Kentucky: HVAC contractor licensing, reciprocity and contract rules.

This page lists what Kentucky publishes about licensing an HVAC or mechanical contractor and contracting with homeowners: who issues the licence, whether one is required statewide, the classes and qualifications, insurance or bond minimums, reciprocity with other states, renewal and continuing education, and the state's home-improvement contract statute if it has one.

It is built for owners of residential HVAC companies, especially those hiring across a state line or opening a second territory. Every entry is a snapshot of what the cited source published on the verification date; it is a research starting point, not legal advice.

Kentucky, field by field.

Contractor licensing authority

Kentucky Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction (DHBC), Division of Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (Division of HVAC), Public Protection Cabinet. The Division's page states that it “is charged with administering and enforcing the Kentucky Revised Statutes 198B.650 to 198B.689”, which “have required heating and air conditioning contractors in Kentucky to be licensed by the Division of HVAC since July 1995”, and that “On Jan. 1, 2011, Kentucky became the first state to implement a statewide HVAC permitting and inspections program for residential and commercial construction.” Division contact: (502) 573-0395, [email protected] (DHBC divisions directory).

HVAC licence required

Statewide — KRS 198B.656(4): “A person shall not practice heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contracting, unless that person has met the requirements of KRS 198B.650 to 198B.689”; under 198B.656(1) the holder of a valid master HVAC contractor's licence “shall be entitled to practice heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contracting, including the obtaining of any necessary permits” and “shall be primarily responsible for the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning work performed.” “Practice of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contracting” means “the installation, maintenance, altering, remodeling, or repair of heating systems, ventilation systems, hydronic systems, burner service, or cooling systems” and does not include cleaning of duct work (KRS 198B.650(15)); no dollar threshold. KRS 198B.674 exempts, among others, an individual owner working on property “owned and occupied by the individual” (3), persons installing, maintaining, repairing or replacing “residential window air conditioning units” (4), a full-time maintenance person performing routine maintenance in connection with his employment (7), and the installation, service, repair or replacement of electrical units on an HVAC system (12).

Licence classes & qualifications

Master HVAC contractor licence, journeyman HVAC mechanic licence, and apprentice HVAC mechanic certificate (KRS 198B.656). Master (KRS 198B.658(1)): at least 18, a U.S. citizen or resident alien authorized to work, and either employed “as a journeyman heating, ventilation, and air conditioning mechanic for not less than two (2) years under the direction and supervision of a master heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractor”, or engaged as a master HVAC contractor “or equivalent thereof, for not less than two (2) years in Kentucky or in a jurisdiction other than Kentucky”, or “licensed and employed as a mechanical engineer” for not less than two years; plus the department's examination and fee. Journeyman (KRS 198B.658(2)): at least 18, and “not less than two (2) years” in HVAC trades under a master contractor, or two years of HVAC work in Kentucky or another jurisdiction; plus the examination; one academic year of an approved curriculum or of approved teaching may count as one year of employment (198B.658(5)–(6)). 815 KAR 8:010 §5(2): “One (1) year of HVAC experience shall consist minimally of 1,500 hours of HVAC work in a continuous twelve (12) month period”; §4(4): the applicant must “pass with a score of at least seventy (70) percent on the examination”; §4(5): non-refundable examination fee of $150 (master) and $50 (journeyman); §2(1): initial licence fee of $250 (master) and $50 (journeyman) for a twelve-month licence. The Division's Prov candidate information bulletin dated July 20, 2020 lists an $80 fee per computer-based examination, a 60-question/3-hour journeyman examination and a 100-question/4-hour master examination with a 70% passing score; the Division's licensing page links examination scheduling to Pearson VUE, so the bulletin's vendor and fee may be out of date. Apprentices “shall not be required to pay a fee to obtain a certificate of registration or to renew a registration” (KRS 198B.658(4)(e)); an apprentice works under “The direct supervision of at least one (1) journeyman HVAC mechanic” and the general supervision of a master HVAC contractor (815 KAR 8:030 §1(3)).

Insurance / bond minimum

KRS 198B.668(1): “No person, firm, or corporation shall practice heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contracting unless that person, firm, or corporation maintains general liability insurance in an amount not less than five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) and property damage insurance in an amount not less than three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000) underwritten by an insurance carrier licensed and approved by the Kentucky Department of Insurance”; “Proof of insurance shall be submitted to the department prior to issuance or renewal of a license” (198B.668(2)); proof of this insurance “shall exempt licensees from the requirement of obtaining separate insurance in local jurisdictions under any local licensing laws” (198B.668(3)); “No license shall be valid without the insurance required by this section” (198B.668(4)). No bond requirement appears in KRS 198B.650 to 198B.689.

Reciprocity

KRS 198B.666: a person licensed in another state “which has licensing, educational, and experience requirements substantially equal to or greater than those of this state and which grants equal licensing privileges to persons licensed in this state, may be issued an equivalent license in this state upon terms and conditions determined by the department”; 815 KAR 8:010 §3(1) requires a reciprocity applicant to “Comply with the requirements established in the reciprocity agreement between Kentucky” and the licensing state. The former reciprocity regulation, 815 KAR 8:035, is listed as inactive on the 815 KAR chapter 8 index. No list of reciprocal states is published on the pages read.

Renewal & continuing education

Annual renewal: KRS 198B.664(1): licences “may be renewed annually, on or before the last day of the licensee's birth month”; 198B.664(2): “A sixty (60) day grace period shall be allowed after the expiration of the license”, after which the licence terminates (198B.664(3)) and may be reinstated with a reinstatement fee, without re-examination if applied for within three years (198B.664(4)); renewal fees $250 master and $50 journeyman, with “Proof of annual continuing education attendance in accordance with 815 KAR 2:010” and, for masters, proof of insurance under KRS 198B.668 (815 KAR 8:010 §7(1)). Continuing education: 815 KAR 2:010 §2(1): a licensee “shall provide proof of at least six (6) hours of approved continuing education prior to license renewal”, obtained “during the twelve (12) months prior to renewal of the license or certificate” (§1(2)); master and journeyman HVAC course content must relate to business, job safety, “Codes relating to HVAC” or “Subject matter directly relating to the HVAC trade” (§2(5)); statutory authority KRS 198B.684. The KAR page shows 815 KAR 2:010 effective 1-4-2019 with a 7-year expiration date of 1/4/2026 and the notation “Crt to Am, filing deadline 5-24-2027” (certified to be amended).

Home-improvement contract rule

KRS 367.620 to 367.628 (Real Estate Goods or Services Contracts), as amended by 2025 Ky. Acts ch. 15 (effective June 27, 2025, for contracts entered on or after that date) and by 2026 Ky. Acts ch. 54 (SB 153 — §§367.620, 367.624, 367.626, 367.627 and 367.628 amended effective July 15, 2026, applying under §12 of the Act to contracts entered into on or after that date): applies to any “real estate goods or services contract”, meaning a contract for goods or services relating to real estate — including “Repair, replacement, construction, reconstruction, or improvement of real estate” — “where the goods or services are expected to be paid from property, casualty, or property and casualty insurance proceeds” (367.620(2), (6)); the customer “may cancel the contract prior to midnight of the fifth business day after the person has received written notice from the insurer that all or part of the claim is not a covered loss under the insurance policy” (367.622(1)); before contracting, the contractor must furnish its mailing address, telephone number (and fax number and e-mail address if applicable), two notices in at least ten-point boldface type — the cancellation right, and a statement that the contract does not assign insurance-policy rights in violation of KRS 304.20-105 — and a fully completed detachable “NOTICE OF CANCELLATION” form in duplicate (367.624); the contractor shall “Not require any advance payments under a real estate goods or services contract until the cancellation period provided in KRS 367.622 has expired” and must tender back any payments, deposits or notes “within ten (10) days after the contract has been cancelled” (367.626(2)(a)); a cancelled contract “shall not be enforceable” and no cancellation fee may be required, though a contractor may collect a reasonable and customary amount for emergency or repair services actually provided (367.626(2)(b), (3)); prohibited acts include representing or negotiating “as a public adjuster or otherwise” on an insured's claim, marketing as a claims or insurance specialist, causing or encouraging damage to increase the scope of work, offering to “pay or rebate all or any portion of an insurance deductible or claims proceeds as an inducement”, paying the insured “any form of compensation in excess of one hundred dollars ($100)”, being financially connected to a public adjuster or appraiser, and filing a mechanic's lien for charges above what the insurer pays (367.628); remedies: the injured person may “Recover from the defendant two (2) times the amount of any actual economic damages sustained” plus reasonable attorney's fees and costs, and the Attorney General may recover “a civil penalty of five thousand dollars ($5,000) per violation” (367.627(3)). 2026 Ky. Acts ch. 54 §9 also created a new section of KRS Chapter 367 under which, after a declared state of emergency, the Attorney General may require contractors in the designated area to obtain a registration certificate and “a contractor shall not solicit business in person within the designated area for ninety (90) days after the state of emergency was declared without prior approval of the property owner”; that section defines “Contractor” as a person engaged in roofing or siding repair or replacement, water damage mitigation or restoration, or tree or debris removal, so it does not reach HVAC work as such (enrolled SB 153 text). General home-solicitation sales: the buyer “has the right to cancel a home solicitation sale until midnight of the third business day after the day on which the buyer signs an agreement or offer to purchase” (KRS 367.420(1)). No general written-contract statute for non-insurance home-improvement work was located on official pages.