How to Verify a Tennessee Pest Control License

It takes two minutes and is worth doing before anyone treats the house or signs you up. If you want a company that has already been checked, ask for a free inspection and a written price before any treatment.

How Tennessee licenses pest control

The law is the Tennessee Application of Pesticides Act of 1978, Tennessee Code Annotated Title 62, Chapter 21. It works in layers, and each layer is something you can ask about.

• The charter belongs to the business. T.C.A. 62-21-102(6) defines a charter as the document the Department issues that authorizes a business to run a commercial pest control business. The Department says a charter is a permit required for each individual location, so a company with offices in two cities holds two charters.
• The license belongs to a person. Each office needs a licensed pest control operator for every service category it offers, and that operator directly supervises the technical work, under T.C.A. 62-21-106. One licensee cannot supervise more than one office.
• Certification covers the technicians. UT's Pesticide Safety Education Program says any technician working under a licensee must be commercially certified in the matching category, and at least one commercially certified person has to be on site at each application.
• Registration covers the salespeople. Every chartered company must register its solicitors with the Department, and each one must hold commercial certification in the service categories offered (T.C.A. 62-21-109).

Charters and licenses expire on June 30 of odd-numbered years, per the Department's charter FAQ. Certifications run on a three-year cycle, and the current one runs from June 30, 2026 to June 30, 2029.

Why bother checking? A charter is what ties the company to the insurance and bond described below, and to the Department's inspectors. The Department lists working without certification, employing unregistered workers and letting charter insurance or the bond lapse among the common violations it finds. An unchartered operator can still sell you a spray, but if the job goes wrong you have no bond to claim against and no state file to complain to.

Run the Tennessee charter search

1. Go to the Department of Agriculture's Pesticide Charters page at tn.gov/agriculture and follow the Pesticide Charters link, or go straight to tnlcp.lcp.tracefirst.com/public_weblinks/charters.
2. Type the company name in the search box. Each result shows the charter's license number and the company's address, with a status.
3. Check that the status reads Current and that the address is the office you will be dealing with. The Department notes that the license number shown is the charter number, and the end date is the charter's expiration date.
4. Click View for the details on that charter.

When we checked on October 28, 2026, the search listed 1,708 charters statewide. If the company is not there, or the name on the truck does not match a charter, ask why before you go any further. For questions, the Department's Pesticide Section is at (615) 837-5148.

The Department has also started issuing digital applicator cards. Card holders can carry their current cards in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, and solicitors get one too. The card links to the public site. Asking to see it at your door is reasonable.

Match the license category to the job

A Tennessee pest control license is issued by category. The Department's rules (Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0080-09-02-.03) list 17 of them. The ones a homeowner usually needs:

Category	What it covers for a house
General Pest and Rodent Control (GRC)	Household insects such as roaches and ants, plus rodents
Wood Destroying Organisms (WDO)	Termites and other wood destroyers, and termite inspection letters
Fumigation, Structural (FUM)	Fumigating a building
Lawn and Turf (HLT)	Lawn treatments
Bird Control (BDC)	Birds nesting in or on the house

Termite letters are where the category matters most. Under T.C.A. 62-21-102(23), a wood destroying insect infestation inspection report has to come from a chartered company that employs someone licensed in the WDO category, based on an on-site inspection. If you need that letter for a closing or a VA loan, confirm the WDO license first. Our VA loan termite inspection guide covers when the letter is required.

Insurance and bond: what to ask for

Tennessee sets minimums a chartered company has to carry to get its charter:

• Liability insurance of at least $250,000 per occurrence and $500,000 aggregate per year (T.C.A. 62-21-108).
• For termite (WDO) companies, errors and omissions insurance of at least $100,000 per occurrence and $300,000 aggregate (T.C.A. 62-21-108). That is the coverage that matters if a termite inspection misses something.
• A surety bond of at least $10,000 (T.C.A. 62-21-107(c)). The Department says new charters in structural categories such as WDO need a $50,000 bond for their first three years, citing T.C.A. 62-21-121.

Under T.C.A. 62-21-107(b), someone with a claim against the charter operation can sue on that bond. The Department says the insurance and bond documents must show the charter's physical address and current expiration dates. You can ask a company for its certificate of insurance and check the same two things. A company that will not send one is a company I would skip.

If you are not sure what pest you have, a photo usually tells a company whether the job is GRC or WDO work.

What to ask at the door

1. What is the company's name, and what is its charter number? Then look it up.
2. What is your name, and may I see your solicitor or certification card?
3. Who is the licensed operator for your office, and does the office hold the category for this job?
4. Can you email a certificate of insurance?
5. Will you put the price and the contract length in writing for me to read tonight?

Any offer worth taking will still be there tomorrow. If you signed at the door and changed your mind, you usually have until midnight of the third business day to cancel; is this quote fair? explains how.

Kentucky addresses: Oak Grove and Hopkinsville

Kentucky licenses pest control through the Department of Agriculture's Structural Pest Control Branch, under KRS Chapter 217B. The Branch says all commercial pest control companies must have an operator's license and be registered to work in Kentucky, and every applicator who treats someone else's property must be certified.

1. Go to kyagr.com and open the Structural Pest Control Branch page, or use the Department's search tools at kyagr-apps.com.
2. Use Pesticide Search to find a company by name. You can filter by county; Oak Grove and Hopkinsville are in Christian County.
3. Use Licensed Applicator Search to look up the technician by name.

Kentucky consumers can file a complaint about a pest control company with the Structural Branch's Frankfort office at 1-866-289-0001. The Branch's main line is (502) 573-0282.

We only refer companies chartered by the Tennessee Department of Agriculture (and licensed by the Kentucky Department of Agriculture for Kentucky addresses). For what a fair price looks like once you have a checked company, see our Clarksville pest control cost guide.