District of Columbia to Maryland: journeyman plumber license reciprocity
Maryland has a reciprocity agreement with District of Columbia: a District of Columbia journeyman plumber can get a Maryland license without retaking the trade exam.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
Reciprocal Journey Plumber/Gas Fitter license from the District of Columbia
A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.
The Board's reciprocal-license page states the Board may issue a reciprocal Journey Plumber/Gas Fitter license to a person licensed by the District of Columbia. The applicant files the reciprocal application with a verification letter from the DC Board of Industrial Trades, backflow certification, a copy of the current DC license, and photo ID, and pays the $43.50 original Journeyman Plumber/Gas Fitter license fee. The PSI trade exam is not required on this path. WSSC and Baltimore County licenses are also accepted as reciprocal origins but are Maryland municipal issuers, not origin state codes.
plrecip.shtml names DC, WSSC and Baltimore County for journey reciprocity. Delaware is listed for master only. Confirm with the Board whether a DC license obtained other than by examination qualifies.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Agreement
- Active
What you must already have
- Your District of Columbia license must be active and in good standing.
- Verification letter from the DC Board of Industrial Trades, backflow certification, current license, and photo ID uploaded with the reciprocal application
What you'll do to get licensed in Maryland
- 1License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($43.50). Original Journeyman Plumber/Gas Fitter license fee, updated July 1, 2025.
- 2Other. Verification letter from the issuing board, backflow certification, copy of the current license, and photo ID.
Published fees on this path total $43.50, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
How Maryland licenses journeyman plumbers
Maryland journeyman plumber · “Journeyman Plumber/Gas Fitter”
State license plus local requirements
Issued by Maryland State Board of Plumbing (Department of Labor)
Maryland issues a statewide Journeyman Plumber/Gas Fitter license (statutory name: journey plumber) through the State Board of Plumbing in the Department of Labor. A journey plumber provides plumbing services under the direction and control of a master plumber or limited master plumber. Qualification on the Board's License Requirements page is four years as an apprentice plumber plus 7,500 hours of apprentice work, a 32-hour backflow prevention certification, and the PSI journey exam. State plumber licenses are required throughout Maryland except Baltimore County and the Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (WSSC) service area in Montgomery and Prince George's Counties, which issue their own plumber licenses. The original license fee is $43.50 (updated July 1, 2025). The Board issues reciprocal Journey Plumber/Gas Fitter licenses to holders licensed by the District of Columbia, WSSC, or Baltimore County (WSSC and Baltimore County applicants must hold both plumbing and gas licenses obtained by examination). Apprentice plumber licenses may be renewed for only two consecutive cycles before the journey exam is required (Bus. Occ. & Prof. §12-308.1).
How local licensing works in Maryland
The Board's home page states that State plumber and natural-gas-fitter licenses are required throughout Maryland except (1) Baltimore County and (2) areas served by WSSC in Prince George's and Montgomery Counties; those two jurisdictions issue their own licenses and have their own plumbing code. Propane-gas-fitter certificates from the State Board are valid statewide, including those counties. Inbound plumbers who will work only in Montgomery or Prince George's County should apply to WSSC, not (or not only) to the State Board; work only in Baltimore County goes through Baltimore County. Work in the remaining counties and Baltimore City uses the State Board license. The reciprocal-license page states the Board may issue a State journey or master plumber license to a person already licensed by WSSC or Baltimore County if that person holds both plumbing and gas licenses obtained by examination.
- Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (Montgomery County)
- Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission (Prince George's County)
- Baltimore County
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Maryland journeyman plumber exam if I'm licensed in District of Columbia?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with District of Columbia.
- What does it cost to get a Maryland journeyman plumber license from District of Columbia?
- Published fees on this path total $43.50, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
Sources
- Md. Code, Business Occupations and Professions §12-101 - Definitions (State Board of Plumbing licenses) · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. §12-101 · Maryland General Assembly · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- Maryland Department of Labor - Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing (boards index) · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Maryland State Board of Plumbing - Taking the Exam (PSI) · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Maryland State Board of Plumbing - Forms and Fees (updated July 1, 2025) · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Maryland State Board of Plumbing - Home · Md. Code, Bus. Occ. & Prof. Title 12 · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Maryland State Board of Plumbing - Licensing Applications · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Maryland State Board of Plumbing - Apply for a Reciprocal License · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Maryland State Board of Plumbing - License Requirements · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.