Requirements, license levels, and the issuing authority, sourced from New Jersey's official board.
New Jersey licenses the contractor, not the technician: an HVACR journeyperson is defined in the rules as a person working under the supervision of a Master HVACR Contractor and is not separately licensed by this board. The chapter does not reach several adjacent licensees acting within their own scope, including licensed master plumbers doing specified boiler, hydronic, control and gas piping work and electrical contractors doing specified heating and ventilation installation, so long as they do not hold themselves out as a licensed Master HVACR contractor. Federal EPA Section 608 technician certification applies independently to anyone servicing refrigerant-containing equipment.
| Requirements | An applicant for the master HVACR examination must be at least 21 years old and meet one of the education and experience routes at N.J.A.C. 13:32A-2.2: five years of employment in the HVACR contracting business made up of four or more years in a US Department of Labor approved HVACR apprenticeship or other training program covering the proper management of refrigerants, plus one or more years as an HVACR journeyperson; a bachelor's degree in HVACR including that refrigerant management education plus one year of practical installing, servicing or maintenance experience; or a bachelor's degree in a related field including that education plus three years of practical experience. Completion of an HVACR program at an accredited technical school, trade school, county college or community college satisfies two of the four apprenticeship years. The examination is given at least four times a year in two written parts, practice and New Jersey law and rules, each requiring a minimum grade of 70, and a failed candidate may not retake it for six months. For licensure and issuance of the pressure seal the applicant must file a $3,000 surety bond, a certificate of general liability insurance of $500,000 combined, and a federal tax identification number for the business. |
| Reciprocity | Reciprocity is available only from states whose licensure standards the board finds equal or comparable to New Jersey's (N.J.A.C. 13:32A-2.5). The board's published alert states it has determined the following do NOT have equal or comparable standards, so applications from them are denied and the applicant is directed to the New Jersey examination: Maryland, Texas, Ohio, Florida, Tennessee, Alabama, Delaware, Pennsylvania, New York, Illinois, Arkansas, Louisiana, Rhode Island, North Carolina, Kentucky, Virginia, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Georgia, Indiana, Nevada, New Mexico and West Virginia. |
| Renewal | Every 2 years, with an attestation that the continuing education for the prior period was completed. Continuing education is five credits per biennial period, one credit per hour of attendance, of which one hour must cover the statutes and rules governing HVACR practice including the Uniform Construction Code; contractors renewing for the first time are exempt. A license not renewed by its expiration date may be renewed within 30 days with a late fee; after that the license is suspended without a hearing and the pressure seal must be returned. |
| Notes | New Jersey licenses the contractor, not the technician: an HVACR journeyperson is defined in the rules as a person working under the supervision of a Master HVACR Contractor and is not separately licensed by this board. The chapter does not reach several adjacent licensees acting within their own scope, including licensed master plumbers doing specified boiler, hydronic, control and gas piping work and electrical contractors doing specified heating and ventilation installation, so long as they do not hold themselves out as a licensed Master HVACR contractor. Federal EPA Section 608 technician certification applies independently to anyone servicing refrigerant-containing equipment. |
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Sources: www.njconsumeraffairs.gov, www.njconsumeraffairs.gov. Always confirm current requirements with the issuing authority.
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