HVAC Technician License: Florida → Texas

A step-by-step breakdown of what it takes for a licensed hvac technician in Florida to become licensed in Texas, based on Texas's current full standard application required — no reciprocity, no abbreviated out-of-state path for this classification rules.

Full Standard Application Required — No Reciprocity, No Abbreviated Out-of-State Path for This Classification

Source: Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractors Program ↗

Updated September 30, 2026

Portability Score

35/100

Difficult Transfer

PermitBridge's own estimate, based on the exam, fee, and processing-time factors below — not an official government rating.

Exam: Required
Processing: Processing time not published by the board
Fee: $115
Extra Hours: None

Step-by-Step Process

1
Texas TDLR's Air Conditioning and Refrigeration (ACR) Contractor reciprocity is limited to Georgia and South Carolina — confirmed directly from the ACR002 license application's own reciprocity section (§19), which requires a letter of good standing specifically from one of those two states. Florida is not eligible for reciprocity under any circumstance.
2
A Florida ACR/HVAC license holder instead files the standard ACR002 application — the identical form any first-time applicant uses. Texas offers no separate, abbreviated out-of-state track for this classification. TDLR's out-of-state applicant page does say that, depending on the requirements of the applicant's current license, they "may be required to complete some or all of the Texas requirements for licensure, including taking a licensing examination" — so any credit for the Florida license is a case-by-case TDLR decision, not a published rule.
3
Document at least 48 months (4 years) of qualifying practical experience within the preceding 72 months (6 years), verified on TDLR's own Experience Verification Form by someone other than the applicant. Experience gained while holding the Florida license should count toward this, but TDLR still requires its own verification paperwork regardless of the applicant's existing license.
4
Alternatively, substitute qualifying education (an A/C-related associate's or bachelor's degree, or a shorter certification program) for part of the experience requirement, per the form's own education-substitution table.
5
Submit the $115 non-refundable TDLR application fee.
6
Once TDLR approves the application, schedule and pass the PSI-administered Texas licensing exam for the applicable class (Class A or B). TDLR does not publish PSI's separate exam fee in its own materials.
7
Obtain the required certificate of insurance before the license is issued.

Note: Confirmed by direct pdftotext extraction of TDLR Form ACR002 (rev. October 2022, still the current form as of this research) after an earlier WebFetch summary of TDLR's HTML reciprocity pages proved directionally correct but lacked this level of detail. §19 of the form states reciprocity requires 'a letter of good standing from South Carolina or Georgia which also indicates you have taken and passed an exam to obtain the out of state license' — Florida is categorically excluded, not merely absent from a list. Outside of SC/GA, every applicant — regardless of home state — files the same ACR002 application and documents the same 48-month experience requirement; TDLR publishes no fixed partial-credit rule for an existing out-of-state license, but its out-of-state applicant page (tdlr.texas.gov/acr/acrstate.htm) states applicants "may be required to complete some or all of the Texas requirements for licensure, including taking a licensing examination" depending on their current license — i.e., discretionary case-by-case evaluation (needs_review: whether a Florida license reduces any requirement, including the exam, is not determinable from published materials). The $115 fee is TDLR's own filing fee only; PSI's separate exam-scheduling fee is not published in TDLR's materials and is omitted here. Effective-version check (2026-09-29): the ACR002 PDF served at the sourceUrl today still reads 'rev October 2022'; its $115 fee, Georgia/South Carolina-only reciprocity, and 48-of-72-months experience wording were re-confirmed in that download. The $115 contractor application fee matches 16 Tex. Admin. Code §75.80 as read via Cornell LII's mirror (history through the 9/1/2024 amendment, 49 TexReg 6449). Correction (2026-09-30): §75.80 was amended again effective 2026-09-01 (51 TexReg 5778; TDLR adoption notice of 2026-08-31), which Cornell's mirror does not yet reflect. The $115 figure itself is re-confirmed from TDLR's current ACR002 form and its live out-of-state applicant page, but the full text of the 2026 amendment has not been read, because the Secretary of State's new rules portal does not return rule text to automated requests. Unlike Florida's F.A.C., the Texas rule does not incorporate ACR002 by revision date, so there is no official effective-date record for the form itself; that the October 2022 form is the version TDLR currently expects is inferred from it being the one TDLR's own site serves, not independently verified.

HVAC Technician Transfers From Florida to Other States

State	Pathway	Exam?	Score	Link
California	Full New Application Required — No Reciprocity or Exam Waiver Available for C-20	Yes	15	View
New York	Universal License Recognition (Endorsement)	Yes	50	View
Ohio	Out-of-State Licensee Examination Route — No Reciprocity; Ohio Exam Still Required	Yes	40	View

Frequently Asked Questions About This Transfer

Can I transfer my hvac technician license from Florida to Texas?+

Yes, via full standard application required — no reciprocity, no abbreviated out-of-state path for this classification. You will need to pass TDLR/PSI Class A or Class B Environmental Air Conditioning exam — the same exam any first-time Texas applicant takes; no exam waiver exists outside the Georgia/South Carolina reciprocity agreements. The licensing board does not publish a processing time.

How much does it cost to transfer a hvac technician license to Texas?+

Budget approximately $115 for the Texas application fee alone. Exam fees, if required, and any additional continuing-education hours are typically separate costs charged by third-party providers.

Does my EPA 608 certification transfer to a new state?+

Yes. EPA Section 608 refrigerant handling certification is federal and valid nationwide for life. Only your state or local HVAC contractor license needs to be re-established when you move.