West Virginia to Ohio: master plumber license reciprocity
Ohio has a reciprocity agreement with West Virginia: a West Virginia master plumber can get a Ohio license without retaking the trade exam.
Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.
Reciprocity with West Virginia (Master Plumber)
A signed state-to-state agreement. The trade exam is waived; you apply, prove your history, and pay the fee.
OCILB lists West Virginia for Electrical, HVAC and Plumbing reciprocity without a Business and Law exam flag. Under the West Virginia Mechanical reciprocity application, an applicant who currently holds a West Virginia Master Plumber license issued after passing the West Virginia Contractor Licensing Board's examination receives the Ohio Plumbing Contractor license without examination; grandfathered West Virginia licenses cannot reciprocate. The applicant files the West Virginia Mechanical reciprocity application marked PL with a $25 non-refundable fee, a Reciprocity Verification of Licensure completed under seal by the West Virginia Contractor Licensing Board with the WVCLB exam score, a $500,000 certificate of liability insurance naming the Ohio Construction Licensing Board, and assigns the license to a contracting company.
The form also has a field for a West Virginia contractor license number; whether a WV contractor license is required in addition to the Master Plumber license for the plumbing trade (as it is for HVAC technicians) is not stated explicitly.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Agreement
- Active
What you must already have
- Your West Virginia license must have been obtained by examination, not by reciprocity or grandfathering.
- Your West Virginia license must be active and in good standing.
- You must have no disciplinary action or unresolved complaints on your record.
What you'll do to get licensed in Ohio
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($25). Reciprocity application fee, non-refundable, per trade (OCILB reciprocity applicant checklist).
- 2Insurance. Carry the required insurance ($500,000). Certificate of liability insurance with complete operations coverage of at least $500,000, certificate holder Ohio Construction Licensing Board.
- 3Other. Reciprocity Verification of Licensure completed under seal by the West Virginia Contractor Licensing Board, including WVCLB exam score.
- 4Other. Assignment of the license to a contracting company (R.C. 4740.01).
Published fees on this path total $25, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.
What you'll need to buy or arrange
Liability insurance
Some states require proof of general liability or workers' compensation coverage at licensing time.
- Insurance · $500,000
How Ohio licenses master plumbers
Ohio master plumber · “Plumbing Contractor (OCILB state license)”
Statewide license
Issued by Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB), Ohio Department of Commerce
Ohio has no license called 'master plumber'; its top person-held plumbing credential is the statewide Plumbing Contractor license issued by the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) to an individual who qualified by examination (R.C. 4740.01(A)), who then assigns it to a contracting company. Other states' reciprocity forms pair this license with their master plumber licenses (West Virginia's form, for example, matches its Master Plumber to Ohio's Plumbing Contractor), so it is treated here as the master level. A new applicant must be 18, a citizen or legal alien, have five years as a tradesperson in the plumbing trade immediately before applying (or be an Ohio registered engineer with three years of construction business experience), pass BCI and FBI background checks, pass both sections of the PSI-administered examination (Plumbing trade and Business & Law), carry $500,000 of contractor liability insurance in one company name, and pay a $25 application fee and $25 license fee; licenses expire annually and renew with continuing education (online CE limited to 4 hours per one-year renewal). OCILB's published reciprocity list covers plumbing licenses from Arkansas, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia, with the Ohio Business and Law exam still required for Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee licensees.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Ohio master plumber exam if I'm licensed in West Virginia?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path under the agreement with West Virginia.
- What does it cost to get a Ohio master plumber license from West Virginia?
- Published fees on this path total $25, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Does it work the other way, from Ohio to West Virginia?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Ohio to West Virginia, the mechanism is endorsement.
Sources
- OCILB - Contractors & Contracting Companies (state license requirements, reciprocity list, document checklists) · Ohio Department of Commerce, Division of Industrial Compliance · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- OCILB Examination Application (form DIC 3524, PDF) · Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board · Form · verified September 16, 2026
- OCILB West Virginia Mechanical Reciprocity Application (HVAC, PL) (PDF) · Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board · Form · verified September 16, 2026
- Ohio Revised Code 4740.01 - Construction industry licensing board definitions · R.C. 4740.01(A), (C), (E) · Ohio Legislative Service Commission · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- Ohio Revised Code 4740.06 - License application; qualifications for examination · R.C. 4740.06(B), (C), (E), (F), (G), (H) · Ohio Legislative Service Commission · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- Ohio Revised Code 4740.08 - Reciprocity · R.C. 4740.08 · Ohio Legislative Service Commission · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.