How to get a Certified Plumbing Contractor license in Florida

Florida plumber licenses

Florida issues 2 plumber credentials. Each has its own section below; the table shows what each one covers and its headline requirements.

Applies to every license level

These rules are the same for every Florida plumber license on this page, so they are shown once here. Each license's own section lists only what differs.

Requirements

Minimum age

18 years old¹¹¹²

Background check

Background check required⁴
Fingerprints required⁴
Felony convictions may lead to denial based on severity and relationship to contracting; good moral character is required for certification.⁴

Insurance

Public liability $100,000 and property damage $25,000 (plumbing contractor), by signed affidavit; the certificate holder on the policy must be the State of Florida, DBPR, CILB.¹³

Insurance

Workers' compensation insurance, or an exemption obtained within 30 days of license issuance.¹¹¹²

Business requirements

Financial responsibility: a current consumer credit report with no unsatisfied judgments or liens, and a FICO score of 660 or higher (or a Board-approved 14-hour financial responsibility course).¹⁴

Business requirements

To contract through a company, qualify the business organization (separate application; $50 fee).⁶

Also required

Plumbing contractors who work on medical gas systems need a Board-approved 32-hour medical gas course.¹⁵

Fees

Each line is a separate charge as the board lists it. The board does not publish a combined total, so none is shown here.

How to apply

1. Submit Livescan fingerprints through an FDLE-registered provider immediately after applying.¹¹¹²

Apply online

myfloridalicense.com¹⁷

Renewal

How often

Every 2 years⁴

When it expires

Certificates and registrations are renewed every 2 years (biennial renewal).⁶

Renewal fee

$200⁶

Continuing education

At least 14 hours each renewal period⁷

Required topics

1 hour each: Florida Building Commission/Board-approved specialized or advanced module, workplace safety, business practices, workers' compensation, and laws and rules of the construction industry; the rest may be general topics.⁷

Approved courses

Courses must come from a Board-approved continuing education provider; up to 4 hours can be earned by attending a Board disciplinary meeting.⁷

Exemptions

No CE for the year the license is first issued; 7 hours at the first renewal if licensed more than 12 months before the end of the biennium.⁷
No CE while inactive, but 14 hours are needed to reactivate.⁷
Spouses of Armed Forces members absent from Florida because of the spouse's duties are exempt from renewal provisions.¹⁸

Late renewal

Late renewal fee: $25⁶
Late renewal fee: $25⁶ (qualified business organization)
Biennial renewal for certification and registration on inactive status: $50⁶ (inactive status)

If it expires

A license becomes null and void after it is not renewed for two consecutive cycles; reinstatement requires showing illness or economic hardship ($100 fee), otherwise you must apply as a new licensee.¹⁹

Renew online

myfloridalicense.com¹⁷

Who needs a Certified Plumbing Contractor license

Unlimited plumbing contracting: install, maintain, repair, alter, extend or (if not prohibited by law) design plumbing, including drainage, water supply, venting, gas piping, wells, pool and irrigation piping, solar water heating and medical gas systems.¹⁰

Exemptions and dollar thresholds:

• Casual, minor or inconsequential work under $2,500 total (labour, materials and everything else) is exempt, unless part of a larger job or split to evade the law, or the person advertises as a contractor.²⁰
• Owner-builders supervising work on their own one- or two-family home (not for sale or lease) are exempt.²⁰

Requirements for a Certified Plumbing Contractor license

The rules this license shares with every other level are under Applies to every license level.

Education or training

Optional route: a baccalaureate degree in mechanical or sanitary engineering from an accredited 4-year college plus 1 year of proven plumbing experience.²
Alternative: College credits can replace up to 3 of the 4 years of experience (1 year must be as a foreman).²

Experience

At least 4 years²
At least 4 years of active experience as a skilled worker who learned the trade through apprenticeship (able to command a mechanic's rate) or as a foreman; at least 1 of the 4 years must be as a foreman.¹¹
Supervision: Experience must be lawfully acquired under a contractor properly licensed in plumbing (or a category covering its full scope); work done under 489.103 exemptions does not count.²¹
Substitute: Up to 3 years of active military duty can count toward the 4 years (plus 1 year as a foreman).²²

Exam

Florida Certified Plumbing Contractor examination (Business and Finance + Plumbing trade knowledge)³
Given by: Professional Testing, Inc. (registration, development, scoring; paper-and-pencil plumbing trade exam) and Pearson VUE (computer-based Business and Finance test).²³
Passing score: 70% on each test³
When you can take it: Apply to Professional Testing, Inc. at least 30 days before the exam date; meet all licensing requirements before applying for the exam.²⁴
Test 1: business and financial management of a contracting firm.³
Open book, multiple choice; bring approved references.²³
Retakes: Retake only the failed test(s), paying the re-exam fee; all tests must be passed within 4 years of the first attempt.²⁴
Time limit: A passing grade is valid for 4 years from the most recently passed part.²⁵
Exam waived: Trade-knowledge parts can be waived for a current, active licensee who has passed the Business and Finance exam and holds a building-construction bachelor's degree from an accredited 4-year college with a GPA of 3.0 or higher; a registered (local) contractor may be certified without the state exam under the grandfathering route (current registered local license, a written exam the Board finds substantially similar, and at least 5 years as a contractor in the category).²⁶

How much a Certified Plumbing Contractor license costs

You pay CILB (4 fees), Professional Testing, Inc. (or DBPR) (2 fees) and Pearson VUE / Professional Testing, Inc. (or DBPR) (2 fees).

Each line is a separate charge as the board lists it. The board does not publish a combined total, so none is shown here.

How to apply

1. Confirm you meet the 4-year experience (or degree/college-credit) route; passing the exam alone does not qualify you.²⁷
2. Apply to take the exam with Professional Testing, Inc. (form CILB 1) at least 30 days before an exam date; the plumbing trade test is paper-and-pencil, Business and Finance is computer-based at Pearson VUE.²³ myfloridalicense.com²⁷
3. Pass both tests with at least 70% each.³
4. Apply for the license (CILB 5-M as an individual or 6-M to qualify a business) online, with a credit report, the insurance affidavit and the fees; link your exam candidate ID in DBPR Online Services.¹¹ myfloridalicense.com¹¹

Renewal and continuing education

Moving to Florida with a license from another state

These are the routes CILB publishes for the Certified Plumbing Contractor license. The other plumber licenses have their own routes in their sections below.

Registered Plumbing Contractor

Plumbing contracting limited to the counties/cities where you hold a local certificate of competency, and only for the work it covers.¹

Requirements

Experience

Set by the local licensing authority that issued your certificate of competency; no state experience test for registration.¹
License you must hold first: Local plumbing certificate of competency in your name matching the category.¹²

Exam

Not required¹

Also required

Report each local jurisdiction and category where you hold a certificate of competency to the Board within 30 days.¹

Fees

How to apply

1. Obtain a plumbing certificate of competency from your county or city licensing board (local exam and experience rules apply).¹²
2. Apply to the CILB for registration (CILB 2 individual, CILB 3 to qualify a business) with a credit report, the insurance affidavit and fees.¹² myfloridalicense.com¹²
3. After 5 years licensed and registered, with a substantially similar written exam, you may apply to become certified statewide (grandfathering, $100).²⁹

From another state

Military service members, veterans and spouses: Veterans can count up to 3 years of active duty toward the experience requirement (plus 1 year as a foreman); active-duty members, honourably discharged veterans and spouses licensed elsewhere can apply on form MVL 003 without a Florida exam.²²

The rules this license shares with every other level are under Applies to every license level.

No state license for journeyman plumbers

Florida does not issue a state license for journeyman plumbers.⁵

The official wording

“There is no State of Florida requirement for anyone to hold a Journeyman Certificate of Competency.”⁵

Hillsborough County, Florida (Development Services, Contractor Licensing)

City and county rules

Local journeyman license standard: 75% on a proctored Board-approved journeyman exam, a registered state-approved apprenticeship or 12,000 hours on-the-job training, and Florida Building Code module coursework; every county/city must recognize another Florida jurisdiction's journeyman license.³¹

Registered Plumbing ContractorRegistration is built on a county/city certificate of competency in plumbing; local boards set the exam and experience rules (e.g. Miami-Dade CTQB, Jacksonville CTQB).¹

Check a license or report a problem

Before you hire a plumber in Florida, you can confirm the license is current on the board's own search. Every board we cover in Florida is on the Florida license lookup page.

Look up a license

myfloridalicense.com¹⁷

File a complaint

myfloridalicense.com¹⁷

Laws and rules

The requirements above come from these laws and board rules.

• Fla. Stat. § 489.105(3)(m) (plumbing contractor definition)
• Fla. Stat. § 489.109
• Fla. Stat. § 489.111 (licensure by examination)
• Fla. Stat. § 489.115 (certification and registration; endorsement; renewal; CE)
• Fla. Stat. § 455.2281
• Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G4-12.009, amended 10-30-17
• Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G4-16.001(12) (plumbing contractor examination)
• Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G4-18.001 (continuing education)
• Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G4-15.003 (public liability insurance)
• Fla. Stat. § 489.118 (certification of registered contractors; grandfathering)
• Fla. Stat. § 489.1131 (military training credit)
• Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G4-16.009 (examination and reexamination)
• Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G4-15.006 (financial responsibility)
• Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G4-15.031 (medical gas certification)
• Fla. Stat. § 489.117 (registration)
• Fla. Stat. § 489.118 (certification of registered contractors)
• Fla. Admin. Code R. 61G4-15.030 (certification of registered contractors)

Common questions

Plumber licenses in other states

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