California Plumber License Reciprocity & Transfer
What it takes to transfer a plumbing license you already hold in another state into California. This page covers license transfer only — not how to get licensed from scratch.
Transferring an existing license into California
California's board sets the route, so it is the same for every origin state we have verified below.
- Pathway
- No reciprocity — a full application is required
- Fees
- $450
- Minimum years licensed
- 4
- Exam
- Required
- Processing time
- Processing time not published by the board
Fees are the state fees recorded for this route; see each origin's full requirements for the breakdown.
Source: Contractors State License Board (CSLB), State of California
By origin state
From Florida → California
Full requirementsFull New Application Required — No Reciprocity or Exam Waiver Available for C-36
From Ohio → California
Full requirementsFull New Application Required — No Reciprocity or Exam Waiver Available for C-36
From Texas → California
Full requirementsFull New Application Required — No Reciprocity or Exam Waiver Available for C-36
Not yet researched
We haven't published sourced requirements for transferring a plumbing license into California from: New York. Rather than guess, we leave these out until we can cite the board directly — check with the California board in the meantime.