DC refrigeration & A/C contractor bonds.
$275. Five minutes.
DC conditions a refrigeration and air conditioning contractor license on a $5,000 trade bond filed with the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection. Three percent of $5,000 is $150, so this lands at our $275 minimum — and the application is five minutes with no credit check.
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Three steps. One sitting.
Trade license bonds are about the simplest thing in surety. Here's the entire process:
Apply online
Business details and an effective date. No financials, no credit check section, no follow-up scavenger hunt.
Pay & e-sign
Small fixed-amount trade bonds like this are among the bond types that issue right after purchase. At most, 1–2 business days.
File with DLCP
Your executed bond arrives by email, ready to file with your DLCP refrigeration/A/C contractor license. Wet-ink original mailed on request.
The whole pricing page.
$5,000 bond × 3% = $150, which is under our $275 minimum, so you pay $275 per term. Multi-year terms track the statutory renewal cycle.
What it is and who needs it.
What the bond actually guarantees
The District licenses construction trades — including refrigeration and air conditioning — through the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP) and its Board of Industrial Trades. The license is conditioned on a $5,000 surety bond standing behind your compliance with the District's licensing and trade regulations.
It's a three-party arrangement: you (the principal), the surety carrier, and the District of Columbia (the obligee), with the public as the protected party. If a contractor violates the trade regulations and someone is harmed, they can recover against the bond.
It is not insurance for you — if the surety pays a valid claim, you repay the surety. The bond runs on a fixed statutory cycle (DC refrigeration/A/C bonds generally expire September 30), and it must stay continuous for your license to stay valid; we send renewal notices 60 and 30 days out.
You need this bond if you're
Five minutes. The whole thing.
These are the actual issuing fields — no credit check section, because this bond doesn't have one.
Start the application →Common questions.
If yours isn't here, the bond team can usually answer within the hour.
How much is the DC refrigeration and A/C contractor bond? +
Do I pay the $5,000? +
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Is there a credit check? +
When does it renew? +
Other New York bonds.
Finish your DLCP license checklist today.
$275 flat, five-minute application, bond often issued in the same sitting. Free until issued.