How to Renew Your Texas Structural Pest Control License

Structural licenses renew every year - and your CEUs have to land in the right calendar year

If you hold a certified applicator or technician license from the Texas Department of Agriculture's Structural Pest Control Service (SPCS), renewal comes around every year — and the continuing education behind it follows a calendar-year rule that catches out even experienced operators. Here is the whole process, start to finish.

Step 1: Know Which License You Hold

Structural pest control has a license ladder: apprentices in training, technicians who apply under a certified applicator's supervision, and certified applicators (commercial or noncommercial) who passed the category exams. The CE rules differ by rung, so confirm which license you hold before planning your credits. Businesses also carry their own license with a designated responsible certified applicator — if that is you, staying renewable is not optional.

Step 2: Earn the Right CE in the Right Year

This is the part people miss. Structural CE runs on the calendar year: credits must be earned between January 1 and December 31 of the year before the year you renew. A course taken in the same January you renew does not rescue a renewal that needed last year's credits.

The amounts:

• Certified applicators (commercial and noncommercial) need 1 CEU in each category in which they are certified plus 2 CEUs in general training — and at least one of the general credits must be in federal and state laws, pesticide safety, environmental protection, or integrated pest management.
• Technicians need 8 hours of verifiable training each calendar year.

One grace note: you do not have to earn CE during the first calendar year you are certified.

Step 3: Use Approved Courses

CEU classes for structural licensees are approved by TDA, and approved courses carry TDA course numbers you can verify in the CEU course search before you pay for anything. For technicians, approved CEU classes are also the cleanest way to document "verifiable" hours — a certificate beats a signed sheet from a lunch-and-learn if TDA ever asks.

Step 4: Submit Your Renewal and Pay the Fee

Renewals for structural licenses run through TDA — the Texas Agriculture Portal handles it online. Pay the fee for your license type before the expiration date; late renewal adds cost and an expired license means you cannot legally work.

Step 5: Keep Your Records

Hold on to your CEU certificates alongside your use records and contracts. Structural pest control is one of the more heavily documented trades in Texas — WDI reports, consumer disclosures, application records — and your training file should be as tidy as the rest.

The Practical Advice

Do not leave CE for December. Because credits must land inside the calendar year, a busy fourth quarter or one snowed-out training day can push you into a year with zero credits — and there is no carryover or make-up window. Knock the credits out mid-year and renewal becomes paperwork instead of a scramble.