Kentucky Contractor and Trade Exams

ICC's Kentucky bulletin lists five contractor and trade exams relevant to licensing:

The bulletin places a note over the mechanical exams saying candidates must pass two exams, Business and Law and a technical HVAC exam, for licensure. The Business and Law exam's single reference is Kentucky Contractors Business and Law, 5th edition. Its content weights are Estimating and Bidding, Project Management and Planning, Financing and Recordkeeping, and Tax, Lien Laws and Dispute Resolution at 13 percent each; Business Structure Practices and Licensing, Insurance and Bonding, Labor Law and Personnel Policies, and Safety and OSHA Compliance at 10 percent each; and Contractors and Acceptance at 8 percent.

With 30 questions in 90 minutes you have three minutes per item, which is more generous than the trade exams, but each question carries more weight: one miss costs more than three percentage points.

The same bulletin also lists two fire inspector exams, 700 Fire Alarm Inspector and 209 Fire Sprinkler Inspector. Those are inspector certifications rather than contractor licenses, so skip them unless HBC has told you otherwise.

The master HVAC exam's largest areas are Plan Analysis (20 percent) and Venting, Duct and Combustion Air (18 percent), followed by HVAC Principles, Terminology, Administration and Safety (16 percent), HVAC Installation Requirements (14 percent), HVAC Electrical (13 percent), Boilers, Exhaust Systems and Fire Protection (11 percent) and Gas Piping (8 percent). The journeyman exam combines those into five areas, with Principles at 23 percent and Plan Analysis again at 20 percent.

Both use the 2015 International Mechanical Code, the 2009 edition of NFPA 54 and Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Technology, 8th or 9th edition. Note the older code editions: study from the editions listed, not the newest books on the shelf.

Since January 2026 the master and journeyman electrician exams reference the 2023 National Electrical Code and Ugly's Electrical Reference in any edition. On the master exam, Wiring Methods and Materials is the biggest area at 19 percent, with Services and Service Equipment and Branch Circuits and Conductors at 16 percent each. The journeyman exam leans even harder on Wiring Methods and Materials at 26 percent.

815 KAR 35:060 says an applicant for an electrical contractor's, master electrician's or electrician's license must pass an exam from an approved provider with at least 70 percent. ICC's bulletin does not list a separate electrical contractor business exam, so confirm with HBC which exam applies to the contractor license before you register.

Create an account through Pearson VUE's ICC portal to schedule, find a test center or buy vouchers; accommodation requests go through the same portal. Questions are four-option multiple choice with one correct answer, and there is no penalty for guessing, so answer everything.

Results for computer-based exams are available as soon as you finish. If you fail, ICC requires a 10-day wait before retaking. The bulletin also offers a technical challenge process for disputed questions, answered within 15 business days, but retaking the exam forfeits a pending challenge for that attempt. HBC's regulations set the HVAC and electrical passing mark at 70 percent and keep passing scores valid for three years.

Plumbing exams are held in person in February, May, August and November, with check-in at 7:30 a.m. and an 8 a.m. start. The master exam allows up to 2 1/2 hours. Journeymen get 2 1/2 hours for the written portion and another 2 1/2 hours for the practical, and HBC tells journeyman candidates at least a week ahead which materials to bring for the hands-on work.

Every plumbing exam includes written questions on plumbing principles, KRS Chapter 318 and 815 KAR Chapters 2 and 20, and a drawing on which you size the stacks, wastes and vents, with main stacks weighted most and deductions for pipes that are oversized or undersized. A journeyman who fails one portion may retake only that portion within a year of the first notice, paying the full exam fee again. HBC posts its 2023 plumbing law, regulations and code book for exam study.

For the ICC exams, the bulletin itself warns that you will not have time to look up every answer, so tab the books by outline area and practice under time. It also reminds candidates to answer from the listed references rather than long-time field habits. ContractorPrepHQ's practice fits that job: original questions written from ICC's Kentucky outlines and reference lists, a diagnostic to find weak areas, topic drills with explanations and timed exams that finish with a readiness score. Kentucky Business and Law prep costs $99, and trade prep costs $149 with the Business and Law prep bundled, one-time with lifetime access and a 30-day money-back guarantee.