Trades & Contractors · 5 min read · Last updated
If you hold a certificate of qualification in the plumbing trade, this licence is mostly a matter of proving it. Hamilton requires no written exam for a plumbing master, unlike the building repair and drain trades. What it does require is that you have held your certificate for two years, that you pass a police check, and that you accept the rule limiting you to one contractor at a time.
The City of Hamilton lists this under its “Trades” category: “Plumbing installations include any procedure, method, matter or thing referred to or described in the Ontario Building Code, which includes the installation, maintenance, alterations, extension or repair of plumbing. No master shall be employed by more than one contractor at a time.”
Who needs this licence?
This licence is issued to a person, not a company. It confirms that you are qualified in the plumbing trade, which the by-law ties to the Ontario Building Code: plumbing installations include any procedure, method, matter or thing described in the Code, covering installation, maintenance, alterations, extension and repair of plumbing.
The entry requirement is a certificate of qualification in the plumbing trade under the Apprenticeship and Trades Qualification and Apprenticeship Act, held for two years. The two year period is part of the requirement, not a formality: a newly certified plumber is not yet eligible to be a master.
No written exam is required. That is a real difference from the building repair and drain repair master licences, where Hamilton tests applicants itself. Here the City accepts the provincial qualification as the measure of competence.
One restriction applies throughout: no master shall be employed by more than one contractor at a time. Your licence supports one company's contractor licence, and you cannot be listed by two firms at once.
You are not required to hold insurance, register a business or employ anyone. Those obligations belong to the plumbing contractor licence.
What documents do you need?
There are three items, and only one of them takes real effort.
A Criminal Records and Judicial Matters Check from the police service board in your city of residence, dated within 36 days of the application. Third party clearances will not be accepted, so use the police service rather than an online screening firm.
Your certificate of qualification in the plumbing trade under the Apprenticeship and Trades Qualification and Apprenticeship Act, held for two years. Bring the certificate itself. If yours has been lost, order a replacement from the province before you start, because nothing else in the application substitutes for it.
A municipally issued photo identification card is then produced for you. That card, with your photo on it, is what identifies you as a licensed master on site.
Because no exam is involved, the certificate is the whole of the qualification test, which is why the City looks closely at the trade named on it and the date it was issued.
Zoning and premises requirements
Zoning does not apply to a plumbing master licence. It is attached to you as an individual, so there is no Zoning Verification Certificate, no addendum and no premise plan on your checklist.
Zoning applies to where the business you work for operates. A plumbing contractor's shop, warehouse or van yard is subject to the zoning of that property, and satisfying those rules is the contractor's responsibility rather than yours.
The property where you do a job is governed by its own rules, including building permit and Building Code requirements for the plumbing work. Those attach to the job, not to your card.
If you decide to start your own plumbing business, you take on the contractor licence with its business registration, insurance and premises questions. As a master alone, none of that is your concern.
Inspections and approvals
No inspections are listed for this licence, and no inspection requests are circulated when you apply.
There is also no examination. Hamilton states plainly that no written exam is required for a plumbing master, so your qualification is assessed on the certificate you produce and the length of time you have held it.
That places the burden on documentation. Make sure the certificate names the plumbing trade specifically, and check the issue date against the two year requirement before you pay any fees.
The plumbing you install remains subject to the ordinary permit and inspection process for the property where the work is done. Holding a master licence identifies you as qualified; it does not exempt any job from inspection under the Building Code.
How much does it cost?
A new plumbing master application carries a processing fee, a licence fee and a photo fee for the identification card.
There is no exam fee, because there is no exam. That makes this application cheaper than the building repair or drain repair master licences, where an examination and its fee apply.
HST applies to the processing fee and the photo fee, but not to the licence fee itself.
The master licence fee is lower than the plumbing contractor licence fee, since the City is licensing a qualified individual rather than a business that solicits work. Renewal is the licence fee plus the photo fee each year, and a lapsed licence attracts a reinstatement fee. The City sets all amounts in its fee schedule and confirms them during the application.
How to apply
Check your certificate of qualification first. It must be in the plumbing trade under the Apprenticeship and Trades Qualification and Apprenticeship Act and you must have held it for two years.
Order your Criminal Records and Judicial Matters Check from the police service board where you live, timed so the date is within 36 days when you apply.
Submit the application with the certificate and the police check, and pay the processing, licence and photo fees.
Attend in person for the photo so the municipally issued photo identification card can be produced, and bring identification with you.
Carry the card while you work. Your employer's contractor licence depends on having a licensed master in its employ, so the card is the proof that arrangement is real.
Renewals and staying compliant
Renewal is annual and requires Declaration B. Contractors complete Declarations A and B; a master completes B only, which reflects that you are answering for yourself rather than for a business.
A new municipally issued photo identification card is printed each year with an updated expiry date, and a new picture is required every three years, so expect an in-person photo visit on that cycle.
The renewal charge is the licence fee plus the photo fee. You do not re-prove your certificate of qualification annually, but keep it safe, since the licence rests on it.
If you change employer, remember that you may only be employed by one contractor at a time. And renew before the expiry date, because a lapse brings a reinstatement fee and can leave your employer without the master their own licence requires.
Quick quiz: test what you learned
Three questions, all answered in this guide. Click an answer to check it.
1. Does a plumbing master applicant in Hamilton have to write an exam?
The guide states that no written exam is required for the plumbing master licence; the certificate of qualification is what establishes the applicant's competence.
2. How long must an applicant have held the certificate of qualification in the plumbing trade?
The checklist requires a certificate of qualification in the plumbing trade under the Apprenticeship and Trades Qualification and Apprenticeship Act for two years.
3. Which declaration does a plumbing master complete at renewal?
Master renewals require Declaration B only, while contractor renewals require both Declarations A and B.
Skip the paperwork
Tell Permits2Go about your business and it assembles the licence application for you — document checklists, e-signatures and a guided workspace for Hamilton, with more cities on the way.
This guide is general information, not legal or professional advice. Licensing requirements, by-laws and fees change and vary by municipality — always confirm the current rules with the City before you apply.