How to Check a Fence Contractor's Iowa Registration (Iowa Has No Fence License)

What Iowa requires — and what it doesn't

There is no Iowa license for fence work. The state's requirement is registration. Iowa Code § 91C.1 defines a contractor as a person in the business of construction, and excludes anyone who earns less than $2,000 a year from it or who works only on their own property. A contractor doing business in Iowa registers with the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL), and § 91C.2 sets the conditions:

• evidence of workers' compensation coverage each year — or a statement that the contractor isn't required to carry it;
• an Iowa employer account number or special contractor number from Iowa Workforce Development;
• for an out-of-state contractor, a $25,000 surety bond (or a statement of Iowa DOT prequalification).

DIAL's page explains why the registry exists: unemployment-insurance and workers' compensation compliance, collecting what out-of-state contractors owe the state, and making contractor information public. The application fee is $50.

Registration is a compliance check, not a quality check. It doesn't test skill, and it doesn't prove the company carries general liability insurance. That's why the last step below is separate.

Look it up: step by step

1. Get the company's exact legal name. Ask for the name on the contract or the insurance certificate — not just the name on the truck. Many fence companies trade under a shorter name than the one they register under.
2. Open Iowa's public contractor search. Go to the Iowa Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing contractor registration page (dial.iowa.gov/licenses/building/contractors) and choose "Check a contractor license." It opens the state's Public Search on laborportal.iwd.iowa.gov.
3. Search one field at a time. Type part of the business name in Business Name and press Search. The state's own instructions say to search one field at a time — combining name and city can make a valid company fail to appear — and not to use the % sign.
4. Read the result. Each result shows the business name, the Iowa registration number, the expiration date and the address on file. You want a match to the company in your yard and an expiration date after your job date.
5. If nothing comes up, ask before you sign. Try a shorter piece of the name, or search by registration number if the company gives you one. No match is a question to ask, not automatically a deal-breaker — but a contractor that earns at least two thousand dollars a year from construction is required to be registered.
6. Ask for the insurance certificate separately. Registration is not insurance. Ask for a current certificate showing general liability, and workers' compensation if the company has employees, and call the agent named on it to confirm the policy is active.

What a good result looks like

A business name that matches the company's contract, a registration number, and an expiration date that's after your job. The address on file is the business's own — it doesn't need to be in Des Moines; a metro fence company may well be based in a suburb or out in the county.

Questions worth asking at the same time

• Who pulls the City permit, and is the fee in the quote? (Des Moines requires one for most fences — see the permit rules.)
• How deep are posts set, and in what?
• Who calls in the utility locate before digging?
• Is the workmanship warranty in writing, and for how long?

Who to contact at the state

DIAL Contractor Registration: [email protected], 515-242-5871. Plumbing, HVAC and other mechanical trades are licensed separately by Iowa's Plumbing & Mechanical Systems Board — not something a fence job needs.