Want to work as an air-conditioning contractor anywhere in Florida? You'll need a state Certified license from the Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB), under the Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) — and "certified" is the catch: it's earned through documented experience, a financial-responsibility review, and a two-part state exam. This guide walks every step, both license classes, and the recent law changes you need to know.
Is an HVAC license required in Florida?
Yes. Florida law requires a state-certified or (historically) locally-registered license to perform air-conditioning, heating, refrigeration, and ventilation contracting. Performing this work unlicensed is a criminal offense that can carry fines and cease-and-desist action. A Certified license issued by the CILB lets you contract anywhere in Florida.
Florida HVAC license tiers and scope of work
Florida issues two statewide certified air-conditioning classes, distinguished by the size of system you may work on:
- Certified Class A Air-Conditioning Contractor — unlimited. May install, maintain, repair, and alter air-conditioning, refrigeration, heating, and ventilation systems of any capacity, including ductwork.
- Certified Class B Air-Conditioning Contractor — limited to systems up to 25 tons of cooling and 500,000 BTU of heating in any one system. Class B contractors may perform ductwork needed to complete an air-distribution system within that classification.
Limited electrical scope: Florida's current statutory definitions for Class A and Class B air-conditioning contractors include limited work on dedicated HVAC electrical circuits, such as replacing, disconnecting, or reconnecting power wiring on the line or load side of an existing dedicated disconnect on single-phase systems, repairing or replacing power wiring, disconnects, breakers, or fuses for dedicated HVAC circuits with proper circuit-breaker lock use, and installing low-voltage HVAC control wiring. The definitions still exclude general electrical power wiring outside the listed HVAC scope.
Certified vs. registered contractors: A certified contractor may work statewide in the classification covered by the certificate. A registered contractor is limited to the local jurisdictions where the contractor has met local licensing requirements. Florida's local specialty-contractor rules changed under 2024 legislation, so locally licensed contractors should confirm their registration path with DBPR and the local building department before relying on a local credential.
Florida HVAC license requirements: are you eligible?
General eligibility
- Be at least 18 years old.
- Be of good moral character.
- Provide the applicant identification required by DBPR. The current CILB exam-registration packet states that a Social Security number is required for identification purposes.
- Exams are offered in English and Spanish; DBPR also allows a qualifying word-to-word translation dictionary during the examination.
Experience and education
Florida's licensure-by-examination statute provides several experience and education paths. Common paths include:
- Four years' active experience as a skilled worker or foreman, including at least one year as a foreman.
- A baccalaureate degree from an accredited four-year college in the appropriate field of engineering, architecture, or building construction, plus one year of proven experience in the category.
- A combination of experience and college-level credits, such as one year as a foreman plus three years of accredited college-level credits, or other combinations listed in Florida Statutes section 489.111.
- Upgrade paths for existing certified air-conditioning contractors, including Class B to Class A after passing or previously passing the Class A exam and documenting at least one year of proven experience in the Class B classification.
Financial responsibility and credit
Applicants submit credit reports and demonstrate financial responsibility and stability.
- DBPR's current financial-responsibility guidance says applicants should have no unsatisfied liens or judgments against the applicant or the business being qualified.
- Applicants with a FICO-derived score of 660 or higher meet the credit-score criterion.
- Applicants with a score below 660 must complete a board-approved 14-hour Financial Responsibility Course.
Background check
Applicants must submit fingerprints for a state and national background check. A criminal record is not an automatic disqualifier; the board considers the nature of the offense, its relationship to contracting, time elapsed, and rehabilitation.
The application process, step by step
- Confirm eligibility before registering. DBPR warns that passing the exam alone does not qualify you for licensure if you do not meet the experience, education, financial, insurance, and background requirements.
- Register for the state construction examination using CILB 1 through Professional Testing, Inc.
- Pass the required exam parts for Air A or Air B: Business and Finance plus Trade Knowledge.
- Apply for initial licensure after passing the exam. For an individual active certified air-conditioning license, DBPR lists CILB 5-G for Class A and CILB 5-H for Class B.
- Submit supporting documents and fees, including experience/education documentation, credit reports, fingerprints, insurance attestations, and the required DBPR application fee shown in the current application or online checkout.
The Florida HVAC contractor exam
The state contractor examination has two parts — you must pass both:
- Trade Knowledge — installation, duct systems, refrigeration principles, electrical components, codes, and safety.
- Business and Finance — business organization, financial management, tax and labor law, and lien law.
- Exam registration and administration: DBPR contracts with Professional Testing, Inc. to register candidates and develop and score CILB construction exams. After approval, computer-based exams are scheduled through Pearson VUE.
- Open-book references: all construction exams are open book and multiple choice. Only approved references are allowed at the exam site.
- Timing: Business and Finance is a 6.5-hour exam. Air B Trade Knowledge is 5 hours; Air A Trade Knowledge is 7.5 hours.
- Exam fees: the current Professional Testing, Inc. application/registration fee and the Pearson VUE computer-based exam fees are set by those vendors and are not stated in the cited DBPR pages — confirm at floridaexam.com and pearsonvue.com/fl/construction/.
- EPA Section 608 is separate: technicians who maintain, service, repair, or dispose of equipment that could release regulated refrigerants need EPA Section 608 Technician Certification, but that federal credential is separate from Florida's contractor license exam.
Insurance and bonding
Before your license is activated, you must show proof of insurance:
- Public liability and property damage insurance: per Fla. Admin. Code r. 61G4-15.003, Certified Air Conditioning Contractors must obtain and continually maintain $100,000 in public liability and $25,000 in property-damage insurance — the same tier required of Mechanical, Plumbing, and most other specialty CILB categories.
- Workers' compensation coverage as required by Florida law, or an official exemption. DBPR says applicants must obtain coverage or an exemption within 30 days of license issuance.
- No surety bond is required for CILB certification.
Renewal and continuing education
- Cycle: certified contractor licenses expire August 31 of even-numbered years. Registered contractor licenses expire August 31 of odd-numbered years.
- Renewal fee: the current biennial renewal fee for Air Conditioning Contractor Class A, B, and C is set by DBPR/CILB and is not stated in the cited DBPR pages — confirm on the current DBPR application or online checkout.
- Continuing education: Air Conditioning Class A, B, and C licensees need 14 hours per cycle, including at least 1 hour specialized or advanced module, 1 hour workplace safety, 1 hour business practices, 1 hour workers' compensation, 1 hour laws and rules, and the remaining hours in board-approved construction-related instruction.
Reciprocity and endorsement
- Do not rely on the Louisiana, North Carolina, and Mississippi reciprocity list for HVAC. DBPR's current reciprocity PDF lists those states for General, Building, and Residential licenses, not air-conditioning licenses.
- Substantially equivalent exam endorsement may be available for HVAC-related out-of-state exams that DBPR has previously found substantially similar, including Arkansas Master HVACR Contractor, California Class A Air Conditioning Contractor, Iowa Master HVACR Contractor, and South Carolina Mechanical - Air Conditioning Contractor.
- 10-year endorsement: Florida law also allows endorsement for an applicant who has held a valid, current license in another state or territory for at least 10 years before the application date and applies for the same or similar license, subject to statutory conditions.
Recent and upcoming changes (2024–2026)
- July 1, 2024 — HVAC warranty simplification (HB 481 / Ch. 2024-206): Florida added HVAC warranty registration and transfer rules, including limits on conditioning manufacturer warranties on product registration.
- July 1, 2024 — occupational licensing changes (SB 1142 / Ch. 2024-212): Florida updated local occupational licensing and specialty contractor registration provisions.
- Current statute — limited HVAC electrical scope: Florida Statutes section 489.105 now includes limited dedicated-circuit and low-voltage HVAC wiring tasks in the Class A, Class B, and mechanical contractor definitions.
- Not enacted — HB 431 (2026): a 2026 bill on air-conditioning and mechanical contractor scope died in Senate Rules on March 13, 2026, so it should not be described as an upcoming effective change.