Texas plumbing license requirements and insurance
To work for yourself as a plumber in Texas, you need the Master Plumber license. Texas has 3 plumbing license types, and which one you need depends on the work you take on. The state's minimum liability insurance is $300,000, and workers' comp is your choice. The state does not ask for a bond.
1Who needs a plumbing license in Texas? What is this?
Responsible Master Plumber (RMP): the license you need to run your own plumbing business, pull permits, and put your number on invoices
| License | Who needs it |
|---|---|
| Journeyman Plumber | Lets you work for a plumbing business. You cannot pull permits or run your own business with this alone |
| Master Plumber | The step before running your own business. Lets you supervise journeymen |
| Responsible Master Plumber (RMP) | The license you need to run your own plumbing business, pull permits, and put your number on invoices |
2Who issues plumber licenses in Texas? What is this?
Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE) issues plumbing licenses in Texas.
See how this compares in every state: How to check a contractor's license, state by state
| Name | Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE) |
|---|---|
| Website | tsbpe.texas.gov |
| Look up a license | vo.licensing.hpc.texas.gov |
3How to become a plumber in Texas What is this?
Texas has 3 licenses that matter to a plumber: Journeyman Plumber, Master Plumber, Responsible Master Plumber (RMP). Each is below, with what you need before you apply.
| License | Experience required | Training required | Exam |
|---|---|---|---|
| Journeyman Plumber | 8,000 hours of plumbing work (about four years full time) under a Responsible Master Plumber, while registered as an apprentice or licensed as a Tradesman Plumber-Limited | 48 hours of classes (two 6-hour courses, OSHA 10, an 8-hour plumbing code class, and an 18-hour commercial code class), unless you are in an approved apprenticeship program | Yes, a board exam taken at a Pearson VUE test center |
| Master Plumber | Two years as a licensed journeyman, or one year plus an approved apprenticeship program | — | Yes |
| Responsible Master Plumber (RMP) | — | — | — |
4How much does a plumbing license cost in Texas? What is this?
The government fees on this page add up to about $400 in Texas. Add insurance, tools, and a vehicle to get the real number.
| License | First license | Renewal | Exam application | Exam sitting (paid to Pearson VUE) | Exam sitting (paid to Pearson VUE) | Exam processing | Fingerprinting (paid to IdentoGO) | First application | Late renewal, over 90 days late | Late renewal, under 90 days late |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Journeyman Plumber | $40 | $40 | $40 | $68.5 | — | — | $39.05 | — | $40 | $20 |
| Master Plumber | $75 | $75 | — | — | $128.5 | $25 | — | — | $75 | $37.5 |
| Responsible Master Plumber (RMP) | — | $300 | — | — | — | — | — | $225 | $300 | $150 |
Added up
| Government fees, added up | $400 |
|---|
Does not include insurance premiums, tools, a vehicle, or city permits
5How much plumbing insurance do you need in Texas? What is this?
The least liability insurance Texas lets a plumber work with is $300,000. Most customers ask for more. Workers' comp is your choice.
| Minimum liability insurance | $300,000 |
|---|---|
| Type of policy | Commercial liability insurance |
| Who this applies to | The Responsible Master Plumber, meaning the business |
| Who must be named on the certificate | The plumbing board must be named on your insurance certificate |
| Workers' comp required? | No |
| Workers' comp: what to know | Texas does not make private employers carry workers' comp. If you skip it, you must tell the state Division of Workers' Compensation that you have opted out, and report any injury that costs more than one day of work. |
6Does Texas check your credit for a plumber license? What is this?
Texas does not check your credit for this license.
| Credit score you need | None. Texas does not check your credit for this license |
|---|---|
| If your score is lower | Not needed |
| How we know | The plumbing rules run to four chapters, and the licensing one, 22 TAC chapter 365, has no section about a bond, a surety, financial responsibility, net worth, or credit |
7Does a plumber need a bond in Texas? What is this?
Texas 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 |
|---|
The state does not ask for one. Some cities do before they let you pull permits, so check with your city.
8Where must a Texas plumber show the license number? What is this?
In Texas: the first page of every quote, invoice, and contract carries four things, in letters at least 12 point. The Responsible Master Plumber's first and last name. Their license number. The phrase "regulated by the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners". And the board's mailing address, phone number, and website.
| On quotes, contracts, and invoices |
|
|---|---|
| On ads |
|
| On your vehicles |
|
9Does a plumber charge sales tax on labor in Texas? What is this?
In Texas, no sales tax. 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
| Labor on homes (repairs and remodels) | No sales tax |
|---|---|
| Repairs and remodels on businesses | You charge tax on the whole bill, labor and materials |
| Labor on new buildings | No sales tax |
| Materials, when you quote one total price | You pay tax when you buy the materials and do not charge the customer |
| Materials, when you list them separately | You buy materials tax-free with a resale certificate and charge the customer tax on them |
10Getting paid: lien and notice deadlines for a Texas plumber What is this?
If you are not paid in Texas, a lien on the property is your backstop, but only if your notice goes out on time: the 15th of the third month after the month you did the work (work done in January means notice by April 15).
| Who has to send a notice | Subcontractors and suppliers who were hired by the contractor, not by the property owner |
|---|---|
| Business jobs: send your notice by | The 15th of the third month after the month you did the work (work done in January means notice by April 15) |
| Home jobs: send your notice by | The 15th of the second month after the month you did the work (work done in January means notice by March 15) |
| Business jobs: file your lien by | The 15th of the fourth month after your last day of work |
| Home jobs: file your lien by | The 15th of the third month after your last day of work |
11How do you renew a plumbing license in Texas? What is this?
The Responsible Master Plumber (RMP) renews every year.
| License | Renewal | Training hours each year |
|---|---|---|
| Journeyman Plumber | Annual | — |
| Master Plumber | Annual | — |
| Responsible Master Plumber (RMP) | Annual | — |
Renewal fees are in what the license costs. The official page for each license is linked under how you get it.
12What catches people out in Texas What is this?
The things people get wrong or do not expect about Texas, in a few sentences.
- Texas does not license a plumbing business as such. The business runs under one person, the Responsible Master Plumber, and that person's license number goes on your invoices, your quotes, your adverts, and both sides of your work trucks.
- Workers' comp is optional in Texas. If you go without it you must tell the state you have opted out, and you lose some legal protection if a worker is hurt.
- Sales tax on your labor depends on the building, not the job. A repair in a home has no tax. The same repair in a business is taxed on the whole bill.
- To keep the right to file a lien on a house, a subcontractor must send notice by the 15th of the second month after the work. Commercial jobs allow one extra month.
- The $300,000 insurance minimum is the state floor for the Responsible Master Plumber. Many customers and builders will ask to see $1,000,000.
13Where these numbers come from
The labels under each table are explained on how to read a page.
- tsbpe.texas.gov/wp-content/uploads/forms/TSBPE_JourneymanPlumberExamationApplication.pdf
- tsbpe.texas.gov/license-types/journeyman/
- tsbpe.texas.gov/license-types/
- tsbpe.texas.gov/license-types/master-plumber/
- tsbpe.texas.gov/license-types/responsible-master-plumber/
- tdi.texas.gov/wc/employer/index.html
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/texas/title-22/part-17/chapter-365
- texas.public.law/statutes/tex._occ._code_section_1301.351
- tsbpe.texas.gov/wp-content/uploads/documents/TSBPE_PlumbingLicenseLaw(PlainView)_June2023.pdf
- law.cornell.edu/regulations/texas/22-Tex-Admin-Code-SS-367-10
- tsbpe.texas.gov/wp-content/uploads/documents/TSBPE_AdministrativeRules_March2026.pdf
- comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/publications/94-116.php
- texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_53.056
- texas.public.law/statutes/tex._prop._code_section_53.052