Berkeley contractor license bonds.
$100 flat.
Under Village Ordinance 02-63, the Village of Berkeley requires every contractor to hold a current contractor's license, and licensing is conditioned on filing a $10,000 surety bond with the Building Department. Ours is $100 flat — the price you see is the checkout price, and no credit check.
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How much does a Berkeley contractor license bond cost?
$100 at the $10,000 amount, the same for every applicant.
Three steps. One sitting.
A Berkeley contractor license bond is about the simplest filing in surety. Here's the entire process:
Apply online
Business details and an effective date. That is the application. No credit check.
Pay & e-sign
Registration bonds like this are among the thousands of bond types that issue right after purchase.
File with the Building Department
Your executed bond and power of attorney arrive by email, ready to file at 5819 Electric Ave. alongside your contractor license application. Wet-ink original mailed on request.
What it is and who needs it.
What the bond actually guarantees
Berkeley, a Cook County village, requires every contractor to hold a current license under Village Ordinance 02-63, and the license application is accompanied by a Certificate of Liability Insurance naming the Village as additionally insured, workers' compensation coverage, and this $10,000 surety bond, filed with the Building Department.
It's a three-party arrangement: you (the principal), the surety carrier, and the Village of Berkeley (the obligee), with property owners and the Village as the protected parties. If a licensed contractor's work causes damage or leaves a covered obligation unpaid, a harmed party can recover against the bond up to the $10,000 penal sum.
It is not insurance for you — if the surety pays a claim, you repay the surety. The Village's license fee is separate from the bond premium — $75 for a general or demolition contractor's license, $50 for other classes — and an electrical contractor must also submit a testing certificate from the municipality where they tested.
You need this bond if you're
Claims, renewal, filing, and what sets the price.
If a claim is made
A claim comes from the party the bond protects, the obligee named on the form, when the duty the bond guarantees is not met.
The surety investigates and pays a valid claim, up to the $10,000 bond amount. You then repay the surety: a surety bond is a guarantee of your performance, not insurance for you.
Renewal and term
The bond runs to December 31 whatever day you buy; the premium covers the period to that date.
Renewal falls on the statutory date, December 31, in the year your term ends.
Renew before the expiry date to keep the bond in force: the license, permit or contract it backs expects continuous coverage.
How to file it
File with the Building Department. Your executed bond and power of attorney arrive by email, ready to file at 5819 Electric Ave. alongside your contractor license application. Wet-ink original mailed on request.
What sets the price
The premium is fixed at $100 at the $10,000 amount for every applicant: the carrier’s rate book prices this bond by the form, not by your credit or your business profile.
No credit check.
One application, issued instantly.
These are the actual issuing fields. No credit check.
Start the application →Common questions.
Other Illinois bonds.
Been told you need a different amount?
Price and requirements checked on the carrier’s application, . Page updated .
Clear Berkeley's Building Department today.
$100 flat, no credit check, bond often issued in the same sitting. Free until issued.