How to check a builder or tradie licence in WA

Who licenses what in Western Australia

Most trade licensing in WA runs through Building and Energy, a division of the Department of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety (LGIRS). The department took that name on 1 July 2025, so where older paperwork or the search’s web address says DMIRS or DEMIRS, it’s the same regulator. Building and Energy supports three boards that do the licensing:

• Building Services Board. Registers builders and painting contractors.
• Plumbers Licensing Board. Licenses plumbers. Gas fitters are licensed through Building and Energy too.
• Electrical Licensing Board. Licenses electricians and electrical contractors.

A few trades sit elsewhere. Air-con installers need a national refrigerant handling licence from the Australian Refrigeration Council, on top of the electrical side. Pest controllers are licensed by the WA Department of Health, which doesn’t run a public online register, so ask for the business registration number and the technician’s licence card. Locksmiths and security door installers need a security installer licence from WA Police.

Running a check on the WA Online Licence Search

One free search covers builders, painters, plumbers, gas fitters and electricians:

1. Ask the tradie for their full name, business name and licence or registration number. It should already be on the quote.
2. Open the WA Online Licence Search.
3. Choose whether to search by name or by licence number, and enter the details.
4. Open the matching record and read it properly, not just the name.

Builders and painters also appear on daily-updated PDF registers, handy if the search is down.

What the record shows

A result shows the licence or registration type, its number, whether it’s current, and the issue and expiry dates. It can also list other licences the same person or company holds. The letters at the start of the number tell you what you’ve got:

• BC is a registered building contractor, the registration that lets a business contract with you. BP is a building practitioner, an individual who can supervise for a contractor but can’t contract with you directly.
• PC is a registered painting contractor.
• PL is a plumbing contractor. TL is a tradesperson’s licence, which means working under a contractor’s direction.
• GF is a gas fitter.
• EC is an electrical contractor, the licence the business you pay should hold.

When the law needs a licensed tradie

• Plumbing, gas and electrical work need a licence whatever the job costs. The plumbing you can do yourself is limited to small jobs like replacing a showerhead, fixing an ordinary tap, swapping a cistern washer or clearing a blocked fixture with a plunger.
• Building work needs a registered building contractor when it needs a building permit and is worth $20,000 or more. For a Class 10a building, like a shed, garage or carport, the line is $50,000. If you’re doing the work yourself over those amounts, you need owner-builder approval instead.
• Painting needs a registered painting contractor once the job is over $1,000.
• Exempt from builder registration: pools, fences, retaining walls, timber decking, cabinet making and second-fix joinery. Some still need a council building permit, and councils inspect pool fences at least every four years.
• No WA trade licence: tiling, concreting, landscaping, handyman work and rubbish removal. Check the ABN on ABN Lookup and ask for proof of insurance. Removing more than 10 square metres of non-friable asbestos needs a WorkSafe-licensed removalist.

Home indemnity insurance and your contract

On residential building work that needs a permit and is worth more than $20,000, the builder must insure the job in your name with home indemnity insurance, and hand you the certificate before taking any money or starting. If the builder dies, disappears or goes insolvent, the policy covers unfinished or faulty work. You can confirm a certificate is genuine on QBE’s Builders Warranty Insurance Certificate Register.

Fixed-price home building contracts between $7,500 and $500,000 also come under the Home Building Contracts Act. Before work starts, the deposit can’t be more than 6.5 per cent of the contract price.

Red flags worth pausing on

• The record says expired, or not current.
• The class doesn’t fit the job: a TL plumber quoting as the contractor, a BP practitioner offering to contract with you, or a restricted air-con electrical licence being stretched to cover new wiring.
• The name or ABN on the quote doesn’t match the licence record.
• The licence number on the quote doesn’t exist, or belongs to someone else.
• A builder wants a deposit before handing over the home indemnity certificate, or wants more than 6.5 per cent up front.

Reporting unlicensed work

Call Building and Energy on 1300 489 099 about unlicensed building, painting, plumbing, gas or electrical work. It also takes plumbing complaints for work done in the last six years and home building contract disputes lodged within three years. If wiring or gas work looks dangerous, report an electrical or gas incident straight away. Unlicensed pest controllers go to WA Health on (08) 9222 2000, and unlicensed locksmiths or security installers to WA Police Licensing Services on 1300 171 011.

For the basics across every state, read which tradies need a licence. Or skip the legwork: get a free quote and we’ll match you with one local tradie whose licence, insurance, ABN and reviews we’ve already checked.