Florida plumbing license requirements and insurance

Who it applies to

1Who needs a plumbing license in Florida? What is this?

Florida has 2 license types that matter to a plumber. The Certified Plumbing Contractor needs four years in the trade, at least one of them as a foreman. College credits can replace some of it in three set combinations. One year as a foreman plus three years of credits. One year as a skilled worker, one as a foreman, plus two years of credits. Two years as a skilled worker, one as a foreman, plus one year of credits.

License	Who needs it	What it covers
Certified Plumbing Contractor	—	Statewide
Registered Plumbing Contractor	—	Only in the county or city that gave you a local competency card

License

Who needs it

What it covers

Certified Plumbing Contractor

—

Statewide

Registered Plumbing Contractor

—

Only in the county or city that gave you a local competency card

Who runs it

2Who issues plumber licenses in Florida? What is this?

Florida DBPR, Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) issues plumbing licenses in Florida.

See how this compares in every state: How to check a contractor's license, state by state

Name	Florida DBPR, Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB)
Website	myfloridalicense.com
Look up a license	myfloridalicense.com
The law	Florida Statutes chapter 489 part I
The rulebook	Florida Administrative Code chapter 61G4
Group	II (specialty trade)

Checked by a person against the official page

Getting licensed

3How to become a plumber in Florida What is this?

Florida has 2 licenses that matter to a plumber: Certified Plumbing Contractor, Registered Plumbing Contractor. Each is below, with what you need before you apply.

License	Experience required	Exam
Certified Plumbing Contractor	Four years in the trade, at least one of them as a foreman. College credits can replace some of it in three set combinations. One year as a foreman plus three years of credits. One year as a skilled worker, one as a foreman, plus two years of credits. Two years as a skilled worker, one as a foreman, plus one year of credits	Yes, a business and finance exam plus a trade exam, run by Professional Testing
Registered Plumbing Contractor	—	—

License

Experience required

Exam

Certified Plumbing Contractor

Four years in the trade, at least one of them as a foreman. College credits can replace some of it in three set combinations. One year as a foreman plus three years of credits. One year as a skilled worker, one as a foreman, plus two years of credits. Two years as a skilled worker, one as a foreman, plus one year of credits

Yes, a business and finance exam plus a trade exam, run by Professional Testing

Registered Plumbing Contractor

—

What it costs

4How much does a plumbing license cost in Florida? What is this?

The government fees on this page add up to about $495 in Florida. Add insurance, tools, and a vehicle to get the real number.

License	Application (as currently charged)	Application (legal maximum)	Application with exam (legal maximum)	First certificate (legal maximum)	Renewal (as currently charged)	Renewal (legal maximum)
Certified Plumbing Contractor	245 if you apply between 1 May of an even year and 31 August of an odd year. 145 from 1 September of an odd year to 30 April of an even year	$150	$350	$250	205 plus 50 business qualification fee if qualifying a business	$250
Registered Plumbing Contractor	—	$100	—	—	—	$200

Added up

Government fees, added up	$495

The $245 application in the first part of the cycle plus the $250 certificate fee. Does not include the exam fees, insurance premiums, the 14-hour course, tools, a vehicle, or local business tax receipts

Our estimate

Insurance

5How much plumbing insurance do you need in Florida? What is this?

The least liability insurance Florida lets a plumber work with is $100,000 for injury and $25,000 for property damage. Most customers ask for more. Workers' comp is required as soon as you have one employee (the rule for construction trades).

Minimum liability insurance (injury)	$100,000
Minimum liability insurance (property damage)	$25,000
Who this applies to	All specialty trades, including plumbing
Who must be named on the certificate	The licensing board must be named as certificate holder on your insurance certificate
Workers' comp required?	Yes, as soon as you have one employee (the rule for construction trades)
Who can opt out	Owners can opt themselves out. Officers and LLC members who own at least 10 percent can file an exemption for a $50 fee, renewed every 2 years

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·2 official pages

Money checks

6Does Florida check your credit for a plumber license? What is this?

Florida checks your finances before it trusts you with a license. The rule: FICO 660 or higher.

Credit score you need	FICO 660 or higher
If your score is lower	14-hour board-approved financial responsibility course
Bond instead	Not offered in practice. The board's rule gives one way out of the credit score, the 14-hour course, and does not list a bond. The law does allow the board to write bonding into its money rules, capped at $10,000 for Division II, which is where plumbing sits, but the rule in force does not use it

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·3 official pages

Bonds

7Does a plumber need a bond in Florida? What is this?

Florida does not require a state bond for this license. Some cities ask for one before they issue permits.

Does the state require a bond?	No

Florida uses the credit score rule instead. The law lets the board ask for a bond of up to $10,000 for specialty trades if it chooses

Checked by a person against the official page·leg.state.fl.us

Showing your number

8Where must a Florida plumber show the license number? What is this?

In Florida: your license number must appear on every ad, quote, bid, and contract, online or on paper.

The rule	Your license number must appear on every ad, quote, bid, and contract, online or on paper
If you forget	A warning the first time, then a fine if you do not fix it within 30 days or it happens again

Checked by a person against the official page·leg.state.fl.us

Tax

9Does a plumber charge sales tax on labor in Florida? What is this?

In Florida, you pay sales tax when you buy the materials and charge the customer no tax at all, on labor or materials. This applies when you quote one price, cost plus, a fixed fee, or time and materials. The rest of the rules are below.

See how this compares in every state: Can you charge sales tax on labor? The rule in 25 states

Work that becomes part of the building	You pay sales tax when you buy the materials and charge the customer no tax at all, on labor or materials. This applies when you quote one price, cost plus, a fixed fee, or time and materials
Counted as part of the building	Kitchen and bathroom sinks, furnaces, central air conditioning units, built-in cabinets, wired lighting
Repairs to things that are not part of the building	Charge tax on the whole bill if you used any parts; a labor-only repair has no tax, but keep a record showing no parts were used
When you sell the parts and install them as two prices	Buy the materials tax-free with a resale certificate and charge the customer tax on the materials only
Do you register to collect tax?	Usually no, unless you also sell parts or equipment to customers without installing them
Tax rate	6 percent state plus county discretionary surtax

Checked by a person against the official page·floridarevenue.com

Getting paid

10Getting paid: lien and notice deadlines for a Florida plumber What is this?

If you are not paid in Florida, a lien on the property is your backstop, but only if your notice goes out on time: before you start, or within 45 days of your first day on the job.

The order things have to happen in, counted in days

Day 0
Your first day on the job
The clock starts here.
Day 45
Send your notice
Before you start, or within 45 days of your first day on the job
Day 90
File your lien
Within 90 days of your last day on the job

Each day count is counted from the day the rule beside it names, which is not always the same day. Read the sentence under each one.

Do you have to send a notice?	Yes, if you were hired by the contractor rather than the property owner (workers paid by the hour are exempt)
Send your notice by	Before you start, or within 45 days of your first day on the job
File your lien by	Within 90 days of your last day on the job

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·2 official pages

Keeping it

11How do you renew a plumbing license in Florida? What is this?

The Certified Plumbing Contractor renews on this cycle: biennial, expires Aug 31 of even-numbered years.

License	Renewal	Training hours each renewal
Certified Plumbing Contractor	Biennial, expires Aug 31 of even-numbered years	14 (1 hour each in workplace safety, business practices, workers' compensation, laws and rules, and an advanced building code module)

License

Renewal

Training hours each renewal

Certified Plumbing Contractor

Biennial, expires Aug 31 of even-numbered years

14 (1 hour each in workplace safety, business practices, workers' compensation, laws and rules, and an advanced building code module)

Renewal fees are in what the license costs. The official page for each license is linked under how you get it.

Watch out

12What catches people out in Florida What is this?

The things people get wrong or do not expect about Florida, in a few sentences.

Florida's minimum insurance for a plumbing contractor is $100,000 for injury and $25,000 for property damage. Many websites say $300,000. That is the figure for general and building contractors in the same rule.
Florida checks your credit before it licenses you. You need a FICO score of 660, or you take a 14-hour course instead.
The application fee depends on where you are in the two-year renewal cycle, so the same license can cost more or less depending on the month you apply.
A sink you install becomes part of the building for sales tax. You pay tax when you buy it and charge the customer nothing on the sink or on your labor.
Your license number must be on every ad, quote, bid, and contract. The first miss gets a warning. After that, a fine.
Plumbers hired by a contractor, not the homeowner, must send a Notice to Owner within 45 days of starting. Miss it and you cannot file a lien if you are not paid.

Checked by a person against the official page

·5 official pages

13Where these numbers come from

The labels under each table are explained on how to read a page.