LicensebyState

Missouri to Maryland: master plumber license reciprocity

No credit· Start overVerified September 16, 2026· 10 sources

Missouri does not issue a statewide master plumber license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Maryland'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 master plumber by examination (PSI), unless a reciprocal license applies

Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.

An out-of-state master plumber whose origin is not the District of Columbia, Delaware, WSSC, or Baltimore County must pass the PSI Master Plumber/Gas Fitter examination before applying. The License Requirements page sets eligibility at two years as a journey plumber plus 3,750 hours of work as a journey plumber under a master. Upload proof of hours, backflow certification and a driver's license with the PSI application, sit at a Maryland PSI center, then apply for the original Master Plumber/Gas Fitter license and pay $87.50 (July 1, 2025). Masters must file a certificate of insurance: general liability of at least $300,000 and property damage of at least $100,000 ($400,000 per occurrence), Board as certificate holder, no umbrella. Reciprocal licenses for DC and Delaware (master only) are authored as agreements; WSSC and Baltimore County are municipal origins.

Occ. & Prof. qualification sections after §12-101. WSSC and Baltimore County are not origin state codes. Do not invent additional reciprocity partners.

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 have held your Missouri license for at least 2 years.Two years as a journey plumber (Maryland License Requirements page).
  • You must document at least 3,750 hours of qualifying work experience.3,750 hours of work as a journey plumber under a master plumber (Maryland License Requirements page).
  • 32-hour backflow prevention certification, uploaded to PSI with the exam application

What you'll do to get licensed in Maryland

  1. 1Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Maryland Master Plumber/Gas Fitter examination administered by PSI after eligibility documents are uploaded; required before applying for the license..
  2. 2Exam fee. Pay the exam fee. Fee, eligibility details, and processing steps are not published in a form we can list here. Please see the sources on this page to find out more..
  3. 3License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($87.50). Original Master Plumber/Gas Fitter license fee, updated July 1, 2025 (renewal is also $87.50).
  4. 4Other. Copy of backflow certification, uploaded to PSI's Client Portal with the exam application.
  5. 5Other. Copy of driver's license, uploaded to PSI's Client Portal.
  6. 6Other. Proof of hours worked, uploaded to PSI's Client Portal.
  7. 7Insurance. Carry the required insurance. Certificate of insurance: general liability of at least $300,000 and property damage of at least $100,000 ($400,000 per occurrence combined); umbrella policies are not accepted. Certificate holder Maryland State Board of Plumbing, 100 S. Charles Street, Baltimore MD 21201; 10-day cancellation notice with licensee number..

Published fees on this path total $87.50, 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.

  • Trade exam
  • Exam fee

Liability insurance

Some states require proof of general liability or workers' compensation coverage at licensing time.

  • Insurance

How Maryland licenses master plumbers

Maryland master plumber · “Master Plumber/Gas Fitter

State license plus local requirements

Verified September 16, 2026· 9 sources

Issued by Maryland State Board of Plumbing (Department of Labor)

Maryland issues a statewide Master Plumber/Gas Fitter license through the State Board of Plumbing. By statute a master plumber is licensed to provide plumbing services and natural gas services. Qualification on the Board's License Requirements page is two years as a journey plumber plus 3,750 hours of work as a journey plumber under a master, then the PSI master exam. The original Master Plumber/Gas Fitter license fee is $87.50 (updated July 1, 2025; renewal is also $87.50). Masters must carry general liability of at least $300,000 and property damage of at least $100,000 ($400,000 per occurrence), with the Board named as certificate holder; umbrella policies are not accepted. Reciprocal Master Plumber/Gas Fitter licenses are issued to holders licensed by the District of Columbia, Delaware (master only), WSSC, or Baltimore County (WSSC and Baltimore County applicants must hold both plumbing and gas licenses obtained by examination).

How local licensing works in Maryland

Same territorial split as the journeyman level: the State Board license is not the license for Baltimore County or for WSSC territory in Montgomery and Prince George's Counties. Those jurisdictions license plumbers separately and enforce their own plumbing codes. A master who will contract in WSSC territory needs the WSSC plumber license; work only in Baltimore County needs the county license. Propane-gas-fitter certificates from the State Board are valid in the entire state. The reciprocal-license page states the Board may issue a State 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

Moving to MarylandLeaving Maryland

Why Missouri has nothing to transfer

Missouri master plumber

Licensed by cities and counties

Verified September 16, 2026· 6 sources

Missouri issues no statewide master plumber or plumbing contractor license. RSMo chapter 341 leaves plumber licensing to cities over 15,000 and first-classification counties, whose boards examine master plumbers, set fees and license terms and (in counties) require master plumber and master drainlayer surety bonds; no state agency licenses the trade and the voluntary statewide contractor license that exists for electrical work has no plumbing counterpart. The master credential therefore exists only locally: Springfield's Master Plumber certification (4 years as a certified journeyman or 10 years' experience, ICC exam, $50), Kansas City's plumbing contractor license qualified by a supervisor holding a certificate of qualification (Prometric or ICC exam, $60 application, $181 four-year renewal; contractor license $55 application, $181 issuance), St. Louis County's Master Plumber license and certified contractor list, and the City of St. Louis Plumbers and Drainlayers Board of Examiners' master plumber and drainlayer licenses. An out-of-state master plumber license carries no state-level recognition; Springfield accepts an identical ICC, Prometric, Experior or Block exam score of 75% or better in place of retesting and Kansas City may accept a comparable exam it deems equivalent, while the St. Louis County and City of St. A master arriving from another state should expect to qualify in each jurisdiction separately and then obtain that jurisdiction's contractor license and bond to pull permits.

How local licensing works in Missouri

How local licensing works. There is no state plumbing board. Under RSMo chapter 341, city boards of examiners (cities over 15,000) and county boards of plumbing and sewer inspection (first-classification counties) examine master plumbers; § 341.170 sets the county master plumber qualifications, § 341.180 the application fees, license terms and re-examination rules, and § 341.200 requires master plumbers and master drainlayers to post surety bonds. The master license is the credential that lets a plumber pull permits and run a plumbing business, and each jurisdiction issues and enforces its own.

St. Louis County. The Plumbing Licensing office (41 South Central Avenue, Clayton, 314-615-3741) issues Master Plumber licenses and publishes a Certified Contractors list; the Board of Plumbing Examiners meets the first Thursday of each month at 8:00 a.m., and renewals carry PEU continuing-education requirements. Louis.** The Building Division's Plumbers and Drainlayers Board of Examiners licenses master plumbers and drainlayers and reviews licensing matters and complaints for plumbing and drainlaying work in the city; permits are issued to city-licensed contractors. Every licensed contractor must employ a full-time supervisor who holds a Kansas City certificate of qualification in the plumbing trade, obtained on an application with notarized references and a passing score from a recognized agency such as Prometric or ICC ($60 application, first four-year certificate free, $181 renewal); the city 'may accept comparable examinations from other jurisdictions if deemed equivalent or superior'. Whether a separately titled master plumber license, plumbing-specific experience hours or named reciprocity with Kansas jurisdictions exist could not be confirmed because kcmo.gov and both fallback routes were blocked on 2026-09-16.

Springfield. Building Development Services certifies Master Plumbers: 4 years as a certified journeyman plumber or 10 years of satisfactory experience in the trade, documented on notarized employer experience forms and approved by the board (first Thursday monthly, 5:00 p.m., Busch Building; approval to test good for one year). The exam is the ICC master plumber exam through Pearson Vue (about $125 paid to Pearson Vue), 75% to pass; the certification card costs $50 with $50 annual renewal, and a master must file a Master Registration form to qualify a contracting business (Master Resignation form on leaving). Out-of-state treatment: 'Reciprocity from another jurisdiction' applicants submit the same experience documentation plus an exam score notification of 75% or better from Prometric, Experior, Block or ICC (Pearson Vue) for the identical exam Springfield requires; otherwise they test. Springfield also certifies Master Gas fitters (4 years as a certified gas journeyman, or 4 years as a master mechanic or plumber plus 2 years as a gas journeyman).

Columbia and others. Columbia, St.

Moving to MissouriLeaving Missouri

Common questions

Do I have to take the Maryland master plumber exam if I'm licensed in Missouri?
Yes. Maryland requires the trade exam on this path.
How long do I need to have held my Missouri license?
At least 2 years before applying.
What does it cost to get a Maryland master plumber license from Missouri?
Published fees on this path total $87.50, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
Do my Missouri work hours count in Maryland?
Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Maryland's eligibility requirements.
Does it work the other way, from Maryland to Missouri?
Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Maryland to Missouri, the mechanism is not applicable.

Sources

  1. 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
  2. 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
  3. 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
  4. Maryland State Board of Plumbing - Frequently Asked Questions (hub) · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Faq · verified September 16, 2026
  5. 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
  6. 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
  7. Maryland State Board of Plumbing - Insurance Requirements · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
  8. Maryland State Board of Plumbing - Licensing Applications · Maryland Department of Labor, Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
  9. 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
  10. 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.

Report an error on this page

Related