Ohio HVAC License Reciprocity & Transfer
What it takes to transfer an HVAC contractor license you already hold in another state into Ohio. This page covers license transfer only — not how to get licensed from scratch.
Transferring an existing license into Ohio
Ohio's board sets the route, so it is the same for every origin state we have verified below.
- Pathway
- Endorsement of an out-of-state license
- Fees
- $25
- Minimum years licensed
- 5
- Exam
- Required
- Processing time
- Processing time not published by the board
Fees are the state fees recorded for this route; see each origin's full requirements for the breakdown.
Source: Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB), Ohio Department of Commerce
By origin state
From California → Ohio
Full requirementsOut-of-State Licensee Examination Route — No Reciprocity; Ohio Exam Still Required
- whether a California C-20 license is 'substantially similar' to Ohio's HVAC contractor license is OCILB's case-by-case judgment — Ohio law does not define the standard.
- ORC 4796.01 defines an out-of-state occupational license as one issued 'to an individual.' CSLB issues contractor licenses to the business (a sole owner, or a company qualified by an individual), so whether a C-20 held by a corporation or LLC — rather than a sole owner — fits that definition is not settled by the text.
From Florida → Ohio
Full requirementsOut-of-State Licensee Examination Route — No Reciprocity; Ohio Exam Still Required
- whether a Florida Class A or Class B Air-Conditioning certification is 'substantially similar' to Ohio's HVAC contractor license is OCILB's case-by-case judgment — Ohio law does not define the standard.
From Texas → Ohio
Full requirementsOut-of-State Licensee Examination Route — No Reciprocity; Ohio Exam Still Required
- whether a Texas ACR contractor license is 'substantially similar' to Ohio's HVAC contractor license is OCILB's case-by-case judgment — Ohio law does not define the standard. The two states also classify differently: Texas by equipment capacity (Class A any size, Class B up to 25 tons cooling / 1.5 million BTU/h heating) with separate Environmental Air Conditioning and Commercial Refrigeration endorsements, Ohio by type of work (commercial) with separate HVAC and Refrigeration licenses.
Not yet researched
We haven't published sourced requirements for transferring an HVAC contractor license into Ohio from: New York. Rather than guess, we leave these out until we can cite the board directly — check with the Ohio board in the meantime.