Connecticut License Renewal and Continuing Education: Deadlines by Trade

Connecticut does not issue a general business license. If you work in a licensed trade, the state agency that regulates that trade issues your license, and each license runs on its own renewal cycle with its own fee and continuing education (CE) rules. Most trade licenses are handled by the Department of Consumer Protection (DCP), while other agencies, including the Insurance Department and the Department of Public Health, regulate their own fields. A missed renewal can leave you unable to perform licensed work until the license is reinstated, so the first task after you get licensed is to put every expiry date on a calendar.

This guide lists the expiry dates that DCP publishes for common trades, the renewal fees where the agency's figures are available, and how to confirm CE requirements. The dates were checked against published agency information as of October 21, 2026. Treat the guide as a starting calendar, and treat the agency's current page as the final word.

Informational content, not legal or tax advice. This guide summarizes publicly available licensing information for general planning. Rules and fees change. Confirm every date and amount with the licensing agency before you rely on it. For multiple licenses, a business that employs licensed workers, or a license that has already lapsed, consult a qualified attorney or CPA.

Connecticut has no single renewal date

Several filings get confused with a license renewal. They are separate obligations, and none of them replaces a trade license:

• Entity registration. An LLC is formed by filing a Certificate of Organization with the Secretary of the State through Business.CT.gov, at a $120 filing fee. After formation, an LLC files a yearly Annual Report at $80. A corporation files its own Annual Report at $150. Entity filings register a business. They do not license the work it performs.
• Sales and Use Tax Permit. A business selling taxable goods or services obtains this permit from the Department of Revenue Services (DRS). It is a tax registration with a $100 registration fee, and it must be displayed at each location.
• Trade name. A trade name certificate, sometimes called an assumed name certificate, is filed with the town clerk of the town where the business is primarily transacted. It is not filed with the state, and the fee is $20.
• Local approvals. Zoning, health and occupancy approvals come from your town or city, a local health department or district, or a planning region. Connecticut has no county government, so there is no county clerk or county license office to visit.

The practical point is simple. A business can have a current entity registration, a valid tax permit and a trade name certificate, and still be out of compliance if one trade license has expired. Each license needs its own line on your calendar.

Renewal deadlines by trade

The table below shows the expiry date that DCP publishes for each license covered here. Where a renewal fee is not included in the figures this guide is built on, the cell says to confirm it with the agency rather than leaving you to guess.

License or registration	Expires	Renewal fee
Home improvement contractor (HIC) registration	March 31 each year	$220
New home construction contractor registration	March 31 each year	Confirm with DCP
Major contractor	June 30	$500
Heating, cooling and sheet metal	August 31	Confirm with DCP
Elevator	August 31	Confirm with DCP
Electrical	September 30	Confirm with DCP
Plumbing and pipefitting	October 31	Confirm with DCP
Fire sprinkler, F-1 to F-4	October 31	Confirm with DCP
Homemaker-companion agency	October 31	$375
Real estate salesperson	May 31 of even-numbered years (next: May 31, 2028)	Confirm with DCP
Real estate broker	November 30 of even-numbered years (next: November 30, 2026)	Confirm with DCP
Trade license, contractor	Confirm with DCP	$150
Trade license, journeyperson	Confirm with DCP	$120

Two deadlines need attention now. The October 31 group covers plumbing and pipefitting, fire sprinkler (F-1 to F-4) and homemaker-companion agency licenses, so if you hold any of them, check the status of your license this week. Real estate brokers also face a November 30, 2026 deadline, because 2026 is an even-numbered year. The salesperson deadline for this cycle, May 31, 2026, has already passed, so the next one is May 31, 2028.

Construction and home improvement

Home improvement and new home construction registrations

Home improvement and new home construction registrations expire March 31 each year. The home improvement contractor (HIC) renewal fee is $220. The new home construction registration also expires March 31, but confirm its renewal fee with DCP before you budget for it. Because the date falls at the end of the first quarter, set the reminder for February so the renewal is submitted with time to spare.

Major contractor

Major contractor licenses expire June 30, and the renewal fee is $500. That is the largest renewal fee in this guide, and the due date falls in the middle of the busy season for most contractors. Schedule the renewal and the CE for the spring, not the week it is due.

Electrical, heating and cooling, elevator, plumbing and fire sprinkler

These trades have staggered expiry dates across the late summer and fall:

• Heating, cooling and sheet metal: August 31
• Elevator: August 31
• Electrical: September 30
• Plumbing and pipefitting: October 31
• Fire sprinkler, F-1 to F-4: October 31

The renewal fees for these licenses are not part of this guide's verified figures, so look up the amount on DCP before you pay. Expiry dates are the same for everyone holding that license type, but CE requirements can differ, so check each one separately.

Trade licenses for contractors and journeypersons

Trade license renewal fees are $150 for contractors and $120 for journeypersons. These fees are separate from the registrations listed above, and the expiry date for your specific trade license should be confirmed with DCP. If you hold both a registration and a trade license, you have two renewals to track, not one.

Real estate

Real estate salesperson licenses expire May 31 of even-numbered years. Broker licenses expire November 30 of even-numbered years. Because 2026 is an even-numbered year, the broker renewal is due November 30, 2026, and the next salesperson renewal is due May 31, 2028. Confirm the renewal fee and CE hours for your license with DCP, since this guide does not state them. Real estate is also a field where a lapsed license can interrupt your ability to close transactions, so give the renewal the same priority as a contract deadline.

Health care and personal services

Homemaker-companion agencies expire October 31 each year, with a renewal fee of $375. If you run an agency and also hold a separate license in another trade, put both dates on the calendar. The October 31 date is close to the plumbing, pipefitting and fire sprinkler deadlines, so many owners with mixed operations will face several renewals in the same month.

Continuing education: confirm it for your license

CE hours differ by license type, so this guide does not give a single number. Relying on a figure from a forum post or a course provider's marketing is how people end up short at renewal. To confirm the requirements for your license:

1. Find your license type on DCP's continuing education page, and read the requirements for that license rather than a general summary.
2. Confirm the required number of hours, any topics that must be covered, and whether the course must come from an approved provider.
3. Find out whether CE completion must be reported at renewal or only kept in your own records, and how long to keep the records.
4. Check each course you take against DCP's requirements before you enroll. A course described as meeting Connecticut CE has not been verified until you have checked it yourself.
5. Ask DCP directly about any requirement the page does not answer clearly, and keep a copy of the reply with your renewal file.

Build a renewal calendar that works

1. Write down each license number, license type and expiry date from the license itself or from your DCP account. Use the eLicense system, which is one of the entry points listed on Business.CT.gov's New Business Checklist.
2. Add a reminder 60 days before each expiry date and a second reminder at 30 days. The first gives you time to complete CE. The second is your deadline to pay and submit.
3. Finish CE before the renewal window opens, then save the completion records in the same folder as the license.
4. Keep your entity's Annual Report on its own calendar. It is a Secretary of the State filing, not a trade license renewal, and it is required every year whether or not any trade license expires that year.
5. Review the full list once a year. A business that adds a trade, hires a licensed worker or opens a second location may need a new license or a new local approval.

When to get professional help

Contact the licensing agency first if a license has lapsed, if an inspection or complaint is pending, or if you are not sure which license covers your work. For tax questions about the Sales and Use Tax Permit, entity filings or the Pass-Through Entity Tax election, speak with a CPA. For a question about business structure, contract exposure or a license problem that affects a deal already in progress, speak with a qualified attorney. Free general planning help is available through the Connecticut Small Business Development Center (CTSBDC), which can help you sort through the filings that apply to your business before a deadline is missed.

Official resources

• Business.CT.gov, business forms and fees: https://business.ct.gov/business-services/business-forms-and-fees
• Connecticut Secretary of the State, Business Services Division: https://portal.ct.gov/sots/business-services/bsd
• Connecticut Department of Revenue Services: https://portal.ct.gov/drs
• Connecticut Small Business Development Center: https://ctsbdc.uconn.edu/

For DCP license pages and the continuing education page, start from the Business.CT.gov New Business Checklist and follow the link for your trade. This guide does not list a direct DCP web address, so do not rely on a URL you find in a third-party directory without confirming it on Business.CT.gov first.