New Jersey State Board of Examiners of Master Plumbers (Division of Consumer Affairs) administers master plumber licensing in New Jersey. Every figure below is verified against the board’s own official pages and dated. Who must personally hold a credential — the contractor, the business, or the individual worker — is set out under Requirements.
What it’s called
New Jersey’s plumbing credential is the State MASTER PLUMBER LICENSE, issued by the State Board of Examiners of Master Plumbers in the Division of Consumer Affairs - “This board licenses and regulates master plumbers in New Jersey.” A search for a New Jersey plumbing license, an NJ plumber’s license or a New Jersey plumbing contractor license maps to that one license. There is no separate state plumbing-contractor license: a business acts as a plumbing contractor through a licensed master plumber who owns at least 10 percent of it and is registered as its “bona fide representative”. A New Jersey journeyman plumber LICENSE does not exist as a license - the Board offers journeyman and apprentice REGISTRATION, and a W-2 employee working under a master plumber’s supervision needs no license. Cities and towns may not issue plumber’s licenses (N.J.S.A. 45:14C-12.2). Medical gas piping work needs a separate Board certification (installer, brazer or instructor).
License types & fees
| Type | Experience | Exam | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Master Plumber License (the only plumbing LICENSE New Jersey issues; required to work as a master plumber and to run or qualify a plumbing business) | Age 21 or older (N.J.A.C. 13:32-2.1(a)1) plus ONE of two routes under N.J.A.C. 13:32-2.2(b): (1) "Has completed a four-year apprenticeship program approved by the United States Department of Labor, which includes education in propane services that meets the requirements of (c) below, and has completed, after the end of the apprenticeship, one year of practical hands-on experience as a journeyman plumber in New Jersey, consisting of at least 1,200 hours of practical hands-on experience"; OR (2) "Has been awarded a bachelor's degree in mechanical, plumbing or sanitary engineering from a college or university accredited by a regional accreditation agency recognized by the Council on Post-Secondary Accreditation or the United States Department of Education, which includes education in propane services that meets the requirements of (c) below, and has completed, after completion of the bachelor's degree, one year of practical hands-on experience as a journeyman plumber in New Jersey, consisting of at least 1,200 hours of practical hands-on experience." The Board's FAQ (read live 2026-10-09) states the same two routes. The statute words the apprenticeship route differently: N.J.S.A. 45:14C-15(b)(1) requires five years in the plumbing trade, "One of the five years shall have been spent while engaged or employed as a journeyman plumber. Four years of the five years shall have been spent in a plumbing apprenticeship program accredited and approved by the United States Department of Labor"; and for the degree route 45:14C-15(b)(2) requires one year "as an apprentice or journeyman plumber" where the rule says journeyman. | Yes - a three-part examination (N.J.A.C. 13:32-2.3(c)): a written examination based on the National Standard Plumbing Code as adopted in New Jersey, a practical examination, and a written examination of the laws and regulations governing plumbing; a minimum grade of 70 in each part (2.3(d)). | $100 application fee without prior registration, or $50 with prior registration (both nonrefundable); initial license fee $160 if paid in the first year of the biennial period or $80 if paid in the second year (N.J.A.C. 13:32-5.1(a)1-3). The Board's FAQ (live 2026-10-09): "the application fee is currently $100. There is a separate licensing fee which will be assessed when an individual is approved for and passed the licensing examination." |
| Journeyman Plumber Registration (a Board registration, not a license) | The Board registers journeymen and apprentices under N.J.S.A. 45:14C-10.1 and 10.2: "any person desiring to register as an apprentice or journeyman plumber shall make application to the State board to be so registered" The rule defines a journeyman plumber as "an individual who works under the supervision of a licensed master plumber or supervisory journeyman plumber and who has completed either four years in an apprenticeship program approved by the United States Department of Labor or has been awarded a bachelor's degree in mechanical, plumbing, or sanitary engineering" from an accredited college or university (N.J.A.C. 13:32-1.3). The application is filed online (Board Applications page: "Application for Registration as a Journeyman Plumber (Online Application)"), and the employer completes the Board's Work Experience Certification for Journeyman Plumber, which "will assist the State Board of Examiners of Master Plumbers (Board) to determine the qualifications of the applicant for registration as a journeyman plumber." | None stated in the statute or rules for registration. | $75 without prior registration, or $50 with prior registration (both non-refundable) (N.J.A.C. 13:32-5.1(a)6-7). |
| Apprentice Plumber Registration | An "Apprentice plumber" is "any person other than a master plumber or journeyman plumber who, as his or her principal occupation, is engaged in learning and assisting in the installation of plumbing" (N.J.A.C. 13:32-1.3). The statutory register covers "apprentice plumbers enrolled in a plumbing apprenticeship program accredited and approved by the United States Department of Labor" (N.J.S.A. 45:14C-10.1). The Board's FAQ: "The Plumbers Board only accepts apprenticeships approved by the U.S. Department of Labor-Office of Apprenticeship", and "the U.S. Department of Labor requires that employers sponsor an apprenticeship." | None. | $50 (non-refundable) (N.J.A.C. 13:32-5.1(a)5). |
| Temporary Courtesy License (military spouses) | Under N.J.A.C. 13:32-2.8(a), an applicant who is licensed in good standing in another state or territory "that has licensure requirements equivalent to those in New Jersey", is not a New Jersey resident, has no disqualifying discipline or investigation, "Is the spouse of an active duty member of the Armed Forces of the United States who has been transferred to New Jersey in the course of his or her service", and is domiciled in New Jersey or has moved here on a permanent change-of-station basis; plus proof of practising plumbing for at least two of the last five years (2.8(b)4). | None stated. | $100 application fee plus $80 temporary courtesy license fee (N.J.A.C. 13:32-2.8(b)2 cross-referencing 5.1(a)1 and 16). Valid one year; may be extended for an additional year (2.8(c), (e)). |
| Medical Gas Piping certifications (Installer; Brazer - brazing only; Instructor) | N.J.S.A. 45:14C-28(a): "No person shall install, improve, repair or maintain medical gas piping unless certified by the State Board of Examiners of Master Plumbers". Eligible installers/brazers are a master plumber, a journeyman who completed a USDOL-approved apprenticeship, an apprentice with at least three years of such a program, a pipe fitter or steam fitter employed by a plumbing contractor, or a person certified under NFPA standards (45:14C-29; N.J.A.C. 13:32-7.3(a), 7.4(a)); installers need 32 hours of classroom training and brazers 20 hours (45:14C-29(a)(2), (b)(2)). | The rule and the statute list different routes; both are reported. RULE: Installer - the NITC Medical Gas Installer examination, or an AWS brazer examination plus a training program approved by a major medical gas producer (N.J.A.C. 13:32-7.3(c)); Brazer - the NITC Brazing Processes examination, or the AWS brazer route (7.4(c)). STATUTE: for installers, any one of these routes (N.J.S.A. 45:14C-29(a)(3)): the applicant "has passed an examination offered by the National Inspection Testing and Certification Corporation (NITC), or a substantially equivalent examination approved by the State board, that demonstrates the applicant's competence to install, improve, repair and maintain medical gas piping"; or "has passed an examination as a brazer offered by the American Welding Society, and has successfully completed a training program in the installation of medical gas piping approved by a major medical gas producer"; or "is certified in accordance with the appropriate American Society of Sanitary Engineering standards for the operations being performed"; the brazer-only certification lists the same routes for brazing duties (45:14C-29(b)(3)). The statute therefore also names ASSE certification and an NITC-"substantially equivalent examination approved by the State board", which the rule text does not. | $75 application; initial installer or instructor certification $150 / $100 / $50 depending on the year of the triennial period; initial brazer $50; renewal installer $150 triennial, brazer $50 annual, instructor $150 triennial (N.J.A.C. 13:32-5.1(b)). |
Who does NOT need this license — exemptions
New Jersey’s carve-outs from the master plumber requirement sit in the statute (N.J.S.A. 45:14C) and in the Board’s scope-of-practice rule (N.J.A.C. 13:32-1.4). They are quoted in full below. STATUTE. (1) HOMEOWNER - N.J.S.A. 45:14C-12.4: “The provisions of this amendatory and supplementary act shall not apply to a single family home owner who performs plumbing work on his own dwelling.” (The “amendatory and supplementary act” is P.L.1987, c.442, which includes the 45:14C-12.3 ban on working as a master plumber or contracting without a license.) (2) ELECTRICAL CONTRACTORS, MEDICAL GAS ONLY - N.J.S.A. 45:14C-33: the medical gas piping act “shall not apply to any electrical contractor licensed by the Board of Examiners of Electrical Contractors pursuant to P.L.1962, c.162 (C.45:5A-1 et seq.), and any person in his employ while performing the duties of his employment, who is acting within the scope of his profession or occupation” (repeated at N.J.A.C. 13:32-7.1(c)). (3) LIMIT ON THE BOARD - N.J.S.A. 45:14C-7: “the board’s jurisdiction shall not include the regulation or determination of matters relating to trade or craft jurisdiction or the determination of whether any particular class of employee is entitled to perform any particular work.” RULE - N.J.A.C. 13:32-1.4. (4) WORK ANYONE MAY DO - 1.4(e): “For purposes of this section, the following may be performed by both licensed master plumbers and individuals who are not licensed master plumbers: 1) The clearance of stoppages and installation or removal of a cleanout or cleanout equivalent necessary to clear the stoppage; 2) The installation and service of storm, sanitary, and water piping from the final point of connection more than three feet from the exterior of a building or structure located on private property; 3) The installation, service and maintenance of irrigation systems and hydronic and solar systems piping regulated under N.J.S.A. 45:16A-1 et seq., downstream from an approved backflow prevention device or assembly; 4) The demolition or removal of plumbing, provided the water and sewer utilities are first disconnected and sealed outside the building; 5) The installation and service of transmission piping by water or sewer utilities; 6) The installation, maintenance and repair of water piping to mechanical equipment downstream from an approved backflow prevention device or assembly; and 7) The testing of backflow prevention devices and assemblies by individuals certified by an entity regulated under N.J.A.C. 7:10-10.8.” (Effective November 2, 2020, the Board deleted the former 1.4(e)4, “The installation, service, and maintenance of gas and hydronic piping”, because N.J.S.A. 45:16A-2 makes that HVACR work, and renumbered the rest - 52 N.J.R. 2009(a). Gas and hydronic piping is NOT open to unlicensed workers.) (5) WHO THE SECTION DOES NOT REACH - 1.4(f): “The provisions of this section shall not apply to: 1) A single-family home owner who performs plumbing work in his or her own dwelling; and 2) Plumbing work performed by full-time employees of a public agency on property owned by that agency.” (6) WELL DRILLERS AND PUMP INSTALLERS - 1.4(h): “An individual who is licensed pursuant to N.J.S.A. 58:4A-23 et seq. is not engaged in the unlicensed practice of plumbing when he or she is performing the tasks that he or she is licensed to perform.” (7) THE THREE-FOOT LINE - N.J.A.C. 13:32-1.3: “‘Plumbing’ does not include the final connection to an approved point of disposal or an approved supply system which extends beyond three feet of a building or structure.” WHAT IS NOT AN EXEMPTION (the rule says so expressly). 1.4(d): “If an individual does not charge for the services listed in (c) above, or if he or she provides such services for a nonprofit organization, the provision of these services is the practice of plumbing and the individual shall be a licensed master plumber.” And 1.4(c) lists as plumbing that only the persons in 1.4(b) may perform, among other items, “Performing of plumbing work, including minor work and ordinary repairs even though a permit is not required”; “Plumbing work performed at a place of business by employees of that business on property owned by the business”; “Disconnection and sealing of water and sewer lines”; “Installation or disconnection of water filtration or water softening equipment, water heaters, humidifiers, ice making equipment or backflow preventers”; fire protection and suppression systems connected to plumbing systems (which also need Division of Fire Safety certification under N.J.A.C. 5:74-2.2); and “The provision of propane services.” SOURCE NOTE: the 1.4(e), (f), (h) and 1.3 wording above was read from the Division’s own compiled copy of N.J.A.C. 13:32 (last revision date April 5, 2021); the later rule changes on the Division’s adoptions list (2.4A in 2023, 4.1A in 2026) did not amend 1.3 or 1.4, and the 2022 readoption was without amendment.
Fees
Board fees under N.J.A.C. 13:32-5.1(a) (rule text as compiled by the Division, last revision April 5, 2021; no later amendment to 5.1 appears on the Division’s adoptions list): application fee without prior registration $100 (nonrefundable); application fee with prior registration $50 (nonrefundable); initial license fee $160 if paid in the first year of a biennial renewal period, $80 if paid in the second year; biennial license renewal $160; apprentice registration $50; journeyman registration $75 without prior registration or $50 with prior registration; late renewal fee $50; reinstatement fee $150; initial pressure seal $25; replacement pressure seal $25; duplicate license $25; replacement wall certificate $40; verification of licensure $25; continuing education sponsor application $100; temporary courtesy license $80. LIVE BOARD SOURCES AGREE with the rule on the headline amounts: the FAQ says “the application fee is currently $100” and “The license renewal fee is $160.00”; the reinstatement form charges “A nonrefundable reinstatement fee of $150.00, along with all past delinquent renewal fees”, and its fee table shows $470.00 for a license that lapsed in 2019 and $310.00 for one that lapsed in 2021, each including the $150 reinstatement fee; the continuing-education instructor application charges $100.00. CONFLICT WITH THE STATUTE (reported, not resolved): N.J.S.A. 45:14C-16(d), as last amended in 1979, still lists “First application for master plumber’s license ………. $100.00”, “Annual renewal of master plumber’s State license ………. $ 50.00” and “Re-examination for master plumber’s State examination ………. $ 35.00”; the Board charges the rule’s $160 biennial renewal, and 5.1 lists no re-examination fee. Under 45:14C-16(d), a licensed master plumber who serves as a plumbing inspector under the State Uniform Construction Code Act does not pay the renewal fee, but the license “shall be invalid during such period of service as plumbing inspector.” NOT BOARD FEES: the $3,000 surety bond premium (N.J.S.A. 45:14C-26) and the examination vendor’s fee. Medical gas piping fees are in 5.1(b) (see the license-type details on this page).
Exam
A three-part examination prepared and administered by a third-party vendor, with the license granted only by the Board: “Examinations shall be prepared and administered by a third-party vendor, but no license shall be granted except by the Board” (N.J.A.C. 13:32-2.3(a), as amended effective January 2, 2018, 50 N.J.R. 208(a)). The three parts (2.3(c)): “1) Written examination based on the National Standard Plumbing Code as adopted by the State of New Jersey pursuant to the Uniform Construction Code Act, N.J.S.A. 52:27D-119 et seq.; 2) Practical examination; and 3) Written examination of laws and regulations governing the occupation and business of plumbing.” Passing requires “a minimum grade of 70 in each of the three areas” (2.3(d)); first-time candidates take all three sections (2.3(e)). Examinations are held at least four times a year (2.3(b); N.J.S.A. 45:14C-16(b)). A candidate who fails any section waits six months to retest (N.J.A.C. 13:32-2.4(b); N.J.S.A. 45:14C-16(c)); a candidate who fails one or two sections may retake the failed sections two more times, after which all passing scores are forfeited and all sections must be retaken (2.4(c)). The application window closes if the candidate does not sit within two years of approval or does not pass all sections within five years (2.3(f)-(g)). Eligibility is decided by the Board at its monthly meeting, after which “Approval letters, along with information on how to register for the licensing examination will be sent to applicants” (Board FAQ). The Board’s pages and rules do not name the testing vendor or publish the vendor’s examination fee; review of a failed exam is by written request to the vendor and payment of the vendor’s review fee (2.4(a)).
Renewal & continuing education
Biennial. The Board’s FAQ (live 2026-10-09): “Master Plumber licenses expire biennially on June 30th of odd-numbered years and must be renewed at that time. A reminder will be sent to the licensee’s address of record approximately 60 days prior to the expiration date.” N.J.A.C. 13:32-2.6(a): “Licenses shall be renewed biennially on a form provided by the Board”, and each renewal attests that continuing education was completed. Renewal fee $160 (13:32-5.1(a)4). A license not renewed by its expiration date may be renewed within 30 days with the renewal fee plus a $50 late fee, and “During this 30-day period, the license shall be valid” (2.6(e)); a licensee who does not apply within 30 days of expiration “shall have his or her license suspended without a hearing” (2.6(f)), and continuing to practise after that suspension is unlicensed practice “even if no notice of suspension has been provided” (2.6(g)). A licensee may instead renew as INACTIVE, returning the pressure seal, and may not practise until reactivated (2.6(d); 2.6A). Reinstatement after suspension requires a reinstatement application, an employment certification, the current and past-due renewal fees, the $150 reinstatement fee and the continuing education for the current period (2.6B(a)). CONFLICT IN THE STATUTE: N.J.S.A. 45:14C-18 still says every State license “shall automatically expire on June 30 following the date of its issuance” and “Licenses may be renewed annually”, while 45:14C-18.1 (L.1996, c.158) refers to “biennial license renewal”; the rule and the Board’s FAQ both state a biennial cycle. The surety bond itself runs “for the term of 12 months” (45:14C-26). The next biennial expiration under the FAQ’s “June 30th of odd-numbered years” is June 30, 2027. The statute adds that a renewal applicant applying more than 30 days after the expiration date “may be required by the State board to be re-examined”, and that a license expiring while the holder is outside the continental United States “in connection with any project undertaken by the Government of the United States shall be renewed without such holder being required to be re-examined, upon payment of the prescribed fee at any time within 4 months after such person’s return to the United States” (N.J.S.A. 45:14C-18). Five credits of continuing education per biennial period. N.J.A.C. 13:32-6.1(a): “Every licensee shall successfully complete five credits of continuing education at an approved course per biennial period. Licensees applying for their first biennial renewal are exempt from this continuing education requirement.” The statute caps the requirement: “the number of credits required shall not exceed five in any biennial license period” (N.J.S.A. 45:14C-18.2(a)(1)), and “each hour of instruction shall be equivalent to one credit” (18.2(b)). One hour every period must review the master plumber laws and rules, N.J.S.A. 45:14C-1 et seq. and N.J.A.C. 13:32 (13:32-6.3(a)); the Board sets the other topics three months before each period (6.3(b)), and the CE instructor application notes the topics notice “was published in the New Jersey Register on October 25, 2018.” Reductions: a licensee who completed plumbing-inspector CE under N.J.A.C. 5:23-5.21 owes only the one law-and-rules hour that period (6.1(b)); a licensee who completed master HVACR contractor CE has earned four credits and owes the one-credit law-and-rules hour (6.4(c), effective September 21, 2020); a licensee who teaches an approved course earns five credits (6.4(b)). Excess credits may be carried over to the next period only (N.J.S.A. 45:14C-18.5). Records of attendance are kept for four years (6.1(d)); the Board’s FAQ: “every licensee must complete five credits of continuing education at a Board approved course every biennial period.” Hardship waivers: N.J.S.A. 45:14C-18.3; N.J.A.C. 13:32-6.5.
How to apply
Applications are handled by New Jersey State Board of Examiners of Master Plumbers (Division of Consumer Affairs). Start at the official application page .