The Massachusetts Master Plumber license is issued under the Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters, operating under M.G.L. c. 142 and 248 CMR inside the Division of Occupational Licensure. Massachusetts examines on 248 CMR 10.00, its own Uniform State Plumbing Code — state-written in 2023, adopting no model code. The examination is delivered by PSI, is entirely closed book, and is scored in two stand-alone parts: a candidate must reach a MINIMUM of 70% on each part. The PassProfessor Massachusetts Master Plumber program prepares candidates for that sitting, for the Massachusetts code it is built on, and for the step from journeyman to the plumber who carries the business. The companion guide to this page is at /massachusetts-master-plumber-exam-guide/.
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What this credential certifies
A Massachusetts Master Plumber is, in the examination bulletin’s own scope language, a plumber having a regular place of business who, by himself or by journeyman plumbers in his employ, performs plumbing and gas fitting work subject to inspection. That sentence is the credential. The journeyman license certifies the tradesperson; the master license certifies the person under whose responsibility the work is offered to the public — the plumber who employs journeymen, takes the inspections, and answers for the installations.
The route to it is deliberately narrow. A master candidate must already be a licensed journeyman plumber, must have spent at least a year totaling at least 1,700 clock hours as a Massachusetts journeyman actively engaged in installing, repairing and maintaining plumbing and gas fitting systems, and must have completed the 110-hour Tier 5 of the five-tier Plumber Educational Program — unless Tier 5 was already completed during the apprenticeship. Below that sits the journeyman ladder itself: 6,800 hours as a licensed apprentice plus 550 theory hours over at least four years, with a high school diploma or equivalent. The master examination is the final examined step of a long, supervised formation.
Massachusetts licenses eight individual classes through this Board — plumbers, gas fitters and undiluted liquefied petroleum gas installers at their respective tiers — and business licenses, held through a master of record, carry no examination of their own. There is no separate Massachusetts plumbing contractor license or contractor exam: the master plumber is the contracting tier.
The examination at a glance
| Item | Verified position |
|---|---|
| Program | Massachusetts Master Plumber |
| Regulator | Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters (M.G.L. c. 142 + 248 CMR), housed in the Division of Occupational Licensure |
| Code examined | 248 CMR 10.00 — the Massachusetts Uniform State Plumbing Code, state-written, 2023 text; Massachusetts adopts no model code and does not examine on the IPC or UPC |
| Pre-approval | Board pre-approval through eLIPSE is required before scheduling; approval is valid one year |
| Vendor | PSI, retained to develop and administer the examinations, under the Board-written Candidate Information Bulletin dated 10/3/2025 |
| Book status | Closed book — all parts; the bulletin’s reference list is a study list and is not allowed in the examination center |
| Structure | Part I: 80 questions / 160 minutes. Part II: 40 questions / 160 minutes. Stand-alone part scores |
| Passing standard | MINIMUM of 70% on each part |
| Part II character | Labelled “Practical” but computer-based; Isometric Analysis accounts for 20 of its 40 questions; there is no hands-on component |
| Retakes | No limitations on the number of times a master candidate may take the exam; a failed part must be retaken within one year of the failure or all parts must be retaken. Passing scores are valid one year only |
| Official fees (closed set) | Application $31; PSI examination $80; license on passing $78; renewal $78, with a $57 late fee after May 1 of even-numbered years |
| Continuing education | 12 hours per two-year license cycle for plumbers, with a Board-approved provider |
| Administrator note | PassProfessor is independent and is not affiliated with the Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters or the Division of Occupational Licensure |
A code Massachusetts wrote for itself
The defining fact of this examination is the code behind it. Massachusetts does not examine plumbers on an edition of the International Plumbing Code or the Uniform Plumbing Code, with or without amendments. It examines on 248 CMR 10.00, the Uniform State Plumbing Code the Commonwealth wrote for itself — current text effective December 8, 2023 — which adopts no model code at all. Around it, the bulletin’s shared reference list adds the Board’s own regulations at 248 CMR 3.00, 4.00, 5.00 and 11.00, NFPA 54 in its 2012 edition for fuel gas as modified by 248 CMR 5.00, NFPA 58 in its 2011 edition as modified by 248 CMR 8.00, the large gas utilization provisions, and M.G.L. c. 142 itself.
For a master candidate, the consequence is practical. Provisions remembered from a model-code state may be close to the Massachusetts position or may differ in exactly the detail an item tests, and in a closed-book room there is no book to settle the question. Preparation must treat 248 CMR 10.00 as the primary authority and model-code habits as a source of error — sharper at master level, because the master’s reading of the code will govern other people’s installations after the examination is over.
Closed book, two parts, two separate verdicts
Every part of the Massachusetts master examination is closed book, computer-generated and delivered by PSI at its testing centers — Auburn, Braintree, Boston/Charlestown, Fall River, Lawrence and West Springfield. The reference list above is a study list: none of it is allowed in the examination center. The only equipment admitted is a non-programmable, non-printing, silent, battery-operated calculator without alphabet keys, and writing is done only on PSI-provided scrap paper.
Part I is the broad written paper: 80 questions in 160 minutes. Part II is the second, separately scored paper: 40 questions in the same 160 minutes. The parts carry stand-alone scores, and the passing standard is a MINIMUM of 70% on each part — a formulation this page keeps in the bulletin’s own form. There is no combined score and no averaging: a candidate who fails one part retakes only that part, but must retake it within one year from the date of failure or retake all parts. Passing scores themselves are valid one year only. Scores are reported on site, immediately.
The pacing contrast reflects the parts’ different work: Part I allows two minutes a question across the breadth of the code; Part II allows four minutes a question because half of it is isometric analysis rather than recall. A candidate who prepares at only one tempo is exposed in the other part, and only part-level practice scores reveal which.
Part II is called “Practical” — it is a computer-based paper
Part II carries the label “Practical,” and candidates who take that label at face value will prepare for the wrong sitting. Part II is computer-based, sat on a screen at a PSI center in the same closed-book conditions as Part I. Twenty of its forty questions are Isometric Analysis; the remainder are General Trade Calculations (5), Gas Piping (7) and Gas Venting (8). There is no bench work, no pipe to assemble, no drawing to produce by hand, no tools, and no assessor watching the candidate’s hands. This program prepares candidates for the paper that actually exists: a second, separately scored computer-based part weighted toward reading and reasoning about isometric drawings. It does not promise rehearsal of a hands-on practical, because the Massachusetts bulletin examinations contain no hands-on component to rehearse.
The outline, and an honesty note about master content
The bulletin’s published outline for the master examination is, in areas and counts, identical to the journeyman outline. Part I: General Regulations, Inspections and Permits 9; Gas Piping, Equipment and Appliances 21 — the single largest block in either part; Venting 12; Drain, Waste and Vent 13; Water Supply 6; Separators, Interceptors and Grease Traps 5; Piping, Valves and Controls 3; Water Heaters 3; Traps and Cleanouts 2; Fixtures, Equipment and Clearances 2; Hangers and Supports 2; Joints and Connections 2. Part II as above. The bulletin differentiates master from journeyman only through scope-of-work text and eligibility — not through a harder published outline — and this program invents no difference the bulletin does not state. What changes is who is sitting, what the license authorizes, and the responsibility it carries. The weightings direct study: gas work dominates Part I and returns in Part II, consistent with a license under which a master plumber may also perform gas fitter work, while a gas fitter may not perform plumber work; drainage, waste and venting is the second centre of gravity.
Approval first, then the sitting
Massachusetts runs approval before scheduling. Candidates apply online through eLIPSE only — mailed applications are returned — allow three weeks for processing, and note that incomplete applications are held 180 days and approval is valid one year. The Board then notifies PSI, and PSI schedules the candidate. Rescheduling without forfeiting the fee requires cancellation at least two days before the appointment.
The closed fee set is short: application $31, non-refundable, through eLIPSE; PSI examination $80, the administration fee for every class, first attempt or retake, with retake fees non-refundable; license on passing $78, taken up through the eLIPSE profile; and renewal $78 biennially, due May 1 of even-numbered years, with a $57 late fee after that date. Those are regulator and vendor fees, stated so a candidate can budget the route whole.
Veterans, retakes, and the one-year rules
Two provisions deserve to be known before the sitting. First, veterans receive a credit of five percent to each part, with the DD214 submitted with the application, applied part by part like the passing standard it adjusts. Second, master retakes are unlimited: there are no limitations on the number of times a master candidate may take the exam. That freedom is bounded by time — a failed part must be retaken within one year of the failure or all parts must be retaken, and passing scores are valid one year only. The six-attempt petition rule found in material about other Massachusetts examinations applies to the journeyman, gas fitter and liquefied petroleum examinations, not to masters. A failing candidate may also review missed items immediately after the examination, before leaving the facility, within thirty minutes.
Holding the license: supervision, scope and continuing education
The master’s working rules run beneath the renewal cycle. Supervision is one-to-one: not more than one apprentice under the direct supervision of a master or journeyman, and apprentices are employed by a master only. Renewal is biennial at $78, and plumbers complete 12 hours of continuing education per two-year cycle, with a Board-approved provider, in courses focused on 248 CMR, retaining documentation for at least three renewal cycles. Absent a reciprocity agreement — no state is named in any primary source — an out-of-state candidate petitions on substantial equivalence and the relevant examination is still required.
What the PassProfessor program will cover
The Massachusetts code as the primary text. The program is built on 248 CMR 10.00 in its 2023 text, with the surrounding regulation chapters, the fuel gas layer in NFPA 54 (2012) as modified by 248 CMR 5.00 and NFPA 58 (2011) as modified by 248 CMR 8.00, and M.G.L. c. 142 — organised by the bulletin’s published outline weights. Both tempos, both verdicts. Practice is structured part by part — Part I recall at two minutes a question, Part II isometric reasoning at four — because the Board’s verdict is delivered part by part. The master’s own layer. The eligibility arithmetic (1,700 journeyman hours and Tier 5), the one-to-one supervision rule, the gas fitter work scope, the one-year validity rules, the veterans’ credit, and the renewal and continuing education cycle are taught as part of the credential. Every item is written from scratch against primary sources.
Independence, stated plainly. PassProfessor is an independent preparation provider, not affiliated with the Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters or the Division of Occupational Licensure. Completing this program confers no license and no exemption; the Board alone licenses, and candidates apply through eLIPSE and sit through PSI under the Board’s approval.
Tell me when enrollment opens. The Massachusetts Master Plumber program is in the works and enrollment is not yet open. Leave an email address and PassProfessor will write to you when the program is ready — and only about this program.
Frequently asked questions
Who issues the Massachusetts Master Plumber license?
The Board of State Examiners of Plumbers and Gas Fitters, under M.G.L. c. 142 and 248 CMR, housed in the Division of Occupational Licensure. Examinations are administered by PSI under the Board’s Candidate Information Bulletin dated 10/3/2025.
What code does the master examination test?
248 CMR 10.00, the Massachusetts Uniform State Plumbing Code — state-written, in its 2023 text. Massachusetts adopts no model code, and the examination does not test the IPC or UPC as such.
Is the examination open book?
No. All parts are closed book. The bulletin’s reference list is a study list and is not allowed in the examination center.
How is the examination structured?
In two separately scored parts: Part I, 80 questions in 160 minutes, and Part II, 40 questions in 160 minutes.
What score passes?
A MINIMUM of 70% on each part. The parts do not average, and a candidate who fails one part retakes only that part — within one year of the failure, or all parts must be retaken.
Is Part II a hands-on practical?
No. Despite its “Practical” label, Part II is computer-based. Twenty of its forty questions are Isometric Analysis, and there is no hands-on component in the examination.
Who is eligible for the master examination?
A licensed journeyman plumber with at least one year totaling at least 1,700 clock hours as a Massachusetts journeyman, who has completed the 110-hour Tier 5 of the Plumber Educational Program — with no additional education required if Tier 5 was completed as an apprentice.
How do I schedule?
Board approval comes first: apply online through eLIPSE, allow three weeks for processing, and note that approval is valid one year. The Board notifies PSI, and PSI schedules the candidate.
What are the official fees?
Application $31; PSI examination $80; license on passing $78; renewal $78 biennially, with a $57 late fee after May 1 of even-numbered years.
How many times may a master candidate retake the examination?
There are no limitations on the number of times a master candidate may take the exam. Time, not attempts, is the constraint: failed parts must be retaken within a year and passing scores are valid one year only.
Do veterans receive any credit?
Yes. A credit of five percent to each part, with the DD214 submitted with the application.
What continuing education does a master plumber owe?
12 hours per two-year license cycle, with a Board-approved provider, in courses focused on 248 CMR.
Is PassProfessor affiliated with the Board?
No. PassProfessor is independent. The Board alone licenses plumbers; PSI administers its examinations.
When does enrollment open?
The program is in the works and enrollment is not yet open. Leave an email address on this page and PassProfessor will write to you when the program is ready — and only about this program.