The five Florida contractor licenses that actually matter for your renovation.

Every Florida contractor's advertising claims to be "licensed and insured." Almost none of them explain what they're actually licensed to do — because most of them only hold one license and subcontract everything else.

Here's how to read the licenses that matter for a South Florida renovation, in plain English.

CGC · Certified General Contractor

The umbrella. A CGC (like Aldo's FL #CGC1525289) authorizes construction of buildings of unlimited size and height — residential or commercial. It's the license that lets a contractor sign the permit application for the entire project and stand behind the whole job.

What a CGC does not do on its own: perform the specialty trades. A GC with only a CGC has to subcontract plumbing, electrical, mechanical, and roofing work to separately-licensed trades. Which is fine, until the schedule slips.

CCC · Certified Roofing Contractor

Full authority for re-roofs, roof repairs, and new-construction roof systems. In South Florida, this license is especially load-bearing because our building code requires wind-code compliance on every roof; tile attachment methods, underlayment, and secondary water barrier are all inspected. The roofing contractor signs their own portion of the permit.

When the roofing contractor is separate from the GC, roof warranty questions land at a separate phone number.

CMC · Certified Mechanical Contractor

HVAC systems, ductwork, refrigeration, gas piping, and mechanical ventilation. In renovation scope, this license comes into play for range hood venting through a structural roof, HVAC duct modifications when walls move, and gas line work for a range or generator.

Mechanical is one of the trades most often held by a separately-licensed subcontractor.

CFC · Certified Plumbing Contractor

Rough-in, finish, gas piping, and full water and drain systems. On a kitchen renovation, plumbing is the coordination bottleneck (see: Why the plumber is the second most expensive person on your renovation).

EC · Electrical Contractor

Panel upgrades, service changes, EV chargers, code corrections, and all electrical work for renovations and new construction. A homeowner adding an induction range needs a 240V circuit run; that requires an EC. Adding an EV charger to the garage requires an EC. Every renovation touches electrical.

What "the qualifier" means, and why it matters

Every Florida contractor license is held by a person — the qualifier — who has passed the state exam, met the experience requirement, and takes personal responsibility for the license. A business entity (like "Acme Construction LLC") is not itself licensed. The business is associated with a qualifier.

This creates a specific form of malpractice: the qualifier who rents his name to a business he doesn't actively run. The business advertises the license as if the qualifier were on site. In reality, the qualifier is retired, or works elsewhere, or holds licenses for a dozen different companies simultaneously.

The state considers this a violation, but enforcement is complaint-driven. As a homeowner, the way you detect it is: ask whether the qualifier is going to be on site during your project. If the answer is "no, but they signed the permit," you're dealing with a rented license.

How to verify a contractor's licenses

Go to FL DBPR's license search. Enter the license number. You'll see:

• License type and status (active, expired, suspended)
• Qualifier's name
• Associated business
• Discipline history and public complaint record
• Current expiration and continuing-education status

Do this for every trade license the contractor claims to hold. If they only hold one, verify who their subcontractors are before signing anything.

The unusual thing about Dellamano's license stack

Aldo Dellamano personally holds all five — CGC, CCC, CMC, CFC, and EC. Every one is verifiable on DBPR under his individual name. Which means when you hire Dellamano Construction Inc. for a kitchen remodel, the plumbing is on Aldo's license, the electrical is on Aldo's license, the mechanical is on Aldo's license, the roof tie-in (if in scope) is on Aldo's license, and the GC contract is on Aldo's license.

Five licenses, one qualifier, one signature per permit. That's the actual differentiator.

See our full license page for every license number linked to the DBPR search portal. Every license verifiable in one click.