California to District of Columbia: journeyman plumber license reciprocity
California does not issue a statewide journeyman plumber license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is District of Columbia's standard path for out-of-state applicants.
Your origin state does not issue a statewide license at this level, so there is no license to transfer. The destination's standard out-of-state path is shown; expect to meet it in full.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
Out-of-state journeyman plumber from a state other than Maryland
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
The Board of Industrial Trades publishes a plumber-specific reciprocity bulletin only for Maryland. A journeyman plumber from any other state applies through the DLCP online portal as a new applicant with a passport-style photo, government ID, certificate of completion and/or employment verification letter, and the $65 application fee, must show the 8,000-hour/4-year apprentice experience (or a mechanical-engineering degree plus 2 years, or equivalent), schedules the journeyman exam with PSI, and pays the $110 license fee. Two statutory routes can waive the exam: § 47-2853.122(b-1) requires the Board to accept a national certifying organization's journeyman plumber certificate (completed apprenticeship, passed that organization's exam, designated journeyman, no discipline) in lieu of the exam and subsection (b), and § 47-2853.12(b) directs boards to waive the exam for a licensee in good standing of a state whose standards were at least as high as the District's and which admits DC licensees in a like manner, with § 47-2853.08 leaving the substantial-equivalence finding to the Board case by case. No District-law exam applies.
PSI exam fee is referred to 17 DCMR § 3500.3 and was not stated on the board page. Virginia plumbers are not named in the Reciprocity section or in the Maryland plumbing bulletin title.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Required
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Worked as an apprentice plumber or gasfitter at least 8,000 hours over at least 4 years, or a mechanical-engineering degree plus at least 2 years of practical experience verified by a licensed master plumber or master gasfitter, or comparable experience the Board deems equivalent (D.C. Code § 47-2853.122(b)). Not required if applying under the national-certificate substitute in (b-1).
What you'll do to get licensed in District of Columbia
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($65). Application fee (non-refundable under D.C. Code § 47-2853.10), paid online with the DLCP application.
- 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. DC Journeyman Plumber examination administered by PSI (schedule at psiexams.com or 855-557-0616 after Board processing); waived for holders of a recognized national certifying organization's journeyman plumber certificate under § 47-2853.122(b-1).
- 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee. PSI examination fee, amount set by 17 DCMR § 3500.3 (not stated on the Board page).
- 4License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($110). Journeyman (all types) license fee, up to 2 years; plumber and gasfitter licenses expire March 31 of even-numbered years (renewal $110).
- 5Other. Certificate of completion and/or employment verification letter, 2x2 passport-style photo, and government-issued ID, uploaded with the online application (Board Plumbing/Gasfitting items-needed list).
Published fees on this path total $175, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
What you'll need to buy or arrange
Exam preparation
Most boards contract PSI, Prov, or ICC for exams. Check which code edition the exam is written to before buying a prep course.
- Trade exam
- Exam fee
How District of Columbia licenses journeyman plumbers
District of Columbia journeyman plumber · “Journeyman Plumber”
Statewide license
Issued by DC Board of Industrial Trades (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection)
The District of Columbia issues a person-held Journeyman Plumber license (the Board also licenses journeyman gasfitters as a related specialty) through the Board of Industrial Trades in the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP), the same board that licenses electricians and refrigeration mechanics. Under D.C. Code § 47-2853.122 a journeyman plumber must have worked as an apprentice plumber or gasfitter at least 8,000 hours over at least 4 years (a mechanical-engineering degree plus 2 years of practical experience verified by a licensed master, or comparable experience the Board accepts, also qualifies) and then pass the PSI-administered exam, unless the applicant presents a national certifying organization's journeyman plumber certificate that waives both the exam and the subsection (b) experience path. Fees are a $65 application fee and a $110 license fee for a term of up to 2 years; plumber and gasfitter licenses expire March 31 of even-numbered years. The Board publishes a Maryland plumbing reciprocity bulletin; the Reciprocity section of the board page still describes only Maryland and Virginia electricians. No District-law exam applies to journeyman plumbers (§ 47-2853.12(c)(3)).
Why California has nothing to transfer
California journeyman plumber · “Journeyman plumber / certificate of competency (city-issued)”
Licensed by cities and counties
Issued by City and county building departments (no statewide journeyman plumber license)
California does not issue a statewide journeyman plumber or master plumber license. The only state plumbing credential is the C-36 Plumbing Contractor classification from the Contractors State License Board (CSLB), which is a contractor license qualified by a named individual, not a personal tradesperson card. Business and Professions Code §7053 takes wage employees outside the Contractors State License Law, so a plumber who works for a C-36 contractor needs no CSLB license; California's personal electrician certification (Labor Code §108) has no plumbing counterpart. Some cities and counties still examine and card journeyman plumbers (certificate of competency / journey-level plumber) for work in that jurisdiction. Those cards are not statewide, are not issued by CSLB, and an out-of-state journeyman plumber license is not recognized by any state board. An arriving journeyman should ask the building department where the job is whether a local plumber card is required and sit that city's exam; contracting independently requires a C-36 license, described at the master level.
How local licensing works in California
No state journeyman. CSLB's C-36 page and fee/reciprocity materials describe only contractor licensing. B&P §7053 leaves employed plumbers unlicensed at the state level. There is no DIR-style plumber certification.
How local cards work. Cities that still license individual plumbers typically issue a certificate of competency or journey-level plumber card after documented experience and a local exam. The card does not authorize contracting (that is C-36). Cards are not portable statewide; a Los Angeles card does not satisfy San Francisco, and vice versa. San Francisco DBI 'certificate-competency' redirected to the SF.gov Department of Building Inspection hub without the certificate list. City of San Diego /development-services/permits/contractor-licenses returned HTTP 404. Other cities and some counties may also card plumbers.
- Los Angeles (Department of Building and Safety - licensing / plumber exams)
- San Francisco (Department of Building Inspection - certificate of competency)
- San Diego (Development Services)
- San Jose (Planning, Building and Code Enforcement)
- Sacramento (Community Development / Building)
- Oakland (Building permits / trade licensing)
Common questions
- Do I have to take the District of Columbia journeyman plumber exam if I'm licensed in California?
- Yes. District of Columbia requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a District of Columbia journeyman plumber license from California?
- Published fees on this path total $175, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my California work hours count in District of Columbia?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward District of Columbia's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from District of Columbia to California?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from District of Columbia to California, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- D.C. Code § 47-2853.08 - Powers of the boards (reciprocity and endorsement) · D.C. Code § 47-2853.08(2) · Council of the District of Columbia · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- D.C. Code § 47-2853.12 - License, certification, and registration criteria; waiver · D.C. Code § 47-2853.12(b)-(d), (l) · Council of the District of Columbia · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- D.C. Code § 47-2853.121 - Scope of practice for plumbers or gasfitters · D.C. Code § 47-2853.121 · Council of the District of Columbia · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- D.C. Code § 47-2853.122 - Plumbers or gasfitters: eligibility requirements · D.C. Code § 47-2853.122 · Council of the District of Columbia · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- DC DLCP - Board of Industrial Trades (plumbers/gasfitters: apply, exams, fees, reciprocity notices) · District of Columbia Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP) · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- DC DLCP - Plumbing/Gasfitting license application instructions (linked from Board of Industrial Trades) · District of Columbia Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection, Occupational and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 16, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.