Underground utility

Need a licensed underground utility contractor to qualify your company in Florida?

You run the excavators and the pipe crews: sewer mains, water mains, storm lines. What you don't have is the Florida license behind the company, and on public and commercial work it's the first thing anyone checks. A licensed underground utility and excavation contractor can qualify your company and take real responsibility for that work. Here is what the license covers, where it stops, and what to watch for.

General information about Florida law, not legal advice. Speak to a Florida construction attorney before entering any qualifying arrangement.

The short answer

Yes. A licensed underground utility and excavation contractor can serve as your company's qualifying agent so the company can contract for main sewer, water and storm lines legally. The license covers the mains up to the meter, not the plumbing in the building.

What the license covers, and where it stops

Main sanitary sewer collection, main water distribution and storm sewer collection systems.
Water lines up to and including the meter for each occupancy. Sewer lines stop at the property line on homes and single-occupancy commercial properties.
Clearing, grubbing, grading and excavation.
Not fire protection piping, and conduit only, with no wiring pulled through it.

A general contractor can build mains too, but not run the lines from the mains to the buildings (Statute 489.113). The license starts with CUC when it's certified.

Get the qualifier in place before you bid

Utility work is usually bid before it's built. In Florida, submitting a bid for licensed work counts as contracting (Statute 489.105). So the qualifier needs to be in place before the bid goes in, not after you win it.

What a utility qualifier actually does

The qualifier is not a name on a form. Florida holds them responsible for supervising your utility work, and the state looks at whether that supervision is real.

They are filed with the state licensing department as your company's qualifying agent.
They oversee your jobs, permits and inspections. Not on every job every day, but genuinely involved.
They are tied to your company through W-2 employment, ownership, or a written agreement.

W-2, ownership, or an agreement

What it costs

Three costs, kept apart.

Paid to the qualifier

Their pay

Agreed between you and the contractor. It depends on how many jobs you run, how organized your company is, and how much supervision you need. We don't publish a range, because the number only means something once both sides know the work.

Paid to the state

Filing fees

The state's own filing fees, paid to the state licensing department directly.

Paid to QualiFind

Only after a yes

Nothing to apply or to be on the platform. You only pay once we've found you a qualifier who has said yes, and if the introduction doesn't happen, you can have it back.

What happens to jobs signed without a qualifier

This is the risk most companies don't hear about until it costs them. If a company signs a job without a qualifier licensed for that kind of work, Florida says the company cannot enforce that contract (Statute 489.128).

It can't take the customer to court to get paid.
It has no lien rights on the property and no claim against a payment bond.
Unlicensed contracting is a first-degree misdemeanor, and a third-degree felony for a repeat offense or during a declared state of emergency, such as after a hurricane (Statute 489.127).

If your qualifier leaves

Under Statute 489.119, the company has 60 days from the day the qualifier leaves to bring on a new one, and it cannot take on new contracts until it does.

The state can give an officer of the company a temporary certificate, but it only covers jobs that were already signed.
The qualifier who left stays responsible for the work they supervised while they were there.
Start looking the day you know. Sixty days goes faster than it sounds.

Warning signs

A contractor who offers to "rent" you their license number for a monthly check, with no involvement in your jobs. That is illegal for both of you under Statute 489.127.
Anyone who says yes before asking about your crews, your insurance or the jobs you run.
No written agreement. If the duties aren't written down, neither side is protected.

Get started

Tell us about your company.

Licensed underground utility contractors have already applied to QualiFind as qualifiers. Every qualifier's license is checked against the state's records, and you're matched by trade, area and the way you work.

Start your application

Common questions

Frequently asked questions

Can a general contractor qualify my utility company?+

A general contractor can build mains, but not the lines from the mains to the buildings. For full utility work, you want an underground utility and excavation contractor.

Does the license cover the plumbing inside the building?+

No. Water work stops at the meter, and sewer work stops at the property line on homes and single-occupancy commercial properties. Past that point is plumbing.

Can a utility contractor from another part of Florida qualify my company?+

A certified license covers the whole state, so yes, as long as real supervision is realistic at that distance. A registered license only covers the area that issued it.

How long does it take?+

Plan in weeks, not days. You need to find the right person, both sides need to do real checking, the terms have to be agreed, and the qualifier has to be filed with the state.

Can I get my own utility license later?+

Yes. A real qualifying arrangement is the legal bridge. You run and build the company now, under a real qualifier, and work toward your own license on a realistic timeline.

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