How to get a plumbing license in Michigan

Journeyman level 6,000 hours on the job + state exam What's a journeyman?

Licensing office Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA), Bureau of Construction Codes, Licensing Section · 517-241-9316 [1]

The license pathway in Michigan

1. 1

   Apprentice plumber (registration)

   • $15 registration
   • Yearly by April 30; $15 ($20 late fee)

   You must register within 30 days of being hired. As an apprentice, plumbing must be your main occupation, and you work under the direct, on-site, in-person supervision of a journey or master plumber. The registration becomes invalid after 5 years unless you apply for and take the journey exam (the board can grant an extension). [3][9][15][16]

2. 2

   Journey plumber

   • 6,000 hours on the job
   • 3 years of experience
   • Yes: PSI written exam (125 questions, 180 minutes, 75% to pass, open book) plus a hands-on practical skills exam; $100 PSI exam fee
   • $40 license fee
   • Yearly by April 30; $40 (late: $100 per LARA's renewal page, $50 relicensure fee in the law after 60 days); code update course after a new code is adopted

   Lets you install plumbing. You must be at least 18 and have at least 6,000 hours over at least 3 years as an apprentice under a master plumber's supervision. Military plumbers can qualify with a commanding officer's affidavit. [1][2][9][12][14][15]

3. 3

   Master plumber

   • 4,000 hours on the job
   • 2 years of experience
   • Yes: PSI, 130 questions, 180 minutes, 75% to pass, open book; online or at a test center
   • $300 license (3-year license, prorated if you apply mid-cycle); $100 exam fee
   • Every 3 years by April 30; $300; code update course after a new code is adopted

   Plans and supervises plumbing installations and is responsible for code compliance. You must be at least 18, hold a journey plumber license, and have 4,000 hours of journey work over at least 2 years right before you apply. [4][9][12][13][15]

4. 4

   Plumbing contractor

   • Yes: PSI, 50 questions, 120 minutes, 75% to pass (law, rules and code administration); online or at a test center
   • $300 license; $100 exam fee
   • Every 3 years by April 30; $300

   Required to run a plumbing business and pull permits. You hold a master plumber license yourself or employ a master plumber as your representative. Only a sole proprietor, partner, corporate officer or LLC member can apply. [8][9][12][13][15][23]

Who needs a license in Michigan

State law says "only a licensed master or journey plumber shall perform plumbing," with limited exceptions, and nobody may work at the business of a plumbing contractor, master, journey or apprentice plumber without a license or registration. A licensed master plumber is in charge of each job, and a plumbing contractor must pull the permit.

You don't need a license for minor repairs (clearing stoppages, or repairing or replacing a faucet or valve without changing the system), for a homeowner's own plumbing in the single-family home they live in (with a permit), or for a building sewer or water service pipe installed with a permit and inspections.

There are no city plumbing licenses in Michigan. The law says a local government "may not engage in or require local licensing." If the local permit office requires it, a licensed plumbing contractor registers its state license there, for a fee of no more than $15. [5][6][7]

The license ladder: apprentice to contractor

• Apprentice plumber (registration): register within 30 days of being hired; $15 a year. Plumbing must be your principal occupation, and you learn and assist under the direct, on-site, in-person supervision of a journey or master plumber.
• Journey plumber: at least 18, with "at least 6,000 hours of experience gained over a period of at least 3 years as an apprentice plumber" under a master plumber's supervision. Pass the written and practical exams.
• Master plumber: at least 18, holding a journey license, with 4,000 hours of journey work "over a period of not less than 2 years immediately preceding" your application. LARA warns that any lapse in your journey license during those 2 years means you don't meet the requirement. Pass the master exam.
• Plumbing contractor: hold a master license or employ a master plumber as your representative, then pass the contractor exam. A master plumber can represent only one contractor at a time.

See journeyman vs. master for the general difference between the levels. [1][2][3][4][8][9]

The 2025 apprentice ratio rule

Since April 2, 2025, the law limits supervision to "1 journey plumber or master plumber to not more than 2 apprentices," enforced jobsite by jobsite. Contractors who break it face a $5,000 fine for a first violation, $10,000 for a second, and a license suspension of at least 90 days for a third.

LARA's FAQ on the change says the ratio applies to all plumbing work, not only public jobs, and that apprentice registrations "will not be denied based on ratios." There's no change to how you apply for the journey exam. [10][11]

The exams

Journey plumber applicants take two exams and must pass both on a single application, which is valid for one year. Passing scores don't carry over to a new application.

• Written exam (PSI): 125 questions, 180 minutes, 75% to pass. It covers drainage, venting, fixtures, water distribution, backflow prevention, special waste, testing and inspections, and reading an isometric drawing. It's open book: you may bring the 2021 Michigan Plumbing Code (chapter tabs only), the State Construction Code Act (1972 PA 230) and the Skilled Trades Regulation Act (2016 PA 407), with no highlighting or notes. Call PSI at 1-855-579-4635 to schedule.
• Hands-on practical skills exam: run by LARA on set dates in Lansing, Mason, Cadillac and St. Ignace, up to 100 candidates per day (50 in St. Ignace). Email your name and requested date to LARA-BCC-Licensing@michigan.gov; the deadline is 30 days before each exam. LARA lists no practical exams for December 2026 or January 2027.
• Master plumber: 130 questions, 180 minutes, 75% to pass, open book, including a material take-off from a drawing of back-to-back restrooms. Plumbing contractor: 50 questions, 120 minutes, 75%. Since February 11, 2026, you can take the master and contractor exams online with a remote proctor or at a PSI test center.

The PSI exam fee is $100 per attempt, and PSI says you may retest an unlimited number of times. [1][12][13][14]

Fees and renewal

• Apprentice registration: $15, renewed every year by April 30 ($20 late fee).
• Journey plumber: $40 license fee; renew every year by April 30 for $40. LARA's renewal page lists a $100 late fee; the law sets a $50 relicensure fee (plus the renewal fee) if you don't renew within 60 days.
• Master plumber: $300 for a 3-year license; renew every 3 years by April 30 for $300 ($100 late fee).
• Plumbing contractor: $300 for 3 years; renew every 3 years for $300 ($100 late fee). If you hold both the contractor and its qualifying master license, you pay only the contractor fee.
• PSI exam: $100 per attempt.

The initial application fee is waived for active service members, honorably discharged veterans and their dependents, with proof. Instead of yearly continuing education (CE), journey and master plumbers take a board-approved code update course within 12 months after Michigan updates its plumbing code, and LARA notes "This does not happen every year." (LARA's one-page journey license chart says CE is required "annually"; the law and LARA's renewal page describe the code-update rule.) [2][4][9][12][14][15][16][17]

Union and open-shop apprenticeships in Michigan

• Union: the Plumbers 98 & MCA Detroit Training Center runs a 5-year apprenticeship with classes one day every other week and an associate degree through Washtenaw Community College. UA Local 190 in Ann Arbor runs a 5-year plumber/pipefitter apprenticeship. Other areas are covered by other United Association locals; find yours with the UA locator.
• Open shop and employer programs: any licensed plumbing contractor can hire and register you as an apprentice; your hours count as long as your registration stays active.
• State help: LEO's Registered Apprenticeship career seekers page points you to Michigan Works! offices, Pure Michigan Talent Connect job listings and endorsed pre-apprenticeship programs.

More background: how to get an apprenticeship and union vs. non-union. [9][16][18][19][20][21]

If you're licensed in another state

LARA's plumbing licensing page lists no reciprocity agreement with another state. Plan on documenting your experience and passing Michigan's exams, and confirm your options with the Bureau's Licensing Section at 517-241-9316.

One exception: the journey application offers licensure without the exam if you're a member of the armed forces or uniformed services, a veteran, or a dependent of one, and hold an active, valid plumbing license in at least one other state. Military plumbers honorably discharged within the past year can also qualify for the journey license with a commanding officer's affidavit of 6,000 hours.

More: the license reciprocity guide. [1][2][14]

Steps to get licensed in Michigan

1. Get hired by a licensed plumbing contractor

   Apply to a union apprenticeship or a plumbing shop. Your employer signs your apprentice registration with its contractor and master plumber license numbers. [16][18]

2. Register as an apprentice within 30 days

   File the Registration for Plumbing Apprentice with the $15 fee, and renew it every year by April 30. [3][9][16]

3. Log 6,000 hours over at least 3 years

   Work under the direct, on-site, in-person supervision of a journey or master plumber. You'll need notarized letters from your current and former employers documenting your experience. [2][3][14]

4. Apply for the journey plumber exams

   Send the journey plumber application online or by mail with the $40 license fee. Once approved, schedule the written exam with PSI and email LARA to book a practical exam date. [1][12][14]

5. Pass the written and practical exams

   You need 75% on the 125-question written exam, and you must pass both parts on a single application, which is valid for one year. [1][12]

6. Renew every year

   Renew your journey license by April 30 each year ($40), and take a code update course within 12 months whenever Michigan adopts a new code. [2][9]

Where to get the hours

Programs that train plumbers in or for Michigan, from their own official pages. Listed by type, not ranked.

• Union

  Plumbers 98 & MCA Detroit Training Center

  A 5-year apprenticeship run by Plumbers Local 98 and MCA Detroit: 10,000 hours of on-the-job training plus classes, with an associate degree through Washtenaw Community College. [18]

• Union

  UA Local 190 (Ann Arbor) plumber/pipefitter apprenticeship

  A 5-year apprenticeship with full-time work for a mechanical contractor and classes every other week. Applications typically open each January. [19][24][25]

• Union

  United Association (UA) local unions

  UA apprenticeships blend paid on-the-job training with classroom learning and typically last five years. Use the UA's locator to find the local that covers your area. [20][26]

• State program

  Michigan Registered Apprenticeships (LEO)

  The Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity's State Apprenticeship Expansion team points career seekers to Michigan Works!, Pure Michigan Talent Connect and pre-apprenticeship programs. [21]

Licensed in another state?

Questions people ask