LicensebyState

Moving to Kentucky as a master plumber: every state's rule

Kentucky has reciprocity agreements with 0 states. Everyone else follows its standard out-of-state path: experience credit.

Kentucky master plumber · “Master Plumber

Statewide license

Verified September 16, 2026· 6 sources

Issued by Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Division of Plumbing

Kentucky issues a statewide Master Plumber license through DHBC's Division of Plumbing under KRS Chapter 318 and 815 KAR 20:030. In-state applicants typically hold a Kentucky journeyman plumber license for at least two of the past five years and work under a licensed master for at least two years; Kentucky professional engineers with sufficient mechanical-engineering experience may also qualify. An applicant who holds a valid plumbing license issued by another state for at least two of the past five years, or who practiced as the equivalent of a master for four consecutive years in a state that does not license plumbers, may sit for Kentucky's exams but must still pass both the Kentucky journeyman examination (75% each portion) and the Kentucky master examination (80% each portion). The master exam is written plus drawing (more complex than the journeyman exam); the exam fee is $150 (Form PLB-3) and the license fee is $250 (Form PLB-1), prorated 7–18 months to the birth month. Masters renew annually at $250 with six CE hours and proof of insurance required by KRS 318.030. 815 KAR 20:030 names no partner states and does not waive the Kentucky exams.

Every origin state

Experience credit 38No credit 12
Every state's path into Kentucky
StateMechanismNoteVerified
AlabamaExperience credit2026-09-16
AlaskaExperience credit2026-09-16
ArizonaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
ArkansasExperience credit2026-09-16
CaliforniaExperience credit2026-09-16
ColoradoExperience credit2026-09-16
ConnecticutExperience credit2026-09-16
DelawareExperience credit2026-09-16
District of ColumbiaExperience credit2026-09-16
FloridaExperience credit2026-09-16
GeorgiaExperience credit2026-09-16
HawaiiExperience credit2026-09-16
IdahoExperience credit2026-09-16
IllinoisExperience credit2026-09-16
IndianaExperience credit2026-09-16
IowaExperience credit2026-09-16
KansasNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
LouisianaExperience credit2026-09-16
MaineExperience credit2026-09-16
MarylandExperience 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 JerseyExperience credit2026-09-16
New MexicoExperience credit2026-09-16
New YorkNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
North CarolinaExperience credit2026-09-16
North DakotaExperience credit2026-09-16
OhioExperience credit2026-09-16
OklahomaExperience credit2026-09-16
OregonNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
PennsylvaniaNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
Rhode IslandExperience credit2026-09-16
South CarolinaExperience credit2026-09-16
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
WashingtonNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16
West VirginiaExperience credit2026-09-16
WisconsinExperience credit2026-09-16
WyomingNo creditno state license to transfer2026-09-16

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