Most states have no mold license at all. Texas has two, and the law keeps them apart on your project. If you are getting quotes in Plano and one company offers to inspect, test, remove and clear the job as a package, that company is either describing something illegal or not describing a licensed job. This guide explains who regulates mold in Texas, what the two licenses do, where the 25 square foot line falls, and how to check a license in two minutes.
Plain disclosure. Plano Mold Experts is a free quote service. It holds no TDLR license and does no mold work. The companies it connects you with are independent and TDLR-licensed, and you should verify each one yourself using the steps below.
Who regulates mold in Texas?
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, TDLR, runs the Mold Assessors and Remediators program under Texas Occupations Code chapter 1958. The detailed rules are in 16 Texas Administrative Code chapter 78, the Texas Mold Assessment and Remediation Rules. The program moved to TDLR from the Department of State Health Services on November 1, 2017, which is why older web pages still cite "DSHS" or "25 TAC 295." TDLR's own figures list more than 5,600 licensees statewide.
Occupations Code 1958.101 is the core rule: a person may not engage in mold assessment without a mold assessment license, or in mold remediation without a mold remediation license. The statute defines mold assessment as an inspection, investigation or survey of a structure to find or evaluate mold, write a management plan or remediation protocol, or collect and analyze samples. Mold remediation is the removal, cleaning, sanitizing, demolition or other treatment of mold or mold-contaminated material.
Assessor and remediator: two licenses, two jobs
Think of the assessor as the engineer and the remediator as the builder. The assessor diagnoses and specifies; the remediator carries out the specification; the assessor comes back to check the result.
| Role | TDLR license types | What they do on your job |
|---|---|---|
| Assessment (consultant) | Mold Assessment Technician, Mold Assessment Consultant, Mold Assessment Company | Inspects, maps moisture, takes any samples, writes the mold remediation protocol, performs the post-remediation clearance, signs the Certificate of Mold Damage Remediation |
| Remediation (contractor) | Mold Remediation Worker (registration), Mold Remediation Contractor, Mold Remediation Company | Writes the work plan, files the TDLR notification, builds containment, removes or cleans material, dries the area, delivers the certificate within 10 days |
| Laboratory | Mold Analysis Laboratory | Analyzes air and surface samples sent by the consultant with chain of custody |
Both kinds of company must carry commercial general liability insurance of at least $1 million or be self-insured, and both must hand you TDLR's Consumer Mold Information Sheet at first contact or at least a day before work. Every report, protocol and work plan must carry TDLR's name, address and phone number.
The conflict-of-interest rule
Occupations Code 1958.155 says a license holder may not perform both mold assessment and mold remediation on the same project. It goes further: a person may not own an interest in both the company that assesses and the company that remediates that project. TDLR's enforcement matrix treats a violation as Class C, with a $2,000–$5,000 penalty and a probated suspension of a year or more.
The reason is the obvious one. The company that writes the scope should not profit from a bigger scope, and the company that passes clearance should not be grading its own work. For you, it means a licensed Texas job always has two invoices and two signatures. A quote service like this one may connect you with both kinds of company, but no single company should offer to be both on your job.
The 25 contiguous square foot line
Occupations Code 1958.102 and 16 TAC 78.30 set the exemptions. Under a total affected surface area of 25 contiguous square feet, roughly a five by five foot patch, no license is required. You may clean it yourself or hire anyone. The TDLR consumer sheet says this covers most small areas of visible mold.
At or above 25 contiguous square feet, hired work has to follow the full process: licensed assessor and licensed remediator, a written protocol delivered at least a day before work, a work plan, a TDLR notification filed at least five days ahead (the next business day in a water-damage emergency), containment that keeps mold inside the work area, a clearance assessment by the consultant while containment is still up, and the Certificate of Mold Damage Remediation within 10 days.
Two details matter in practice. First, the exemption is lost if a small job grows. If someone working unlicensed opens a wall and finds 25 square feet or more, the rule says they must stop, contain if needed, tell you the exemption has been lost, and hand the job to licensed people, with a licensed consultant doing clearance. Second, a licensed contractor who takes a small job still has to follow the rules, including a protocol from a consultant, even though no notification is needed under 25 square feet.
Owners get their own exemption. An owner or tenant working on their own property needs no license, and an owner of a residential property with fewer than 10 dwelling units may do work on it regardless of size. Owners of 10 or more units cannot self-remediate 25 square feet or more without a license, which is why apartment jobs in Plano are almost always licensed jobs. The apartment, condo and commercial page covers that side.
What a licensed job looks like, step by step
Assessment
The consultant inspects, records moisture readings and writes a protocol specific to your home: rooms, quantities, methods, PPE, containment and clearance criteria. Samples, if any, go to a licensed lab.
Notification and work plan
The contractor files the TDLR notification ($25) at least five days before the start date, and gives you a work plan that follows the protocol at least a day before preparation begins.
Containment and removal
Yellow "NOTICE: Mold remediation project in progress" signs go up at entrances. Walk-in containment stays up until the consultant issues written clearance.
Clearance and certificate
The consultant checks the work visually and by the protocol's methods and writes a passed clearance report. The contractor hands you before-and-after photos and the certificate within 10 days.
The process page walks through each step in more detail.
How to verify a license in two minutes
- Go to tdlr.texas.gov/LicenseSearch and search the company and the individual who will be on site. Check that the license type matches the role: assessment for the inspection and protocol, remediation for the removal.
- Ask for the Consumer Mold Information Sheet. A licensee is required to give it to you.
- Ask for proof of $1 million general liability insurance and for the written protocol before any work begins.
- Ask the remediation contractor who will do clearance. The answer should be a different licensed company.
- If you suspect unlicensed work, TDLR takes complaints at tdlr.texas.gov/complaints or 1-800-803-9202.
Why it matters for your wallet
Licensing is not paperwork for its own sake. The protocol fixes the scope before the bid, the clearance report confirms the work matched it, and the certificate is what lets a future insurer and a future buyer treat the problem as solved. Skipping the licensed process on a larger job saves money once and can cost it back at claim time or at closing. For typical prices of each part, see the Plano mold remediation cost page, and for what the assessment visit involves, the mold inspection and testing page.
Frequently asked questions
Who regulates mold remediation in Texas?
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) licenses mold assessors and remediators under Texas Occupations Code chapter 1958 and its rules in 16 Texas Administrative Code chapter 78. The program moved to TDLR from the state health department in 2017. You can check any license at tdlr.texas.gov/LicenseSearch.
Can the same company test for mold and remove it in Texas?
Not on the same project. Occupations Code 1958.155 says a license holder may not perform both mold assessment and mold remediation on the same project, and a person may not own an interest in both companies on that project. Doing so is a Class C violation with a $2,000–$5,000 penalty.
Do I need a licensed company for a small patch of mold?
If the total affected area is under 25 contiguous square feet, no. You may clean it yourself or hire anyone. At 25 contiguous square feet or more, hired work needs licensed companies, a written protocol, a work plan, a TDLR notification, containment, a clearance assessment and a Certificate of Mold Damage Remediation.
What happens if someone does mold work without a license?
TDLR treats unlicensed mold assessment or remediation as a Class C violation: $2,000–$5,000 per violation plus a probated suspension or revocation, and Occupations Code 51.302 allows administrative penalties of up to $5,000 per day. You can report unlicensed work to TDLR at tdlr.texas.gov/complaints.
Want numbers from companies that work in Plano and Collin County? Request free quotes or call (972) 472-8749. Plano Mold Experts is a free quote service, not a mold company or a licensee; independent, TDLR-licensed Texas companies reply to you directly.