New York to North Dakota: journeyman plumber license reciprocity
New York does not issue a statewide journeyman plumber license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is North Dakota'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 without a reciprocal agreement: application for the North Dakota journeyman examination (all states except SD, MN, MT)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
NDAC 62-02-01-01(2) provides that 'Applicants who are journeyman plumbers in other states who desire to work in this state in localities where a state journeyman license is required may make application for a journeyman examination and license,' with proof of the origin journeyman license 'vouched for as provided on the application blank.' The Board's FAQ adds that the applicant must meet NDAC chapter 62-02-01, must document four years and 7,600 hours as an apprentice working under a licensed master plumber, and must verify the out-of-state license 'by state endorsed letter which must state the type of license held, issue date of said license, whether the license was obtained through examination and whether or not the license is current.' Experience earned in states or localities that do not license plumbers is documented on the previous-practical-experience verification signed by the master plumber plus notarized letters from present and previous employers stating dates, hours and extent of work. The applicant pays the $50 application fee and $50 exam fee, must sit within six months of approval, and needs 70% on the five-part board-administered journeyman exam (2018 North Dakota Plumbing Code); the $100 journeyman license fee is paid on passing. NDCC 43-18-13.1 lets the Board register nonresidents without examination when their state's requirements are substantially equivalent and that state grants similar privileges, but the Board's published practice limits no-exam licensure to its three written agreements.
There is no separate law or rules exam; the journeyman exam covers the plumbing code and basic principles of plumbing (NDAC 62-02-01-03). The FAQ requires a 'state endorsed letter' to verify an out-of-state license, so a city-issued origin license is not recognized as a license, although the underlying hours can still be claimed through the master-signed verification and notarized employer letters used for non-licensing jurisdictions. NDAC 62-02-01-01(1) also offers a 'journeyman examination screening test' route (oral/written test plus a state-inspector report on an installation) for tradespeople with five years and 9,500 hours from localities without state licensing.
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 7,600 hours of qualifying work experience.Four years and 7,600 hours (not less than 1,900 hours per year) as an apprentice plumber working under a licensed master plumber (NDAC 62-02-01-01(1), 62-02-01-01.1; FAQ). Out-of-state hours count; hours from non-licensing jurisdictions need the master-signed verification section and notarized employer letters.
- State-endorsed letter (Certificate of Endorsement) from the origin licensing agency stating the type of license held, its issue date, whether it was obtained through examination and whether it is current; a copy of the license alone is not accepted
What you'll do to get licensed in North Dakota
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($50). Application fee for the journeyman examination and license (NDAC 62-02-01-01); filed online at members.ndplumbingboard.gov or on the fillable PDF emailed to [email protected].
- 2Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($50). Journeyman exam fee, one examination per fee paid (NDAC 62-02-01-02; Board exam-fees page); a failed exam requires a six-month wait and a new fee.
- 3Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Board-administered North Dakota Journeyman Plumber exam: five parts (100 closed-book multiple-choice questions and a closed-book DWV pipe-sizing completion; open-book 40 completion questions, water pipe sizing and DWV with fixture units), five hours, based on the 2018 North Dakota Plumbing Code; 70% to pass; given every other month in Bismarck and Fargo; must be taken within six months of application approval.
- 4License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($100). Journeyman plumber license fee on passing (NDAC 62-02-01-01(1)); license expires December 31 and renews annually for $100 (late renewal $50).
- 5Continuing education. Complete continuing education. 2 to 4 credit hours of plumbing-related continuing education within each two-year period to renew (NDCC 43-18-17.1); Board CE session or correspondence course $40.
Published fees on this path total $200, 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.
- Exam fee · $50
- Trade exam
Continuing education
Renewals usually need approved CE hours, often on the latest NEC. Reciprocal licensees are rarely exempt.
- Continuing education
How North Dakota licenses journeyman plumbers
North Dakota journeyman plumber · “Journeyman Plumber”
Statewide license
Issued by North Dakota State Plumbing Board
North Dakota issues a statewide Journeyman Plumber certificate and license through the North Dakota State Plumbing Board under NDCC chapter 43-18 and NDAC chapter 62-02-01; a license is required wherever there is a public water or sewer system, and a journeyman may run a plumbing business only in cities under 1,000 population and rural areas. A new applicant must have served four years and 7,600 hours as a registered apprentice under a licensed master plumber (1,900 hours per year; accredited plumbing-school graduates earn credit by grade average), then pass the board-administered journeyman exam - five parts, two closed book and three open book, five hours, based on the 2018 North Dakota Plumbing Code - with 70%. Fees are a $50 application fee, a $50 exam fee and a $100 journeyman license fee; licenses expire every December 31 and renew for $100, with 2 to 4 hours of continuing education required in each two-year period ($40 board session). Exams are given every other month in Bismarck and Fargo and a failed exam carries a six-month wait. Journeymen from South Dakota, Minnesota and Montana may be licensed without examination under the Board's written reciprocity agreements; all other out-of-state journeymen apply for the North Dakota examination, with their origin license vouched for on the application.
Why New York has nothing to transfer
New York journeyman plumber · “Journeyman Plumber (municipal; NYC registration / Westchester Journey-Level)”
Licensed by cities and counties
Issued by New York cities and counties (no statewide plumber licence)
New York has no statewide plumber licence at any level: the Department of State's Division of Licensing Services regulates 35 occupations and none of them is plumber, plumbing contractor, journeyman plumber or master plumber. Journeyman-level plumbing credentials therefore exist only where a city or county ordinance creates them, and they are not interchangeable. New York City's Department of Buildings issues a Journeyman Plumber / Fire Suppression Piping Installer registration (employees work under a licensed Master Plumber; the registration is not an independent contracting licence). Westchester County issues a Journey-Level plumber licence (exam application $25, licence and renewal $75) that is required to work as a plumber anywhere in the county, including Yonkers. Rochester publishes a Plumbing Licensing programme on its Licensed Trades page but does not list class names or fees on that page. An out-of-state journeyman plumber licence has no state-level recognition in New York; the arriving worker must satisfy the city or county where the work will be done, and in New York City that typically means working under a licensed Master Plumber while holding (or obtaining) the city journeyman registration.
How local licensing works in New York
How local licensing works. No state agency licenses plumbers in New York. Each city or county that requires a licence runs its own examining board under its own ordinance, so titles, exams and fees differ, and a licence from one jurisdiction is not automatically valid in another. There is no defaultPath and no state-to-state agreement at this level.
New York City. DOB's licence-types list includes 'Plumbing and Fire Suppression (Master and Journeyman)'. The master-plumbers page links Obtain a Journeyman Plumber / Fire Suppression Piping Installer Registration (and a separate Gas Work Qualification). The registration is person-held and is the city's journeyman-level credential; independent plumbing contracting in the five boroughs requires the Master Plumber licence (see master level). New applications go through DOB NOW (since 7 September 2021). The master written (LIC41, $585) and practical (LIC42, $530) exam fees published on the master-plumbers page apply to the Master Plumber licence, not to the journeyman registration.
Westchester County (including Yonkers). 'Plumbers and Electricians must obtain a trade license from Westchester County in order to work in the county. The first step is to apply to take the licensing examination.' Journey-Level exam application $25.00; Journey-Level licence $75.00; Journey-Level renewal $75.00; vehicle decals $5.00 each. Exam and re-examination amounts are paid to the testing company and are not listed on the fee page. Yonkers does not appear to issue a separate city plumber licence; county law requires the Westchester trade licence to work in the county.
Rochester. The Licensed Trades page lists Plumbing Licensing alongside electrical and SE/RO and routes applications to the city's Infor portal (585-428-9339). Confirm the destination city or county before working; in NYC plan to work under a Master Plumber and obtain the city journeyman registration; in Westchester apply for the Journey-Level exam.
- New York City (Department of Buildings — Journeyman Plumber / Fire Suppression Piping Installer registration)
- Westchester County (Department of Consumer Protection — Journey-Level plumber)
- Yonkers (Westchester County Journey-Level / Master plumber licence required to work in the county)
- Rochester (Licensed Trades — Plumbing Licensing)
- Syracuse (Division of Code Enforcement; plumber licence unconfirmed on 2026 notice)
- Buffalo (plumbing landing page HTTP 404; journeyman plumber licence unconfirmed)
- Albany (plumber examining board not verified this session)
Common questions
- Do I have to take the North Dakota journeyman plumber exam if I'm licensed in New York?
- Yes. North Dakota requires the trade exam on this path.
- What does it cost to get a North Dakota journeyman plumber license from New York?
- Published fees on this path total $200, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my New York work hours count in North Dakota?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward North Dakota's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from North Dakota to New York?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from North Dakota to New York, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- North Dakota Administrative Code Chapter 62-02-01 - Plumber Licensure · NDAC 62-02-01-01, 62-02-01-01.1, 62-02-01-02, 62-02-01-03, 62-02-01-04, 62-02-01-06, 62-02-01-07 · North Dakota Legislative Branch (State Board of Plumbing rules) · Admin Rule · verified September 16, 2026
- North Dakota Century Code Chapter 43-18 - Plumbers · NDCC 43-18-08, 43-18-10, 43-18-11, 43-18-13, 43-18-13.1, 43-18-15, 43-18-16, 43-18-17, 43-18-17.1 · North Dakota Legislative Branch · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- North Dakota State Plumbing Board - Licensing Applications · North Dakota State Plumbing Board · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- North Dakota State Plumbing Board - Continuing Education Requirements Overview · NDCC 43-18-17.1 · North Dakota State Plumbing Board · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- North Dakota State Plumbing Board - Exam Fees · NDAC 62-02-01-02 · North Dakota State Plumbing Board · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- North Dakota State Plumbing Board - Exams: General Information · North Dakota State Plumbing Board · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- North Dakota State Plumbing Board - FAQ (reciprocal licensing with South Dakota) · NDCC 43-18-13.1 · North Dakota State Plumbing Board · Faq · verified September 16, 2026
- North Dakota State Plumbing Board - Home · North Dakota State Plumbing Board · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- North Dakota State Plumbing Board - Laws and Rules · NDCC ch. 43-18; NDAC Title 62 · North Dakota State Plumbing Board · 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.