LicensebyState

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

New York does not issue a statewide journeyman plumber license, so there is no reciprocity to speak of. Here is what that means in practice.

New York journeyman plumber · “Journeyman Plumber (municipal; NYC registration / Westchester Journey-Level)”

Licensed by cities and counties

Verified September 16, 2026· 7 sources

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.

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