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LicenseReciprocity

Transfer Your Plumber License to Montana: Reciprocity & Endorsement (2026)

Last verified: 2026-07-21 · source: Montana Board of Plumbers — Department of Labor and Industry, Business Standards Division ↗

Conditionally — Montana recognizes plumbing licenses from 4 named partner states (Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota). A plumber licensed by examination and in good standing there applies to the Montana Board of Plumbers — Department of Labor and Industry, Business Standards Division under the agreement; Montana waives its journeyman written and practical examinations for an applicant who took and passed both the written and practical journeyman exams in Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, or South Dakota and holds an active license there with no complaints filed; every other out-of-state applicant must sit for the Montana journeyman written and practical exams. From any other state you qualify and sit Montana's journeyman exam as a new applicant. Application fee: $400 (Reciprocity path: $400 total ($100 application fee + $300 reciprocity fee). The examination path is instead $270 ($100 application + $170 license). Optional $100 temporary journeyman work permit if requested).

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Verdict

Reciprocity with 4 states

Read Montana's reciprocity as a named list, and the list is the rule: if you were licensed by examination in a state on it and your license is in good standing, the streamlined track below applies; if not, no amount of field experience substitutes for Montana's exam. Two cautions. The agreement is directional — it describes the states Montana recognizes, which tells you nothing about the reverse move — and it typically excludes licenses that were grandfathered in rather than earned by examination. Confirm both against the Montana Board of Plumbers — Department of Labor and Industry, Business Standards Division before you rely on the waiver.

Reciprocity is journeyman-only and limited to Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, and South Dakota, and only where the applicant took and passed both the written and practical journeyman exams in that state (license by examination) and holds it active with no complaints; a verification letter sent directly by the origin board is mandatory. Master-plumber reciprocity is NOT offered. The Montana journeyman exam is based on the 2012 Uniform Plumbing Code; licenses renew annually on September 1. The reciprocity fee is $300 plus the $100 application fee ($400 total) — no separate $170 license fee is added on the reciprocity path. ARM 24.180.603 (the reciprocity rule) was proposed for repeal in a Nov 7, 2025 MAR notice as duplicative of 37-1-304(3) MCA, but the substantive agreements remain. No national plumber verification database exists, so verification_system_url points to Montana DLI's public license record search.

Montana requirements at a glance

Out-of-state plumbing license transfer requirements for Montana, verified 2026-07-21
ExamMontana waives its journeyman written and practical examinations for an applicant who took and passed both the written and practical journeyman exams in Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, or South Dakota and holds an active license there with no complaints filed; every other out-of-state applicant must sit for the Montana journeyman written and practical exams
Additional requirements
  • Hold an active journeyman plumber license, with no complaints filed against it, in Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, or South Dakota
  • Have taken and passed both the written and practical journeyman examination in that reciprocating state (license by examination)
  • Have an official license verification sent directly from the originating state board — Montana will not issue a license without the verification letter
  • Non-reciprocal applicants must document 5 years and 7,500 aggregate hours of plumbing experience (or complete an approved apprenticeship) and pass the Montana written and practical exams at 70%
Fees$400 (Reciprocity path: $400 total ($100 application fee + $300 reciprocity fee). The examination path is instead $270 ($100 application + $170 license). Optional $100 temporary journeyman work permit if requested)
Processing time~4 weeks (Board states complete, routine applications are processed within 30 days (about 4 weeks); non-routine applications requiring Board review take longer, and applicants are notified of status within 30 days of receipt)

Step by step

  1. Confirm Montana's current requirements on the Montana Board of Plumbers — Department of Labor and Industry, Business Standards Division website — rules change.
  2. Submit the reciprocity/endorsement application to the Montana Board of Plumbers — Department of Labor and Industry, Business Standards Division (application linked on this page).
  3. Arrange license verification from your current state via the verification system.
  4. Hold an active journeyman plumber license, with no complaints filed against it, in Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, or South Dakota.
  5. Have taken and passed both the written and practical journeyman examination in that reciprocating state (license by examination).
  6. Have an official license verification sent directly from the originating state board — Montana will not issue a license without the verification letter.
  7. Non-reciprocal applicants must document 5 years and 7,500 aggregate hours of plumbing experience (or complete an approved apprenticeship) and pass the Montana written and practical exams at 70%.
  8. Pay the fees ($400 (Reciprocity path: $400 total ($100 application fee + $300 reciprocity fee). The examination path is instead $270 ($100 application + $170 license). Optional $100 temporary journeyman work permit if requested)) and allow ~4 weeks (Board states complete, routine applications are processed within 30 days (about 4 weeks); non-routine applications requiring Board review take longer, and applicants are notified of status within 30 days of receipt).

Official links

Montana Board of Plumbers — Department of Labor and Industry, Business Standards Division ↗Montana application ↗License verification ↗

Coming from a specific state?

Direction matters — these guides cover the exact move into Montana:

California → MontanaFlorida → MontanaGeorgia → MontanaIdaho → MontanaIllinois → MontanaMichigan → MontanaNew York → MontanaNorth Carolina → MontanaNorth Dakota → MontanaOhio → MontanaOregon → MontanaPennsylvania → MontanaSouth Dakota → MontanaTexas → Montana

Frequently asked questions

Does my plumbing license transfer to Montana?

Conditionally — Montana recognizes plumbing licenses from 4 named partner states (Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota). A plumber licensed by examination and in good standing there applies to the Montana Board of Plumbers — Department of Labor and Industry, Business Standards Division under the agreement; Montana waives its journeyman written and practical examinations for an applicant who took and passed both the written and practical journeyman exams in Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, or South Dakota and holds an active license there with no complaints filed; every other out-of-state applicant must sit for the Montana journeyman written and practical exams. From any other state you qualify and sit Montana's journeyman exam as a new applicant. Application fee: $400 (Reciprocity path: $400 total ($100 application fee + $300 reciprocity fee). The examination path is instead $270 ($100 application + $170 license). Optional $100 temporary journeyman work permit if requested).

Will I have to take Montana's plumbing exam?

Montana waives its journeyman written and practical examinations for an applicant who took and passed both the written and practical journeyman exams in Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, or South Dakota and holds an active license there with no complaints filed; every other out-of-state applicant must sit for the Montana journeyman written and practical exams.

Which states does Montana have plumbing reciprocity with?

Oregon, Idaho, North Dakota, South Dakota (4 states, verified 2026-07-21 against the Montana Board of Plumbers — Department of Labor and Industry, Business Standards Division). The waiver applies only if you were licensed by examination there; plumbers from every other state qualify as new applicants.

What will licensing in Montana cost an out-of-state plumber, and how long does it take?

$400 (Reciprocity path: $400 total ($100 application fee + $300 reciprocity fee). The examination path is instead $270 ($100 application + $170 license). Optional $100 temporary journeyman work permit if requested); processing ~4 weeks (Board states complete, routine applications are processed within 30 days (about 4 weeks); non-routine applications requiring Board review take longer, and applicants are notified of status within 30 days of receipt).

Sources

Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-07-21.

Reviewed by Billy Reiner, Editor · verified against primary sources 2026-07-21

How we verify · All sources · spot an error? [email protected]