Minnesota: who needs a license to work on your chimney or fireplace?
Checked Jul 2026·Laws as cited·Not in the Sep 2026 verification pass
Public recordMN LAW
For consumer remedies, home-sale rules and carbon monoxide law, see Minnesota chimney & fireplace laws — know your rights. That page was verified more recently than this matrix.
Stove & insert installation: is a credential required in Minnesota?
#stove-installREGISTRATION- Credential
- BOND-GATED, mirroring the gas side — Minn. Stat. § 326B.197(a) verbatim: 'A person contracting to do gas, heating, ventilation, cooling, air conditioning, fuel burning, or refrigeration work must give and maintain bond to the state in the amount of $25,000' filed with DLI ($100/2 yrs, NO exam; bond runs to State Mechanical Code compliance) — a wood/pellet stove install is heating/fuel-burning work and § 326B.802 subd. 8 sweeps in 'other miscellaneous heat-producing appliance' (textual inference; no express DLI wood-stove statement found); 'fireplaces and wood stoves' is itself a named special skill (§ 326B.802 subd. 15(h)(3)) but a stove-only shop is single-skill exempt from the BC/CR license (§ 326B.805 subd. 6(8)) and mechanical contractors separately exempt (subd. 6(6)) — total state footprint = bond + city comp cards (Minneapolis/St. Paul, not DLI); code: 2020 MN Residential Code (Minn. R. 1309.0010: 2018 IRC incorporated) eff. 3/31/2020, still in force (2024-IRC cycle in rulemaking as of 11/2025); IRC mechanical chapters DELETED and replaced by MN Mechanical Code ch. 1346 (2012 IMC base) which governs solid-fuel installs; permits only in code-administering municipalities + 7-county metro; PINS the Pass 1 UNVERIFIED bond statute: § 326B.197
- Issuing body
- MN Dept. of Labor & Industry (bond filing; no license); cities (comp cards + mechanical permits)
- Statute
- Minn. Stat. § 326B.197(a) (fetched — resolves Pass 1 UNVERIFIED); § 326B.802 subds. 8, 15(h)(3); § 326B.805 subd. 6(6)+(8); Minn. R. 1309.0010; Minn. R. ch. 1346
- Dollar threshold
- none for the bond ($15,000 gross-receipts exemption applies only to the BC/CR/RR licensing scheme)
- Exam
- n state (city comp-card exams locally)
- Local overlay
- y — Minneapolis/St. Paul mechanical permits + individual competency cards
- Confidence
- high (bond statute + code); medium-high (fuel-burning capture of wood stoves) · checked 2026-07-10
- Sources
Chimney flashing: is a credential required in Minnesota?
#chimney-flashingLICENSE- Credential
- Residential Roofer (RR) license — § 326B.805 subd. 1 verbatim: a person meeting the residential-roofer definition 'must be licensed by the commissioner as a residential roofer, residential building contractor, or residential remodeler'; definition § 326B.802 subd. 14 verbatim: 'a person in the business of contracting... to complete work on residential real estate in roof coverings, roof sheathing, roof weatherproofing and insulation, and repair of roof systems, but not construction of new roof systems' — chimney flashing = roof weatherproofing and leak repair = repair of roof systems, so a chimney company contracting flashing/leak repair IS a residential roofer; THE SINGLE-SKILL EXEMPTION DOES NOT SAVE ROOFERS — subd. 6(8) literally exempts one-skill specialty contractors but the specific subd. 1 roofer mandate (2007 anti-storm-chaser) controls and DLI administers it that way (dedicated QR exam, $15,000 surety bond, $300k liability insurance, background checks); EXEMPTION: gross annual receipts <=$15,000 for licensable skills — affidavit-based certificate of exemption required, surrender on exceeding (subd. 6(5)); INTERPLAY: masonry (skill (b)(5)) + roofing (skill (g)), or stoves (h)(3) + roofing = 2+ skills = full BC/CR exam license
- Issuing body
- MN Dept. of Labor & Industry
- Statute
- Minn. Stat. § 326B.805 subds. 1, 6(5), 6(8) (fetched); § 326B.802 subds. 14, 15 (fetched)
- Dollar threshold
- $15,000 gross annual receipts exemption (certificate of exemption required)
- Exam
- y (QR roofer exam; or BC/CR exam at 2+ skills)
- Local overlay
- y — cities may license certificate-of-exemption holders and specialty contractors; Minneapolis/St. Paul permits
- Confidence
- high · checked 2026-07-10
- Sources
Gas fireplace service: is a credential required in Minnesota?
#gas-fireplace-serviceREGISTRATION- Credential
- BOND-ONLY regime, unique in batch: NO state mechanical/gas license exists, but a business must FILE A $25,000 MECHANICAL CONTRACTOR BOND with DLI 'to contract to perform gas, heating, ventilation, cooling, air conditioning, fuel burning or refrigeration work' ($100 filing / 2 yrs) — no exam, no competency test at state level; individual competency = CITY 'comp cards' (Minneapolis, St. Paul, Bloomington etc. — not issued by DLI); homeowners may NOT do their own gas work without a mechanical license (per local rules); the DLI Residential Building Contractor/Remodeler exam-license only bites at 2+ special skills (single-skill gas/hearth shop exempt); MN Mechanical Code (ch. 1346, IFGC base) governs the work; no separate LP installer credential found
- Issuing body
- MN Dept. of Labor & Industry (bond filing; no license); city building departments (comp cards + permits)
- Statute
- mechanical contractor bond per DLI (statute section UNVERIFIED — not cited on DLI page); Minn. Stat. § 326B.83 et seq. (BC/CR license, 2+ skills); Minn. R. ch. 1346 (mechanical/fuel gas code)
- Dollar threshold
- none for the bond duty; BC/CR license only if offering 2+ special skills
- Exam
- n state exam (city comp-card exams locally)
- Local overlay
- y — Minneapolis/St. Paul and many metro cities require mechanical contractor licenses and individual competency cards
- Confidence
- high (bond + absence); medium (statute section) · checked 2026-07-10
- Sources
What insurance does Minnesota require of contractors?
#insurance- Regime
- license (BC/CR for 2+ skills — single-skill chimney shops EXEMPT) + $25k mechanical bond for gas work
- Liability minimum
- $100,000 per occurrence / $300,000 aggregate BI + $25,000 PD (or $300,000/$300,000 combined single limit) CGL for LICENSED residential building contractors/remodelers (Minn. Stat. § 326B.86) — certificate maintained ON FILE with the commissioner and INSURER MUST NOTIFY the commissioner upon cancellation = STATE-VERIFIED; TRAP: the single-skill exemption means an unlicensed chimney-only contractor carries no insurance duty at all — the strong-looking regime evaporates exactly where chimneys live
- Bond
- $25,000 mechanical contractor bond FILED WITH DLI required to contract for 'gas, heating, ventilation, cooling, air conditioning, fuel burning or refrigeration' work ($100 filing / 2 yrs; public bond lookup) — the gas-side instrument in a no-license state; statute section UNVERIFIED (not cited on DLI page); no bond for licensed BC/CR (Recovery Fund replaces it)
- Guaranty fund
- Contractor Recovery Fund (Minn. Stat. § 326B.89, 2025 text fetched): $100,000 max per claimant / $550,000 aggregate per licensee (raised by 2024 c 127; older $75k/$150k figures stale); Cycle One payout cap $275,000 per licensee; funded by license fund-fee scaled to gross receipts $320/$420/$520 + special assessments <= $200; trigger = FINAL JUDGMENT vs a LICENSED residential contractor for fraudulent/deceptive/dishonest practices, conversion of funds, OR FAILURE OF PERFORMANCE on a direct contract requiring licensure (broader than VA's misconduct-only fund); 2-yr window; actual out-of-pocket only, no attorney fees/interest; NOTE: no coverage when the contractor was exempt-unlicensed (single-skill chimney shop)
- Workers' comp threshold
- 1 employee triggers (Minn. Stat. ch. 176; § 176.181 reported, not primary-fetched); sole props/partners excluded, may elect in
- How to verify
- insurance: STATE-VERIFIED for licensed BC/CR (COI on file + insurer cancellation-notice duty); license + mechanical-bond lookup dli.mn.gov / secure.doli.state.mn.us (AUTOMATED); WC lookup: MWCIA proof-of-coverage inquiry (mechanism detail medium)
- Confidence
- high (statutes fetched); medium (WC statute section + MWCIA detail) · checked 2026-07-10
- Sources
Download the full licensing matrix (CSV) · All states
Before anyone goes on your roof
What should you ask a chimney company in Minnesota?
- Is your company a member of the National Chimney Sweep Guild (NCSG)?
- Does the technician coming to my home hold an individual NCSG certification, and which one?
- Does the technician hold a National Fireplace Institute (NFI) certification — and for which fuel: wood, gas, or pellet?
- What other certifications does the technician hold (for example, CSIA), and can I check them on the issuer's own roster?
- What state or local license or registration covers this work here, and what is the number?
- Will you send a certificate of insurance, dated and naming your company, before work starts?
- Which NFPA 211 inspection level — Level 1, 2, or 3 — are you performing, and why that level?
- Will you show me what you found — photos or video of the flue — in writing?
We take no fee from any certification body, guild, or contractor, and are not paid to mention anyone named.