West Virginia Journeyman Plumber Exam Prep

About the West Virginia Journeyman Plumber license

West Virginia licenses plumbers through the West Virginia Division of Labor under the Supervision of Plumbing Work Act (W. Va. Code §21-14). The Journeyman Plumber license authorizes you to perform plumbing work on your own and to instruct and supervise plumbers-in-training; a Plumber in Training must work under the direct supervision of a licensed master or journeyman. You earn the journeyman license by passing the journeyman plumber written exam with a score of at least 70 percent and submitting a license application with your score report and fee — West Virginia's statute does not set a fixed apprenticeship-hour prerequisite to sit for the exam itself, so confirm any eligibility requirement directly with the exam vendor before you register.

Your exam is built on the International Plumbing Code 2018 and the International Fuel Gas Code 2018 as listed on WVDOL_CIB 2026.02.02, plus Plumbing Basics for Contractors 4th Edition (2021). UPC tables are a miss. A later IPC edition is a miss unless a newer bulletin names it.

Know these scope facts cold: the license is held by the individual; most work requires a permit and inspection (rough-in/top-out and final); you must work within the classification you hold; and unlicensed or out-of-scope plumbing work is a violation that can cost you the license and carry penalties. Plumbing protects public health — the exam constantly returns to the two core purposes of the code: deliver safe potable water and remove waste without contaminating that water.

How West Virginia licensing works

• Eligibility: West Virginia's plumbing statute (W. Va. Code §21-14) does not itself set a minimum-hours experience or apprenticeship requirement to sit for the journeyman exam — check the exam vendor's current candidate handbook for any prerequisite it applies. A master plumber exam cannot be taken until at least 12 months after you pass the journeyman exam.
• Application: take and pass the exam first, then submit the license application/affidavit to the WV Division of Labor along with your exam score report and the fee — the license is issued after you pass, not before you sit.
• Exam vendor: Prov, Inc. (provexam.com). The February 2, 2026 bulletin sets 80 questions, 3 hours, and a 70 percent cut. The individual plumber license under W. Va. Code §21-14 has no business-and-law portion. A contractor license is a different credential. The Contractor Licensing Act exam on the contractor bulletin is 90 questions, 180 minutes, 70 percent, not this journeyman paper.
• Renewal: the license is valid for up to one year and renews annually by application and fee; a $25 late fee applies if you renew more than 15 days after expiration, and a license lapsed 90 days or more cannot be renewed.