Do I have to take the North Carolina journeyman HVAC technician exam if I'm licensed in Florida?

Yes. North Carolina requires the trade exam on this path.

What does it cost to get a North Carolina journeyman HVAC technician license from Florida?

Published fees on this path total $150, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.

Do my Florida work hours count in North Carolina?

Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward North Carolina's eligibility requirements.

How long does the application take?

The board's published or typical processing time is about 42 days.

Does it work the other way, from North Carolina to Florida?

Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from North Carolina to Florida, the mechanism is not applicable.

Florida to North Carolina: journeyman HVAC technician license reciprocity

No credit· Start overVerified September 15, 2026· 8 sources

Florida does not issue a statewide journeyman HVAC technician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is North Carolina's standard path for out-of-state applicants.

Your origin state does not issue a statewide license at this level, so there is no license to transfer. The destination's standard out-of-state path is shown; expect to meet it in full.

Reference only, not legal advice. Rules change; confirm with the licensing board before you apply. Full disclaimer.

Out-of-state journeyman or HVAC technician (all states)

Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.

The Board states that there are no license reciprocity agreements with any other state, and its only technical-exam waiver (South Carolina) applies to contractor licenses. An HVAC journeyman or technician licensed elsewhere therefore applies for the Heating Technician examination like a first-time candidate: the Board's technician packet requires 3,000 hours of hands-on experience in installation, maintenance, service or repair of the systems in the group sought, which may have been earned in any state and is documented on the Applicant Employment History form (1-C) with W-2s or 1099s when the applicant did not work under a North Carolina licensee. The $150 exam fee, a Disahealthcare nationwide criminal background report and Form SSA-89 accompany the application; after approval (typically 4-6 weeks) the 4-hour open-book technical exam is scheduled with PSI. There is no business exam at this level. A North Carolina resident who holds a journeyman-level HVAC license from Virginia or West Virginia may instead ask for recognition under the Neighbor State License Recognition Act (see the agreements below).

Out-of-state experience is accepted on Form 1-C; the packet does not require the supervising licensee to be North Carolina-licensed when that form is used. The Board's applicant page lists 2,500 hours for a Class II technician while the 2026 technician packet states 3,000 hours for any single plumbing or heating technician exam; the packet figure is used here.

At a glance

Trade exam: Required
Law / code exam: Not required
Out-of-state hours: Count toward eligibility
Typical processing: About 42 days

What you must already have

You must document at least 3,000 hours of qualifying work experience.Hands-on installation, maintenance, service or repair in the heating group sought; up to 50% may be college or technical-institute coursework in the trade.

What you'll do to get licensed in North Carolina

1Exam fee. Pay the exam fee ($150). Heating Technician examination fee, per exam, non-refundable (Tech App 2026-06).
2Trade exam. Pass the destination's trade exam. Heating Technician (Group 1, 2 or 3) technical examination administered by PSI: 4.0 hours, open book on the NC State Building Code volumes listed on the Board's Book Reference List.
3Background check. Complete a background check. Nationwide criminal background report ordered by the applicant from Disahealthcare/CastleBranch (package ST46) and printed copy attached; applicant pays the vendor.
4Other. Form SSA-89 Social Security Number verification (the Board cannot license anyone whose SSN cannot be verified) and notarized experience verification forms with W-2s/1099s.
5Other. EPA Section 608 technician certification (Type I/II/III/Universal) to handle refrigerants; federal, does not expire. The Board's packet does not list it as a licensing prerequisite..

Published fees on this path total $150, excluding exam-vendor fees, bonds, and insurance.

What you'll need to buy or arrange

Exam preparation

Most boards contract PSI, Prov, or ICC for exams. Check which code edition the exam is written to before buying a prep course.

Exam fee · $150
Trade exam
Other

How North Carolina licenses journeyman HVAC technicians

North Carolina journeyman HVAC technician · “Heating Technician (Group 1, 2 or 3; Class I or II)”

Statewide license

Verified September 15, 2026· 7 sources

Issued by North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors

North Carolina has no license called 'journeyman HVAC'. The closest state-issued, person-held credential below contractor level is the Heating Technician license from the State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors: an individual who has passed the 4-hour technical examination for Heating Group 1 (hydronic), Group 2 (forced air over 15 tons) or Group 3 (forced air 15 tons or less), Class I (any building) or Class II (single-family dwellings), but not the business and law examination. A technician license is not a contracting license and is not required to work for a living: any W-2 employee of a licensed heating contractor may perform work under the contractor's license, so the technician license mainly lets its holder be listed as a sub-licensee to help supervise work, or qualify a state, local-government or private-school maintenance department. Eligibility is 3,000 hours of hands-on installation, maintenance, service or repair experience (up to half from technical education), a $150 exam fee, a nationwide criminal background report and Social Security verification. The Board publishes no reciprocity for any state at this level; an out-of-state journeyman documents their hours on the Board's employment-history form and takes the technical exam. Refrigeration (commercial, industrial, transport and service, but not comfort cooling) is licensed separately by the State Board of Refrigeration Contractors, which licenses only contractors and has no technician-level credential. EPA Section 608 certification is required federally to handle refrigerants.

Moving to North Carolina Leaving North Carolina

Why Florida has nothing to transfer

Florida journeyman HVAC technician · “Journeyman Air Conditioning / Mechanical Journeyman certificate of competency (county-issued)”

Licensed by cities and counties

Verified September 15, 2026· 11 sources

Issued by County and municipal licensing boards (no state journeyman license)

Florida has no state journeyman HVAC license. The Construction Industry Licensing Board within DBPR certifies and registers air-conditioning and mechanical contractors only; the contracting statute never defines 'journeyman', and the Board's pages and FAQs contain no journeyman credential. Section 489.1455, F.S., instead authorizes counties and municipalities to issue journeyman licenses 'in the plumbing, pipe fitting, mechanical, or HVAC trades' to a person who scores at least 75 percent on a proctored journeyman exam, has completed a registered apprenticeship or 12,000 hours of on-the-job training, and completes Florida Building Commission coursework, and it requires every county and municipality to recognize a journeyman licensed by any other Florida county or municipality. The large South Florida and Tampa Bay counties run such programs (Miami-Dade's Journeyman Air Conditioning, Heating and Refrigeration certificates, Broward's Mechanical Journeyman, Pinellas's Air Conditioning Journeyman) with three years of experience and a 70-75% open-book exam, while other counties such as Hillsborough license no mechanical journeyman at all and technicians simply work as employees of a certified or registered contractor. An out-of-state journeyman or HVAC technician license carries no state-level recognition in Florida and none of the county programs reviewed publishes an out-of-state reciprocity rule (Miami-Dade reciprocates only with Broward and Palm Beach counties), so an arriving technician should expect to document experience and take the county exam in the first county that requires a card, after which that card is portable statewide. EPA Section 608 certification is federal and required of anyone handling refrigerants regardless of any Florida card.

How local licensing works in Florida

How local licensing works. DBPR's Construction Industry Licensing Board certifies (statewide) and registers (locally qualified) air-conditioning and mechanical contractors and issues no personal license below contractor. Section 489.1455, F.S. lets counties and municipalities license journeymen in the plumbing, pipe fitting, mechanical and HVAC trades on three conditions: 75 percent on a proctored Block and Associates or other board-approved journeyman exam, a registered and state-approved apprenticeship or 12,000 hours of on-the-job training, and Florida Building Commission-approved coursework (within 6 months of certification). Subsection (2) makes every county and municipality recognize a journeyman licensed by any other Florida county or municipality. A journeyman card never authorizes contracting; the holder works under a certified or registered contractor.

Miami-Dade County. The Construction Trades Qualifying Board issues Journeyman Air Conditioning, Journeyman Room Air Conditioning, Journeyman General Mechanical, Journeyman Heating, Journeyman Refrigeration, Journeyman Warm Air Heating and Journeyman Sheet Metal certificates. Applicants need three years of proven experience in the trade (up to one-half may be equivalent education), documented with employer letters and W-2s, must pass an open-book exam with 75 percent or above, and pay $240. A journeyman 'may only work in the employ of a contractor holding a certificate of competency in the field in which the journeyman is certified', one journeyman is required for every three trainees on a job site, and continuing education is required each certificate term. The county 'only reciprocates with Broward and Palm Beach County in specific trade categories', and only for journeymen who scored 75% or higher.

Broward County. The Building Code Division's Central Examining Boards certify a Mechanical Journeyman (plus Insulation and Sheet Metal Journeymen). Requirements: at least three years of experience in the mechanical field, a notarized affidavit from the licensed employer, the last three years of W-2s, two passport photos, and a GITS or ProV exam with a minimum passing grade of 75 percent; journeymen do not take the Business & Law exam. Since January 1, 2025 the journeyman application fee is $225, renewal $120 and a letter of reciprocity $50; the application offers 'License by Reciprocity' for holders of other Florida county cards, and the packet warns that a Board-accepted lower score 'may not be' reciprocable to another county or state.

Pinellas County. The Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board certifies an Air Conditioning Journeyman (and Pipe Fitting and Sheet Metal Journeymen) under Chapter 75-489, Laws of Florida; the open-book exam by an independent testing agency has a 70 percent passing grade, the application fee is $75, and applicants file notarized employer experience certificates, six years of employment history and three character letters. The county states that journeymen 'must be certified by the Pinellas County Construction Licensing Board (PCCLB) to work in our county.'

Hillsborough County. Development Services issues journeyman certificates of competency only to electricians and plumbers; its contractor-licensing forms list no mechanical, HVAC or air-conditioning journeyman card, so HVAC technicians in the Tampa area work under a licensed contractor without a personal certificate.

Out-of-state holders. No county page reviewed describes reciprocity for a journeyman or technician license from another state; Miami-Dade limits reciprocity to two neighboring counties and Pinellas prints no reciprocity provision at all. Palm Beach County's contractor certification page could not be opened on this verification date and is not described here.

Moving to Florida Leaving Florida

Common questions

Do I have to take the North Carolina journeyman HVAC technician exam if I'm licensed in Florida?: Yes. North Carolina requires the trade exam on this path.
What does it cost to get a North Carolina journeyman HVAC technician license from Florida?: Published fees on this path total $150, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
Do my Florida work hours count in North Carolina?: Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward North Carolina's eligibility requirements.
How long does the application take?: The board's published or typical processing time is about 42 days.
Does it work the other way, from North Carolina to Florida?: Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from North Carolina to Florida, the mechanism is not applicable.

Sources

EPA Section 608 Technician Certification Requirements · 40 CFR Part 82, Subpart F (Clean Air Act §608) · U.S. Environmental Protection Agency · Other · verified September 15, 2026Federal requirement in every state: technicians who maintain, service, repair or dispose of equipment that could release refrigerants into the atmosphere must be certified (Type I small appliances, Type II high-pressure, Type III low-pressure, Universal). Apprentices under direct supervision are exempt. Certification does not expire; the core exam must be proctored for Universal certification. State HVAC boards commonly require it before licensure, but it is not itself a state license.
N.C.G.S. 87-21 - Definitions; contractors licensed by Board; examination; posting license · N.C.G.S. 87-21(a), (b), (g) · North Carolina General Assembly · Statute · verified September 15, 2026Defines heating Group 1 (steam, vapor or hot water comfort heating), Group 2 (systems with mechanical refrigeration over 15 tons circulating conditioned air; single-family residences always Group 3) and Group 3 (direct heating/cooling with refrigeration of 15 tons or less), and the technician licenses including the State and Local Government technician license. Subsection (g): the Board may grant licenses of the same or equivalent classification to contractors licensed by other states without written examination upon satisfactory proof that their qualifications are substantially equivalent, on payment of the usual license fee.
NC State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors - Applicant Information · North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Lists the contractor licenses (Plumbing & Heating Groups 1, 2, 3) and technician licenses (Plumbing & Heating Class I and II). Experience: Plumbing/Heating Contractor 4,000 hours (2 years), Technician Class I 3,000 hours (18 months), Technician Class II 2,500 hours (15 months), up to half from academic or technical training. States verbatim: 'There are no license reciprocity agreements with any other state', that North Carolina has a Technical Examination Waiver Agreement with South Carolina for plumbing and HVAC contractors under which applicants must still pass the North Carolina business law exam, and that NC residents licensed in Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia or West Virginia may be eligible for equivalent licensure under the Neighbor State License Recognition Act. Processing time averages six weeks. Fetched through the r.jina.ai text proxy after the direct fetch returned a page without the reciprocity paragraphs.
Application Packet for Persons Applying for Plumbing, Heating or Fuel Piping Contractor License (Form PHFP-1, 2026-06) · G.S. 87-21(g) · North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors · Form · verified September 15, 2026Exam fee $150 per exam, non-refundable; separate application per classification (Heating Group 1 Class I/II, Heating Group 2, Heating Group 3 Class I/II). Experience: 4,000 hours for every heating contractor classification, educational credit up to 50% at 66.66 hours per semester hour; an H3-I licensee receives 50% credit on an H2 application and vice versa. Quotes G.S. 87-21(g) and states: 'There is no license reciprocity. All applicants must meet the North Carolina experience requirements. The technical exam waiver applies only to the technical section of the exam' and that the only technical examination waiver agreement is with South Carolina: SC Residential HVAC -> Heating Group 3 Class II; SC Commercial Mechanical Heating (HT) -> Heating Group 1 Class I; SC Commercial Mechanical Air Conditioning (AC) -> Heating Group 2 and Heating Group 3 Class I; SC Commercial Mechanical Packaged Equipment (PK) -> Heating Group 3 Class I; the applicant must have taken and passed the SC technical exam and the SC board emails a License Verification to the NC Board. Experience earned outside NC is documented on Form 1-C (Applicant Employment History) with W-2s/1099s. Nationwide criminal background report from Disahealthcare (applicant pays), Form SSA-89, and the required code and reference books are mandatory. Applicants who pass the technical portion but fail the business portion may request the corresponding Technician license. The military-spouse section prints the licensure-without-examination fees: $30 application fee and $150 annual license fee. Exams are scheduled with PSI after approval; processing 4-6 weeks.
Exam Information 2026 - exam durations · North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026Heating Group 1, 2 and 3 Contractor exams are 4.0 hours plus a 1.5-hour Business and Law exam; Heating Technician (Group 1, 2 or 3) exam is 4.0 hours with no business exam. The Business and Law exam is waived only for applicants who already hold an active contractor license with this Board and passed the Board's Business and Law exam after August 2003.
License Definitions - Technician (2025 v1) · North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026A technician licensee is an individual who has passed the technical examination but not the business law examination; a technician license is not a contracting license; a technician working as a bona fide W-2 employee of a contractor may perform work covered by the contractor's license; a technician must be a sub-licensee of the contractor to assist with supervision. Lists H1-T-I, H1-T-II, H2-T and H3-T (Class I and II) heating technician qualifications.
Application Packet for Persons Qualifying for Plumbing, Heating or Fuel Piping Technician License (Tech App 2026-06) · North Carolina State Board of Examiners of Plumbing, Heating and Fire Sprinkler Contractors · Form · verified September 15, 2026Heating technician exam requires 3,000 hours of experience in installation, maintenance, service or repair (education courses credited at 50%); exam fee $150 per exam, non-refundable; licensure without exam (e.g. a current contractor licensee taking the equivalent technician license) costs a $30 application fee plus $150 activation fee. Qualifications offered: Heating Group 1 Tech Class I/II, Heating Group 2 Technician, Heating Group 3 Tech Class I/II. Same Disahealthcare background report and SSA-89 requirements as the contractor packet; experience outside NC is documented on Form 1-C.
NC State Board of Refrigeration Contractors - General FAQ · North Carolina State Board of Refrigeration Contractors · Faq · verified September 15, 2026Q1: 'North Carolina does not have reciprocity with any other states.' Q5: anyone who installs, repairs or maintains commercial, transport or industrial refrigeration equipment must be licensed or supervised by someone who is licensed. Exam application $100; CFC (EPA 608) test $40 per test; lapsed-license reinstatement $120. Links the 'Licensure Requirements for New Residents' document.

Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.

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