Checking a builder's licence in Queensland
Here, the friendly search is the incomplete one. What to look for in any state, and what a licence never tells you, is on the main guide.
Open the QBCC Search a register →
The direct search, not the regulator's front page. Opened and confirmed on 26 October 2026.
Queensland has two search tools that look equivalent and are not, and the pleasant one is the one that will mislead you.
Find a Local Contractor is an opt-in list
Find a Local Contractor contains only licensees who registered for that service. It is a directory, not a register. A builder's absence from it means nothing at all about their licence, and a builder's presence in it tells you only that they signed up.
The licensee register is the one to use. It holds every licensee, and it returns a complete licence history rather than a current snapshot — which matters, because a pattern of licences granted, surrendered and re-granted is visible there and nowhere else.
Four more registers, for four more questions
Queensland separates its lists more than most. Plumbing and drainage licensees, building certifiers, owner-builder permits, and cancelled or suspended licences each have their own search. So does the excluded individuals list — people barred from holding a QBCC trade licence, which is a different and more serious thing than a licence that has simply lapsed.
If the person you are checking does not appear anywhere, that is worth a phone call rather than an assumption: the QBCC contact centre is on 139 333, and the licence may be held by a related entity under a name you have not been given.
Queensland: the register at a glance
- Register
- QBCC Search a register — the licensee register
- Find a Local Contractor
- A separate tool containing only licensees who opted in; it does not include all QBCC licensees
- The licensee register gives
- A complete licence history, more detail than the Find a Local Contractor search
- Also searchable separately
- Plumbing and drainage licensees, building certifiers, owner-builder permits, and cancelled or suspended licences
- Excluded individuals list
- People excluded from holding a QBCC trade licence, published separately
- If someone is not listed
- Phone the QBCC contact centre on 139 333 to confirm
Read from QBCC, Find a licensed contractor on 26 October 2026. the QBCC is the authority on what applies to a particular licence, and a register is a record of permission rather than of competence.
Questions about Queensland licences
Which QBCC search should I use?
The licensee register at Search a register. Find a Local Contractor is an opt-in directory that does not include all licensees, so absence from it means nothing.
What does the licensee register show?
A complete licence history rather than a current snapshot — so a pattern of licences granted, surrendered and re-granted is visible there and nowhere else.
What is the excluded individuals list?
A separate list of people barred from holding a QBCC trade licence. That is a different and more serious matter than a licence that has simply lapsed, and it is worth checking separately.
They don't appear in any register. What now?
Phone the QBCC on 139 333 rather than assuming. The licence may sit with a related entity under a name you have not been given.