Academy · Licensing · VA
Virginia pest control licence requirements
How do you get a pest control licence in Virginia?
Virginia applicator licences are issued by Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) — Office of Pesticide Services. Requirements are set per category rather than as a single general licence, so the exam you sit and the hours you carry depend on which categories you intend to work. Details below are published only once verified against the agency.
Reviewed by LTK editorial team
- Issuing agency
- Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) — Office of Pesticide Services
- Exam structure
- Core exam plus a category exam per category (5B antifoulant paints is category-only). Qualify first: one year as a Virginia registered technician, or one year of pesticide-related education, training or experience. Apply to OPS with the $25 fee, receive a Notice of Authorization, and sit within 90 days — at a DMV Customer Service Centre touch-screen, by appointment with a VDACS Pesticide Investigator, or remotely via Everblue (extra Everblue fee). Any fail needs a new application and fee. For-hire applicators must work for a firm with a Virginia Pesticide Business Licence.
- Application fee
- $25
- Cycle length
- 24 months
- Agreements
- Reciprocal certificates issue without examination to applicators certified by examination in another state or federal agency (not from a reciprocal certificate); $25 fee; Virginia power of attorney or registered agent required; the home-state certificate must be maintained (2VAC5-685-180)., Reciprocal recertification only where the home state grants it to Virginia applicators in like categories (2VAC5-685-190). Confirm with VDACS OPS: (804) 786-3798.
Reciprocity is the most commonly misunderstood part of moving states. We publish only agreements confirmed by the agency, never inferred ones.
Licence categories
| Code | Category |
|---|---|
| 3A | Ornamental Pest Control |
| 3B | Turf |
| 6 | Right-of Way Pest Control |
| 7A | General Pest Control |
| 7B | Wood-Destroying Pest Control |
| 7C | Fumigation (Non-Agricultural) |
| 7D | Vertebrate Pest Control (Excluding Structural Invaders) |
| 7E | Sewer Root Control |
| 8 | Public Health Pest Control |
| 12 | Wood Preservation and Wood Products Treatment |