License check
How to check a pest control license in Suffolk or Nassau
A license number takes a minute to check and tells you the company can legally do the work. Here is who issues it in each county, where to look it up, and what else to ask, from the official pages we read on 2026-11-03.
What New York State and federal rules say
- New York's Department of Environmental Conservation certifies pest control applicators, and certification is required to apply any pesticide commercially.
- To offer, advertise or make pesticide applications for hire, a pest control business needs a DEC Business Registration.
- DEC category 7A covers controlling rodents, roaches, ants, fleas, ticks and stinging and biting insects in or associated with structures, excluding food processing areas and post construction wood destroying organisms.
- Termite work has its own DEC category, 7C, for identifying and treating termite species.
In Suffolk County
- Suffolk's home improvement law names exterminating, and the law bars running a regulated business in the county without a license from its Office of Consumer Affairs, exemptions aside.
- Suffolk Consumer Affairs treats exterminating, fumigation and termite control as home improvement work in its list of covered trades.
- 1Step 1A Suffolk exterminator's license is a Home Improvement License, which the License and Complaint Violation Look Up searches by business name or number.
- 2Step 2Suffolk confirms a pest control company's county license over the phone through Consumer Affairs, (631) 853-4600.
- 3Step 3For the state side, DEC's NYSPAD database, described on the DEC business and agency page, searches pesticide business registrations and certified applicators.
In Nassau County
- 1Step 1In Nassau, a pest control company's state business registration and its certified applicators can be searched in DEC's NYSPAD database, as the DEC business and agency page describes.
Towns with a license of their own
- Town of Shelter Island: Shelter Island's notice to contractors says every contractor or subcontractor working on the island, landscapers included, needs a town license.
Beyond the license
- Ask for a certificate of insurance sent to you by the insurer, naming you as the certificate holder.
- Ask who files the permit and books the inspections, and get it in the contract.
- Get the price, the scope, the start and finish dates and the payment schedule in a written contract.
Related
Questions homeowners ask
Do pest control companies need a license in New York?
Yes. Commercial pesticide applicators must be certified by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and businesses must be registered with it.
How do I check a pest control license?
Ask for the certification and business registration numbers, and confirm them with the Department of Environmental Conservation.
Sources
Every fact on this page comes from these official pages. Rules and fees change, so confirm with the office before you file anything.
- NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Pesticide Applicator and Technician Certification (read 2026-11-03)
- NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, pesticide business and agency information (read 2026-11-03)
- NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, Certification Categories and Credit Requirements (read 2026-11-03)
- Suffolk County Consumer Affairs, Home Improvement License Law (PDF) (read 2026-11-03; page dated 5/25)
- Suffolk County Consumer Affairs, Licensing and Enforcement (read 2026-11-03)
- Suffolk County, License and Complaint Violation Look Up (read 2026-11-03)
- Town of Shelter Island, Notice to All Contractors (read 2026-11-03)
Checked 2026-11-03. Facts come only from the official pages listed, read on that date.
Talk the job through before you call anyone
Tell us about the house and the job in about four minutes. Revival calls you, free, to go over the scope, the budget, the timing and your town's permit office. Contractor matches open as our first licensed partners sign.