Whether you are registering as a Home Improvement Contractor for the first time, or looking to change your DBA, find the information you need to be properly registered here.
If you have any questions, please call our hotline at 617-973-8787 or the toll free number at 888-283-3757.
- This page, Home Improvement Contractors (HIC) Guide , is offered by
- Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
Home Improvement Contractors (HIC) Guide
Table of Contents
First time applicants
Once you've submitted all documents and fees, you should receive your HIC registration card in the mail within 1-2 weeks.
Contractors and subcontractors who perform home improvement work on an existing, 1- to 4-unit, owner-occupied, residential property in Massachusetts must register.
You can register as:
-
An Individual
-
A proprietorship
-
A partnership
-
A corporation
If filing under a trade name (also known as a Doing Business As (DBA), you must provide a current copy of the business certificate filed with the city or town clerk where your business is based.
You will have to pay a $150 registration fee and a mandatory payment to the Guaranty Fund based on the size of your company:
0 to 3 employees: $100
4 to 10 employees: $200
11 to 30 employees: $300
More than 30 employees: $500
The Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation does not accept payment over the phone. If you are registering or renewing a registration online using our registration portal, you may pay by credit card. Otherwise, we only accept payment by certified bank check or money order. Any other form of payment, including cash, or personal or business checks, are not accepted.
You can register online by creating an account on our registration portal.
You can register by mail by downloading and filling out the registration form.
Be sure to include money order or bank check made payable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Bring or mail your completed application and payment to:
Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
Home Improvement Contractor Program
1000 Washington Street
Suite 710
Boston, MA 02118
Key Actions for First time applicants
Additional Resources for First time applicants
Open PDF file, 171.22 KB,
HIC Registration Application
(English, PDF 171.22 KB)
Open PDF file, 2.26 MB,
First-time HIC Guide
(English, PDF 2.26 MB)
Renew your HIC Registration (Online account only)
Once you've submitted all documents and fees, you should receive your HIC card in the mail within 1-2 weeks. The renewal period begins 60 days prior to the expiration date.
You must renew your registration every two years and pay the $100 registration renewal fee. You must have an online account to renew online. If you have ever held an HIC (expired or current) you can create an online account so that you can easily renew your HIC or update your information.
You can create an online account here.
If you have previously created an account and are looking to renew your registration, log-in to your account here.
Visit our online portal to renew or reactivate your HIC number.
Remember: Renewal applications received more than 30 days beyond the expiration of the HIC registration will require you to reapply and pay the associated registration fee of $150 and Guaranty Fund fee based upon the size of your company as follows:
|
Zero to three (3) employees |
$100.00 |
|
Four (4) to ten (10) employees |
$200.00 |
|
Eleven (11) to thirty (30) employees |
$300.00 |
|
More than thirty (30) employees |
$500.00 |
You must renew your registration every 2 years and pay a renewal fee of $100.
Key Actions for Renew your HIC Registration (Online account only)
Additional Resources for Renew your HIC Registration (Online account only)
Open PDF file, 1.93 MB,
Guide to reapplying outside of the 31 day grace period
(English, PDF 1.93 MB)
Open PDF file, 2.46 MB,
HIC Renewal Guide
(English, PDF 2.46 MB)
Change your registered address
Need to change your address? You will need your contact and address info and your HIC number.
Complete the address change form and mail it to:
Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
Home Improvement Contractor Program
1000 Washington Street
Suite 710
Boston, MA 02118
or fax it to 617-701-8682.
You can change your address online when submitting a renewal application online. Log into your account and fill out the necessary information.
Key Actions for Change your registered address
Request a duplicate or supplemental (additional) card
Request a duplicate card
If you lost your registration card, you can request a duplicate card. You will need the following information:
- Registration number (if known)
- Registration (company) name
- Business address
- Mailing address (if different)
Mail your completed form to:
Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
Home Improvement Contractor Program
1000 Washington Street
Suite 710
Boston, MA 02118
You can also bring your completed form, along with a certified check or money order payable to Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to that address if you'd prefer.
Request supplemental HIC registration cards
As a home improvement contractor, you can request supplemental cards to help your employees show proper identification while on the job. The fee for each supplemental card you need is $10.
You must provide your original HIC registration info along with the name, title, address and SSN of each officer/partner/employee that needs a supplemental card.
Please note that:
- The registration number will be the same as the original
- The address given should be business location
- Cards are available for:
- Officers
- Partners
- Employees
- The original card holder will still be liable for any work conducted
To request, mail your completed form, along with a certified check or money order payable to Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to:
Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
Home Improvement Contractor Program
1000 Washington Street
Suite 710
Boston, MA 02118
HIC Program Downloadable Forms
You can find all of the downloadable forms for contractors available for matters regarding the HIC program here.
Key Actions for Request a duplicate or supplemental (additional) card
Renew your HIC registration (By mail/in-person)
Once you've submitted all documents and fees, you should receive your HIC card in the mail within 1-2 weeks. The renewal period begins 60 days prior to the expiration date. You must renew within 30 days of expiration or else you will have to reapply.
Renew your HIC registration by mail
Contractors who have expired and wish to renew by mail should download and fill out the renewal application.
Mail the completed form and certified check or money order, payable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to:
Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
Home Improvement Contractor Program
1000 Washington Street
Suite 710
Boston, MA 02118
We only accept a certified bank checks or money orders. Any other form of payment, including cash, or personal or business checks, will be returned as ineligible.
Renew your HIC registration in-person
Contractors who have expired and want to renew in person should download and fill out the renewal application.
Bring the completed form to our office:
Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
Home Improvement Contractor Program
1000 Washington Street
Suite 710
Boston, MA 02118
Payment by certified check or money order, payable to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is accepted. Any other form of payment, including cash, or personal or business checks, will be returned as ineligible.
Create an online account
You must have an online account to renew online. If you have ever held an HIC (expired or current) you can create an online account so that you can easily renew your HIC or update your information.
You can create an online account here.
We do not accept payment by phone, we only accept payment by mail, on our online registration portal, or in-person.
Key Actions for Renew your HIC registration (By mail/in-person)
Change your DBA
Contractors must notify the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation (OCABR) if they do business under a DBA (also referred to as a fictitious name). If you're changing your DBA name, you'll need:
- Your HIC registration number
- Your DBA name
- Permanent address
- A copy of the DBA certified from your local city or town clerk's office
Failure to submit this documentation will result in the denial or delay of your registration. Your completed DBA Change Form and a copy of your business certificate can be mailed or brought to:
Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation
Home Improvement Contractor Program
1000 Washington Street
Suite 710
Boston, MA 02118
Key Actions for Change your DBA
Registering as a Foreign Corporation
In order to lawfully do business in Massachusetts, state law requires a Foreign Corporation to file a certificate of registration as an organization with the Secretary of State within 10 days after it starts to transact business in the Commonwealth. This certificate should be accompanied by a “certificate of legal existence or good standing issued by an authorized officer or agency in the jurisdiction of organization.”
All out of state corporations and LLCs applying for an HIC registration must first complete the foreign corporation registration process with the Massachusetts Secretary of State.