How Much Deposit Can a Contractor Ask For in North Dakota?
North Dakota's licensing, construction-fraud, cancellation, and consumer-protection statutes shape what a contractor can lawfully do with your money, but none of them sets a dollar cap on the deposit a contractor may request.
North Dakota does not have a statute that limits how large a deposit a contractor may ask for on a residential job. Instead, several parts of the North Dakota Century Code bear indirectly on deposits: the contractor licensing rules in Chapter 43-07, the construction-fraud provisions that penalize taking payment and abandoning a job, the three-day cancellation right for sales solicited away from a business, and the general prohibition on deceptive sales practices. The provisions below are what actually govern the money you hand over, even though none of them fixes a maximum deposit amount.
Rules that bear on your deposit
In North Dakota, a person may not engage in the business of or act in the capacity of a contractor within the state when the cost, value, or price per job exceeds four thousand dollars. 1
North Dakota law also provides that such a person may not maintain any claim, action, suit, or proceeding in any court of the state related to the person's business or capacity as a contractor without first having a license as provided in that chapter. 2
The holder of a class A contractor license is subject to no limitation as to the value of any single contract project. 3
The holder of a class D contractor license is not entitled to engage in the construction of any single contract project of a value in excess of one hundred thousand dollars. 4
North Dakota law makes it a defense to prosecution under subsection 3 that the person returned all of the payment received for work not performed or materials not supplied. 5
For a personal solicitation sale in North Dakota, the buyer may cancel until midnight of the third business day after the day on which the buyer signs an agreement that complies with that chapter. 6
Sources
In North Dakota, a person may not engage in the business of or act in the capacity of a contractor within the state when the cost, value, or price per job exceeds four thousand dollars.
North Dakota law provides that a person may not maintain any claim, action, suit, or proceeding in any court of the state related to the person's business or capacity as a contractor without first having a license as provided in that chapter.
The holder of a class A contractor license is subject to no limitation as to the value of any single contract project.
The holder of a class D contractor license is not entitled to engage in the construction of any single contract project of a value in excess of one hundred thousand dollars.
North Dakota law makes it a defense to prosecution under subsection 3 that the person returned all of the payment received for work not performed or materials not supplied.
For a personal solicitation sale, the buyer may cancel until midnight of the third business day after the day on which the buyer signs an agreement that complies with the chapter.
Frequently asked questions
- Does North Dakota cap how much deposit a contractor can ask for?
- None of the North Dakota statutes cited here sets a dollar or percentage limit on a contractor's deposit for a residential job. What the law does regulate is who may act as a contractor, the consequences of taking payment and then abandoning or failing to refund a job, a three-day right to cancel certain solicited sales, and deceptive sales practices generally. So a deposit is a matter of negotiation and contract, bounded by these protections rather than by a fixed cap.
Last reviewed August 4, 2026
This page is general information about state law, not legal advice. Laws change, and how they apply depends on the facts of your situation.