How Do You Get a Plumbing License in Tennessee?
Tennessee's only state-level license for individual plumbers is the Limited Licensed Plumber (LLP), issued by the Board for Licensing Contractors and required only in municipalities that use the state Division of Fire Prevention for permits or inspections, on jobs under $25,000.
The Board's license list shows no statewide journeyman or master plumber tier; those certificates are local, for example Metro Nashville's.
Contracting for plumbing work of $25,000 or more takes the state contractor license — plumbing falls under its CMC-A classification — and your city may require its own certificate.
Verify before you rely on this
At a glance
For individual plumbers, only the Limited Licensed Plumber (LLP), and only in municipalities that use the state Division of Fire Prevention, on jobs under $25,000.
The Board's license list shows no journeyman or master tier.
The Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce & Insurance) licenses the LLP; Metro Nashville issues its own plumber certificates, and the Board says to check what your city requires.
For plumbers, one state credential: the LLP.
Journeyman and master plumber certificates are local — Metro Nashville examines for them — and plumbing contracting at $25,000 or more takes the CMC-A contractor license.
Not established in our research for the LLP; the requirements we confirmed are the trade exam and the $75 application fee.
Ask the Board about experience.
The LLP trade exam, administered by Prov.
The Board's contractor exams also moved to Prov on July 1, 2026.
Not established in our research for the LLP.
The Board's stated 8-hour CE rule applies to residential building contractors; ask the Board about the LLP.
For the LLP, none: the Board states its trade-exam waiver agreements do not apply to the LLP, so an out-of-state plumber sits the LLP exam.
TDCI's Verify a License search, linked from the Board's site navigation; our research did not open the page itself.
The Tennessee plumbing license ladder
- Limited Licensed Plumber (LLP)Specialty
The state's only individual plumber license: it covers projects under $25,000 and is required only in municipalities that use the state Division of Fire Prevention for permits or inspections.
- Journeyman Plumber certificate (local)Journeyman
A city-issued certificate, not a state license — Metro Nashville's Board of Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners and Appeals examines applicants for it; the state Board for Licensing Contractors' license list shows no journeyman plumber tier.
- Master Plumber certificate (local)Master
Also a local certificate: Metro Nashville's mechanical, plumbing and electrical board examines applicants for a master plumber certificate, and other cities may run their own version.
- Contractor license, CMC-A (Plumbing and Gas Piping)Contractor
The Board for Licensing Contractors' contractor license for plumbing work of $25,000 or more, including materials and labor — plumbing falls under the CMC-A (Plumbing and Gas Piping) sub-classification of the CMC mechanical contracting classification.
Does Tennessee require a state plumbing license?
Only one state license exists for individual plumbers: the Limited Licensed Plumber (LLP).
The Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors, part of the Department of Commerce and Insurance, regulates contractors, home improvement contractors, limited licensed electricians and limited licensed plumbers — and the LLP is Tennessee's only state-level plumber credential.
It is required only for plumbers performing work in a municipality that uses the state Division of Fire Prevention for permits or inspections, and it covers projects under $25,000; general maintenance work under $500 is exempt.
The Board's license list shows no statewide journeyman or master plumber tier; the local certificates we could confirm, such as Metro Nashville's, are what carry those titles.
What are the Tennessee plumbing license levels, and what can each legally do?
The state level has one rung for plumbers: the Limited Licensed Plumber.
It covers projects under $25,000 and is required only where the local government uses the Division of Fire Prevention for permits or inspections, with general maintenance under $500 exempt.
Above it sits the Board's contractor license: Tennessee requires a state contractor license for plumbing work of $25,000 or more, including materials and labor, and it applies to subcontractors too; plumbing falls under the CMC-A (Plumbing and Gas Piping) sub-classification of the CMC mechanical contracting classification.
The state license list shows no journeyman or master plumber tier; the journeyman and master certificates we could confirm are local, such as Metro Nashville's, whose Board of Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners and Appeals examines applicants for master plumber, journeyman and apprentice plumber certificates.
What a local title allows is governed by the city that issued it.
What are the requirements for each level: hours, training, exam and fees?
For the LLP, the Board's license page states the requirements we confirmed: pass the LLP trade exam and file the initial application, which carries a $75 fee.
The pages we read do not state an experience or hour requirement for the LLP, so confirm the full application checklist with the Board before you apply.
The local certificates are a separate track: the local board examines applicants, and our research does not detail what Metro Nashville asks of journeyman or master plumber applicants, so check with the city.
At the contractor level, the state contractor license is a separate license for the business that contracts the work.
“The fee for an initial application is $75.”
Who gives the Tennessee plumbing exam, and what is on it?
Prov administers the LLP trade exam.
Prov also took over the Board's contractor exams from July 1, 2026; PSI keeps exams that were already scheduled through September 2026.
Our research does not include the content outline for the LLP exam, so ask the Board or Prov for the current candidate information before you book a test date.
“Beginning July 1, 2026, Prov will begin administering the exams for the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors.”
How do you renew, and how many CE hours does Tennessee require?
Our research did not establish how often the LLP renews or whether Tennessee requires continuing education to renew it.
The 8-hour CE rule on the Board's renewal page is stated for residential building contractors, the BC-A and BC-A/r classifications, and the page states no CE requirement for CMC mechanical contractors; our research found no CE requirement stated for the LLP either way.
Ask the Board how the LLP renews before you schedule work around a renewal date.
Does Tennessee accept licenses from other states?
Not for the LLP.
The Board states that its trade-exam waiver agreements do not apply to its other license programs — Home Improvement, Limited Licensed Electrician or LLP — so an out-of-state plumber applies for the LLP and sits the same exam as anyone else.
At the contractor level, the Board states Tennessee has no license reciprocity and an out-of-state contractor license cannot be used in Tennessee, though it waives its trade exam under agreements with specific states, naming Ohio for plumbing.
How do you look up a Tennessee plumbing license?
The Department of Commerce and Insurance links a Verify a License search from the Board for Licensing Contractors' site navigation — the state license lookup our research found.
We did not open the search page itself, so treat the address as unconfirmed and reach it from the Board's site if it moves.
Check a license there before you rely on its status, and confirm anything you cannot clear with the Board.
Who licenses plumbing work in Tennessee's cities?
Metro Nashville's Board of Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners and Appeals examines applicants for master mechanical, HVAC&R, gas and appliance, and master plumber, journeyman and apprentice plumber certificates.
Memphis/Shelby County, Knoxville and Chattanooga are also reported to run local trade licensing for plumbing and mechanical work, but we could not verify those programs' details, so check the city or county codes office where the work happens.
The Board for Licensing Contractors' own advice is to check with your local government first, to see whether it accepts the LLP license or has a local licensing requirement for permits and inspections.
“Always first check with your local government to see if they accept the LLP license or if they have a local licensing requirement for permits and inspections.”
What This Page Does, and Doesn’t, Cover
This page summarizes the Tennessee board pages, statutes, rules and other sources listed below, as read for this state-by-state plumbing licensing series, current as of September 2026.
It is not a substitute for the instructions the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce & Insurance) publishes.
For the rest of the picture in Tennessee, see HVAC licensing in Tennessee, plumbing apprenticeships in Tennessee, plumbing contractor licensing in Tennessee, and plumber pay in Tennessee.
What Plumber Job Listings in Tennessee Show Right Now
From the 24 active plumber listings on HVACHires as of October 8, 2026.
Employers with the most openings
Pay employers post
- 54% of plumber listings in Tennessee state any pay at all.
Benefits listings name
- PTO / Paid Time Offnamed in 92%
- 401k Matchnamed in 71%
- Dental & Visionnamed in 63%
- Health Insurancenamed in 54%
- Company Vehiclenamed in 38%
Source: active plumber listings on HVACHires, updated daily. Pay figures use only listings that state pay (midpoint of each posted range), hourly and yearly counted separately. Benefits count listings that name the benefit; a listing that doesn’t mention one may still offer it.
Browse 24 jobs →Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a plumbing license to work in Tennessee?
It depends on where you work and the size of the job.
Tennessee's only state-level license for individual plumbers is the Limited Licensed Plumber (LLP), required only in municipalities that use the state Division of Fire Prevention for permits or inspections, on projects under $25,000.
General maintenance work under $500 is exempt.
Cities can also set their own rules — Metro Nashville issues master, journeyman and apprentice plumber certificates — so check with the local government where the work happens.
Is there a master plumber license in Tennessee?
Not at the state level, as far as the Board's license list shows: it has no master plumber tier, and the state's only individual plumber credential is the LLP.
Master plumber certificates do exist locally — Metro Nashville's Board of Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners and Appeals examines applicants for a master plumber certificate — so ask your city whether it issues one.
How much does a Tennessee plumbing license cost?
The LLP's initial application fee is $75, and Prov administers its trade exam.
Our research did not confirm exam or renewal fees for the LLP, so ask the Board and Prov what else you will pay before you apply.
Fees for local certificates were not part of this research; check with the city.
Does Tennessee have reciprocity for plumbers?
Not for the LLP.
The Board states its trade-exam waiver agreements do not apply to the LLP, Home Improvement or Limited Licensed Electrician programs, so an out-of-state plumber takes the LLP exam like any other applicant.
At the contractor level, the Board states Tennessee has no license reciprocity, though it waives its trade exam under agreements with specific states, naming Ohio for plumbing.
More Tennessee Resources
Sources
- Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors: Limited Licensed Plumber (LLP) (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors: get a contractor license (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors: license examination information (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors: license renewal (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Tennessee rules, chapter 0680-01 (Board for Licensing Contractors) (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Metro Nashville: Board of Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners and Appeals (retrieved 2026-09-29)
Sourced from the documents listed above.
Verified September 2026.
This is career information, not legal advice.
Confirm current rules with the Tennessee Board for Licensing Contractors (Department of Commerce & Insurance).