Montana to Idaho: journeyman plumber license reciprocity
Idaho has a reciprocity agreement with Montana: a Montana journeyman plumber can get a Idaho license without retaking the trade exam.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
Reciprocity Pathway for Montana journeyman plumbers
A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.
Montana is one of the three states named in the Reciprocity Pathway on Idaho's Plumbing Journeyman application. The applicant files a Reciprocal application ($51.90, which is the $22.50 application fee plus the $29.40 certificate fee) with a License Verification Form completed by the Montana licensing agency showing completion of an apprenticeship program and 8,000 hours of work experience, that the Montana journeyman license is active, and that it was obtained by examination. The form requires that 'when reciprocating from Washington or Montana, the applicant must be a resident of the state in which he/she holds their license at the time of application'. No Idaho examination is required. The 2020 Division of Building Safety reciprocal information sheet additionally said the Montana license must have been held for one year; the current form does not repeat that condition.
DOPL does not publish the signed Idaho-Montana agreement, so its effective date is unknown. The one-year holding period appears only on the 2020 information sheet, which is no longer hosted live; confirm with DOPL whether it is still applied.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
- Agreement
- Active
What you must already have
- Your Montana license must be active and in good standing.
- Your Montana license must have been obtained by examination, not by reciprocity or grandfathering.
- You must document at least 8,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Verification must show completion of an apprenticeship program and 8,000 hours of work experience.
- Applicant must be a resident of Montana at the time of application.
- You must have held your Montana license for at least 1 year.Stated on the October 2020 reciprocal information sheet ('MUST HAVE HELD FOR 1 YEAR'); not repeated on the 2024 application form.
What you'll do to get licensed in Idaho
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($22.50). DOPL application fee (part of the $51.90 Reciprocal processing fee).
- 2License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($29.40). Initial Plumbing Journeyman certificate fee, three-year term.
- 3Other. License Verification Form completed by the State of Montana.
Published fees on this path total $51.90, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
How Idaho licenses journeyman plumbers
Idaho journeyman plumber · “Plumbing Journeyman (Certificate of Competency)”
Statewide license
Issued by Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (Idaho State Plumbing Board)
Idaho issues a statewide Plumbing Journeyman certificate of competency through the Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) on behalf of the Idaho State Plumbing Board under Idaho Code Title 54, Chapter 26 and IDAPA 24.39.20. A new applicant needs either 8,000 supervised hours plus 576 hours of board-approved instruction or 16,000 supervised hours, and must pass the IAPMO-based Idaho journeyman exam administered by PSI before applying. Journeymen licensed by examination in Montana, Oregon or Washington may use the form's Reciprocity Pathway and are licensed without retesting. Everyone else applies as an initial applicant; hours earned in any jurisdiction count toward the experience requirement, but the Idaho exam must be passed. The certificate runs three years, and the Board has set no continuing-education requirement.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Idaho journeyman plumber exam if I'm licensed in Montana?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with Montana.
- How long do I need to have held my Montana license?
- At least 1 year before applying.
- What does it cost to get a Idaho journeyman plumber license from Montana?
- Published fees on this path total $51.90, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Montana work hours count in Idaho?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Idaho's eligibility requirements.
Sources
- Idaho Code Title 54, Chapter 26 - Plumbing and Plumbers · Idaho Code 54-2610, 54-2611, 54-2614, 54-2616, 54-2617 · Idaho Legislature · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- Idaho State Plumbing Board - Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses · Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Idaho State Plumbing Board - Frequently Asked Questions · Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) · Faq · verified September 16, 2026
- Idaho State Plumbing Board - Apply for or Renew a License · Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- IDAPA 24.39.20 - Rules Governing Plumbing · IDAPA 24.39.20.100 · Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) · Admin Rule · verified September 16, 2026
- Idaho Plumbing Journeyman Application and Instructions (revised October 3, 2024) · Idaho Division of Occupational and Professional Licenses (DOPL) · Form · verified September 16, 2026
- Licenses That Idaho Will Reciprocate - Electrical and Plumbing (Division of Building Safety reciprocal information sheet, October 26, 2020) · Idaho Division of Building Safety (now DOPL) · Other · verified September 16, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.