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Nevada to District of Columbia: master plumber license reciprocity

No credit· Start overVerified September 16, 2026· 6 sources

Nevada does not issue a statewide master plumber license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is District of Columbia'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 from a state other than Maryland

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

The Board of Industrial Trades publishes a plumber-specific reciprocity bulletin only for Maryland. A master plumber from any other state applies through the DLCP online portal as a new applicant with a passport-style photo, government ID, certificate of completion and/or employment verification letter, and the $65 application fee, must document a valid journeyman plumber or gasfitter license (or the journeyman subsection (b) experience) plus at least 4 years of work as a journeyman plumber or gasfitter, schedules the master exam with PSI, and pays the $120 license fee. D.C. Code § 47-2853.12(b) directs boards to waive the exam for an applicant licensed in good standing in a state whose standards were at least as high as the District's and which admits DC licensees in a like manner, and § 47-2853.08(2) lets the Board find another state's standards substantially equivalent and license by reciprocity or endorsement; an applicant may ask the Board to apply those provisions, but the board page describes no such process beyond the Maryland plumbing bulletin. The national-certificate substitute in § 47-2853.122(b-1) is written for the journeyman designation only. No District-law exam is published for master plumbers. A master who will serve as the designated master for a plumbing contractor must also satisfy the contractor bond requirement, which is a separate license.

PSI exam fee is referred to 17 DCMR § 3500.3 and was not stated on the board page. Whether journeyman years worked under an out-of-state license count toward the 4-year journeyman requirement, the plumbing-and-gasfitting contractor bond amount, and 17 DCMR plumbing chapter text were not confirmed.

At a glance

Trade exam
Required
Law / code exam
Not required
Out-of-state hours
Count toward eligibility

What you must already have

  • Valid license as a journeyman plumber or gasfitter, or has met the journeyman requirements of D.C. Code § 47-2853.122(b)
  • Worked as a journeyman plumber or journeyman gasfitter for at least 4 years (D.C. Code § 47-2853.122(c))

What you'll do to get licensed in District of Columbia

  1. 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($65). Application fee (non-refundable under D.C. Code § 47-2853.10), paid online with the DLCP application.
  2. 2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. DC Master Plumber/Gasfitter examination administered by PSI (schedule at psiexams.com or 855-557-0616 after Board processing).
  3. 3Exam fee. Pay the exam fee. PSI examination fee, amount set by 17 DCMR § 3500.3 (not stated on the Board page).
  4. 4License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($120). Master (all types) license fee, up to 2 years; plumber and gasfitter licenses expire March 31 of even-numbered years (renewal $155).
  5. 5Other. Certificate of completion and/or employment verification letter, 2x2 passport-style photo, and government-issued ID, uploaded with the online application.
  6. 6Contractor license. Hold or obtain a contractor license (if applicable). Separate Plumbing Contractor license ($120 initial / $180 renewal) naming a designated DC-licensed master, with a Plumbing and Gasfitting Bond; not required to hold the person-held master license.

Published fees on this path total $185, 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

How District of Columbia licenses master plumbers

District of Columbia master plumber · “Master Plumber/Gasfitter

Statewide license

Verified September 16, 2026· 4 sources

Issued by DC Board of Industrial Trades (Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection)

The District's highest person-held plumbing credential is the Master Plumber/Gasfitter license issued by the Board of Industrial Trades (DLCP); a Master Gasfitter specialty also exists. A Plumbing Contractor license is a separate business credential that must name a designated DC-licensed master and post a plumbing and gasfitting bond. Under D.C. Code § 47-2853.122(c) a master applicant must hold a valid journeyman plumber or gasfitter license, or have met the journeyman subsection (b) requirements, and have worked as a journeyman plumber or journeyman gasfitter for at least 4 years, then pass the PSI-administered master exam. Fees are a $65 application fee and a $120 master license fee for a term of up to 2 years ($155 on renewal); licenses expire March 31 of even-numbered years. The Board publishes a Maryland plumbing-professionals reciprocity bulletin; no Virginia plumber reciprocity is named on the board page.

Moving to District of ColumbiaLeaving District of Columbia

Why Nevada has nothing to transfer

Nevada master plumber · “C-1 Plumbing and Heating Contractor (business license with qualified individual)

No individual license at this level

Verified September 16, 2026· 7 sources

Issued by Nevada State Contractors Board (contractor licensing only)

Nevada does not issue a master plumber license to individuals, and no county or city was found to issue a master-level plumbing card; Clark County recognizes a 'plumbing qualified individual', which is simply the person who qualifies a contractor's C-1 license with the State Board. The state-level credential is a classification C-1 Plumbing and Heating Contracting license from the Nevada State Contractors Board (NSCB), issued to a sole proprietor, partnership, corporation or LLC and qualified by a named individual rather than held by the plumber personally. An out-of-state master plumber who only wants to work for an employer needs no Nevada license at all (apart from the local journeyman card in Clark County and Reno). To contract, the qualifying individual must show four years of experience as a journeyman, foreman, supervising employee or contractor within the past 15 years (NRS 624.260), pass the PSI-administered Nevada Business and Law exam and the C-1 trade exam within six months of filing (three attempts each), and the business must pay the $300 application fee and $600 biennial license fee, submit a financial statement, fingerprints and background check, and post a bond of $1,000 to $500,000 set by the Board, plus the Residential Recovery Fund assessment ($200 to $1,000) if it does residential work. Under licensure by endorsement (NAC 624.600 and 624.615) the C-1 trade exam and the experience certification are waived for a qualified individual who has held an active license, as the same qualified individual, with no discipline or pending action for the past four years in Arizona (CR-77 Plumbing Including Solar), California (C-36 Plumbing together with C-4 Boiler, Hot Water Heating and Steam Fitting) or Tennessee (CMC Full Mechanical Contractor); a Florida CF Plumbing Contractor gets experience credit but must pass the Nevada C-1 trade exam; the Business and Law exam is never waived. The NSCB equivalency charts contain no Utah chart and no C-1 row for Connecticut, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, New Mexico, Hawaii, Alabama or West Virginia.

Moving to NevadaLeaving Nevada

Common questions

Do I have to take the District of Columbia master plumber exam if I'm licensed in Nevada?
Yes. District of Columbia requires the trade exam on this path.
What does it cost to get a District of Columbia master plumber license from Nevada?
Published fees on this path total $185, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
Do my Nevada work hours count in District of Columbia?
Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward District of Columbia's eligibility requirements.
Does it work the other way, from District of Columbia to Nevada?
Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from District of Columbia to Nevada, the mechanism is not applicable.

Sources

  1. D.C. Code § 47-2853.08 - Powers of the boards (reciprocity and endorsement) · D.C. Code § 47-2853.08(2) · Council of the District of Columbia · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
  2. D.C. Code § 47-2853.12 - License, certification, and registration criteria; waiver · D.C. Code § 47-2853.12(b)-(d), (l) · Council of the District of Columbia · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
  3. D.C. Code § 47-2853.121 - Scope of practice for plumbers or gasfitters · D.C. Code § 47-2853.121 · Council of the District of Columbia · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
  4. D.C. Code § 47-2853.122 - Plumbers or gasfitters: eligibility requirements · D.C. Code § 47-2853.122 · Council of the District of Columbia · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
  5. DC DLCP - Board of Industrial Trades (plumbers/gasfitters: apply, exams, fees, reciprocity notices) · District of Columbia Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (DLCP) · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
  6. DC DLCP - Plumbing/Gasfitting license application instructions (linked from Board of Industrial Trades) · District of Columbia Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection, Occupational and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 16, 2026

Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.

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