Can you get a plumbing license online?

What you can do online

• Texas: apply and renew through the TSBPE Online Licensing System, and book the written exam in your Pearson VUE account.
• Washington: apply to L&I online or by mail, then pay and book with PSI online.
• North Carolina: first-time applicants can apply through the board’s online application. A retest application has to go by mail or email.
• Look up a license with your state’s public search.
• Study the code, take practice tests and do classroom training, where your state accepts online courses.

Where the exam actually happens

Texas: the written exam is at Pearson VUE test centers, more than 40 of them around the state. The practical is only at TSBPE sites in Austin and Waco. The written exam is in English, but you can ask the board to take it in Spanish in Austin.

Washington: PSI runs the exam at test centers around the state, from Bellevue and Spokane to Vancouver and Yakima. Out-of-state testing needs a request through PSI.

North Carolina: PSI runs the exam. The application lets you ask to test outside the state.

Renewing a Texas license online

Texas licenses are renewed through the TSBPE Online Licensing System. You need 6 hours of continuing professional education each renewal. A journeyman renewal is $40. If a license has been expired for more than two years, it can’t be renewed, and you have to register as an apprentice and pass the exams again.

Online practice isn’t the same as the real thing

Most online practice is multiple choice on general code topics. The real exam is tied to your state’s code edition and can include sizing drawings or hands-on work. Use online questions to learn, then practice with your code book open to the right chapters.