)

1. Days 1 and 2: get the Georgia-NASCLA guide. Tab its chapters and the Georgia supplement with permanent tabs only.
2. Days 3 and 4: study Licensing Requirements. Use our Georgia Contractor Law Practice Test until you score 85% or more.
3. Days 5 and 6: study Estimating and Bidding, and Financial Management. Together they are 14 questions, so work through every math example with your calculator.
4. Days 7 and 8: study Tax and Labor Laws, covering payroll, withholding, I-9 and wage rules.
5. Days 9 and 10: study Lien Law, Contracts and Risk Management.
6. Days 11 and 12: study Environmental and Safety (OSHA basics).
7. Days 13 and 14: take a timed mock exam in 120 minutes. Look up every miss in the book, writing down which tab it was under.

Common Mistakes on the Georgia Business and Law Exam

• Using sticky notes: PSI requires them to be removed before the exam starts. Only permanent tabs are allowed.
• Writing in the book: highlighting and underlining are fine, but handwritten notes are not.
• Looking up every question: at about 2.4 minutes per question, answer the ones you know first.
• Mixing up deadlines: 30 days for your own changes, 45 days for a business's application changes, 180 days to replace a qualifying agent, and 90 days for abandonment.
• Failing twice: the PSI bulletin (updated April 28, 2025) says you must wait at least 1 year before a third attempt, citing § 43-41-6(g). The 2025 amendment (HB 635, effective July 1, 2025) rewrote § 43-41-6, and subsection (g) now says a failed applicant "may be reexamined at any regularly scheduled examination without need to resubmit an application." Confirm the current retake limit with PSI or the board before you rely on either.
• Letting the approval expire: your eligibility lasts one year from the approval letter. After that you must reapply.

What Happens After You Pass the Georgia Contractor Exams

PSI sends your results to the board. Once you meet the insurance and financial requirements, the division issues a license that names your class. A residential license states whether it is Residential-Basic or Residential-Light Commercial. Before a permit is issued, you give the building official your license number and any business you qualify (§ 43-41-14). The license renews every two years. Keep your insurance certificate on file, because the statute makes it a condition of renewal, and finish any required CE.

What Our Georgia Practice Test Covers

The practice test has 162 original scenario questions on O.C.G.A. §§ 43-41-2 to 43-41-17: definitions and license types, the board, eligibility and renewal, qualifying agents, and discipline, penalties and exemptions. Every answer cites its section and quotes the statute. It does not cover the board's rules (Chapter 553) or the business topics in the NASCLA guide, such as tax, payroll, estimating and safety. It is not a copy of the PSI exam.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many questions are on the Georgia Business and Law exam?

The PSI candidate bulletin lists 50 questions with a 120-minute time limit. PSI may add a small number of unscored experimental questions, which count against your time.

What is the passing score?

70%, which is 35 correct out of 50, according to the PSI bulletin.

Is the Georgia Business and Law exam open book?

Yes. The bulletin says it is open book. The only allowed reference is the Georgia-NASCLA Contractors Guide to Business, Law and Project Management, 3rd Edition. It may be highlighted and permanently tabbed, but not written in.

How much does the exam cost?

The PSI exam fee is $60 for Business and Law. The trade exams cost $72 for Residential-Basic and Residential-Light Commercial, and $106 for the NASCLA general contractor exams. The board charges its own application fee on top of that.

Where do I take it?

At a PSI test center. Once the board approves you, you get an Exam Approval Letter. You then register with PSI online or by phone at (855) 744-0314. The bulletin lists Georgia centers including Duluth, Marietta and Macon.

Can I retake it if I fail?

Yes. Under O.C.G.A. § 43-41-6(g) you can retest at any regularly scheduled exam without filing a new application, as long as your application details are still accurate. PSI says you get 2 attempts on your first approval, within the one-year eligibility period. If you pass one exam and fail the other, you retake only the one you failed. If you fail twice, you must wait at least 1 year after your last attempt before testing again, and your next approval period allows only 1 attempt.

Who has to take it?

Every candidate for a residential or general contractor license, whether as an individual or as a qualifying agent, per the PSI bulletin. Once you pass it, it counts for every other residential and general contractor license.

Is it hard?

Neither the board nor PSI publishes a pass rate. Two minutes per question is enough time if your book is tabbed. Most failures come from candidates who have never used the book under time pressure.

Do I need a license for small jobs in Georgia?

Residential licensing applies when the value of the work or the pay, whichever is higher, exceeds $2,500 (§ 43-41-2). Repair work is exempt only if you disclose that you are unlicensed and the work does not affect structural integrity (§ 43-41-17(g)).

How often do Georgia contractor licenses renew, and is CE required?

Licenses renew biennially (every two years). The division can require up to 3 hours of CE a year for Residential-Basic, 6 for Residential-Light Commercial and 8 for Commercial General (§ 43-41-6).

Sources: O.C.G.A. Title 43, Chapter 41 (2025 Georgia Code). PSI Georgia candidate bulletin, updated April 28, 2025. Fees and formats were checked October 30, 2026 (PKT). Always confirm current details with PSI and the board.