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Exam Overview
A general building contractor's principal business is work on structures that requires at least two unrelated building trades or crafts; framing and carpentry projects may also be taken on their own. In California, anyone who contracts for construction work with a combined price of $1,000 or more for labor and materials must hold a license issued by CSLB. To qualify for the General Building (B) classification, the qualifying individual documents at least four years of journey-level experience within the past ten years and passes two examinations: Law and Business, and the General Building trade examination covered in this guide.
Format and Delivery
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Licensing agency | Contractors State License Board (CSLB), California Department of Consumer Affairs |
| Test administrator | PSI, at computer-based test centers in California, open six days a week |
| Question type | Multiple choice, four choices, one BEST answer; some questions require calculation |
| Number of questions | Not published by CSLB; the count appears on screen when the examination begins |
| Time allowed | 3½ hours for each examination |
| Reference materials | None. The examination is closed book |
| Provided at the center | Calculator, scratch paper, pencil and scale ruler |
| Scoring | No penalty for guessing; CSLB sets the passing standard for each examination |
| Results | Given at the test center before you leave |
From Application to Test Day
Test-Day Rules
Results and Retakes
You receive your result at the test center. Candidates who pass are told only that they passed. Candidates who do not pass receive a statement showing how they performed in each section, which is the best guide to what to study next. You may test again after waiting 21 calendar days, and you pay the PSI fee for each attempt. All required examinations must be passed within 18 months of the date CSLB accepts the application; after that the application is void and a new one is required.
| Fee | Amount | Paid to |
|---|---|---|
| Original application (examination) | $450 | CSLB |
| Examination fee, each examination and each attempt | $51.43 | PSI |
| Initial license fee, sole owner | $200 | CSLB |
| Initial license fee, all other entities | $350 | CSLB |
| Fingerprint processing (Department of Justice and FBI) | $49 plus the Live Scan operator's fee | Live Scan site |
How the Questions Are Written
Each question has one BEST answer. Words such as MINIMUM, MAXIMUM, FIRST and MOST are capitalized in the question because they decide the answer. Code questions name the California code they come from, calculation questions give every number you need, and field questions describe a job-site condition and ask for the cause, the correct method, or the next step.
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