Georgia Plumbing Contractor License Cost & Requirements (2026)
Georgia is stricter about plumbing than most states in one specific way: it licenses the hands, not just the business. Every person who performs plumbing work in Georgia, employees included, must personally hold a Master Plumber or Journeyman Plumber license from the Division of Master Plumbers and Journeyman Plumbers of the State Construction Industry Licensing Board. This page covers the Master license, in its Class I (Restricted) and Class II (Unrestricted) forms; the journeyman license it builds on is mapped alongside it.
This page was rebuilt in October 2026 from the board's fee schedule effective June 1, 2025 and the PSI examination structure. Georgia's plumbing examinations are the longest in the state's construction system, seven hours for a master, and its fees changed in 2025: the application is now $110 in total, not the $30 that older guides still quote.
Georgia Plumbing Contractor Fee Estimator
Regulatory fee breakdown for Master Plumber, Class I (Restricted) or Class II (Unrestricted)
Itemized Fee Schedule
State Licensing Board for Residential and General Contractors (Georgia Secretary of State)
All applications and exams must be registered directly with this board.
Fee figures on this page were checked against Georgia State Construction Industry Licensing Board — Division of Master Plumbers and Journeyman Plumbers; fee schedule effective June 1, 2025 on October 30, 2026. View the official source
Regulatory & Licensing Requirements Summary
| Official License Classification | Master Plumber, Class I (Restricted) or Class II (Unrestricted) |
| Minimum Experience | 5 Years (Journeyman / Field Supervisor) |
| Mandatory State Surety Bond | Not required at state level (Local permits may apply) |
| General Liability Insurance | $500,000 for General Contractor Division licenses; $300,000 per occurrence for Residential-Basic (GA Rules Ch. 553). |
| Estimated Application Processing Time | Not published by the board |
| Renewal Cycle & CE Requirement | Every 2 year(s) with 4 hours of Continuing Education |
Warning: Unlicensed Contracting Penalties in Georgia
Misdemeanor: a fine of not less than $1,000 and/or up to 3 months' imprisonment per offense (§43-41-12(a)). A contract with an unlicensed contractor is unenforceable by the contractor, including mechanic's lien and bond claims (§43-41-17(a)).
Note: In many states, unlicensed contractors also lose the ability to file mechanic's liens or sue for non-payment in civil courts.
Special Statutory Notes for Georgia
Georgia licenses the person, not just the business, and that is the first thing an incoming master plumber has to absorb. Every individual performing plumbing work in Georgia, employees included, must hold a Master Plumber or Journeyman Plumber license from the Division of Master Plumbers and Journeyman Plumbers of the Georgia State Construction Industry Licensing Board (Secretary of State), and journeymen work under a master's supervision. This note covers the Master license.
It requires five years of plumbing experience, including at least two years as a licensed journeyman. Class I (Restricted) covers single-family dwellings, one-level two-family dwellings and commercial buildings under 10,000 square feet. Class II (Unrestricted) covers all plumbing work and requires commercial or industrial experience.
The examinations, through PSI, run 7 hours: 144 questions for Class I and 168 for Class II, including pre-test questions and a Georgia Business & Law and design section, with 70% required to pass. The fee is $207. The Journeyman license beneath it requires three years of experience and a 120-question, 5-hour examination at the same fees.
Fees follow the board's fee schedule effective June 1, 2025: application $100 plus $10 processing ($110 in total), on-time renewal $110, late renewal $210, reinstatement of a lapsed license $310 in total. Guides still quoting a $30 application or a $75 renewal are using the pre-June-2025 schedule. Continuing education is 4 hours per year under board Rule 121-4. Plumbing licenses expire November 30 of even-numbered years. There is no surety bond for this license.
Georgia licenses contractors through the State Licensing Board for Residential and General Contractors, in four categories: Residential-Basic, Residential-Light Commercial, General Contractor, and General Contractor Limited Tier. Specialty trades such as electrical, plumbing and conditioned air are licensed by separate boards.
Master Class I, Master Class II, and the journeyman beneath
The Master license requires five years of plumbing experience, at least two of them spent as a licensed journeyman: Georgia builds its masters out of its own journeymen rather than admitting experience alone. Class I (Restricted) then limits the work to single-family dwellings, one-level two-family dwellings, and commercial buildings under 10,000 square feet.
Class II (Unrestricted) removes the limits and, in exchange, requires documented experience in commercial or industrial plumbing systems. The journeyman license below requires three years of experience (a technical-school diploma in engineering technology can be credited with up to two years of it, a certificate with one) and authorizes plumbing work under a master's supervision.
The personal-licensing rule is the page's most important sentence for employers: in Georgia an unlicensed helper cannot legally perform plumbing work under a licensed company's umbrella the way they can in many states. The people on the tools hold journeyman or master licenses themselves, which is why Georgia plumbing businesses plan hiring around the license pipeline, not just around experience.
The examinations: five hours, then seven
Both examinations are administered by PSI in two parts with a break, scored at 70% to pass, and priced at $207. The journeyman examination is 120 questions in five hours (100 scored questions plus 20 pre-test).
The master examinations run seven hours: 144 questions for Class I and 168 for Class II, the counts including pre-test questions, and both master papers add a Georgia Business & Law component and a section on administrative requirements and plumbing system design, which is what lifts them from trade tests into contracting tests. Results are given at the center on the day.
The application, $110 in total under the June 2025 schedule ($100 plus $10 processing), goes to the board first: the board approves the experience evidence, and only then is the candidate authorized to schedule with PSI. Three references are required, at least one from a licensed master plumber. There is no surety bond for a Georgia plumbing license, and no license fee beyond the application and examination: a first master license costs $317 in total charges.
Renewal on an even-year November cycle
Plumbing is the division whose calendar catches people, because it does not match the electricians'. Master and journeyman licenses expire on November 30 of even-numbered years. Renewal is $110 in total under the current schedule, late renewal $210, reinstatement $310, all of which replaced the older $75 and $35 figures in June 2025. Continuing education is four hours per year under Rule 121-4, eight across the cycle, for masters and journeymen alike, completed with an approved provider and documented with the renewal.
Around the license sit its satellites. A Medical Gas Systems Certification, for the specialised piping of hospitals and clinics, is available to current master and journeyman licensees who complete an approved medical gas program. And the board's reciprocity is narrower in plumbing than in the other divisions: Georgia's published arrangements let some other states accept Georgia examination results, and incoming applicants should expect the examination route unless the board confirms an agreement covers their state and license.
Mistakes that delay a Georgia Plumber application
- Putting unlicensed helpers on plumbing work: Georgia licenses every person who performs plumbing work, employees included. The company's license does not cover unlicensed hands.
- Applying for the master license on experience alone: five years are required, and at least two of them must be as a licensed Georgia journeyman.
- Taking Class I and then bidding a 12,000 square foot commercial job: Class I stops at commercial buildings under 10,000 square feet, and at one-level two-family dwellings on the residential side.
- Working to the electricians' calendar: plumbing licenses expire November 30 of even years, not June 30.
- Trusting pre-2025 fee lists: application and renewal are each $110 in total since June 1, 2025; the $30 application and $35 journeyman renewal no longer exist.
- Underestimating the master examination: seven hours and up to 168 questions, with a business and law and system-design component on top of the trade material.
Georgia Plumber Licensing FAQ
What does a Georgia master plumber license cost in total?
In state and exam charges, $317: an application of $110 in total ($100 plus $10 processing under the fee schedule effective June 1, 2025) and the PSI master examination at $207. The journeyman license on the way up costs the same $110 application and $207 examination. Renewal of either license is $110 in total every two years; there is no surety bond.
What is the difference between Class I and Class II master plumber licenses?
Scope. Class I (Restricted) covers single-family dwellings, one-level two-family dwellings and commercial buildings under 10,000 square feet. Class II (Unrestricted) covers all plumbing work and requires documented commercial or industrial experience. Both need five years of experience including at least two years as a licensed journeyman, and both are examined over seven hours, 144 questions for Class I and 168 for Class II.
Do plumbing employees need their own licenses in Georgia?
Yes. Georgia licenses the individual: every person performing plumbing work, including employees of a licensed business, must hold a Master Plumber or Journeyman Plumber license, and journeymen work under a master's supervision. That is stricter than states where only the contracting business is licensed, and it shapes how Georgia plumbing firms hire and train.
How do I become a journeyman plumber in Georgia?
Document three years of plumbing experience (a technical-school diploma in engineering technology can count for up to two years, a certificate for one), apply to the board with three references, at least one from a licensed master plumber, and pass the PSI journeyman examination: 120 questions over five hours at 70%, costing $207, on an application of $110 in total. The license renews on November 30 of even years with four hours of continuing education per year.
How much continuing education does a Georgia plumber need?
Four hours per year under Rule 121-4, eight hours per two-year cycle, for both master and journeyman licensees, from approved providers, documented with the renewal application. Plumbing licenses expire November 30 of even-numbered years, a different calendar from the electrical division's June 30.
How long is the Georgia plumbing exam, and what does it cover?
The journeyman examination is 120 questions across five hours in two parts; the master examinations run seven hours, 144 questions for Class I and 168 for Class II, all counts including pre-test questions, with 70% required to pass.
The master papers add a Georgia Business & Law component and a section on administrative requirements and plumbing system design to the trade material: general laws and regulations, work planning, pipe cutting and joining, installation, testing, maintenance and safety, and the trade's calculations. The PSI candidate bulletin for your class is the authoritative list of topics and sitting rules.
How much does a Plumbing Contractor license cost in Georgia?
The filing and licensing fees on the Georgia Plumbing Contractor schedule total approximately $317. This consists of a $110 application fee, a $207 examination fee, and a $0 initial license fee.
How long does it take to get a Plumbing Contractor license in Georgia?
State Licensing Board for Residential and General Contractors (Georgia Secretary of State) does not publish a fixed end-to-end processing time for this license.
What are the penalties for working as an unlicensed Plumber in Georgia?
Misdemeanor: a fine of not less than $1,000 and/or up to 3 months' imprisonment per offense (§43-41-12(a)). A contract with an unlicensed contractor is unenforceable by the contractor, including mechanic's lien and bond claims (§43-41-17(a)).
How often do you need to renew a Plumber license in Georgia?
Licenses must be renewed every 2 year(s) with a renewal fee of $110. You must also complete 4 hours of approved Continuing Education (CE).