Moving to Michigan as a journeyman HVAC technician: every state's rule

Michigan does not issue a journeyman HVAC, mechanical or refrigeration license and has no HVAC technician registration. Article 8 of the Skilled Trades Regulation Act (2016 PA 407) licenses only mechanical contractors, by work classification, and MCL 339.5809 lets anyone perform regulated HVAC, ductwork, refrigeration or service work as long as they or their employer holds a classified mechanical contractor's license and the permit is pulled by that licensee. MCL 339.5811 forbids municipalities from establishing local licensing requirements for these classifications, so no Michigan city issues an HVAC journeyman card either; Detroit only registers contractors who already hold the state license. An out-of-state journeyman HVAC license therefore has nothing to transfer to and is neither required nor recognized for employment in Michigan. A technician who wants to contract independently, or to be a company's contractor of record, applies for the person-held mechanical contractor license described at the master level (3 years or 6,000 hours of experience per classification, a PSI exam per classification, $300 license fee). Federal EPA Section 608 certification is required of anyone handling refrigerants and is not a state credential.