Plumbing Contractor License in Kentucky: Requirements, Qualifier, Bond and Exams
There is no separate Kentucky plumbing contractor license: the state licenses plumbing work statewide, and a plumbing business operates under an active master plumber license from the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Division of Plumbing.
That master plumber is the qualifier the company runs on.
The business must also carry at least $250,000 in general liability insurance plus workers' compensation and unemployment insurance compliance; the license renews every year by the holder's birth month, and the holder must complete at least 6 hours of approved continuing education a year.
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At a glance
Kentucky licenses plumbing work statewide, but it has no separate plumbing contractor license: a plumbing business operates under an active master plumber license.
The Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Division of Plumbing.
Two individual licenses — journeyman plumber and master plumber.
The master plumber license is the credential a business operates under; the rules we read set no contractor classes.
A master plumber: 2 years as a licensed journeyman within the past 5 years (or the statutory equivalents) and at least 80% on each portion of the master exam.
A written exam plus a pipe-sizing drawing at both levels; the journeyman exam adds a practical section.
Pass scores: 80% per portion (master), 75% (journeyman); exam fees $150 and $50.
The testing vendor is not named in our research.
At least $250,000 general liability insurance, plus workers' compensation and unemployment insurance compliance.
The rules we read set no bond amount — ask DHBC.
$250 license fee and $250 renewal every year, due by the last day of the license holder's birth month, plus at least 6 hours of approved continuing education a year.
Only with states that have a statewide plumbing code, an exam at least equal to Kentucky's, and a reciprocal agreement with Kentucky.
No partner states are named in our research.
The Kentucky plumbing license ladder
- Journeyman PlumberJourneyman
The worker license beneath the qualifier: 2 consecutive years as an apprentice plumber (or 1 year plus a department-approved course), at least 75% on each portion of the journeyman exam, and a $60 license fee.
- Master PlumberMaster
The license a Kentucky plumbing business operates under, since the state issues no separate plumbing contractor license: 2 years as a licensed journeyman within the past 5 years (or the statutory equivalents) and at least 80% on each portion of the master exam.
Does Kentucky license plumbing contractors statewide, or only locally?
Kentucky licenses plumbing at the state level, and the rule is direct: no person may engage in plumbing or engage in or work at the trade of plumbing without an active master or journeyman plumber license, issued through DHBC's Division of Plumbing.
What Kentucky does not issue is a separate plumbing contractor license.
A plumbing business operates under an active master plumber license, and the business must carry at least $250,000 in general liability insurance plus workers' compensation and unemployment insurance compliance.
So the contractor question in Kentucky is really a qualifier question — who holds the active master license the company runs on.
The individual journeyman and master plumber licenses are covered in our Kentucky plumbing license guide for individuals.
“No person shall engage in plumbing or engage in or work at the trade of plumbing”
Which agency issues the license, and what are the classes?
The agency is the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), and its Division of Plumbing runs the plumbing credential list.
That list has two individual licenses: journeyman plumber and master plumber.
On the business side there is no class system in what we read — no contractor classifications and no business-level license — because Kentucky has no separate plumbing contractor license: the plumbing business operates under an active master plumber license.
The practical consequence for an owner: instead of choosing a class when you apply, you identify and keep the master plumber who carries the company.
Who can be the qualifier, and what experience do they need?
The qualifier is the master plumber.
A Kentucky master plumber needs 2 years as a licensed journeyman within the past 5 years, working under a master — or equivalent out-of-state licensing or experience, or a Kentucky engineer license — and must score at least 80% on each portion of the master exam; the license fee is $250.
The journeyman rung beneath takes 2 consecutive years as an apprentice plumber, or 1 year plus a department-approved course, and at least 75% on each portion of the journeyman exam.
One structural question our research did not answer: whether a single master plumber may represent more than one company.
The plumbing statute and rules we read do not say, so ask the Division of Plumbing before you build a multi-entity structure around one master.
Which exams must be passed: trade, and business and law?
The exam layer our research confirms is the department's plumbing exam attached to each license.
The master exam requires a passing score of at least 80% on each portion; the journeyman exam requires at least 75% on each portion and includes a practical section where the applicant supplies materials.
On format, Kentucky's plumbing exams are a written test plus a pipe-sizing drawing at both levels, and the exam fees are $150 for a master and $50 for a journeyman.
A separate business-and-law exam is not named in the sources we read — the exam requirement our research confirms is the plumbing exam itself — and neither do they name the testing vendor.
Ask DHBC's Division of Plumbing which company administers the current exams and how to schedule before you book anything.
“passing score of a minimum of eighty (80) percent obtained for each portion of the examination”
What bond and insurance are required?
The insurance floor is written into the statute: a plumbing business maintains general liability insurance in an amount not less than $250,000, and it must show workers' compensation and unemployment insurance compliance.
A bond is the open part: the plumbing statute and rules we read set no bond amount and no job-value threshold, and that is a gap in our research rather than a confirmed absence — ask the Division of Plumbing whether any bonding applies before you budget for it.
For how these instruments work generally, HVACHires has a separate contractor license bond-and-insurance guide.
“maintains general liability insurance in an amount not less than two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000)”
What does it cost, and how often is it renewed?
The master plumber license fee is $250, and the license renews every year: Kentucky plumber licenses expire on the last day of the licensee's birth month, and renewal is $250 for a master ($60 for a journeyman).
Continuing education rides along on the same clock: Kentucky's HVAC and plumbing licensees must complete at least 6 hours of approved continuing education in the 12 months before each annual renewal, on topics that include business, job safety, codes and trade subjects, and up to 12 excess hours may be carried forward.
The exam is a separate line at $150 for a master.
The rule text our research captured states the license fee and the renewal fees but names no separate application charge — confirm the current total with the Division of Plumbing when you apply.
“a licensee or certificate holder shall provide proof of at least six (6) hours of approved continuing education prior to license renewal”
Does Kentucky have reciprocity with other states?
Kentucky's plumbing reciprocity is conditional, and the statute writes the conditions out: Kentucky may license a plumber from another state only if that state has a statewide plumbing code, the other state's examination is at least equal to Kentucky's, and the other state agrees to reciprocate with Kentucky.
No partner states are named in what we read, so do not assume your state qualifies on reputation.
For a business, the question lands on the master license, because the company runs on it — but these conditions are written for plumbers from other states, and the sources we read do not lay out how they combine with the master plumber requirements, which separately accept equivalent out-of-state licensing or experience.
Ask the Division of Plumbing how your state's license and exam would be treated before you count on it.
“if that state has a statewide plumbing code, the other state's examination is at least equal to that of Kentucky, and the other state agrees to reciprocate with Kentucky”
What happens if your qualifier leaves?
The rule on the books covers death, and it moves fast.
If the master plumber representing a company dies, the company must notify DHBC within 10 days of the master plumber's death, and it may use the license for a 180-day interim period; after that, it must have a replacement master.
What our research did not find is a replacement deadline for a master who leaves for any other reason — resignation, retirement, a move to another company.
The 10-day notice and the 180-day window are death-specific, so do not lean on them for other departures: line up the next master plumber before the current one leaves, and call the Division of Plumbing the day you know a departure is coming.
Finding and keeping that person is a general contractor-license problem; HVACHires' guide to license qualifiers covers what the role obliges and the filings that keep one in place.
“If the master plumber representing a company dies, the company shall notify the department within ten (10) days of the master plumber's death.”
What This Page Does, and Doesn’t, Cover
This page summarizes the Kentucky board pages, statutes, rules and other sources listed below, as read for this state-by-state plumbing contractor licensing series, current as of September 2026.
It is not a substitute for the instructions the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Division of Plumbing publishes.
For the rest of the picture in Kentucky, see HVAC contractor licensing in Kentucky and plumbing licensing in Kentucky.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Kentucky require a plumbing contractor license?
No separate one.
Kentucky has no plumbing contractor license for businesses: a plumbing company operates under an active master plumber license, and the business must carry at least $250,000 in general liability insurance plus workers' compensation and unemployment insurance compliance.
The Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction's Division of Plumbing licenses the plumbers themselves — no one may work at the trade of plumbing without an active journeyman or master plumber license.
How much does it cost to run a plumbing business on a Kentucky master plumber license?
The master plumber license fee is $250, and renewal is $250 every year, due by the last day of the license holder's birth month.
Each renewal also requires proof of at least 6 hours of approved continuing education from the previous 12 months.
The master exam is a separate $150, and the journeyman exam beneath it is $50.
The rules our research captured name no separate application charge — confirm the current total with DHBC when you apply.
Can I use an out-of-state plumbing license in Kentucky?
Only if Kentucky's conditions are met.
The statute allows Kentucky to license a plumber from another state only when that state has a statewide plumbing code, its exam is at least equal to Kentucky's, and it agrees to reciprocate with Kentucky.
No partner states are named in our research.
Because a plumbing business runs on a master plumber license, the question lands on that master's license — but the conditions are written for plumbers, and our research does not lay out how they apply to a master moving in, so ask the Division of Plumbing first.
What happens if the master plumber behind a Kentucky plumbing company dies?
The company must notify DHBC within 10 days of the master plumber's death.
It may keep operating on the license for a 180-day interim period, and then it must have a replacement master plumber.
Our research found no written replacement deadline for a master who leaves for another reason, such as resignation or retirement, so contact the Division of Plumbing promptly about any departure, and start recruiting a replacement master before the current one leaves.
How do I look up a Kentucky plumbing license?
DHBC's site carries a License Search and Verification page — our research recorded the link from the department's home page navigation but did not exercise the search itself, so if a record does not come back the way you expect, contact the department directly.
It should be the practical way to confirm that the master plumber qualifying your company — or a competitor's — holds an active license; if the license does not appear, ask the Division of Plumbing.
More Kentucky Resources
Sources
- Kentucky statute: plumbing licensing (no work at the trade without an active master or journeyman plumber license; business insurance minimums) (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- 815 KAR 20:030: Kentucky plumbing examinations, license fees and renewals (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Kentucky statute: reciprocal plumber licenses (statewide code, equal exam, mutual agreement) (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- 815 KAR 2:010: DHBC continuing education for HVAC and plumbing licensees (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Kentucky statute: DHBC licensing programs (department name) (retrieved 2026-09-29)
- Kentucky DHBC — License Search and Verification (link recorded from DHBC's site navigation; the search page itself was not opened in our research) (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 Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Division of Plumbing.