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How to become a plumber in Oregon

To work as a plumber in Oregon, you need your own license from the Oregon Building Codes Division (BCD). The license belongs to you and not to your employer, so you keep it when you change jobs.

See your steps Find an apprenticeship

Your ladder

Dates if you start in Nov 2026 and work 40 hours a week.

  1. ApprenticeStart here
  2. Journeyman plumber (JP)7,700 hours on the job
  3. Plumbing business (PB)Run your own business

First: apply to a registered apprenticeship.

See your steps

Dates are estimates, worked out from the hours on the job each license requires and the hours a week you pick.

Your steps

If you have no experience, you can start in a registered apprenticeship (a paid job with training). As an apprentice, you get paid while you build your hours.

To qualify for the journeyman plumber license, you can complete an Oregon plumbing apprenticeship of at least 4 years. You can also qualify with 7,700 hours on the job and 576 classroom hours.

Steps for: New to the trade. The dates follow your ladder. Change where you are, your start month or your hours a week at the top of the page.

  1. Step 1, Start here

    Apply to a registered apprenticeship

    Apply to a registered plumbing apprenticeship in Oregon. The program hires you, and you get paid while you build your hours.

    An apprenticeship is a paid job with training. You work for an employer and you learn the trade on the job. You can compare 12 registered plumber apprenticeship programs in Oregon by what they pay. Pay on day one runs from $16.12 to $24.31 an hour, and the journey rate (the hourly pay of a fully qualified worker) runs from $32.24 to $60.77 an hour.

    The programs that pay the most at completion

    See all 12 programs

  2. Step 2,

    Complete your apprenticeship

    If you complete an Oregon plumbing apprenticeship of at least 4 years, you meet the experience and classroom requirements for the journeyman plumber license.

  3. Step 3,

    Apply to BCD

    Apply to BCD for the journeyman plumber license and pay the $100 application fee.

  4. Step 4,

    Take the exam

    Take the Oregon journeyman plumber licensing examination. BCD gives the exam.

Other plumber licenses

Journeyman plumber (JP)

Hours on the job
7,700
Fee
$100

The journeyman plumber license requires an Oregon plumbing apprenticeship of at least 4 years, or 7,700 hours on the job and 576 classroom hours. You must also pass the Oregon journeyman plumber licensing examination.

The application fee is $100.

You renew the journeyman plumber license every 3 years. You need 24 hours of continuing education to renew.

Of the 7,700 hours, 3,850 must be commercial work and 3,850 must be residential work.

If you don't have the classroom hours, you need twice the hours of each kind of work.

Limited water-treatment installer (WTI)

Hours on the job
3,000
Fee
$100

The limited water-treatment installer license requires an Oregon apprenticeship in this specialty of at least 18 months. You can also qualify with 3,000 hours of training in indirect waste piping, water supply and water treatment equipment installation, plus 210 hours of experience and training in general items. You must also pass the Oregon limited water-treatment installer licensing examination.

The application fee is $100.

You renew the limited water-treatment installer license every 3 years. You don't need continuing education to renew.

Limited water-heater installer (WHI)

To get the limited water-heater installer license, you must work for a licensed plumbing-electrical contractor or hold that contractor license yourself. You must attend an approved 8-hour training class, and the contractor must sign your application. You must also pass the Oregon limited water-heater installer licensing examination.

The application fee is $100.

You renew the limited water-heater installer license every 3 years. You don't need continuing education to renew.

Solar heating and cooling installer (STL)

Hours on the job
2,000
Fee
$100

The solar heating and cooling installer license requires a training program that BCD approves, with at least 288 classroom hours and 2,000 hours of supervised training on the job. You can also qualify with 2,000 hours of equivalent experience and training in general items, solar thermal plumbing, balance of system equipment and roof mounting. You must also pass the Oregon solar heating and cooling installer licensing examination.

The application fee is $100.

You renew the solar heating and cooling installer license every 3 years. You need 8 hours of continuing education to renew.

To run a plumbing business

Plumbing business (PB)

To get the plumbing business license, the business must hold a Construction Contractors Board license and send BCD proof of it. This license allows you to run your own plumbing business, but it doesn't allow you to work as a journeyman plumber.

The application fee is $150.

You renew the plumbing business license every 3 years.

The Construction Contractors Board license is a separate license, and a plumbing business needs both licenses.

Plumbing business (PB) at BCD

Take the exam

LicenseExam
Journeyman plumber (JP)Oregon journeyman plumber licensing examination
Limited water-treatment installer (WTI)Oregon limited water-treatment installer licensing examination
Limited water-heater installer (WHI)Oregon limited water-heater installer licensing examination
Solar heating and cooling installer (STL)Oregon solar heating and cooling installer licensing examination

BCD gives the exam for each of the 4 licenses for plumbers. Ask BCD what your exam costs.

Use the official name of your exam when you contact BCD.

What plumbers earn in Oregon

$46.66an hour

$97,050 a year, full time

Half of the plumbers on a payroll in Oregon earn more than $46.66 an hour, and half earn less. The federal wage survey puts the yearly figure at $97,050.

These figures cover everyone on a payroll as a plumber in Oregon, from apprentices to people with decades in the trade, so they aren't a starting wage. The survey counts 5,370 jobs. The figures don't include self-employed plumbers.

The yearly figure is for full-time work all year, which is 2,080 hours.

Use a license from another state

If you hold a plumber license from another state, check whether BCD recognizes it. BCD recognizes a license from these states.

Oregon licenseRecognized from
Journeyman plumber (JP)Idaho and Montana

If your license is from any other state, contact BCD before you move and ask whether your license or your hours count toward an Oregon license.

If you move from Oregon to another state, ask the office that issues plumber licenses in that state whether it recognizes your Oregon license.

Questions

How long does it take to become a plumber in Oregon?

An Oregon plumbing apprenticeship takes at least 4 years. If you work full time without an apprenticeship, you reach the 7,700 hours for the journeyman plumber license in about 4 years.

Can you become a plumber with no experience?

Yes. A registered apprenticeship hires you with no experience, and you learn the trade on the job. Once you complete the apprenticeship, you meet the experience and classroom requirements for the journeyman plumber license.

How much does a plumber license cost in Oregon?

The application fee is $100 for each of the 4 licenses for plumbers. The application fee for the plumbing business license is $150.

Contact the licensing office

Check a licenseLook up a license

Words to know

Apprentice
Someone who learns the trade on the job, working under a licensed worker.
Journeyman
The license level after apprentice. Some states write journeyperson, journeyworker or journey level.
JATC
A Joint Apprenticeship and Training Committee, an apprenticeship program run together by a union and contractors.
Continuing education
Classes you take to keep your license.
Reciprocity
An agreement that lets you use a license from one state to get a license in another.
Median
The middle figure. Half of the workers earn more, and half earn less.

Sources

17
  1. Oregon Revised Statutes chapter 693, the plumber licensing chapter
  2. The individual licenses page at the Oregon Building Codes Division
  3. Oregon Revised Statutes chapter 447, which licenses the plumbing contractor
  4. The contractor and business licenses page at the Oregon Building Codes Division
  5. The license search at the Oregon Building Codes Division
  6. Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 state file
  7. The Oregon Building Codes Division's License Reapplication form
  8. Oregon Administrative Rules 918-695-0030, the journeyman plumber qualifications
  9. Oregon Administrative Rules 918-695-0040, the journeyman plumber examination rule
  10. The Journeyman Plumber License Application at the Oregon Building Codes Division
  11. Oregon Administrative Rules 918-030-0210, which sets when a license expires
  12. The reciprocal licenses page at the Oregon Building Codes Division
  13. Oregon Administrative Rules 918-695-0130, the limited specialty plumber rule for water treatment installers
  14. Oregon Administrative Rules 918-695-0120, the limited specialty plumber rule for limited maintenance electrical contractors
  15. Oregon Administrative Rules 918-695-0125, the limited specialty plumber rule for solar heating and cooling system installers
  16. The Instructions for Completing the Single or Combination Contractor/Business License at the Oregon Building Codes Division
  17. Oregon Administrative Rules 918-030-0015, the rule for contractor licenses

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