Kansas to Alaska: master HVAC technician license reciprocity
Kansas does not issue a statewide master HVAC technician license, so there is nothing to transfer. Here is Alaska'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.
Mechanical Administrator license by credentials (all states)
Your out-of-state credentials give no advantage. You meet the destination's requirements from scratch.
Alaska publishes no state-by-state reciprocity list for mechanical administrators; every out-of-state applicant uses licensure by credentials under AS 08.40.270(b) and 12 AAC 39.022 (form 08-4904, also filed online through MY LICENSE). The department must waive the examination when the applicant holds a current, active mechanical administrator or equivalent license in another state (verification sent directly by every jurisdiction where the applicant is or was licensed), has that state verify on form 08-4904a, with the exam content outline, that the applicant passed an examination equivalent to Alaska's, and meets the experience qualifications for the category applied for (for example 12 AAC 39.242 for Unlimited HVAC/Sheet Metal or 12 AAC 39.262 for Unlimited Refrigeration). CBPL warns that passing an exam in another state does not guarantee qualification, and transcripts must come directly from the school if education is used to qualify. The fee is $150 (nonrefundable application) plus $200 (license), $350 in total, and paper applications take several weeks. An applicant who cannot document an equivalent exam applies by examination instead (form 08-4903) and must score at least 70% on the PSI mechanical administrator exam within the 12 months before licensure; a licensee may later add categories under 12 AAC 39.025 by passing that category's exam.
The division does not publish which states' HVAC contractor, master mechanical or refrigeration exams it accepts as equivalent; each is reviewed against the exam content outline. Whether a state HVAC contractor license that is issued to a business rather than a person counts as 'licensed as a mechanical administrator or the equivalent' is not addressed on any official page. The PSI examination fee for the by-examination route is $150 per attempt. A journeyman-level HVAC license alone is not an administrator equivalent, but 12 AAC 39.992(4) counts an equivalent journeyman certificate from another jurisdiction toward the category experience requirement.
At a glance
- Trade exam
- Waived
- Law / code exam
- Not required
- Out-of-state hours
- Count toward eligibility
What you must already have
- Your Kansas license must be active and in good standing.
- You must have passed a licensing exam in Kansas that the destination considers comparable.
- Meets the category qualifications in 12 AAC 39.222-39.332 (e.g. Unlimited HVAC/Sheet Metal: journeyman or field-superintendent experience in HVAC and sheet metal work for four of the last six years; Unlimited Refrigeration or Residential HVAC: journeyman experience for two of the last four years); a year of experience is at least 1,500 hours in 12 consecutive months
- You must have no disciplinary action or unresolved complaints on your record.
What you'll do to get licensed in Alaska
- 1Application fee. Pay the application fee ($150). Nonrefundable application fee (12 AAC 02.245).
- 2License fee. Pay the license or certificate fee ($200). Biennial license fee; licenses expire December 31 of odd-numbered years (12 AAC 02.245).
- 3Other. Verification of licensure from every jurisdiction where the applicant holds or has held a mechanical administrator license, sent directly to the division; verification of the equivalent examination on form 08-4904a; official transcripts sent by the school if education is used to qualify.
- 4Other. Hold EPA Section 608 technician certification to handle refrigerant; federal law requires it, but it is not a condition of this state license (if applicable).
- 5Continuing education. Complete continuing education. For renewal: one eight-hour Uniform Mechanical Code workshop (or approved equivalent) per HVAC-related category each biennium (12 AAC 39.410); renewal fee $200.
Published fees on this path total $350, 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.
- Other · if applicable
Continuing education
Renewals usually need approved CE hours, often on the latest NEC. Reciprocal licensees are rarely exempt.
- Continuing education
How Alaska licenses master HVAC technicians
Alaska master HVAC technician · “Mechanical Administrator”
Statewide license
Alaska has no master HVAC license; its highest person-held HVAC credential is the Mechanical Administrator license issued under AS 08.40.210-08.40.490 by the Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing (CBPL), which is treated here as the master level. It is a supervisory license: a person may not act as a mechanical administrator without it, every registered mechanical contractor must hold or employ one, and the administrator is responsible for all mechanical work done under the contractor's license (AS 08.40.260, 08.40.280; 12 AAC 39.902). The license is issued in categories; the HVAC-related ones are Unlimited HVAC/Sheet Metal (UHVCS), Residential HVAC (RHVC), Unlimited Refrigeration (UR), Heating, Cooling and Process Piping (HCPP) and Mechanical Systems Temperature Control (CNTL), with plumbing categories (UCIP, RPHH) alongside. Qualification is by experience (for example four of the last six years as a journeyman or field superintendent in HVAC and sheet metal work for UHVCS, or two of the last four years as a journeyman for UR and RHVC, where a year means at least 1,500 hours) plus a PSI-administered examination passed at 70% within the prior 12 months, or by credentials for administrators licensed in another state. Fees are $150 to apply plus $200 for the license ($350); the license is biennial, expiring December 31 of odd-numbered years, and renews for $200 with an eight-hour Uniform Mechanical Code workshop per category. The administrator license does not by itself let the holder install fuel gas piping (that needs a DOLWD Plumber Gas certificate) or original control wiring (that needs an Electrical Administrator), and anyone handling refrigerants needs federal EPA Section 608 certification.
Why Kansas has nothing to transfer
Kansas master HVAC technician
Licensed by cities and counties
Kansas does not issue a master HVAC license; the master credential exists only at the county and city level under the framework in K.S.A. 12-1540 to 12-1544. State law requires a master heating, ventilation and air conditioning mechanic certificate to rest on a journeyman certificate held for at least two years or four years of field experience, plus a 75% score on an ICC, IAPMO or Prometric standard master mechanical exam, and makes a certificate earned on those exams valid proof of competency in every Kansas jurisdiction that licenses HVAC mechanics without additional examination. Sedgwick County/Wichita (MABCD) issues master mechanical certificates ($35) on ICC K9L/556 or the IAPMO master exam; Topeka licenses mechanical masters on the Standard Unlimited Air Conditioning Master exam; Lawrence certifies master mechanicals with four years of field experience or two as a journeyman ($20); Kansas City, Kansas requires mechanical masters to hold a master's license from Building Inspections; and Johnson County uses the ICC Standard Master Mechanical exam (556/KGL) to qualify the individual behind a Class DM mechanical contractor license ($100 application plus $225 license fee). None of these jurisdictions has a reciprocity agreement with another state (MABCD states it does not reciprocate with state testing), so an out-of-state master HVAC license transfers nothing except, in practice, a qualifying ICC, IAPMO or Prometric exam score that the applicant may already hold. EPA Section 608 certification is a separate federal requirement.
How local licensing works in Kansas
How local licensing works. K.S.A. 12-1540 defines a master heating, ventilation and air conditioning mechanic as a person qualified to plan, lay out and supervise the installation and repair of mechanical HVAC systems, and K.S.A. 12-1542 lets a county or city issue a master certificate of competency only to someone who has held a journeyman certificate for two years or has four years of field experience and scores 75% on the ICC, IAPMO or Prometric standard master exam (K.S.A. 12-1541). That certificate is valid proof of competency for licensure in any other licensing county or city without retesting; a license based on an alternative local exam is good only in the issuing jurisdiction (K.S.A. 12-1543). Each jurisdiction charges its own fee and requires 12 hours of continuing education biennially or 6 annually. Contracting is licensed separately by each jurisdiction and generally requires a master-level qualifying individual.
Sedgwick County and Wichita (MABCD). Mechanical master certificate ($35): must hold a mechanical journeyman certificate plus two years of field experience as a journeyman, or have four years of field experience, and score 75% on ICC K9L/556 Master Mechanical or the IAPMO master exam. MABCD 'does not reciprocate with state testing'. Contractors are licensed separately by MABCD.
Johnson County. Does not license individuals. The master-level credential is the qualifying individual of a Class DM (HVAC, mechanical and refrigeration) contractor license, who must present a verifiable ICC Standard Master Mechanical (556/KGL) score of 75% or higher; the contractor pays $100 application plus $225 per license type ($225 annual renewal, $75 late) and carries general liability and workers' compensation insurance.
Kansas City, Kansas (Unified Government). Trade masters, including mechanical, must carry a master's license from Building Inspections, obtained through Prometric master testing; experience rules and fees for mechanical are not published on the page.
Topeka. Mechanical masters must meet the K.S.A. 12-1542 requirements and show a 75% score on the Standard Unlimited Air Conditioning Master exam from Block, NIA-Block, Experior, Thomson-Prometric or Prometric, with a notarized time-in-trade form and a $50 trade board review fee; six hours of continuing education a year (three in the trade), licenses expire December 14. TMC 5.63.080 lets the city register holders of trade licenses from other jurisdictions with equivalent requirements. A master must be the designated master for a licensed contractor to pull permits.
Lawrence. Master Mechanical license ($20) after certification: four years of practical field experience or two years as a journeyman (an engineering degree substitutes for 2.5 years and a vocational-technical program for one year), $50 exam application fee, 75% passing score, six hours of continuing education a year; a master may become a mechanical contractor under Chapter V, Article 15.
Out-of-state holders. No Kansas jurisdiction publishes reciprocity for another state's master HVAC license. The practical route is to present or earn a passing ICC, IAPMO or Prometric master mechanical score (Standard Master Mechanical 556/KGL is accepted by Johnson County and MABCD), document the required experience, and apply in each jurisdiction, then obtain the local contractor license if the master will pull permits.
Common questions
- Do I have to take the Alaska master HVAC technician exam if I'm licensed in Kansas?
- No. The trade exam is waived on this path.
- What does it cost to get a Alaska master HVAC technician license from Kansas?
- Published fees on this path total $350, not counting exam vendor fees or bonds.
- Do my Kansas work hours count in Alaska?
- Yes. Documented out-of-state experience counts toward Alaska's eligibility requirements.
- Does it work the other way, from Alaska to Kansas?
- Not necessarily. Reciprocity is directed. Going from Alaska to Kansas, the mechanism is not applicable.
Sources
- Alaska CBPL - Construction Contractors (Mechanical Contractors) · AS 08.18 · Alaska DCCED - Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026
- Alaska CBPL - Mechanical Administrators: License Applications and Forms · Alaska DCCED - Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 15, 2026
- Form 08-4904 - Mechanical Administrator License by Credentials Application (new 08/30/2024) · 12 AAC 39.022; 12 AAC 02.245 · Alaska DCCED - Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 16, 2026
- Form 08-4903 - Mechanical Administrator License by Examination Application (new 08/30/2024) · 12 AAC 39.012; 12 AAC 02.245 · Alaska DCCED - Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 23, 2026
- Alaska CBPL - Mechanical Administrators program page · Alaska DCCED - Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Agency Page · verified September 16, 2026
- Form 08-4296 - Mechanical Administrator License Renewal, January 1, 2026 - December 31, 2027 (rev. 10/23/2025) · 12 AAC 39.027; 12 AAC 39.410 · Alaska DCCED - Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 23, 2026
- Statutes and Regulations - Mechanical Administrators (AS 08.40.210-08.40.490 and 12 AAC 39), April 2023 · AS 08.40.260, AS 08.40.270, AS 08.40.280, AS 08.40.290; 12 AAC 39.012, 12 AAC 39.022, 12 AAC 39.025, 12 AAC 39.027, 12 AAC 39.033, 12 AAC 39.202, 12 AAC 39.212, 12 AAC 39.302, 12 AAC 39.312, 12 AAC 39.410, 12 AAC 39.950, 12 AAC 39.992 · Alaska DCCED - Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Statute · verified September 16, 2026
- PSI Services - State of Alaska Mechanical Administrators Examination Candidate Information Bulletin (updated 8/20/2026) · PSI Services LLC for the Alaska Division of Corporations, Business and Professional Licensing · Form · verified September 23, 2026
- 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, 2026
Verified dates are when a person last opened each source and confirmed the facts above. Cite the board, not us.