LicensebyState

Moving to Maryland as a journeyman plumber: every state's rule

Maryland has reciprocity agreements with 1 state. Everyone else follows its standard out-of-state path: experience credit.

Maryland journeyman plumber · “Journeyman Plumber/Gas Fitter

State license plus local requirements

Verified September 16, 2026· 8 sources

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

States Maryland reciprocates with

Every origin state

Reciprocity 1Experience credit 31No credit 18
Every state's path into Maryland
StateMechanismNoteVerified
AlabamaExperience credit2026-09-16
AlaskaExperience credit2026-09-16
ArizonaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
ArkansasExperience credit2026-09-16
CaliforniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
ColoradoExperience credit2026-09-16
ConnecticutExperience credit2026-09-16
DelawareNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
District of ColumbiaReciprocityexplicit agreement2026-09-16
FloridaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
GeorgiaExperience credit2026-09-16
HawaiiExperience credit2026-09-16
IdahoExperience credit2026-09-16
IllinoisNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
IndianaExperience credit2026-09-16
IowaExperience credit2026-09-16
KansasNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
KentuckyExperience credit2026-09-16
LouisianaExperience credit2026-09-16
MaineExperience credit2026-09-16
MassachusettsExperience credit2026-09-16
MichiganExperience credit2026-09-16
MinnesotaExperience credit2026-09-16
MississippiNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
MissouriNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
MontanaExperience credit2026-09-16
NebraskaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
NevadaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
New HampshireExperience credit2026-09-16
New JerseyNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
New MexicoExperience credit2026-09-16
New YorkNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
North CarolinaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
North DakotaExperience credit2026-09-16
OhioNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
OklahomaExperience credit2026-09-16
OregonExperience credit2026-09-16
PennsylvaniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
Rhode IslandExperience credit2026-09-16
South CarolinaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
South DakotaExperience credit2026-09-16
TennesseeNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
TexasExperience credit2026-09-16
UtahExperience credit2026-09-16
VermontExperience credit2026-09-16
VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-16
WashingtonExperience credit2026-09-16
West VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-16
WisconsinExperience credit2026-09-16
WyomingNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16

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