Pennsylvania to Delaware: master plumber license reciprocity
Pennsylvania does not issue a statewide master plumber license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Delaware'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.
Master plumber license by reciprocity (Board review of origin standards)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
A plumber who holds a current master-level license in good standing in another state, the District of Columbia or a U.S. territory applies by reciprocity in DELPROS rather than by examination. 24 Del. C. § 1810(a) requires the Board to grant the Delaware Master Plumber license, without a Delaware trade or law exam, when the origin jurisdiction's licensure standards are substantially similar to Delaware's and the applicant submits the good-conduct evidence in § 1808(a)(3)-(5) plus the fee. If the standards are not substantially similar, § 1810(b) still keeps the applicant on the reciprocity path (no Delaware exam) but requires proof of at least seven years of practice after licensure. Every applicant pays the $173 Plumber application fee in DELPROS, has a Certificate of Good Standing / licensure verification sent directly from each jurisdiction where they hold or have held a license, and documents experience with supervising-plumber affidavits (or W-2s / employer affidavits at the Board's discretion) when the seven-year practice showing is required. Applications are not complete until the form, supporting documents and fees are in. Holders of only a municipal license are not described in the statute as qualifying for § 1810 (which speaks of a state, D.C. or territory); those applicants should plan on the examination path: journeyman certificate plus 2 years under a master, or 7 years plus bypass tests, then the ProV master plumber exam ($100 per Prov's candidate bulletin, 70%, three attempts, then a one-year wait). A business that has just lost its only master may obtain a 100-day temporary plumber license ($40) for an owner or employee who is applying and will sit for the next exam.
The Board publishes how it treats the most common origin states. Master Plumber licenses from Connecticut, Iowa and Maryland are treated as substantially similar, so no proof of experience is needed. Licenses from Alabama, Arkansas, the District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia are treated as not substantially similar, so the applicant must prove at least seven years of practice after becoming a master there. Any other state or territory is evaluated by the Board from a copy of its law and regulations. The Delaware master plumber exam is not required on any of these branches. A license held only from a Pennsylvania municipality does not qualify; those applicants apply by examination. Examination-path candidates need 70% on the ProV exam and, after three failed attempts, must wait one year before reapplying (24 DE Admin. Code 1800 § 2.2.2). No individual-license bond or insurance amount appears in the plumbing statute or regulations. Typical processing time is not published; complete applications are reviewed at the next Board meeting.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- Your Pennsylvania license must be active and in good standing.
- You must have no disciplinary action or unresolved complaints on your record.
- You must have held your Pennsylvania license for at least 7 years.Required only if the Board finds the origin jurisdiction's standards not substantially similar: at least 7 years of practice after licensure (24 Del. C. § 1810(b)).
- Origin jurisdiction's plumber licensure law and regulations submitted so the Board can decide whether standards are equivalent (24 DE Admin. Code 1800 § 2.3)
What you'll do to get licensed in Delaware
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($173). Plumber application fee (examination or reciprocity), non-refundable, paid in DELPROS.
- 2Other. Certificate of Good Standing / licensure verification sent directly to the Board from each state or jurisdiction where the applicant currently holds or has ever held a plumber license (24 DE Admin. Code 1800 §§ 1.2, 2.1.3).
- 3Other. Copy of the origin state's plumber licensure laws and regulations for the Board's substantial-similarity / equivalency review (24 DE Admin. Code 1800 § 2.3).
- 4Other. Verification of experience / practice: supervising licensed plumber affidavit on the Board form, or W-2s or employer/officer affidavits at the Board's discretion; required to show 7 years of post-licensure practice when origin standards are not substantially similar (24 Del. C. § 1810(b); 24 DE Admin. Code 1800 § 2.1.2).
- 5Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam (if applicable). Not required on the § 1810 reciprocity path. Examination-path applicants (no qualifying out-of-state license) must obtain Board approval then pass the ProV master plumber exam. Prov Candidate Information Bulletin: $100, computer-based, open book, 70% to pass, retake after 7 days, three attempts per application; after three failures, 24 DE Admin. Code 1800 § 2.2 requires waiting one year from the last exam before reapplying. Affiliate exam prep applies only if the applicant is actually sitting the exam..
- 6Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($100) (if applicable). ProV exam fee from Prov's Candidate Information Bulletin; paid to the testing vendor, not combined with the $173 DPR application fee (24 Del. C. § 1811). Not charged on the reciprocity path..
Published fees on this path total $173, 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 · if applicable
How Delaware licenses master plumbers
Delaware master plumber · “Master Plumber”
Statewide license
Delaware issues a person-held Master Plumber license through the Board of Plumbing, Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Examiners in the Division of Professional Regulation. 24 Del. C. § 1807 requires that license (or a statutory exemption) to provide plumbing services or to use the titles licensed plumber / master plumber. Employees, apprentices and journeymen work under a master's supervision without their own Board license. A new master needs a journeyman's certificate from a federally-standard apprenticeship plus two years under a master plumber (or similar-level licensee in another state), or seven years under such supervision plus the Delaware vocational-technical apprenticeship equivalency tests, then Board approval and the ProV-administered master plumber exam; the application fee is $173. Out-of-state masters apply by reciprocity under 24 Del. C. § 1810 without a Delaware exam: the Board shall grant the license if the origin state's standards are substantially similar, and otherwise requires at least seven years of practice after licensure. 24 DE Admin. Code 1800 § 2.3 requires every reciprocity applicant to submit the origin state's licensure laws and regulations so the Board can make that comparison. Licenses renew biennially; from the 2026 renewal, plumbing licensees complete 5 hours of continuing education (3 code, 1 safety, 1 cross-connections/backflow) by October 31 of even-numbered years. The Board's published table treats Master Plumber licenses from Connecticut, Iowa and Maryland as substantially similar.
Why Pennsylvania has nothing to transfer
Pennsylvania master plumber · “Master Plumber (city-issued; no state license)”
Licensed by cities and counties
Pennsylvania issues no statewide master plumber or plumbing-contractor license; none of the Department of State's 29 boards covers the trade, so the master-level credential exists only in cities that have chosen to license it. Allentown posts a 2026 Master Plumber Exam Application and requires a separate business license to contract. Harrisburg posts a plumbing license application whose master-versus-journeyman split was not verified. Pittsburgh's plumbing trade-license page 404'd. There is no state-level recognition of an out-of-state master plumber license and no municipal program verified here that waives the plumbing trade exam. An arriving master should expect to apply city by city, document local experience thresholds, and sit each city's exam (ICC or city-written) unless that city later publishes an exam-waiver rule.
How local licensing works in Pennsylvania
How local licensing works. With no state plumbing board, each Pennsylvania city that licenses master plumbers does so under its own ordinance. The journeyman card, where it exists, does not authorize pulling permits or running a shop; the master (or master-contractor) license does. A master license is valid only in the issuing city. The journeyman page states that a journeyman works 'under a licensed master plumber' and may not operate a business, which implies the master license is the contracting credential. Other PLI trade licenses are issued to individuals, expire 365 days from issue, and (for electrical and mechanical) accept ICC master exams for any code year plus a stated experience total; whether plumbing follows that pattern is unverified. 2025 plumbing license fee unknown.
Allentown. 2026 Master Plumber Exam Application is posted under Professional Trades Licensing. Contracting requires the trades license and a city business license. Reciprocity not mentioned on the landing page. Electrical Option B on that same form (eight years in lieu of exam) must not be assumed to apply to plumbing.
Inbound master. No Pennsylvania state license and no verified exam-waiver reciprocity. Plan on a new application in each city where permits will be pulled. Philadelphia is the most fully documented shop: obtain the Master Plumber's License after (typically) holding or qualifying beyond the journeyman ICC path; confirm current master fees and exam on the master service page before applying. Allentown requires its master plumber exam application plus a business license. Scranton uses the 2021 master contractor packet. Statewide reciprocity: none.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Delaware master plumber exam if I'm licensed in Pennsylvania?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path.
- How long do I need to have held my Pennsylvania license?
- At least 7 years before applying.
- What does it cost to get a Delaware master plumber license from Pennsylvania?
- Published fees on this path total $173, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Pennsylvania work hours count in Delaware?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Delaware's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Delaware to Pennsylvania?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Delaware to Pennsylvania, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- 24 DE Admin. Code 1800 - Board of Plumbing, Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Examiners (regulations) · 24 DE Admin. Code 1800 §§ 2.0, 5.0 · Delaware Registrar of Regulations · Admin Rule · verified September 23, 2026
- 24 Del. C. ch. 18, subch. II - License: Plumbing · 24 Del. C. §§ 1807, 1808, 1809, 1810, 1811, 1812 · Delaware General Assembly · Statute · verified September 23, 2026
- Delaware Board of Electrical Examiners - Home · Delaware Division of Professional Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026
- Delaware DPR - Plumbing and HVACR Examinations (ProV and Apprenticeship By-Pass exam) · Delaware Division of Professional Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Delaware DPR - Board of Electrical Examiners fee schedule · Delaware Division of Professional Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Delaware DPR - Master Plumber Licensure (examination and reciprocity) · 24 Del. C. §§ 1808, 1810 · Delaware Division of Professional Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 23, 2026
- Delaware DPR - Temporary Plumber or HVACR License (loss of sole license holder) · 24 Del. C. § 1831 · Delaware Division of Professional Regulation · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Prov, Inc. - Delaware Division of Professional Regulation Candidate Information Bulletin (22.03.09) · Prov, Inc. for the Delaware Division of Professional Regulation · Form · verified September 23, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.