STATE LICENSE
ConditionalVirginia DPOR Board for Contractors (LSC,…
Landscaping in Virginia is not one license but three possible ones. The Landscape Service (LSC) specialty covers altering or improving land by excavation, clearing, grading, landscaping retaining walls, and landscaping timbers, including stump and root removal below grade — licensed contracting over $1,000 like any other specialty.
Irrigation is stricter than anything else in the chapter: under § 54.1-1103(C), landscape irrigation contractors must be licensed regardless of the contract amount, on their own tier scale (Class C up to $10,000 per contract or $150,000 a year; Class A from $120,000 or $750,000). Separately, applying any pesticide or herbicide to another's property for compensation requires a VDACS pesticide business license and a certified commercial applicator.
The state sets the license floor; the county or city permit office controls filing, inspections, and local rules wherever the job site sits.
DPOR's license is statewide, but the application itself makes every firm affirm it will comply with local licensing in each city, county, and town where it works. Two local desks matter. First, the building department: Virginia's Uniform Statewide Building Code supersedes local building codes (§ 36-98) but is enforced locally (§ 36-105), and § 54.1-1111 bars the permit desk from issuing a permit without proof of a DPOR license or a written statement that you are exempt. Virginia cities are independent of counties (§ 15.2-102), so in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Chesapeake, Richmond, or Alexandria the city's own building department is the desk — no county is involved — while in counties such as Arlington and Loudoun the county building department handles county permits. Towns sit inside their counties. Second, the commissioner of the revenue: the local business license (BPOL) is owed where your office is, and any other locality may require its own once your work there tops $25,000 in a year (§ 58.1-3715); that office also needs proof of your DPOR license or an affidavit of exemption. Pesticides are the exception to local control: § 3.2-3907 gives the state board exclusive authority and forbids delegating it to localities.
The local offices section below names the exact permit desk for every Virginia 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.
§ 54.1-1103(C) requires landscape irrigation contractors to be licensed regardless of the contract amount — even a $400 sprinkler repair.
Effective January 2, 2025, VDACS cut the business license from $150 to $75 and the commercial applicator initial fee from $100 to $25.
An ISC licensee may install backflow prevention devices only when the installer has board-approved formal vocational training; testing and repair of the devices is a separate DPOR certification.
A practical sequence for a new landscaping contractor in Virginia. 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.
Contracting irrigation without a license (at any amount) or LSC work over $1,000 without one is a Class 1 misdemeanor plus up to $500 per day.
Knowing violations of the Pesticide Control Act are a Class 1 misdemeanor; the board may also assess civil penalties of up to $1,000, $5,000 for serious violations, or $20,000 for repeat or knowing ones.
A construction contract entered by an unlicensed contractor is not enforceable by that contractor unless he substantially performed in good faith AND did not actually know a license was required. Letting a license lapse creates a rebuttable presumption that you knew.
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: Whether routine maintenance — mowing, planting, mulching, pruning — is an 'improvement' to real property requiring a contractor license over $1,000; no Code exemption or DPOR guidance addressing it was found · PSI fees for the LSC and ISC technical exams · Whether the 'formal vocational training approved by the board' for ISC backflow installs is satisfied by any specific named course
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.