Do HVAC contractors need a license?
It depends on the state. Seayora holds a published statute for 33 states and the District of Columbia. The table below gives the figure for each, with the statute it comes from.
HVAC license, state by state
| State | HVAC license | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | State HVAC/refrigeration contractor certification | Ala. Code §§ 34-31-24, 34-31-18, 34-31-28 |
| Alaska | Mechanical contractor + mechanical administrator | Alaska Stat. §§ 08.18.028, 08.18.171, 08.40.260, 08.40.390 |
| Arizona | Contractor license, A/C and refrigeration class | A.R.S. §§ 32-1151, 32-1101; Ariz. Admin. Code R4-9-102, R4-9-103 |
| Arkansas | State HVACR license (HVACR Licensing Board) | Ark. Code §§ 17-33-301, 17-33-101, 17-33-102, 17-33-201, 17-33-202 |
| California | C-20 HVAC contractor license (CSLB) | Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 7028, 7058, 7000.5; Cal. Code Regs. tit. 16, § 832.20 |
| Connecticut | State license (contractor or journeyperson) | Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 20-334, 20-338, 20-338a, 20-341 |
| Delaware | Master HVACR license (Board of Plumbing/HVACR) | 24 Del. C. §§ 1802, 1820 |
| District of Columbia | Refrigeration and AC mechanic license (District) | D.C. Code §§ 47-2853.02, 47-2853.04, 47-2853.201, 47-2853.203 |
| Florida | State certified or registered AC/mechanical contractor | Fla. Stat. §§ 489.105, 489.113 |
| Georgia | Conditioned air contractor license (state) | O.C.G.A. §§ 43-14-2, 43-14-14 |
| Hawaii | C-52 ventilating and AC contractor license | Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 444-7, 444-9; Haw. Admin. R. § 16-77-28 |
| Idaho | State HVAC certificate of competency | Idaho Code §§ 54-5002, 54-5003, 54-5008 |
| Iowa | State HVAC license (plumbing and mechanical board) | Iowa Code §§ 105.3, 105.10, 105.11 |
| Kentucky | State master HVAC contractor license (HBC) | KRS 198B.650, 198B.656, 198B.674 |
| Louisiana | LSLBC mechanical license for jobs of $10,000+ | La. R.S. 37:2150.1, 37:2156, 37:2156.1, 37:2157, 37:2163 |
| Maine | Fuel Board license for fuel-burning heating equipment | 32 M.R.S. § 18102 |
| Maryland | State HVACR license (State Board of HVACR Contractors) | Md. Code, Bus. Reg. §§ 9A-301, 9A-101, 9A-302 |
| Massachusetts | State license for large refrigeration and heating systems | M.G.L. c. 146, §§ 84, 81, 86; c. 112, § 238 |
| Michigan | State mechanical contractor license, by classification | MCL 339.5809, 339.5807, 339.5811, 339.5819 |
| Mississippi | Board of Contractors license (residential projects) | Miss. Code §§ 73-59-3, 73-59-1, 31-3-15, 31-3-1 |
| Nevada | State contractor license, C-21 refrigeration and AC | NRS 624.700, 624.215, 624.031; NAC 624.380 |
| New Jersey | Master HVACR contractor license; no local licenses | N.J.S.A. 45:16A-6, 45:16A-7, 45:16A-13 |
| New Mexico | State contractor license, mechanical classification | N.M. Stat. §§ 60-13-12, 60-13-3, 60-13-2 |
| North Carolina | State heating contractor license (groups 1-3) | N.C. Gen. Stat. § 87-21 |
| Ohio | State contractor license (commercial work only) | Ohio Rev. Code §§ 4740.01, 4740.13, 3781.06 |
| Oklahoma | State mechanical contractor/journeyman license | 59 O.S. §§ 1850.2, 1850.7, 1850.10 |
| Rhode Island | State mechanical trades license (refrigeration/AC) | R.I. Gen. Laws §§ 28-27-1, 28-27-4, 28-27-5 |
| South Carolina | State license: mechanical (AC/heating) or residential | S.C. Code §§ 40-11-30, 40-11-410, 40-59-20, 40-59-30 |
| Tennessee | Contractor license (mechanical) for jobs $25,000+ | Tenn. Code §§ 62-6-102, 62-6-103, 62-6-112, 62-6-503; Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 0680-01-.16 |
| Texas | State air conditioning and refrigeration license (TDLR) | Tex. Occ. Code §§ 1302.002, 1302.251, 1302.252 |
| Utah | State HVAC contractor license | Utah Code §§ 58-55-301, 58-55-305, 58-55-102 |
| Vermont | Heating specialist license (hot-water heating only) | 26 V.S.A. §§ 2197, 2172, 2198 |
| Virginia | State tradesman license (Board for Contractors) | Va. Code §§ 54.1-1100, 54.1-1128, 54.1-1129 |
| West Virginia | State HVAC license (Commissioner of Labor) | W. Va. Code §§ 21-16-3, 30-42-3 |
This is a summary of a published statute, not legal advice. Rules change, local ordinances can add to them, and the terms of a specific lease may differ. Check the citation and speak to a lawyer before acting.
Only states where Seayora holds a published statute appear above. Where no statute is recorded, no figure is shown rather than a guess.
The answer in full, for the biggest rental markets
Do HVAC contractors need a license in California?
Yes. In California, a heating, ventilating and air-conditioning contractor needs a state contractor license from the Contractors State License Board, in the C-20 warm-air heating, ventilating and air-conditioning classification set by the board’s rules. The C-20 classification covers fabricating, installing, maintaining, servicing and repairing warm-air heating systems, water heating heat pumps, ventilating systems and air-conditioning systems, with their ducts and controls. This is Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code §§ 7028, 7058, 7000.5; Cal. Code Regs. tit. 16, § 832.20.
Do HVAC contractors need a license in Texas?
Yes. In Texas, a person may not engage in air conditioning and refrigeration contracting, including the installation, repair and service of comfort air conditioning and process cooling or heating systems, without an air conditioning and refrigeration contractor license. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation issues the license, which is valid throughout the state, so the holder does not also need a municipal license. Each permanent office of an air conditioning and refrigeration contracting company must employ full-time a license holder whose license is assigned to that company. This is Tex. Occ. Code §§ 1302.002, 1302.251, 1302.252.
Do HVAC contractors need a license in Florida?
Yes. In Florida, engaging in the business of air-conditioning or mechanical contracting (central air-conditioning, refrigeration, heating and ventilating systems) requires a state certification or registration from the Department of Business and Professional Regulation. The statute defines Class A air-conditioning contractors (unlimited), Class B air-conditioning contractors (limited to 25 tons of cooling and 500,000 Btu of heating in any one system), Class C air-conditioning contractors (servicing only, not issued to new applicants since October 1, 1988) and mechanical contractors. A certified contractor may contract anywhere in the state; a registered contractor only in the jurisdiction whose competency requirements were met. This is Fla. Stat. §§ 489.105, 489.113.
Do HVAC contractors need a license in Ohio?
Yes. In Ohio, a contractor doing heating, ventilating and air conditioning or refrigeration work on a commercial construction project must hold an HVAC or refrigeration contractor license from the Ohio construction industry licensing board, though one-, two- and three-family homes are outside the state license. The chapter’s "construction project" excludes a residential building, which Ohio Rev. Code § 3781.06 defines as a one-, two- or three-family dwelling house and its accessory structures, so residential HVAC licensing is left to local governments. A licensed contractor may install and service control wiring of less than 25 volts for equipment related to its own license. This is Ohio Rev. Code §§ 4740.01, 4740.13, 3781.06.
Do HVAC contractors need a license in Georgia?
Yes. In Georgia, engaging in conditioned air contracting, the installation, repair or service of heating and air conditioning systems, requires a valid license from the Division of Conditioned Air Contractors of the State Construction Industry Licensing Board. A Conditioned Air Contractor Class I may work on residential and light commercial systems (air conditioning and heat pumps of 60,000 BTUs of cooling or less and gas heating of 175,000 BTUs or less); a Class II contractor has no limit on project size or equipment type, except boilers, which are licensed by the Commissioner of Insurance and Safety Fire. Conditioned air equipment includes the fuel gas piping on the outlet side of the gas meter. This is O.C.G.A. §§ 43-14-2, 43-14-14.
Do HVAC contractors need a license in North Carolina?
Yes. In North Carolina, anyone who installs, alters or restores heating or cooling systems for pay must first get a heating license in the right group from the State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating, and Fire Sprinkler Contractors. Heating group number one covers steam, vapor and hot-water heating; group number two covers air systems with more than 15 tons of mechanical refrigeration capacity; group number three covers direct heating or cooling systems of 15 tons or less, and all systems in single-family residences regardless of size. This is N.C. Gen. Stat. § 87-21.
Do HVAC contractors need a license in Michigan?
Yes. In Michigan, installing, altering or servicing mechanical work covered by the state construction code, including HVAC equipment, ductwork, hydronic heating and cooling, refrigeration and heating or air-conditioning service, requires a state mechanical contractor’s license in the matching classification. A municipality may not set its own licensing requirements for these classifications. An owner of a single-family dwelling that is or will be the owner’s residence may personally install a heating or refrigerating system in it under a permit. This is MCL 339.5809, 339.5807, 339.5811, 339.5819.
Do HVAC contractors need a license in New Jersey?
Yes. In New Jersey, no one may work as a master heating, ventilating, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVACR) contractor, or use that title, unless licensed by the State Board of Examiners of HVACR Contractors. A municipality or local board of health may not issue or renew its own master HVACR license. To qualify, an applicant must be at least 21 and have five years in the trade, at least four of them in an approved apprenticeship or training program and at least one as an HVACR journeyperson or licensed plumber. This is N.J.S.A. 45:16A-6, 45:16A-7, 45:16A-13.
How Seayora uses this rule
A contractor on Seayora keeps each license with its issuing state, its expiry date and the last four digits of its number, and the business is warned before one lapses — on the website and both phone apps. A customer finding a pro on Seayora sees whether a license is on file.
Guides on this rule
- Contractor License Requirements by State: Every Trade — Which states require a state license for electricians, plumbers, HVAC, general and home improvement contractors, with the statute for each.
Other rules compared across states
- How the interest works in 14 states
- Maximum deposit in 30 states
- Deadline to return the deposit in 49 states
- Notice before entry in 23 states
- Notice before a nonpayment case in 49 states
- Notice to end a tenancy in 46 states
- Notice before a rent increase in 30 states
- Maximum late fee in 17 states
- Grace period before a late fee in 14 states
- Application fee limit in 17 states
- The first step in 22 states
- Time to respond in 22 states
- The rule on lockouts in 22 states
- Cause needed to end a tenancy in 5 states
- Adverse possession period in 51 states
- Rent control in 33 states
- Housing vouchers in 30 states
- Retaliation period in 39 states
- Repair and deduct in 19 states
- Landlord’s duty to re-rent in 34 states
- Subletting in 18 states
- Electrician license in 45 states
- General contractors in 36 states
- Home improvement contractors in 11 states
- Plumber license in 45 states
- A deed to two or more people in 47 states
- Transfer-on-death deed in 35 states
- Deadline to file the lien in 51 states
- Labor on an appliance repair in 20 states
- Capital improvement in 8 states
- Repair labor on real property in 15 states
- How the contractor is treated in 51 states
Every rule for one state
- Alabama landlord and tenant rules
- Alaska landlord and tenant rules
- Arizona landlord and tenant rules
- Arkansas landlord and tenant rules
- California landlord and tenant rules
- Colorado landlord and tenant rules
- Connecticut landlord and tenant rules
- Delaware landlord and tenant rules
- District of Columbia landlord and tenant rules
- Florida landlord and tenant rules
- Georgia landlord and tenant rules
- Hawaii landlord and tenant rules
- Idaho landlord and tenant rules
- Illinois landlord and tenant rules
- Indiana landlord and tenant rules
- Iowa landlord and tenant rules
- Kansas landlord and tenant rules
- Kentucky landlord and tenant rules
- Louisiana landlord and tenant rules
- Maine landlord and tenant rules
- Maryland landlord and tenant rules
- Massachusetts landlord and tenant rules
- Michigan landlord and tenant rules
- Minnesota landlord and tenant rules
- Mississippi landlord and tenant rules
- Missouri landlord and tenant rules
- Montana landlord and tenant rules
- Nebraska landlord and tenant rules
- Nevada landlord and tenant rules
- New Hampshire landlord and tenant rules
- New Jersey landlord and tenant rules
- New Mexico landlord and tenant rules
- New York landlord and tenant rules
- North Carolina landlord and tenant rules
- North Dakota landlord and tenant rules
- Ohio landlord and tenant rules
- Oklahoma landlord and tenant rules
- Oregon landlord and tenant rules
- Pennsylvania landlord and tenant rules
- Rhode Island landlord and tenant rules
- South Carolina landlord and tenant rules
- South Dakota landlord and tenant rules
- Tennessee landlord and tenant rules
- Texas landlord and tenant rules
- Utah landlord and tenant rules
- Vermont landlord and tenant rules
- Virginia landlord and tenant rules
- Washington landlord and tenant rules
- West Virginia landlord and tenant rules
- Wisconsin landlord and tenant rules
- Wyoming landlord and tenant rules