STATE LICENSE
ConditionalMinnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA)…
Mowing, planting, and garden design need no Minnesota trade license. Two triggers change that. First, applying any pesticide for hire requires an MDA commercial applicator license (§ 18B.33) in Category A (Core) plus Category E (Turf & Ornamentals); MDA notes fertilizer applications are separate and require a fertilizer license.
Second, Minnesota's residential licensing law counts excavation (including grading and site grading), masonry and concrete (masonry walls, slabs), and carpentry (porches and decks) as separate special skills. A landscaper who contracts with a homeowner for two or more of them — say, regrading plus a masonry retaining wall — needs a DLI residential building contractor or remodeler license; one skill alone only requires DLI contractor registration.
The state sets the license floor; the county or city permit office controls filing, inspections, and local rules wherever the job site sits.
Pesticide licensing is statewide (MDA). Grading, retaining-wall, and deck work may need local permits under the State Building Code, and cities may require local licenses from contractors working under a state exemption.
The local offices section below names the exact permit desk for every Minnesota county on file.
Each row names the issuing authority, cost, timeline, citation, and status behind the requirement — verified against the official source.
Published fees from the issuing authorities, as of October 2026. Local permit fees vary by project and jurisdiction — the basis is stated where a flat number does not exist.
Planting, mowing, and design need no state license; credentials start when you spray for hire or bundle construction skills.
Grading is excavation; masonry walls and slabs are masonry and concrete; decks are carpentry. Two of these for one homeowner means a DLI license.
Commercial applicator recertification runs once a year, every two years, or every three years depending on the category.
A practical sequence for a new landscaping contractor in Minnesota. Actual agency processing times are noted in the ledger above.
Each item names the issuing authority, cycle, and citation.
Statutory consequences with their citations — not estimates, not “commonly cited” guesses.
Violating ch. 18B is a misdemeanor; knowing violations or those endangering humans are gross misdemeanors.
Courts may impose civil penalties for ch. 18B violations.
DLI may issue administrative orders for multi-skill residential work without a license.
Inside city limits, the city office listed here issues the permit; the county office serves unincorporated areas. Every office links to its official page.
Every fact in this file was checked against these official sources on October 2026.
Pending verification: Which MDA fertilizer license applies to lawn-care companies and its fee · The recertification interval for Categories A and E specifically · Whether landscape irrigation installation requires any state license or backflow credential · Whether low-voltage landscape lighting requires a DLI power limited technician license · Whether DLI charges a fee for construction contractor registration (§ 326B.701 and the DLI registration page state none; the July 2025 fee schedule does not list registration)
General information, not legal advice. Always confirm requirements, deadlines, and forms with the issuing authority before filing or contracting.
Store licenses, permits, policies, and renewal dates in one place.