Your Maine plumbing license hours only start counting the day your trainee license is issued. Work you did before that, even for a real master plumber, does not count toward the 4,000 hours you need for journeyman. So if you’re helping out on plumbing jobs right now without a trainee license, get licensed first. It costs $121 and it’s the cheapest mistake to avoid on this whole list.
Who licenses plumbers in Maine
Plumbing licenses in Maine come from the Maine Plumbers’ Examining Board, which sits inside the Office of Professional and Occupational Regulation (OPOR). The rules live in Title 32, Chapter 49 of the Maine statutes and the board’s own rules.
This is a state license, not a town one. Maine law says a municipality can’t require plumbers to hold a local license. Towns still handle permits, though, and a town can’t issue you a plumbing permit unless it’s satisfied you comply with the state plumbing law. So you get your license from the state and your permits from the town.
One exception worth knowing: a homeowner can do plumbing in the single-family home they live in (or will live in) without a license, as long as the work meets the board’s laws and rules.
License types
The board issues four individual licenses:
- Trainee Plumber. Your starting point. You assist on installs under the direct supervision of a licensed journeyman or master. No exam. Minimum age is 16. A master or journeyman can’t supervise more than 3 trainees at once.
- Journeyman-in-Training. A shortcut for people who finish a plumbing school program. You still work under a journeyman or master, and you can’t call yourself a journeyman. It’s good for one 4-year term, can’t be renewed, and is only issued to you once.
- Journeyman Plumber. You do plumbing and drainage work under the employment and direction of a master plumber.
- Master Plumber. The license to be in the business of installing plumbing. If you want to run your own shop, this is the one you need.
Hours and schooling
Maine counts hours of licensed work, plus a minimum number of years. Here’s what the statute and the board require:
- Journeyman, trainee route: at least 2 years and 4,000 hours as a licensed trainee under a master plumber.
- Journeyman, school route: finish one year (2 semesters) of plumbing at a board-approved technical or community college, a registered Department of Labor apprenticeship, or an approved career and technical education program. Pass the journeyman exam, get your journeyman-in-training license, then log 2,000 hours under a master within 4 years of getting that license.
- Master: at least 1 year and 2,000 hours as a licensed journeyman, or at least 4 years and 8,000 hours as a licensed trainee under a master.
Your supervising master signs an affidavit confirming your dates and hours. Keep your own records too.
If you’re a student in a technical college, community college, or career and technical program, the board has a separate educational trainee license. The application form lists no fee for it, and it only covers plumbing you do as part of your school program.
Exams
The board contracts with PROV, Inc. to run its exams. They’re computer-based. You can test at PROV sites in Maine or by remote proctor on your own computer if it meets the requirements.
You must get board approval before you schedule. If you test before you’re approved, your score is thrown out. Once you’re approved, the board emails you instructions for booking with PROV.
What PROV’s candidate bulletin says about the plumbing exams:
- Journeyman: 80 questions, 3 hours, closed book. You need 70% to pass.
- Master: 100 questions, 3 hours, closed book. You need 75% to pass.
- Topics: general knowledge, general regulations, water supply and backflow, water heaters, drainage, waste and venting, fixtures, traps and interceptors, indirect waste, and roof drainage.
- Exam fee: PROV lists $65 for each plumbing exam.
Your board approval is good for 2 years. If you don’t pass within that window, or you pass but don’t apply for your license within 2 years, you start over as a new applicant and retake the exam.
Heads up on study materials: Maine adopted the 2021 Uniform Plumbing Code effective January 1, 2022, but PROV’s bulletin still lists the 2015 UPC and older Maine laws and rules as references. Ask the board which code edition your exam is based on before you buy books.
Fees and renewal
Here are the fees on the board’s license page:
- Trainee: $100 license fee plus a $21 criminal background check.
- Journeyman-in-Training: $200 license fee plus $21 background check.
- Journeyman: $200 license fee plus $21 background check.
- Master: $200 license fee plus $21 background check.
The board also mentions an exam application fee but doesn’t list the amount on its exam page. Check the online portal when you apply.
Trainee, journeyman, and master licenses renew every 2 years, based on your first license date. Renewal is $100 for trainees and $200 for journeymen and masters. The journeyman-in-training license doesn’t renew at all.
Miss your date and it gets pricier. Renew within 90 days of expiring and you pay a $50 late fee. Between 90 days and 2 years, the board lists the $200 license fee plus a $100 penalty. After 2 years, you’re treated like a brand new applicant, which means meeting current requirements and passing the exam again.
Online renewal opens 60 days before you expire. A missed reminder email doesn’t excuse a late renewal.
Continuing education
The board doesn’t publish any continuing education requirement for plumbers. Nothing in the license or renewal info we reviewed asks for CE hours to renew. The board did post recorded 2021 UPC training sessions on its site, which are worth watching if you learned on the older code.
Bond and insurance
The Plumbers’ Examining Board doesn’t list a bond or insurance requirement for any of its plumbing licenses. You may still want liability insurance once you run your own jobs, and some customers or contractors may ask for it.
Reciprocity
Maine law says the board shall license someone already licensed in another state if that state’s standards and experience requirements are at least equal to Maine’s and that state gives Maine plumbers the same privilege. You can’t be turned down just because you don’t live in Maine.
The board’s rules let it sign reciprocity agreements with other states, but the board doesn’t publish a list of which states currently qualify. Its exam application also has a separate out-of-state pathway where you document your hours, send a copy of your license, and sit for the Maine exam. Call the board before you apply to find out which route fits you.
How to apply
- Apply online. Since January 1, 2024, the board only processes license, exam, and renewal applications through its online system. Paper, fax, and email applications aren’t processed and aren’t returned.
- Start as a trainee. Apply for your trainee license before you start counting hours.
- Collect your affidavit. When you hit your hours, get your supervising master to sign the work experience affidavit.
- Apply for the exam. Upload your affidavit or school transcripts and wait for board approval by email.
- Schedule and pass with PROV. Then, 24 hours after you pass, apply for your license online.
- Watch your inbox. Licenses are emailed from noreply@maine.gov, so check your spam folder.
Requirements change, so always confirm with the Maine Plumbers’ Examining Board before you apply. This guide is general info, not legal advice.
FAQ
Do I need a license to do plumbing in my own house in Maine?
Not if it’s a single-family home you live in or will live in. The work still has to meet the board’s laws and rules, and your town may still require a permit.
Can a journeyman run their own plumbing business in Maine?
No. A journeyman works under the employment and direction of a master plumber. The master license is the one for being in the business of installing plumbing.
Does Maine require continuing education for plumbers?
The board doesn’t publish a CE requirement for plumbing license renewal. You renew every 2 years by paying the fee online.
How long does it take to become a master plumber in Maine?
At minimum, about 3 years if you go trainee to journeyman (2 years, 4,000 hours) and then journeyman to master (1 year, 2,000 hours). Or you can stay a trainee for 4 years and 8,000 hours and sit for the master exam directly.
Next steps
If you’re comparing states, start with our plumbing license by state page, or read the full plumbing license guide for how licensing works in general. Planning to work south of the border too? See our Massachusetts plumbing license guide. And once your master license is in hand, our guide on how to start a plumbing business walks you through the next part.
