STATE LICENSE
RequiredFlorida DBPR — Construction Industry Lice…
Air conditioning is a Division II contractor category at DBPR's Construction Industry Licensing Board. Class A air-conditioning contractors are unlimited on central air-conditioning, refrigeration, heating and ventilating systems; Class B is capped at 25 tons of cooling and 500,000 Btu of heating in any one system; Class C is a servicing-only category that survives for existing holders. A mechanical contractor license covers all of that plus gasoline tanks, standpipes and LP gas lines within buildings.
The decision that shapes your business is certified versus registered. A certified contractor holds a certificate of competency from the department and may contract in any jurisdiction in the state. A registered contractor may contract only in the counties, municipalities or districts where local competency requirements were met — a real constraint in a state where a service van routinely crosses three county lines in a day.
On top of the state license sit two things that are not optional: EPA Section 608 technician certification for anyone opening a refrigerant circuit, and workers' compensation from the first employee because air conditioning is construction-industry work under Chapter 440.
The state sets the license floor; the county or city permit office controls filing, inspections, and local rules wherever the job site sits.
A certified contractor may contract in any jurisdiction in the state; a registered contractor is confined to the jurisdictions where local competency was met. Local governments still issue the mechanical permit and collect a business tax receipt, but § 163.211 preempted local occupational licensing to the state and the grandfather for pre-2021 local licenses expired July 1, 2025. A local building department may not issue a permit to a contractor without a valid active state certificate or registration.
The local offices section below names the exact permit desk for every Florida county on file.
Each row names the issuing authority, cost, timeline, citation, and status behind the requirement — verified against the official source.
Published fees from the issuing authorities, as of September 2026. Local permit fees vary by project and jurisdiction — the basis is stated where a flat number does not exist.
Rule 61G4-12.009(1)(a) breaks it out: $135 paid to the department or its examination vendor when you schedule, $80 per test for administration, and $40 to process the application after you pass.
The initial certification fee drops from $249 to $149 when it lands in the second year of the biennium — Rule 61G4-12.009(4)(a) prorates the partial period, and every renewal after that is the flat $200.
A FICO-derived score under 660 does not end the application. A Division II applicant posts a $10,000 bond or irrevocable letter of credit, halved to $5,000 by completing the board-approved 14-hour financial responsibility course.
A practical sequence for a new HVAC contractor in Florida. Actual agency processing times are noted in the ledger above.
Each item names the issuing authority, cycle, and citation.
Statutory consequences with their citations — not estimates, not “commonly cited” guesses.
Holding yourself out as, or operating as, an air-conditioning contractor without a certificate or registration.
DBPR may fine an unlicensed person directly, on top of any criminal case, and recover investigative and legal costs.
A contract entered into by an unlicensed contractor is unenforceable in law or in equity by that contractor — you cannot sue to get paid.
Inside city limits, the city office listed here issues the permit; the county office serves unincorporated areas. Every office links to its official page.
Every fact in this file was checked against these official sources on September 2026.
Pending verification: Whether certified licenses expire August 31 of even years and registrations August 31 of odd years — derived from the fee windows in the DBPR CILB forms and Rule 61G4-12.009(4)(a); the DBPR renewal page returned HTTP 403 and could not be read directly · The name of DBPR's current examination development vendor (Rule 61G4-12.009 refers to it only as 'the Department's examination development vendor') · EPA Section 608 examination price, which is set independently by each approved certifying organization
General information, not legal advice. Always confirm requirements, deadlines, and forms with the issuing authority before filing or contracting.
Store licenses, permits, policies, and renewal dates in one place.