Whether you are planning to become a plumber, engineer, or auctioneer in North Carolina, you need to be well aware of the regulations and policies defined by NC. The official body controlling the entire procedure of obtaining a plumber’s permit is the NC Licensing Board of General Contractors. It is responsible for all the payments, exams, and other aspects of the job training. Applicants can track the new job and application openings, as well as stay updated on the current news.
Before we continue with today’s main touchpoints, let’s speak about the existing types of permits available in the state.
Let’s say straightforwardly that NC is not like other states, and the regulations concerning licensing are entirely different here. There are no journeymen or masters in North Carolina. The main categories refer to contractor plumbing licenses:
The only difference between the first and second types is that the latter can operate any professional work in single-family households detached from others. At the same time, the P-I permit holders are free to work in any building. Those with a restricted form can implement interior or exterior piping operations and manage water filtration systems.
Anyone who wants to begin working in NC needs to follow the described steps:
If you have followed all the above-described steps, you will get a notice for an exam.
Before you apply for your permit, you must complete an online professional education course approved by the NC Board of Examiners for Plumbers. The course must be completed within two years.
Submit the examination application and make sure you pay all the testing fees. The exam takes place at a PSI testing center where the passing score is a minimum of 70%. You need to answer 100 multiple choice questions in four hours. However, if you would like some additional materials to prepare for the test, check the Laws and Rules book.
The state requirements are rather strict for those who want to work. Applicants need to accomplish two years of technical and 2,000 hours of apprenticing practices. Another option to become a qualified specialist is attending four years or 4,000 hours of apprenticing.
Nowadays, frauds and scams have become so common that no one can be trusted easily. To get your work done by a plumbing contractor, people are prone to checking their docs. The process to verify yours is as follows.
The first step is to contact the Board of Examiners via their official website. The public search section allows choosing the classification and entering your document’s number and initials. This is the central requirement for the verification process.
If you worry that there might be some violations, you can always have a look in the Board’s Investigative Database.
Note: There is no reciprocity for such docs in NC.
The documents expire on December 31 every year. Plumbers should submit their renewal form with the fee. By the way, the payments may vary depending on the type of your contractor license.
Summing up today’s research, let’s go through the main touchpoints once again.