New Jersey Pesticide Licensing

About 5 of every 50 questions on a New Jersey Core practice exam come from this topic.

Sources checked November 6, 2026

What to know

Under the New Jersey Pesticide Control Code (N.J.A.C. 7:30), a person who has never been licensed, or who has lost certification, must pass a core examination and a specific category examination. The core exam requires proof of a Department-approved basic training course; a category exam can be reached through at least 40 hours of on-the-job practical training, with a responsible certified and licensed applicator present whenever the applicant applies pesticides. Core and category certification must be finished within 12 months of the first exam passed, or all certification is lost and the exams are retaken; a certified applicator adding a category takes only that category exam. The license application is due within 12 months after full certification, no one under 18 may be licensed, the license year ends October 31, the license must be carried whenever pesticides are used, and neither certification nor license is transferable. Two consecutive license years without a license, or failing the Department's recertification requirements, means certifying again. The Department may deny, suspend or revoke a license for grounds such as applying not in accordance with the label or applying while other people are inside the target site; a suspended or revoked license goes back to the Pesticide Control Program within 14 days, and a person suspended in any state may not apply under someone else's supervision meanwhile. A commercial pesticide operator applies with non-aerial equipment under a responsible applicator's direct supervision, which in general means an employer/employee relationship and a supervisor available if and when needed; a person who uses pesticides to produce an agricultural commodity is a private pesticide applicator. Operators may not supervise or make aerial applications, and an unlicensed helper must be at least 18 with the supervisor present at the time and place of application. An operator in training may witness or perform demonstrations of the applications to be made instead of the 40 hours of on-the-job training, the license application is co-signed by a certified and licensed responsible applicator, and a change of employer means a new operator license. The co-signing applicator is jointly and severally responsible for the operator's violations. A pesticide applicator business needs a license for each place of business and, for each category it works in, at least one responsible applicator certified and licensed in that category; no one may send an uncertified, unlicensed worker out unless a responsible applicator from the same business is physically present. State law also requires a Department-approved course on the impact of pesticides on pollinating bees, and buying a restricted use pesticide requires presenting a valid certified applicator license.

Where it comes from

• N.J.A.C. 7:30-1.2
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-5.1
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-5.2
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-5.3
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-6.2
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-6.4
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-6.5
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-6.6
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-6.9
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-6.10
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-6.11
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-6.12
• N.J.A.C. 7:30-7.1
• N.J.S.A. 13:1F-4

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