Plumbing Contractor Permit Requirements in Lexington, KY

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   Required if you have employees or operate as an LLC or corporation. Free from the IRS.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online application)

   Free

   Immediate (online application)

1. Kentucky Department of Revenue — Sales and Use Tax Permit (Retailer's or Seller's Permit)

   KRS 139.200 imposes a 6% tax on the gross receipts of all retailers from retail sales of tangible personal property and of digital property, and from the furnishing of the services enumerated in subsection (2). That enumerated list is long and catches many service businesses that assume they are untaxed: landscaping services including lawn care and maintenance, tree trimming, landscape design and installation, and snow plowing or removal (paragraph (g)); janitorial services including residential and commercial cleaning and carpet, upholstery and window cleaning (h); small animal veterinary services (i); pet care services including grooming, boarding, pet sitting and obedience training (j); non-coin-operated laundry and dry cleaning (l); indoor skin tanning (n); non-medical diet and weight reducing (o); extended warranty services (p); photography and photofinishing (q); telemarketing (r); lobbying (t); executive employee recruitment (u); website design and development (v) and website hosting (w); bodyguard services (z); security system monitoring (aa); private investigation (ab); process serving (ac); repossession (ad); personal background checks (ae); parking and valet (af); rental of space for meetings, conventions, weddings, banquets, parties and other short-term social events (ai); social event planning and coordination (aj); leisure, recreational and athletic instructional services (ak); recreational camp tuition (al); personal fitness training (am); massage except when medically necessary (an); cosmetic surgery (ao); body modification including tattooing, piercing, scarification and branding (ap); non-medical laboratory testing (aq); interior decorating and design (ar); household moving (as); specialized design (at); lapidary (au); labor to repair or maintain commercial refrigeration equipment where no property is sold (av); labor to repair or alter apparel, footwear, watches or jewelry where no property is sold (aw); prewritten computer software access services (ax); and data brokering services (ay), the last effective August 1, 2026. KRS 139.240(1) requires every person presently engaged in or desiring to engage in business as a retailer or seller in Kentucky to file a permit application for each place of business, and KRS 139.250 requires the department to issue a separate permit per location, makes it nonassignable, limits it to the person named, and requires it to be conspicuously displayed. There are no local sales and use taxes in Kentucky, so the rate is 6% statewide.

   Official government source

   No fee. Neither KRS 139.240 nor KRS 139.250 prescribes a charge for the retailer's or seller's permit, and the Department of Revenue issues the account at no cost through the Kentucky Business One Stop registration·Not published by the Department of Revenue. KRS 139.240(1) requires the application to be on file before engaging in business as a retailer, and KRS 139.240(4) waives the written signature for electronic registrants, so file through the Kentucky Business One Stop before the first taxable sale

   No fee. Neither KRS 139.240 nor KRS 139.250 prescribes a charge for the retailer's or seller's permit, and the Department of Revenue issues the account at no cost through the Kentucky Business One Stop registration

   Not published by the Department of Revenue. KRS 139.240(1) requires the application to be on file before engaging in business as a retailer, and KRS 139.240(4) waives the written signature for electronic registrants, so file through the Kentucky Business One Stop before the first taxable sale

1. Kentucky DHBC Division of Plumbing — Master Plumber License

   Plumbing contractors in Kentucky must hold a master plumber licence issued by the Division of Plumbing within the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction, (502) 573-0365. Under 815 KAR 20:030 an applicant qualifies by holding a valid Kentucky journeyman plumber licence for at least two of the past five years while working under a licensed master plumber — not four years — or alternatively by holding a Kentucky engineer licence with sufficient mechanical engineering experience, by holding another state's plumbing licence for two of the past five years, or by four consecutive years of equivalent practice in a state that issues no plumbing licence. The applicant must pass the Kentucky master plumber examination with at least 80 percent on each portion, and a master plumber must carry the insurance required by KRS 318.030. Licences expire on the last day of the licensee's birth month and require continuing education under 815 KAR 2:010 to renew.

   Official government source

   $150 master plumber examination fee (charged again for any retake) and a $250 initial licence fee, which may be prorated for 7 to 18 months. Renewal is $250; inactive status costs $125 and reactivation $125. Plumbing installation permits are separate: $50 base plus $14 per opening for one- and two-family residential work, or $50 plus $20 per opening for other buildings·Not published by the Division of Plumbing. Master plumber examinations are held in February, May, August and November, a passing score stays valid three years, and an application that is not completed within one year is void

   $150 master plumber examination fee (charged again for any retake) and a $250 initial licence fee, which may be prorated for 7 to 18 months. Renewal is $250; inactive status costs $125 and reactivation $125. Plumbing installation permits are separate: $50 base plus $14 per opening for one- and two-family residential work, or $50 plus $20 per opening for other buildings

   Not published by the Division of Plumbing. Master plumber examinations are held in February, May, August and November, a passing score stays valid three years, and an application that is not completed within one year is void

2. Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government — Division of Revenue — Occupational License

   Every business entity operating in Fayette County must apply for and obtain an initial occupational license from the LFUCG Revenue Department before starting business. The occupational license fee is a flat 2.25% of an individual's compensation and a business's net profits — there is no fee tier by business type — reported on an annual Net Profits License Fee Return. Employers file an Employer's Return of License Fee Withheld quarterly, or monthly when quarterly withholding exceeds $300, plus an annual Reconciliation of License Fee Withheld.

   Official government source

   $100 initial license fee and a $100 annual minimum license fee, plus the 2.25% occupational license fee on net profits and payroll·Not published by the LFUCG Revenue Department; the license must be obtained before starting business

   $100 initial license fee and a $100 annual minimum license fee, plus the 2.25% occupational license fee on net profits and payroll

   Not published by the LFUCG Revenue Department; the license must be obtained before starting business

3. Lexington Plumbing Permit (per project)

   A separate plumbing permit is required for each job in Lexington. Plan review for renovation and construction of public buildings is performed by the Plumbing Program staff at the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department rather than a city building department, and inspection is required on completion. Statewide, plumbing construction permits are otherwise administered by the Division of Plumbing within the Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction, and no plumbing work may be installed or altered without a permit.

   Official government source

   Neither LFUCG nor the Health Department publishes a plumbing permit fee schedule online; the state Division of Plumbing schedule for permits it issues is $50 plus $14 per opening for one- and two-family residential work, $50 for a water heater alone, and $50 plus $20 per opening commercial·Not published; permits are pulled by a licensed master plumber before work begins

   Neither LFUCG nor the Health Department publishes a plumbing permit fee schedule online; the state Division of Plumbing schedule for permits it issues is $50 plus $14 per opening for one- and two-family residential work, $50 for a water heater alone, and $50 plus $20 per opening commercial

   Not published; permits are pulled by a licensed master plumber before work begins

Official Sources

• Kentucky Division of Plumbing — Master Plumber License
• Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government — Revenue Division

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