How to Start a Painting Business in California

October 29, 2026

Starting a painting business in California is mostly a licensing and paperwork project, and the order matters. Your contractor license comes first, because it decides whether you can legally take on most paid jobs. Lead-paint and chemical rules come second, because they change how you prep, contain, and document every job. Business setup comes last: your entity, tax registrations, local permits, and insurance. This guide follows that order.

This is informational content, not legal or tax advice. The figures below reflect official sources checked in October 2026. Confirm each number on the agency page before you pay or file, and talk to a licensed attorney or CPA about your business structure, contracts, and taxes.

What You Need Before You Start

Gather these items before you apply. Most of them are paperwork and fees, not equipment.

• Experience records: the license requires four years of journey-level experience within the last ten years, so collect job records, references, and anything that documents your work.
• Fee money: $450 for the license application, $200 for an initial sole owner license or $350 for an initial license held by another entity, and a $25,000 contractor bond.
• Entity filings (if you form an LLC or corporation): $70 for Articles of Organization (Form LLC-1), or $100 for stock corporation Articles of Incorporation.
• Insurance: liability coverage for your jobs, and workers' compensation once you have any employee.
• Equipment and prep supplies: ladders, scrapers, drop cloths, painter's tape, and a HEPA vacuum if you will disturb older paint.

Step 1: Get Your C-33 Painting Contractor License

In California, the painting trade is licensed through the Contractors State License Board (CSLB). The C-33 class is the license most painters need, and the threshold for needing it is $1000 in total value, not $500.

What the C-33 class covers

The C-33 Painting and Decorating class covers a contractor who prepares surfaces by scraping, sandblasting, or other means, then applies paints, papers, textures, fabrics, pigments, oils, varnishes, stains, fillers, waxes, adhesives, and other materials that adhere by evaporation to the surfaces of structures. The work is for decorating, protecting, fireproofing, and waterproofing.

When you need the license

You need a license for any job of $1,000 or more in labor, materials, and all other items combined, and for any job that requires a building permit. Under Business and Professions Code 7048, the small-job exemption is lost if you advertise as a contractor or employ anyone to help you. Once you advertise or hire, the exemption no longer protects you, even on small jobs. If you plan to grow, plan to be licensed.

Requirements and costs

Item	Amount or requirement
Application fee	$450
Initial license, sole owner	$200
Initial license, other entities (such as an LLC or corporation)	$350
Renewal	$450 or $700 (confirm which applies to your entity type with CSLB)
Contractor bond	$25,000
Additional bond for an LLC license	$100,000
Liability insurance for an LLC license	At least $1,000,000 aggregate, covering up to five listed personnel
Experience	Four years of journey-level experience in the last ten years
Exams	Law and business exam plus trade exam, and the open-book asbestos exam

The open-book asbestos exam applies to every applicant in every class. It is not a special painting requirement, so do not treat it as optional. A company can qualify through a responsible managing employee or officer who meets the experience and exam requirements. The application steps, scheduling, and bond filing are shared by all contractor classes, so read the CSLB contractor license guide at cslb.ca.gov before you start.

Workers' compensation for the owner

If you have no employees, a C-33 owner may file a workers' compensation exemption, which is available through December 31, 2027. For most licensees, the exemption ends on January 1, 2028. Once you have any employee, you need workers' compensation coverage (Business and Professions Code 7125; Labor Code 3700). This guide does not give premium figures, because premiums depend on your payroll, job types, and history. Get quotes from insurers.

Step 2: Handle the Lead and Chemical Rules

Painting often disturbs old paint, so these rules apply before you bid and on every job. The figures in this section come from secondary sources, so verify each one with the named agency before you rely on it.

EPA Renovation, Repair and Painting (RRP) rule

The federal RRP rule applies to paid work on housing built before 1978, in child-occupied facilities, and in schools. Your firm must be EPA certified, which is reported to cost $300 for five years (verify with the U.S. EPA). The renovator on the job must complete an eight-hour course with refresher training (verify with the U.S. EPA).

Proposition 65

California's Proposition 65 requires a clear warning before you knowingly expose people to chemicals on the state list, and the list includes lead. Penalties are reported to run up to $2,500 per violation per day (verify with the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment).

Cal/OSHA lead standard

The Cal/OSHA lead standard sets an action level of 30 micrograms per cubic meter as an eight-hour average. Reaching that level triggers medical surveillance for workers (verify with Cal/OSHA).

Step 3: Form Your Business Entity

You can operate as a sole proprietor with no state formation filing. If you do, you still need a fictitious business name filing if you trade under any name other than your own (see Step 5). An LLC or corporation adds liability separation and specific filing duties. Choosing between them is a tax and liability question, so confirm the decision with a CPA.

Forming an LLC

• Name: the name must include 'limited liability company,' 'L.L.C.,' or 'LLC' ('Limited' may be 'Ltd.' and 'company' may be 'Co.'). It may not include 'bank,' 'trust,' 'trustee,' 'incorporated,' 'inc.,' 'corporation,' or 'corp.' You can reserve a name for $10 for 60 days at the Secretary of State name availability page. Reservations are not renewable for consecutive periods.
• Articles of Organization: file Form LLC-1 for $70 through bizfile Online. Online filings are normally processed within about 5 business days or less. Paper filings take 10 or more business days. Expedite options are 24-hour for $350, same-day for $750 (received by 9:30 a.m.), and 4-hour for $500 (drop-off only, precleared).
• Registered agent and office: the LLC must name an agent for service of process. That is an individual who lives in California or a corporation holding a Corporations Code 1505 certificate. The LLC must also keep an office in California, which need not be a place of business activity.
• Franchise tax: an LLC organized or registered in 2024 through 2026 owes the $800 minimum annual franchise tax starting in its first year. An LLC whose first taxable year begins in 2027, 2028, or 2029 pays $400 in year one under RTC 17941(g)(2), so confirm the first-year amount with the Franchise Tax Board. The LLC fee is $900, $2,500, $6,000, or $11,790 once California-source total income reaches $250,000, $500,000, $1,000,000, or $5,000,000, respectively.
• Statement of Information (Form LLC-12): $20, due within 90 days of filing the articles, then every two years during the six-month window ending on the last day of the anniversary month. The Franchise Tax Board assesses a $250 penalty after a Secretary of State notice if it is missed.

Forming a corporation

Articles of Incorporation cost $100. A corporation files a Statement of Information (Form SI-550) for $25 every year, due within 90 days of filing the articles. A newly incorporated or qualified corporation or S corporation owes no $800 minimum in its first taxable year. Corporate income tax is 8.84% (10.84% for banks). S corporations pay 1.5% of net income with an $800 minimum. Confirm these figures with the Franchise Tax Board before you choose a structure.

Step 4: Register for Sales Tax and Payroll

California has no general state business license. The Secretary of State issues none, and the CDTFA seller's permit is not a business license. You still need to register with the right agencies.

• Seller's permit (CDTFA): you may need one if you sell paint and materials to customers as separate items. Check with the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration before your first sale. The seller's permit is free. The statewide base sales tax rate is 7.25%, and city district taxes bring city rates to between 7.25% and 11.75%. A resale certificate has no required form.
• Employer registration (EDD): if you hire anyone, register with the Employment Development Department before you pay wages.
• Minimum wage: the state minimum wage is $16.90 in 2026 and $17.40 from January 1, 2027 (secondary source, verify before setting pay).

Step 5: File a Fictitious Business Name Statement If You Need One

If you operate under any name other than your legal name or your LLC's registered name, file a Fictitious Business Name Statement with the county clerk-recorder in the county of your principal place of business. If you have no California place of business, file in Sacramento County.

• Deadline: file within 40 days of starting business under the name.
• Publication: publish the statement in a newspaper once a week for four weeks. The publication fee is separate from the filing fee.
• Fee: the statutory fee is $10 plus $2 per additional name or owner (Business and Professions Code 17929), but counties charge more. For example, Tehama County charges $31 plus $5 for each additional name.
• Expiration: the filing expires after five years, so calendar the renewal.

Details are on the Secretary of State fictitious business names page.

Step 6: Check Local Business Taxes and Permits

This step is where most painters find the surprise cost. Most California cities charge a local business tax or require a registration certificate, and 445 of 483 cities report revenue from one. There is no common formula, so the answer depends on the city where you work and where you are based. Counties license only regulated activities. Call your city's business tax office or check its website, and ask whether your city requires a registration certificate for a painting contractor.

Step 7: Set Up Insurance and Written Contracts

Insurance

For an LLC license, liability insurance of at least $1,000,000 aggregate covering up to five listed personnel is a condition of the license. Even if you run a sole proprietorship, you should have liability coverage before your first job. Ask a commercial insurance agent for general liability quotes, and ask the agent to explain the policy's exclusions in writing. This guide does not quote premiums because they vary widely.

Written contracts and payment limits

Home improvement contracts must be in writing and state the price in dollars and cents. The down payment may not exceed the lesser of $1,000 or 10% of the contract, and payments may not outrun the work completed (Business and Professions Code 7159.5). Unlicensed contracting is punishable by a fine of up to $5,000, up to six months in jail, or both (Business and Professions Code 7028). A written contract with clear payment milestones protects you and the customer.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Assuming a $500 threshold. The license threshold is $1,000, and the small-job exemption ends once you advertise or hire.
• Treating the asbestos exam as a painting exception. Every applicant in every class takes the open-book asbestos exam.
• Forgetting LLC license requirements. An LLC license needs a $100,000 bond and liability insurance of at least $1,000,000 aggregate, on top of the standard fees.
• Assuming the owner exemption lasts. For most licensees, the no-employee workers' compensation exemption ends on January 1, 2028.
• Skipping lead rules on older homes. Work on housing built before 1978 may fall under the EPA RRP rule.
• Missing the 40-day DBA deadline or the Statement of Information deadline. Both carry consequences, and the LLC penalty is $250.
• Taking a large deposit. The down payment cap is the lesser of $1,000 or 10% of the contract.
• Assuming the state license covers city permits. Your city may require its own business tax or registration certificate.

Expected Results

Completing these steps in order may help you bid and perform licensed painting work, keep your filings current, and reduce the risk of unlicensed-contracting penalties and payment disputes. Results vary with your market, pricing, and workmanship. Timelines depend on agency processing and exam scheduling, so plan for a gap between filing and your first licensed job.

Where to Get Help

Use the official sources as your reference: the Secretary of State Business Programs Division, the CDTFA, and the CSLB. For free business advising, contact the California Small Business Development Center network. For complex structures, licensing questions, or contract drafting, consult a licensed attorney or CPA.

This article is informational only. It is not legal, tax, or licensing advice. Laws, fees, and deadlines change, so confirm current requirements with the agency before you act.