Arkansas plumber license: requirements, reciprocity & renewal

The master license in Arkansas

Master Plumber: A minimum of five years of plumbing experience (Ark. Code 17-38-304(d)(1)) and a passing score on the master plumber examination approved by the Committee of Plumbing Examiners.

Five total years — not five years after journeyman: the statute sets four years for the journeyman exam and five years for the master exam, so the standard ladder is roughly one additional year beyond journeyman eligibility, plus any apprenticeship-program completion rules.

Renewal & lapse in Arkansas

Master, journeyman, and apprentice licenses expire annually on December 31 and must be renewed by February 1; after February 1 a penalty of $5 per month applies (17 CAR 66-104). Reinstatement is governed by 17 CAR 66-105.

Reinstatement: On reinstatement application with an amended experience record covering all experience since the lapse, the Plumbing and Natural Gas Section decides whether to reinstate without examination or require an examination; the reinstatement fee is $325 for a Master Plumber license or $150 for a Journeyman Plumber license, in addition to back fees and penalties under 17 CAR 66-108 (17 CAR 66-105). No fixed month cap on reinstatement was stated in the rule text reviewed; the rule separately addresses licenses delinquent for nonpayment for over five consecutive years.

Past the line: No automatic restart-as-apprentice rule was found in 17 CAR 66-105 — the Section may require an examination as a condition of reinstatement instead.

Expired? Run the renewal checker with your month count →

Opening a plumbing company in Arkansas

The seat: Master Plumber. Contracting plumbing work with the public sits at the master level: the master license (five years of experience plus examination, Ark. Code 17-38-304) is the top individual credential in the state system, and a journeyman license does not by itself authorize operating a plumbing contracting business. Whether a non-plumber-owned business may qualify solely through an employed master was not fully confirmed on a primary source in this pass — see partialNote.

Statewide Department of Health licensing; no separate city journeyman system replaces it.

Run the owner gate for your situation →

Sources

Rules as published by Arkansas Department of Health — Plumbing and Natural Gas Section / Committee of Plumbing Examiners and the statutes it administers, checked October 22, 2026. Board: https://codeofarrules.arkansas.gov/Rules/Rule?chapterID=93&levelType=section&partID=1237&sectionID=48773&subChapterID=119&subPartID=7484&titleID=17

• Ark. Code 17-38-304 — Master (5 years) and journeyman (4 years) exam eligibility; out-of-state exam approval (via Onecle)
• 17 CAR 66-104 — Licensure terms and renewals (expire Dec 31; renew by Feb 1; $5/month penalty)
• 17 CAR 66-105 — Revocation and reinstatement ($325 master / $150 journeyman reinstatement fee; exam may be required)
• Arkansas apprenticeship rules — 8,000-hour category breakdown totaling 8,000 hours (via Justia)
• 17 CAR 37-108 — Plumbing apprenticeship programs (640 hours of related technical instruction; 1 year to pass journeyman exam after completion)