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Engaging a plumber

The VBA regulates plumbing practitioners and plumbing work in Victoria. This helps to protect the health and safety of people and the integrity of water supply and wastewater systems.

To do any plumbing work in Victoria, a plumbing practitioner must be one of the following:

  • licensed by the VBA
  • registered by the VBA (or have provisional registration) and working under the supervision of a licensed plumber
  • in training under the supervision of a licensed plumber.

Make sure you engage a licensed or registered plumber when you want plumbing work carried out.

All licensed and registered plumbers are issued with a photo ID card that lists the type of plumbing work they are eligible to do. All plumbers should carry this ID, and you can request to see it at any time.

image of a VBA plumbing licenceimage of a VBA plumbing registration card

You can also check if a plumber is licensed or registered online, using the VBA's Find a practitioner directory.

Note: the VBA is unable to recommend plumbers for your project.

The difference between registered and licensed plumbers

  • Only a licensed plumber can issue a compliance certificate to certify that their work complies with the relevant plumbing regulations, codes and standards.
  • A licensed plumber must hold insurance that protects you in case of any defective plumbing work.
  • A licensed plumber has a higher standard of knowledge and experience than a plumber who is registered or in training.
  • A licensed plumber may supervise other plumbers (registered or licensed) or plumbing apprentices in the same class of plumbing work in which they hold a licence.

What are the regulated areas of plumbing work?

A plumbing practitioner must be registered or licensed in each class of plumbing work that they intend to do.

Victoria’s Plumbing Regulations 2018 set out ten main classes of plumbing work:

  1. Drainage
  2. Fire Protection
  3. Gasfitting
  4. Irrigation (Non-agricultural)
  5. Mechanical Services
  6. Refrigerated Air-conditioning
  7. Roofing (Stormwater)
  8. Sanitary
  9. Type B Gasfitting
  10. Water Supply

In addition, there are five specialised classes of plumbing work:

  1. Type A Appliance Servicing
  2. Type A Appliance Conversion
  3. Type B Gasfitting Advanced
  4. Backflow Prevention
  5. Thermostatic Mixing Valve