Free TN Business and Law Exam Prep
Tennessee Contractor Business and Law Examination
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Tennessee Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors Examinations: Study Roadmap
Follow this path to organize your exam preparation
Tennessee Licensing, Entity Structure & Board Financial RulesYou are here
Master Business Organization (4 items, 8%) and Licensing (5 items, 10%), including T.C.A. Title 62 Chapter 6 thresholds ($25,000 prime/MEP/roofing sub, $100,000 masonry sub), Qualifying Agent replacement deadlines (10 days notice / 3 months replacement), monetary limit formulas (10x lesser of working capital or net worth), the July 1, 2026 50% Surety Bond option, CGL insurance tiers, and bid envelope disclosures.
Estimating, Construction Contracts, Prompt Pay & Lien Law
Drill Estimating and Bidding (7 items, 14%), Contracts (6 items, 12%), and Tennessee Lien Law (2 items, 4%). Practice quantity takeoffs, labor burden, markup vs. gross margin conversions, contract delivery methods, the Tennessee Prompt Pay Act (5% retainage cap, $500,000 escrow trigger, $300/day damages, 30-day/10-day payment cycles), and T.C.A. Title 66 Chapter 11 Notice of Nonpayment and Notice of Lien timelines.
Project Management, Risk Management, Bonds & Financial Accounting
Cover Project Management (4 items, 8%), Risk Management (4 items, 8%), and Financial Management (3 items, 6%). Calculate CPM critical path and float, Earned Value metrics, Percentage-of-Completion over/underbillings, working capital ratios, depreciation, Builder's Risk, Workers' Compensation Exemption Registry rules, and Federal/Tennessee Miller Act payment bond thresholds.
OSHA Safety, Labor Law, Tax Law & Open-Book Speed Drills
Study OSHA Safety (5 items, 10%), Labor Law (5 items, 10%), and Tax Law (5 items, 10%), then apply permanent tabs to your NASCLA Tennessee 4th Edition manual. Drill 29 CFR 1926 fall/trench thresholds, FLSA overtime, Tennessee E-Verify (35+ employees), Form 941/940 payroll deposit rules, and Tennessee contractor sales/use, business, SUTA, and franchise/excise taxes under a 2.5-hour timer.
Can You Take the TN Business and Law Exam?
Check if you meet the basic eligibility requirements
- •Pass this examination and any required trade examination for the requested classification
- •USD 250 Board initial contractor application fee at core.tn.gov
- •Reviewed or audited financial statement, or the July 1, 2026 Contractors' Surety Bond option equal to at least 50% of the requested monetary limit
- •General liability insurance based on monetary limit and workers' compensation or exemption
- •Letter of reference and notarized Contractor's Affidavit
TN Business and Law Quick Facts
Retake Policy
Use Prov’s bulletin effective for the test date and the appointment confirmation. Each attempt is $53. The newly posted October 14, 2026 bulletin specifies a 30-day wait after failure; do not apply a future-dated policy to an earlier appointment.
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What You'll Study
11 chapters covering the exam topics in this guide
Chapter 1: Business Organization and Entity Structure
3 sections
Chapter 2: Tennessee Contractor Licensing Law and Board Regulations
4 sections
Chapter 3: Construction Estimating and Competitive Bidding
4 sections
Chapter 4: Construction Contracts and the Tennessee Prompt Pay Act
4 sections
Chapter 5: Project Management, Scheduling, and Field Operations
3 sections
Chapter 6: Risk Management, Insurance, and Surety Bonds
3 sections
Chapter 7: OSHA and Tennessee TOSHA Jobsite Safety and Environmental Compliance
3 sections
Chapter 8: Construction Accounting, Financial Statements, and Cash Flow Management
3 sections
Chapter 9: Federal and Tennessee Employment and Labor Law
3 sections
Chapter 10: Federal and Tennessee Tax Law and Payroll Compliance
3 sections
Chapter 11: Tennessee Mechanics' and Materialmen's Lien Law
2 sections
TN Business and Law Exam Details
Tennessee Contractor Business and Law Examination
Administered by Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors
Exam Content Breakdown
Based on the official Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors content outline
4 questions covering sole proprietorships, general and limited partnerships, C- and S-corporations, LLCs, joint ventures (Rule 0680-01-.11), qualifying agents, DBAs, and 90-day mode-of-operation changes.
5 questions covering T.C.A. Title 62 Chapter 6 thresholds ($25,000 prime/MEP/roofing sub, $100,000 masonry sub), license classifications, monetary limits (10x lesser of working capital or net worth), the July 1, 2026 Contractor's Surety Bond option (50% of limit), renewals, insurance tiers, and bid envelope rules.
7 questions covering conceptual and unit-price estimating, quantity takeoffs, waste and swell factors, labor burden, equipment and overhead allocation, markup vs. margin formulas, bid bonds, addenda, and bidding ethics.
6 questions covering contract formation, delivery methods, lump-sum/cost-plus/unit-price contracts, indemnification (T.C.A. § 62-6-123), changes, delays, breach remedies, and the Tennessee Prompt Pay Act (T.C.A. Title 66, Ch. 34: 5% retainage cap, $500,000 escrow trigger, $300/day damages).
4 questions covering Critical Path Method (CPM) network scheduling, forward/backward pass, total and free float, schedule compression, Earned Value Management, RFIs, submittals, quality control, and project closeout.
4 questions covering Commercial General Liability (including Rule 0680-06-.02 minimums of $100k/$500k/$1M), Builder's Risk, Tennessee Workers' Compensation and the Construction Services Provider Exemption Registry, and Bid, Performance, and Payment Bonds under the Federal and Tennessee Little Miller Acts.
5 questions covering TOSHA/OSHA recordkeeping (Forms 300, 300A, 301), 8-hour fatality and 24-hour hospitalization/amputation/eye-loss reporting, citations, 29 CFR 1926 fall protection (6-foot rule), scaffolds (10-foot rule), trenching/excavation (4-foot egress, 5-foot protection, 20-foot PE design, TN 811), and HazCom.
3 questions covering cash vs. accrual accounting, Completed-Contract vs. Percentage-of-Completion revenue recognition, overbillings and underbillings, liquidity/leverage ratios, working capital calculations, cash flow, break-even analysis, and depreciation.
5 questions covering FLSA minimum wage and overtime math, independent contractor vs. employee tests, Form I-9 retention, the Tennessee Lawful Employment Act (E-Verify for 35+ employees), Tennessee Right-to-Work law, Title VII/ADA/ADEA/FMLA thresholds, and Davis-Bacon prevailing wage rules.
5 questions covering FICA, FUTA (Form 940), Form 941 deposit schedules ($50,000 lookback, $100,000 next-day rule), Trust Fund Recovery Penalty, 1099-NEC and 24% backup withholding, Tennessee sales and use tax on contractor materials, Tennessee Business Tax ($100,000 threshold, Class 4), SUTA ($7,000 wage base), and Franchise & Excise Tax.
2 questions covering the Tennessee Mechanics' and Materialmen's Lien Law (T.C.A. Title 66, Ch. 11): Prime vs. Remote Contractors, 1-4 residential unit rules, commercial Notice of Nonpayment within 90 days of the end of each unpaid month, 90-day Notice of Lien recording, enforcement deadlines, and bonding off liens.
What's Included
11 Chapters
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What's Next After the TN Business and Law?
After passing the TN Business and Law, you can pursue these career paths
BC-A Residential Contractor
Pair Business and Law with the Tennessee BC-A Residential Contractor trade examination to build and remodel single-family and multi-family residences up to three stories on projects of $25,000 or more.
CE Electrical Contractor
Pair Business and Law with the Tennessee CE Electrical Contractor trade examination to bid and contract prime electrical projects or electrical subcontracts of $25,000 or more.
CMC-A Plumbing Mechanical Contractor
Pair Business and Law with Board pre-approval and the Tennessee CMC-A Plumbing Contractor trade examination to perform prime or subcontracted plumbing work of $25,000 or more.
TN Business and Law Exam FAQ
Official Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors Resources
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