STATE LICENSE
RequiredPlumbers' Examining Board — Office of Pro…
32 M.R.S. § 3302(1) requires a license for any individual engaged in plumbing or performing plumbing installations, except work that needs no permit under 30-A M.R.S. § 4215. A journeyman needs 4,000 hours over at least 2 years as a licensed trainee under a master (or 2,000 hours as a journeyman-in-training) and must pass the journeyman exam with at least 70%; a master needs 2,000 hours as a journeyman (or 8,000 as a trainee) and a 75% score on the master exam (§§ 3501, 3501-A). A master plumber is the license for engaging in the business of installing plumbing, and each master or journeyman may directly supervise no more than 3 trainees.
OPOR lists master and journeyman licenses at $200 per two-year term and a trainee license at $100, plus a $21 background check. Permits are local: every municipality must appoint a state-certified local plumbing inspector (30-A M.R.S. § 4221), and a permit is required before installing plumbing in a building (§ 4215); working without one carries a $100 to $2,500 civil penalty. Towns may not license plumbers themselves (§ 3302(2)), and an owner may plumb the single-family home they occupy if the work meets the plumbing code.
The state sets the license floor; the county or city permit office controls filing, inspections, and local rules wherever the job site sits.
Plumbing licenses are state-only: municipalities may not require plumbers to be municipally licensed and may not issue a plumbing permit unless the applicant complies with the state law (32 M.R.S. § 3302(2)). Permits and inspections are local — each municipality must appoint a plumbing inspector certified by the state (30-A M.R.S. § 4221), who issues permits for plumbing and subsurface wastewater systems at a locally set fee no lower than the state minimum (§ 4215(4)).
The local offices section below names the exact permit desk for every Maine county on file.
Each row names the issuing authority, cost, timeline, citation, and status behind the requirement — verified against the official source.
Published fees from the issuing authorities, as of October 2026. Local permit fees vary by project and jurisdiction — the basis is stated where a flat number does not exist.
Every Maine municipality appoints a state-certified plumbing inspector who issues plumbing permits; the permit fee is set locally above a state minimum.
A master or journeyman plumber may not have more than 3 trainee plumbers under direct supervision (§ 3302(3)).
OPOR sets plumbing fees by rule, capped at $350 biennially for any one purpose (§ 3501-B).
A practical sequence for a new plumbing contractor in Maine. Actual agency processing times are noted in the ledger above.
Each item names the issuing authority, cycle, and citation.
Statutory consequences with their citations — not estimates, not “commonly cited” guesses.
Performing plumbing installations without the required license, or after it has expired or been suspended or revoked.
Installing, or ordering the installation of, plumbing without the required local permit.
Inside city limits, the city office listed here issues the permit; the county office serves unincorporated areas. Every office links to its official page.
| County · City | Permit office | Portal |
|---|---|---|
| Cumberland County Portland (consolidated gov.) | City of Portland Permitting and Inspections Department ↗ | Citizen Self Service (CSS) ↗ |
Every fact in this file was checked against these official sources on October 2026.
Pending verification: Whether plumbing license renewal carries any continuing education requirement under Board rule — OPOR's license pages list none, but the Board's rules were not read · Journeyman-in-training and limited plumbing license fees (not captured from the OPOR page) · The state minimum local plumbing permit fee set by department rule under 30-A M.R.S. § 4215(4)
General information, not legal advice. Always confirm requirements, deadlines, and forms with the issuing authority before filing or contracting.
Store licenses, permits, policies, and renewal dates in one place.