Occupational Licensing

1 in 5 Americans Still Need Government Permission To Work

Occupational licensing raises costs and limits mobility without improving safety.

J.D. Tuccille | 8.24.2026 7:00 AM

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(Illustration: Andrei Dzemidzenka/Albund/Dreamstime/Midjourney)

Last week, an article in Governing noted that despite years of reform efforts, roughly one in five jobs in the United States requires government permission in the form of occupational licensing. In a world that is more potentially mobile and flexible than ever, licensing requirements can keep people fixed in place or pose high barriers to entering new trades and professions. The Archbridge Institute's 2026 State Occupational Licensing Index reveals which states are most burdensome, and which make it relatively easy to earn a living.

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22 Percent of Americans Need Licenses To Work

"Too often, the occupational licensure laws on the books do not reflect the world we actually live in," Alanna Wilson cautioned in Governing. "American workers wishing to launch a career, build their own business or re-enter the workforce in one of 102 lower-income occupations must on average give up nearly a year to education and on-the-job training, pass at least one exam and pay nearly $300 in fees."

Wilson drew from a December 2025 Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis report which found that "in recent years, 22 percent of the employed have reported holding a government-issued license, in professions ranging from physical therapy to cosmetology to public school teaching." After decades........

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