New York · Department of State
NY DOS license lookup: who you can and can’t find.
The New York Department of State (DOS) Division of Licensing Services runs a public licensee search for a defined list of licence types. This guide explains the list, the search fields and the limits the page states for itself.
Short answer: the DOS licensee search covers 20 listed licence types, searches active licences only, and does not include real estate brokers or salespersons, who are searched through eAccessNY. This page does not look anyone up.
What the DOS licensee search covers
The page lists these searchable licence types: Alarm Installer, Apartment Information Vendor, Apartment Sharing Agent, Appraisal Management Company, Armored Car Carrier, Armored Car Guard, Athlete Agents, Bail Enforcement Agent, Bedding, Central Dispatch Facility, Document Destruction Contractor (and Branch Office), Hearing Aid Dispenser (and Business), Home Inspection, Private Investigator, Proprietary Employer of Security Guards, Real Estate Appraiser, Security Guard, Telemarketer Business, Ticket Reseller (and Branch Office), and Watch Guard and Patrol Agency.
You can search by ID number (“Unique ID or Registration Number”), by name (last and first, with optional city, zip code or county) or by business name with the same optional filters. Private Investigator, Watch Guard and Patrol Agency and Armored Car Carrier can only be searched by business name or UID#.
Open the official New York pages
What the page says about its own limits
The DOS page is direct about boundaries, and each is worth knowing before you rely on a blank result. Searches are limited to active licences only. Real estate brokers and salespersons are not searchable here; the page tells you to use eAccessNY and choose Public License Search. Residence addresses are not in the database. Individual qualifying officers are not displayed and cannot be searched. And the accuracy statement says every effort has been made to keep the information current, while completeness and accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
The page does not define any status labels, because with an active-only search there is effectively one: a record you can find is an active one. This guide therefore does not offer a Delinquent or Lapsed glossary for New York. If you need to know whether a particular licence lapsed, DOS is the place to ask.
Security guards and employers
The search page includes a notice for security guard employers: the site does not circumvent or supersede the requirements of due diligence under 19 NYCRR section 174.6. In plain terms, a clean lookup is one input to an employer’s checks, not the whole check. Anyone hiring guards should read the regulation and ask the registrant for proof of current registration alongside the search.
Searching by ID, name or business
Use the ID number when you have it, because it removes any ambiguity between people with the same name. The page defines the field as a unique ID or registration number and gives no length or prefix rule, so this guide states none. Name search takes last name and first name, and the optional city, zip or county filters help for common surnames. Use the business-name route for a firm, since a person’s name and their company are separate records.
Three types (Private Investigator, Watch Guard and Patrol Agency, Armored Car Carrier) are searchable only by business name or UID#. A name-only search for an individual investigator will not work as you might expect. Alarm installers have a note too: those designated “local” may only work in municipalities where they are licensed as master electricians.
Worked example (hypothetical scenario)
A property manager wants to confirm a company that installs alarms. Step one: pick Alarm Installer and search the business name. If the firm appears, the record is active in the DOS data. Step two: read the local-installer note, and ask whether the installer is designated local, because if so they may only work in municipalities where they are licensed as master electricians. Step three: if the company does not appear, there are several possible reasons, namely a different legal name, a lapsed licence, or a licence type outside this search, so ask the company for its registration number and try the ID route. Nothing in this scenario is a real company or record.
Where real estate and other professions go
A common mistake is trying to find a real estate agent here. The DOS page says brokers and salespersons are not searchable on this page. Our New York real estate lookup page explains the eAccessNY route and the Open NY dataset. Licences from the State Education Department’s Office of the Professions, such as nurses and engineers, are a different register again. Our NYS Office of the Professions page covers that route.
Common mistakes
Reading a blank as unlicensed, when the search is active only. Searching a person for a firm-only type. Expecting a home address, which DOS excludes. Assuming Real Estate Appraiser means a real estate agent (it does not; those are different licences). Forgetting that the listed 20 types are a list, so a trade not listed is simply outside this search.
Who this is for
Property managers, employers hiring guards or investigators, consumers checking a hearing aid dispenser or home inspector, and anyone selling tickets or telemarketing who wants to confirm that a counterparty is licensed.
What this does not cover
It does not show disciplinary history, renewal dates, or status other than active, it does not pull data from DOS, and it is not legal advice on due diligence. Nothing typed here is transmitted anywhere.
Sources
Every statement above about a portal comes from the pages below, each of which returned a normal page when fetched on October 20, 2026. Portals change, so check the live page.
- appext20.dos.ny.gov/lcns_public/chk_load — NY DOS licensee search: licence types, fields, active-only limit, disclaimers (retrieved October 20, 2026)
- appext20.dos.ny.gov/nydos/languageChoice.do — eAccessNY, named on the DOS page for real estate brokers and salespersons (retrieved October 20, 2026)
Frequently asked questions
How do I look up a New York DOS licence?
Open the Division of Licensing Services public search, choose a licence type, and search by ID number, name or business name.
Why can I not find a real estate agent on the DOS licensee search?
The page says real estate brokers and salespersons are not searchable there. Use eAccessNY and select Public License Search.
Does the search show expired licences?
No. The page states that searches are limited to active licenses only.
Which licence types can I search?
The page lists 20 types, including Security Guard, Private Investigator, Home Inspection, Real Estate Appraiser, Hearing Aid Dispenser and Ticket Reseller.
Why does a private investigator search by name fail?
Private Investigator, Watch Guard and Patrol Agency and Armored Car Carrier can only be searched by business name or UID#.
Does the lookup show home addresses?
No. The page says information pertaining to residence addresses is not included on the database.
Is the DOS data guaranteed accurate?
The page says every effort has been made to keep it up to date, but completeness and accuracy cannot be guaranteed.
Guide only — not a verification tool
This page describes official registers and links to them. It does not check anyone’s licence status, does not copy or proxy any register, and nothing you might type here is transmitted anywhere. Registers change and licensing rules differ by state and city; use the official source linked above and contact the regulator to confirm anything that matters. This is general information, not legal advice.