Garage door rules & licensing in Minnesota

Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI), Construction Codes and Licensing Division — official site

DLI: "Any individual or company that contracts directly with an owner of residential real estate (one to four units) to provide work in more than one special skill must have a residential building contractor or residential remodeler license." And: "A contractor who provides services in more than one special skill area must be licensed. Specialty contractors who provide only one special skill are not required to have a state license (except residential roofers)." Garage doors and openers sit inside special skill category 8, "General installation specialties" (Minn. Stat. 326B.802 subd. 15(h): "(1) garage doors and openers"). So a garage-door-only business is a specialty contractor and needs no state licence; but the moment it also sells, e.g., carpentry (which includes "doors, windows, and skylights") or exterior finishing, it is providing more than one special skill and must be licensed. Subcontractors who do not contract with the homeowner do not need a contractor licence but must register through DLI's Construction Contractor Registration Program.

$15,000. DLI: "Residential building contractors whose gross annual receipts from their residential activities are less than $15,000 and have a Certificate of Exemption" do not need a contractor licence. "Gross annual receipts are the total amount derived from residential contracting or remodeling activities, regardless of where the activities are performed, and must not be reduced by cost of goods sold, expenses, losses or any other amount." The same $15,000 exemption appears at Minn. Stat. 326B.805 subd. 6, which also requires an affidavit that receipts will not exceed that amount.

No surety bond. Applicants must file proof of public liability insurance with "minimum coverage is $100,000 per occurrence, $300,000 aggregate, and $25,000 in property damage coverage", covering "premises, operations and products, and completed operations", with DLI listed as certificate holder, plus proof of workers' compensation compliance on a DLI-approved form. The base licence fee is $180, plus a Contractor Recovery Fund fee of $320 (gross annual receipts under $1 million), $420 ($1-5 million) or $520 (over $5 million).

Minn. Rules 1300.0120: "An owner or authorized agent who intends to construct, enlarge, alter, repair, move, demolish, or change the occupancy of a building or structure ... shall first make application to the building official and obtain the required permit." The rule's list of work exempt from permit (one-story detached accessory structures under 200 sq ft, fences up to 7 ft, retaining walls under 4 ft, sidewalks and driveways, decks under 30 in. above grade, painting/papering/tiling/carpeting and finish work, small above-ground pools) does NOT include door or garage door replacement. "Exemptions from permit requirements ... do not authorize work to be done in any manner in violation of the code or any other laws or ordinances."

Minnesota Rules 1309.0301 sets the state's climatic and geographic design criteria in IRC Table R301.2(1): ultimate design wind speed 115 mph, with topographic effects marked "YES", referencing wind speed map Figure R301.2(5)A, and "Wind exposure category shall be determined on a site-specific basis in accordance with Section R301.2.1.4." No windborne-debris or opening-protection requirement was found in this section.