TRADE Plumbing · Free guide · Checked November 14, 2026
Arizona plumbing licenses and permits, in plain words.
Which Registrar of Contractors license covers which plumbing work, where your license number has to appear, and how permits work. Every rule below is quoted from the official source and linked, so you can check it yourself.
Which license covers which plumbing work
Plumbing contractors in Arizona are licensed by the Arizona Registrar of Contractors (ROC). The plumbing licenses come in three main forms:
Allows the licensee "to install and repair water and gas piping systems, fire protection as it relates to water sprinkler systems, and sewage treatment systems." It includes "all fixtures, vents, and devices common to the industry, as well as solar applications," and all the R-37R subclassifications.
Source: Ariz. Admin. Code R4-9-103
Allows the licensee "to install, alter, and repair all plumbing when performed solely within property lines and not on public easements or right-of-ways," with the exceptions the rule lists. It covers water supply piping, fixtures and appliances including pressure vessels and tanks, venting and sanitary drainage, septic tanks, gas piping, hot water heating systems up to 30 PSIG or 220°F, and the sewer, gas and water connections from the building to the nearest point of public supply or disposal.
Source: Ariz. Admin. Code R4-9-102
A dual license that "allows the scopes of work permitted by the commercial C-37 Plumbing and the residential R-37R Plumbing licenses."
Source: Ariz. Admin. Code R4-9-104
Some nearby work has its own classification, such as R-41 for septic systems and R-54 for water conditioning equipment. If a job sits at the edge of your license, check the scope with the ROC before you bid it.
Where your ROC license number has to appear
Arizona law says the license number, preceded by "ROC", goes in these places:
- At the job: "in a conspicuous place on premises where any work is being performed."
- On bids and estimates: "on all written bids and estimates submitted by the licensee."
- On ads and paperwork to customers: "on all published advertising, letterheads and other documents used by the licensee to correspond with the licensee's customers or potential customers."
- Broadcast, internet and billboard ads, including truck signs: also required, unless the ad includes a web address that prominently shows your name and license number.
Source: A.R.S. 32-1124 and the ROC's notice on the 2021 advertising change.
Missing it can lead to discipline from the ROC. Simplest fix: put the number on the form itself, so every estimate and ticket carries it without anyone remembering.
Permits are the city's, not the ROC's
Your license comes from the state. Building and plumbing permits come from the city or county where the work is, and each one sets its own rules, fees and inspections. The ROC does not issue permits.
The City of Phoenix, for example, lists plumbing permits for adding or moving fixtures and for gas line work. Water heater replacements, gas piping and new fixtures are the jobs most often asked about. Before you quote one, check the rule and the fee with the city that will inspect it, and put the permit fee on its own line so the customer sees what the city charged.
This guide explains the rules as written on November 14, 2026. It is not legal advice. Rules change; the linked official sources are the final word, and the ROC answers licensing questions directly.
Put it on your forms once
In a Pipe Time HQ build your ROC number prints on every estimate and ticket, permit fees get their own line, and the job keeps the permit number until the inspection is done. Plumbing is our next big build: what yours does is written into your quote first.
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