The essentials
- Licensing authorityFlorida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) — Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) — official site
- Statewide?Yes — Florida licenses at the state level
- Experience required4 years of active experience in the trade, at least 1 year of which must be as a foreman (Fla. Stat. 489.111). Education can substitute: a 4-year degree in engineering, architecture or building construction plus 1 year of proven experience, or combinations of college credit with at least 1 year as a foreman.
- ExamDBPR contractor examinations. Most Division I/II computer-based exams are delivered by Pearson VUE; per DBPR, the Plumbing Trade Knowledge exam is an exception and is given as a paper-and-pencil exam in Tallahassee, Orlando and Miami. Certified applicants must pass both a trade exam and the Business and Finance exam.
- Renewal & CETwo-year cycle. Certified contractors renew by August 31 of even-numbered years; registered contractors renew by August 31 of odd-numbered years. 14 hours of continuing education per biennium, including required one-hour courses in workplace safety, workers' compensation, business practices, advanced building code, and laws and rules.
- Bond / insuranceFor plumbing (a Division II category), DBPR requires $100,000 general/public liability and $25,000 property damage coverage, plus workers' compensation or a valid exemption. Applicants must also show financial responsibility via a credit report; a low score triggers a bond and/or a 14-hour financial responsibility course (Fla. Stat. 489.115 caps board-required bonding at $10,000 for Division II).
- ReciprocityNone we could confirm
License classes in Florida
Florida issues the following classes. Getting the class right matters — several states have residential-only or limited-scope licenses that will not cover commercial or multifamily work:
- Certified Plumbing Contractor (CFC) — Division II state certification; valid in every county and city in Florida
- Registered Plumbing Contractor (RF) — state registration built on a local competency card; work is limited to the jurisdictions where the local license is held
- Plumbing journeyman — not a state license in Florida; issued (where required) by counties and municipalities
Experience and training
4 years of active experience in the trade, at least 1 year of which must be as a foreman (Fla. Stat. 489.111). Education can substitute: a 4-year degree in engineering, architecture or building construction plus 1 year of proven experience, or combinations of college credit with at least 1 year as a foreman.
One thing worth knowing regardless of state: the hours only count if they were logged properly at the time. Several boards require you to register as an apprentice before the clock starts, and hours worked while unregistered are simply gone. If you are early in the trade, get the registration paperwork right now rather than reconstructing it four years later.
The exam
DBPR contractor examinations. Most Division I/II computer-based exams are delivered by Pearson VUE; per DBPR, the Plumbing Trade Knowledge exam is an exception and is given as a paper-and-pencil exam in Tallahassee, Orlando and Miami. Certified applicants must pass both a trade exam and the Business and Finance exam.
Renewal and continuing education
Two-year cycle. Certified contractors renew by August 31 of even-numbered years; registered contractors renew by August 31 of odd-numbered years. 14 hours of continuing education per biennium, including required one-hour courses in workplace safety, workers' compensation, business practices, advanced building code, and laws and rules.
Letting a license lapse is more expensive than it looks. Some states allow a short grace period with a penalty fee; others treat a lapsed license as forfeited and make you retest from scratch. Put the renewal date in your calendar with a 90-day warning, not a 7-day one.
Insurance and bonding
For plumbing (a Division II category), DBPR requires $100,000 general/public liability and $25,000 property damage coverage, plus workers' compensation or a valid exemption. Applicants must also show financial responsibility via a credit report; a low score triggers a bond and/or a 14-hour financial responsibility course (Fla. Stat. 489.115 caps board-required bonding at $10,000 for Division II).
Separately from whatever the state requires: Pipe Well requires every plumber on the network to carry current general liability insurance and to upload the certificate before the first appointment is sent.
Working across state lines
We could not confirm any published reciprocity agreement for Florida. That does not always mean there is none — several states evaluate out-of-state licenses case by case, or let you sit for the exam on the strength of a license held elsewhere. If you are relocating, call the board and ask specifically about endorsement or credential review rather than assuming you start over.
What plumbers actually get wrong here
Florida licenses contractors, not journeymen — a journeyman relocating to Florida has no state credential to transfer and must either work under a licensed qualifier or build the 4 years (1 as foreman) to sit for the certified exam. The certified/registered split is the biggest trap: a registered license only works inside the jurisdiction that issued the underlying competency card, and the two categories renew in opposite years (certified in even years, registered in odd), which routinely causes lapses after a licensee upgrades. The Plumbing Trade Knowledge exam is one of the few Florida trade exams still given on paper at fixed sites rather than at a Pearson VUE center, so scheduling is far less flexible than applicants expect. Financial responsibility is a real gate, not a formality — a weak credit report forces a bond and/or the 14-hour financial responsibility course before the license issues.
Once you are licensed: getting the work
A license gets you legal. It does not get you a full schedule. The usual next step is buying leads — $40 to $85 for a contact that three or four other shops bought at the same moment, which at a realistic 10–20% close rate works out to somewhere between $300 and $1,000 for every job you actually book, plus the unpaid hours spent chasing the ones that go nowhere.
Pipe Well works the other way round. We book appointments, not leads, and we handle everything up to the moment you knock on the door: the advertising, the phone call, qualifying the job, getting the address and access details, and agreeing a date and time window with the homeowner. What reaches your phone is a scheduled appointment — name, address, time window and what is wrong. You reply YES and it is yours.
What it costs
Nothing to join. No subscription, no per-lead charge. You do the job, you set your own price, and you collect payment from the customer directly. Then Pipe Well is paid 50% of the job after your documented materials come off the top:
(amount collected − documented materials) × 50%
| Collected | Materials | Net | Pipe Well | You keep |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $400 | $40 | $360 | $180 | $220 |
| $1,200 | $520 | $680 | $340 | $860 |
| $2,800 | $800 | $2,000 | $1,000 | $1,800 |
| $8,500 | $3,200 | $5,300 | $2,650 | $5,850 |
Due within 48 hours of the customer paying you. If they never pay, you owe nothing. And look honestly at that last row — on a big repipe our share is a large number. If your book is already full of $8,500 jobs you are better off filling that capacity yourself. We are worth most to a shop with open capacity it cannot currently fill.
Apply free → Run your own numbersQuestions plumbers ask about licensing in Florida
Do you need a license to do plumbing work in Florida?
Yes. Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) — Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) is the licensing authority for Florida. Florida licenses contractors, not journeymen — a journeyman relocating to Florida has no state credential to transfer and must either work under a licensed qualifier or build the 4 years (1 as foreman) to sit for the certified exam. The certified/registered split is the biggest trap: a registered license only works inside the jurisdiction that issued the underlying competency card, and the two categories renew in opposite years (certified in even years, registered in odd), which routinely causes lapses after a licensee upgrades. The Plumbing Trade Knowledge exam is one of the few Florida trade exams still given on paper at fixed sites rather than at a Pearson VUE center, so scheduling is far less flexible than applicants expect. Financial responsibility is a real gate, not a formality — a weak credit report forces a bond and/or the 14-hour financial responsibility course before the license issues.
Who issues the plumbing license in Florida?
Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) — Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB). The official site is https://www2.myfloridalicense.com/construction-industry/.
What license classes exist in Florida?
Certified Plumbing Contractor (CFC) — Division II state certification; valid in every county and city in Florida. Registered Plumbing Contractor (RF) — state registration built on a local competency card; work is limited to the jurisdictions where the local license is held. Plumbing journeyman — not a state license in Florida; issued (where required) by counties and municipalities.
How many hours of experience do you need for a Florida plumbing license?
4 years of active experience in the trade, at least 1 year of which must be as a foreman (Fla. Stat. 489.111). Education can substitute: a 4-year degree in engineering, architecture or building construction plus 1 year of proven experience, or combinations of college credit with at least 1 year as a foreman.
Who administers the Florida plumbing exam?
DBPR contractor examinations. Most Division I/II computer-based exams are delivered by Pearson VUE; per DBPR, the Plumbing Trade Knowledge exam is an exception and is given as a paper-and-pencil exam in Tallahassee, Orlando and Miami. Certified applicants must pass both a trade exam and the Business and Finance exam.
How often does a Florida plumbing license renew?
Two-year cycle. Certified contractors renew by August 31 of even-numbered years; registered contractors renew by August 31 of odd-numbered years. 14 hours of continuing education per biennium, including required one-hour courses in workplace safety, workers' compensation, business practices, advanced building code, and laws and rules.
Can I get booked plumbing appointments in Florida once I am licensed?
Yes. Pipe Well Plumbing books customer appointments in Florida and texts them to licensed plumbers whose service radius covers the address. Joining is free — no subscription and no per-lead fee. Pipe Well is paid 50% of the job after your documented material costs are deducted, and only after the customer has paid you.
Booked appointments in Florida
Set your ZIP and a service radius of at least 30 miles and we will match appointments inside it. Free to join.
Join Free → Plumbing jobs in FloridaPlumbing license requirements in other states
Compiled from Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) — Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) published materials, last reviewed July 2026. Where a figure could not be verified against a primary source we have said so rather than estimate it. Spotted something out of date? Email info@pipewellplumbing.com and we will correct it.