Michigan Plumbing License: What Applies and What Does Not
What Michigan requires of a plumbing business in 2026, what the LLC has to file first, and where the license and the entity are two separate steps.
By Edmond Hui · Last updated: September 2026
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Michigan plumbing licensing at a glance
| State credential required for this work? | Yes, statewide |
| What they are called | Plumbing Contractor, Master Plumber, Journey Plumber, Apprentice Plumber |
| Who issues it | Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Bureau of Construction Codes |
| Must the business itself be licensed? | Yes |
Does a plumbing business need a license in Michigan?
Michigan issues 4 license classes for plumbers.
Michigan licenses plumbing statewide under article 11 of the Occupational Code, administered by the Bureau of Construction Codes within the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs. Individuals hold master, journey or apprentice credentials, and the business is covered by a separate plumbing contractor license tied to a named master plumber who is jointly and severally responsible for the work.
The plumbing business itself must be licensed or registered, not only the people doing the work.
A business performing plumbing operates under a plumbing contractor license. Only a sole proprietor, a partner in a partnership, an officer of a corporation or a member of a limited liability company may apply for it, and the applicant must either hold a master plumber license or employ a licensed master plumber as the contractor's named representative.
This records what Michigan publishes, not a determination about your business. Scope, thresholds and local requirements are set by the issuing body, so confirm with them before you bid or file.
Source: MCL 339.6107, Michigan Legislature. Verified 2026-09-03.
What the LLC has to do first
Several states license the plumbing company separately from the individual plumber, so the LLC and the license are two filings, not one.
The entity filing is separate from anything the license requires. In Michigan it is made with the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Corporations Division. File directly with the state here. The order matters wherever the license is issued to the company rather than to a person: the entity has to exist before an application can name it.
Forming an LLC as a plumbing business in Michigan covers the filing itself, step by step.
Insurance Michigan plumbers are asked to show
Plumbing license and registration schemes commonly require proof of general liability cover, and water damage from a failed connection is the claim these policies are bought for.
We do not publish Michigan premium figures for this trade, so nothing here is a quote. Our business insurance guide for plumbers covers what each policy does and does not pay for.
This guide is general information, not legal or tax advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. It reports what each state licensing board publishes for this trade, with the sources this page cites. It cannot tell you whether your own work needs a licence: that turns on the scope of the job, the value of the contract, and the city or county you work in, which commonly adds its own registration on top of the state's. Confirm your own position with the board named on this page and with your local building or business licensing office before you bid or start work.
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Edmond Hui · Founder, MyStateLLC
Edmond Hui is a software engineer and serial entrepreneur based in New York who has founded multiple online businesses across e-commerce, media, and information publishing. Before transitioning into tech, he spent years as a commercial real estate professional closing deals totaling over 100,000 square feet, giving him firsthand experience with business formation and entity structuring. He built MyStateLLC to provide the free, state-specific LLC guidance he wished existed when forming his own companies.