Resources
Know where the rules live.
Coded Trades is study material, not the rulebook. The official links for the Red Seal plumber exam, in one place. Written for plumbers who trained outside Canada, useful to anyone writing the exam.
How it works
One exam. Thirteen ways to book it.
The Red Seal is an endorsement on your provincial Certificate of Qualification. The exam is written and marked to one national standard, but you apply, pay and sit it through your own province or territory.
Official pages
Bookmark these before you buy anything.
These are the Red Seal Program's own pages for the plumber trade. They are free, they are the source for every exam number on this site, and they get updated when something changes.
If a link is broken, everything here lives under the Red Seal plumber page.
Exam information
Question count per topic, the three question types with examples, and the formulas and acronyms you get in the room.
Occupational Standard
Every question is written to this document. The closest thing to a syllabus that exists.
Practice and prep
Free sample questions in the real exam style, and the government's own guide to how the exam is built.
Trained outside Canada
You don't start over. You challenge the exam.
If you learned the trade in another country you apply as a trade qualifier: show your experience, get approved, then write the same exam Canadian apprentices write. The exam does not care where you trained.
Thinking of challenging?
Two calls to make first.
Every province has a version of this route. The names of the forms change; the shape does not.
Pick your province first.
You apply to the authority where you live and plan to work, not to the Red Seal Program.
Contact the jurisdiction you'll be challenging in.
Only the relevant jurisdiction can give you the most up-to-date information on what they need from you.
And start studying now. Your application and your prep run at the same time. Nobody has to finish the paperwork before they open the code book, and the people who study while they wait are the ones who walk in ready.
What you can start gathering
Get a head start on the paperwork.
You can be proactive here. Just check with the relevant jurisdiction first, because they will tell you exactly what is required.
Proof of experience.
Letters from past employers on letterhead, with dates, hours and the kind of work you did. Self-employed, or the employer is gone? Ask your jurisdiction what they accept instead.
Certificates and transcripts.
Your trade certificate, college transcripts and course outlines. Not in English or French? Ask about certified translations before you apply.
Where each province sends you
Your province's own pages.
Each province and territory runs its own apprenticeship and certification office. They assess your experience, book your exam and issue your ticket. Where there is a page written for internationally trained tradespeople, it is the first link.
Most of our students are in these two provinces
British Columbia
SkilledTradesBC. The plumber page has the level exam breakdowns, the interprovincial exam breakdown and the acronyms and formulas sheet in one place.
Ontario
Skilled Trades Ontario. Experienced tradespeople go through the Trade Equivalency Assessment, and exams are booked through the STO Portal.
Link gone stale?
The Red Seal contact page has every number.
Every province and territory is listed there with its phone number and address. If anything on this page has moved, that is the place to start.
Red Seal contacts →Ready when you are.
Your application and your prep can run at the same time. Start the study now and walk in ready.
See the course →Codes and references
The exam references the national code.
Questions are written to the National Plumbing Code of Canada, not your province's amendments, and the code book is supplied in the exam room. Your province's exam page tells you which edition is current.
We've tried our best to go through every province and territory, but it is important to do your own research. Information can change at any point.
Ready when you are.
Start learning →Links go to third-party government sites we do not control. Fees and rules change; confirm with your own authority. Links checked 14 October 2026.