Requirements, license levels, and the issuing authority, sourced from Wisconsin's official board.
Wisconsin splits the credential in two: the business holds the HVAC Contractor registration and an individual holds the HVAC Qualifier certification, and under Wis. Stat. 101.178(3)(c) a business employing a qualifier is a certified HVAC business that may not be required to obtain a separate local certification. Registration is not required to service existing HVAC equipment in facilities the person or business owns, to install or service HVAC or refrigeration equipment in a dwelling the person owns and resides in, or for electrical or plumbing work associated with HVAC equipment. The Department states there is no refrigeration exam, that contractors installing refrigeration equipment serving HVAC equipment must hold the HVAC Contractor registration, and that each service technician handling ozone-depleting refrigerants must hold federal EPA Section 608 certification.
| Requirements | HVAC Qualifier (Wis. Admin. Code SPS 305.71) requires one of the following before examination: at least 1,000 hours per year for at least 4 years of experience supervising or performing the design, installation, servicing or maintenance of HVAC systems or equipment, documented with witness signatures; at least 4 years of attendance in a school of mechanical engineering or an accredited college, university, technical, vocational or apprenticeship school in an HVAC-related program, evidenced by transcripts; or any combination totalling 4 years. An examination is then required. HVAC Contractor registration (SPS 305.70) requires that the applicant be the owner of the contracting business, a partner applying for a partnership, or the board chair or chief executive applying for a corporation; no examination attaches to the registration itself. Fees are calculated in the DSPS LicensE portal rather than published as fixed figures. No minimum age or bond is stated on the official forms or in SPS 305.71. |
| Reciprocity | Not specified on the official page reviewed. SPS 305.71 contains no reciprocity or credential-by-endorsement provision for the HVAC Qualifier. |
| Renewal | Every 4 years, on a date tied to issuance. Renewal is $160.00 for HVAC Contractor and $60.00 for HVAC Qualifier, with a $200.00 reinstatement fee for each. The late continuing education column on the Department's trades renewal schedule is marked not applicable for both HVAC credentials and SPS 305.71 states no continuing education hours, so no HVAC continuing education mandate was found on the official sources reviewed. |
| Notes | Wisconsin splits the credential in two: the business holds the HVAC Contractor registration and an individual holds the HVAC Qualifier certification, and under Wis. Stat. 101.178(3)(c) a business employing a qualifier is a certified HVAC business that may not be required to obtain a separate local certification. Registration is not required to service existing HVAC equipment in facilities the person or business owns, to install or service HVAC or refrigeration equipment in a dwelling the person owns and resides in, or for electrical or plumbing work associated with HVAC equipment. The Department states there is no refrigeration exam, that contractors installing refrigeration equipment serving HVAC equipment must hold the HVAC Contractor registration, and that each service technician handling ozone-depleting refrigerants must hold federal EPA Section 608 certification. |
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Sources: dsps.wi.gov, dsps.wi.gov, dsps.wi.gov, dsps.wi.gov. Always confirm current requirements with the issuing authority.
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