HVAC Technician License: Texas → Ohio

A step-by-step breakdown of what it takes for a licensed hvac technician in Texas to become licensed in Ohio, based on Ohio's current out-of-state licensee examination route — no reciprocity; ohio exam still required rules.

Out-of-State Licensee Examination Route — No Reciprocity; Ohio Exam Still Required

Source: Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB), Ohio Department of Commerce ↗

Updated September 30, 2026

Portability Score

40/100

Moderate Effort

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: $25
Extra Hours: None

Step-by-Step Process

1
Ohio has no HVAC reciprocity with Texas. OCILB's agreement with Texas is an Electrical-only agreement (it requires a Texas Master Electrician license); OCILB's HVAC agreements are with Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia. Under ORC 4740.08, licensing without examination requires such a written agreement.
2
Ohio's state HVAC license is a contractor license for commercial work, issued by the Ohio Construction Industry Licensing Board (OCILB) and tied to a 'contracting company' — the same license level as a Texas TDLR Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Contractor license.
3
Instead of reciprocity, OCILB's Out-of-State Examination Application offers a route for holders of an out-of-state trades contractor license 'substantially similar' to the Ohio license (ORC Chapter 4796). It replaces Ohio's usual five-years-as-a-tradesperson requirement, but the Ohio examination is still required.
4
needs_review: 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.
5
Document: the Texas license held for at least 5 years (e.g., a letter of good standing); at least five building permits issued under that license; at least one tax return showing income earned under it (plus one W-2 if not an owner); and that your contracting company is registered in Ohio as a foreign corporation or foreign LLC with a designated in-state agent.
6
Maintain contractor's liability insurance of at least $500,000 in a single contracting company's name.
7
Pay the $25 application fee. Once approved (approval is valid for one year), complete BCI and FBI background checks, then schedule the PSI computer-based exam; PSI's exam fee is not published in the application.
8
After passing both sections, send the exam results, a $25 license fee, and a certificate of liability insurance; the license and insurance must be assigned to a contracting company.

Note: Ohio side confirmed 2026-09-30 by direct pdftotext extraction of OCILB's Out-of-State Examination Application (form dated 9/2025; server Last-Modified 2026-02-03; re-downloaded for this pair and byte-identical to the copy used for florida-ohio), downloaded from dam.assets.ohio.gov. Its item 8 covers 'an individual who holds an out-of-state trades contractors license, as defined in section 4796.01 ORC, that is substantially similar to the license for which the individual is applying'; it states OCILB 'issues state licenses to Electrical, HVAC, Refrigeration, Plumbing, and Hydronics Contractors who perform commercial work'; fees are $25 application and $25 license. OCILB's Texas agreement (dico_TX_Reciprocity.pdf) is titled 'TEXAS ELECTRICAL RECIPROCITY APPLICATION' and requires a Texas Master Electrician license — no HVAC. HVAC appears in OCILB's Alabama, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, and West Virginia agreements. Texas license classes from TDLR ACR002 (rev. October 2022) and tdlr.texas.gov/acr/acrstate.htm. OCILB's HTML pages on com.ohio.gov returned 404 (moved URLs), and codes.ohio.gov refused connections from this environment. Statute context: ORC 4740.08 requires a written reciprocity agreement, and that the other state's requirements be 'substantially equal', before licensing without examination; ORC 4796.01 contains no general definition of 'substantially similar', so the standard is left to OCILB. PROVENANCE: both ORC texts are official text from codes.ohio.gov, retrieved and extracted by a helper tool (WebFetch) on the user's side, not read directly by Claude Code; the descriptions above are summaries of that extraction, not verbatim quotes. Visual verification is recommended when access allows. feeUsd is the $25 application fee only; the $25 license fee and PSI's exam fee are separate.

HVAC Technician Transfers From Texas 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
Florida	Certification by Endorsement — 10-Year Licensure History (Option C) — Reciprocity Not Available for This Classification	No	55	View
New York	Universal License Recognition (Endorsement)	Yes	50	View

Frequently Asked Questions About This Transfer

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

Yes, via out-of-state licensee examination route — no reciprocity; ohio exam still required. You will need to pass OCILB HVAC contractor examination (PSI, computer-based) — required; Ohio's reciprocity agreement with Texas covers Electrical only. The licensing board does not publish a processing time.

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

Budget approximately $25 for the Ohio 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.