Montana: 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 recordMT LAW
For consumer remedies, home-sale rules and carbon monoxide law, see Montana chimney & fireplace laws — know your rights. That page was verified more recently than this matrix.
Stove & insert installation: is a credential required in Montana?
#stove-installREGISTRATION- Credential
- No trade credential — only the exam-free 'construction contractor license' (MCA § 37-45-201, HB 239 terminology trap: tests nothing but WC proof) or the $125 ICEC for solos (Pass 1 merge). Code: 2021 IRC adopted statewide (ARM 24.301.154) but ENFORCEMENT exists only inside state Building Codes Bureau jurisdiction and certified-city/county programs (Billings/Missoula/Bozeman/Gallatin etc.) — outside them no permits at all, so the listing rule is paper. No statewide EPA-stove install statute found (absence) — the emissions layer is local: Missoula County's air program restricts solid-fuel devices in its air stagnation zone and Libby/Lincoln County (EPA change-out area) allows only certified devices. NFI voluntary; hearth-store employee carve-out for minor incidental work (MCA 37-69-102(1)(f), Pass 1)
- Issuing body
- MT DLI Business Standards Division (contractor registration/ICEC); certified local building depts; county air programs (Missoula, Lincoln)
- Statute
- MCA § 37-45-201; ARM 24.301.154 (2021 IRC); local air ordinances (Missoula, Libby/Lincoln County)
- Dollar threshold
- none (license only required with employees; ICEC optional for solos)
- Exam
- n
- Local overlay
- y — certified-jurisdiction permits only; Missoula/Libby air-zone device restrictions
- Confidence
- medium-high · checked 2026-07-22
- Sources
Gas fireplace service: is a credential required in Montana?
#gas-fireplace-serviceREGISTRATION- Credential
- NO occupational gas credential of any kind — Montana's plumbing definition (MCA 37-69-101(7)) contains no fuel gas, there is no mechanical/HVAC/gas-fitter license (absence verified), and no LP installer license (the MDT 'LPG dealer license', ARM 18.15.801, is a vehicle-fuel TAX instrument; the guessed 'MCA Title 50 ch. 74 LPG Act' is WRONG — that chapter is Boilers and Steam Engines); code compliance rides on mechanical permits (IFGC adopted by ARM 24.301.173; LP = NFPA 58 as the Montana LP Gas Code); only credential = exam-free 'construction contractor license' (renamed from Construction Contractor Registration by HB 239, Ch. 644 L. 2025, eff. 1/1/2026 — MCA § 37-45-201, still WC-compliance-based, no competency test) or $125 ICEC for no-employee solos; bonus: appliance-dealer employees may do 'minor work incidental to the installation of an appliance purchased from the dealer' without any plumber license (MCA 37-69-102(1)(f))
- Issuing body
- MT Dept. of Labor & Industry ERD (contractor license/ICEC); DLI Building Codes Bureau or certified cities (permits)
- Statute
- MCA § 37-45-201 (HB 239 recodification of Title 39 ch. 9); MCA 37-69-101(7), 37-69-102; ARM 24.301.173
- Dollar threshold
- none
- Exam
- n
- Local overlay
- y — certified-city permit programs (Billings/Missoula/Bozeman); Billings $10,000 plumbing-contractor bond (low-medium); no city gas-fitter exam license confirmed
- Confidence
- high · checked 2026-07-10
- Sources
What insurance does Montana require of contractors?
#insurance- Regime
- registration ('construction contractor license' MCA § 37-45-201 post-HB 239 — exam-free, WC-compliance-based; or ICEC for no-employee solos)
- Liability minimum
- NONE — § 37-45-201 requires only proof of WC-law compliance, no GL (primary statute text verified); the Board of Plumbers imposes no GL on master plumbers either; a 'licensed' Montana contractor has proven WC compliance, never liability coverage
- Bond
- none at state level — no registration/license bond in § 37-45-201 and no master-plumber bond (application checklist verified); LOCAL exception: Billings $10,000 plumbing-contractor surety bond (low-medium)
- Guaranty fund
- NONE — no guaranty/recovery fund (Title 37 ch. 45 + DLI/ERD materials, absence verified)
- Workers' comp threshold
- 1 employee incl. part-time/seasonal (MCA § 39-71-401 — employer must elect plan 1/2/3 incl. Montana State Fund); ICEC (MCA § 39-71-417): $125 nonrefundable fee (ARM 24.35.121), 2-year term (ARM 24.35.117), waives the holder's own WC rights; license issuance REQUIRES WC proof or ICEC (§ 37-45-201(1)(b)); HB 239 bonus: hirers of licensed contractors shielded from statutory-employer WC liability (39-71-405 tie-in)
- How to verify
- single AUTOMATED endpoint: erdcontractors.mt.gov/ICCROnlineSearch searches ICEC AND contractor registration together (ideal registry check); GL = nothing to verify (carrier-direct COI only); plumber lookup ebizws.mt.gov; TERMINOLOGY TRAP: from 1/1/2026 businesses truthfully claim a Montana 'contractor license' — it still tests nothing
- Confidence
- high · 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 Montana?
- 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.