Requirements, license levels, and the issuing authority, sourced from Alabama's official board.
The 31 December deadline catches people, because it is the same date for everyone regardless of when the certification was issued. And 3,000 hours to examination eligibility is short by national standards, an Alabama technician can hold a state certification well before a counterpart in a 8,000-hour state.
| Requirements | ALABAMA HAS A DEDICATED HVAC BOARD, which is not the norm, most states fold this trade into a general contractors board or do not license it at all. ELIGIBILITY FOR EXAMINATION. An applicant for a heating, air conditioning or refrigeration CERTIFIED CONTRACTOR license is eligible to sit the examination on completion of 3,000 HOURS. That is roughly 18 months of full-time work, which makes Alabama one of the shorter routes into a state HVAC credential. EXAMINATION FEE: $175.00. TWO STATUSES, AND THE DIFFERENCE IS WHETHER YOU DO THE WORK. ACTIVE status is for contractors who perform HVAC or refrigeration installation, service or repair. It requires a BUSINESS NAME and a PERFORMANCE BOND OF $20,000. The fee is $220.00 annually for a new license. INACTIVE status is for individuals who do NOT perform that work but wish to hold the certification, no bond is required and the fee is $110.00 annually. The inactive option is genuinely useful: a technician moving into management, teaching or inspection can keep the certification alive cheaply rather than letting it lapse and re-examining later. FEDERAL LAYER: EPA Section 608 technician certification is separately required to handle regulated refrigerants and belongs to the individual rather than the business. |
| Reciprocity | The board publishes its law, rules and regulations and its application routes directly; an out-of-state applicant applies to the board rather than relying on an automatic waiver. Confirm current terms with the board before assuming another state's license substitutes for the Alabama examination. |
| Renewal | EVERY CONTRACTOR MUST TAKE FOUR CONTINUING EDUCATION HOURS EACH YEAR, and every certification is considered LAPSED IF NOT RENEWED BY 31 DECEMBER. The renewal is annual, not biennial, and the deadline is a fixed calendar date rather than an anniversary. Renewal fees: $190.00 active, $95.00 inactive. |
| Notes | The 31 December deadline catches people, because it is the same date for everyone regardless of when the certification was issued. And 3,000 hours to examination eligibility is short by national standards, an Alabama technician can hold a state certification well before a counterpart in a 8,000-hour state. |
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Sources: hacr.alabama.gov, hacr.alabama.gov, hacr.alabama.gov, hacr.alabama.gov. Always confirm current requirements with the issuing authority.
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