How to Get a Kentucky Contractor License

Under KRS 198B.658, a master HVAC contractor applicant must be at least 18, a U.S. citizen or a resident alien authorized to work, and pass HBC's exam. The experience options are two years working as a journeyman under a master HVAC contractor, two years practicing as a master HVAC contractor or the equivalent in Kentucky or another jurisdiction, or two years as a licensed mechanical engineer. A journeyman HVAC mechanic needs two years of HVAC work, either under a master's supervision or documented in Kentucky or elsewhere.

815 KAR 8:010 defines one year of HVAC experience as at least 1,500 hours of HVAC work within a continuous twelve-month period. The master application fee is $250 for a twelve-month license and the journeyman fee is $50; first licenses can be prorated and always end on the last day of the applicant's birth month. The master contractor supervises, and is primarily responsible for, all HVAC work by the company's employees and subcontractors.

KRS 198B.668 bars anyone from HVAC contracting without general liability insurance of at least $500,000 and property damage insurance of at least $300,000 from a carrier approved by the Kentucky Department of Insurance. Proof goes to HBC before a license is issued or renewed, the license is not valid without it, and carriers must tell HBC if coverage is cancelled. One useful detail: showing the state-required coverage exempts a licensee from separate insurance requirements under local licensing laws.

Electrical licensing under 815 KAR 35:060 separates the business from the people. An electrical contractor's license costs $400 for a two-year term and requires the name and license number of an affiliated master electrician plus proof of the insurance required by statute. A master electrician license costs $200 for two years and an electrician license $100, each with proof of experience.

Experience is documented through tax records such as a Schedule C or 1099, qualifying local business licenses, sworn affidavits from a union, licensed contractor, industrial employer or approved training program, or the military experience form. When a business entity applies for the contractor license, it names an owner, officer, director or full-time employee to take the exam on its behalf. Every electrical license exam requires a score of at least 70 percent, and a passing score stays valid for three years.

Plumbing licenses fall under KRS Chapter 318 and 815 KAR 20:030, and the exams are run by HBC's Division of Plumbing rather than a national vendor. To qualify as a master plumber you generally need a journeyman plumber's license held for at least two of the past five years plus two years of work under a licensed master; the regulation also allows a Kentucky engineer license with enough mechanical experience or a plumbing license held in another state for two of the last five years.

The exam registration form (PLB-3) goes in with a nonrefundable fee of $150 for the master exam or $50 for the journeyman exam and a recent passport-style photo. Masters must score at least 80 percent on each portion and journeymen at least 75 percent. After passing, the master license fee is $250.

HBC's licensing page sends HVAC and electrical candidates to Pearson VUE to schedule International Code Council exams, and links ICC's Kentucky bulletin published January 17, 2026. For a master HVAC license, that bulletin says you must pass two exams: 231 Kentucky Business and Law and the technical HVAC exam. Plumbing candidates instead file with the Division of Plumbing, which holds regular exams in February, May, August and November and wants applications in Frankfort at least three weeks before the exam date.

HBC's page still links older Prov bulletins from 2020 alongside the ICC material. The ICC bulletin says it supersedes earlier editions, but if the paperwork you receive names a different vendor, follow HBC's instructions.

HVAC licenses renew every year by the last day of the licensee's birth month, at $250 for a master contractor and $50 for a journeyman. KRS 198B.664 allows a 60-day grace period during which you may keep working and restore the license by paying the renewal fee plus a restoration fee; after that the license terminates, though reinstatement within three years does not require a new exam.

Electrical renewal fees are $400 for a contractor, $200 for a master electrician and $100 for an electrician, and plumbing renewals cost $250 for a master and $60 for a journeyman. Each renewal requires proof of continuing education under 815 KAR 2:010, which sets a default of six approved hours in the twelve months before renewal. No more than two hours of safety topics count each year, extra hours can carry forward up to a twelve-hour cap, and an electrical contractor cannot borrow a master electrician's hours to meet its own requirement.

The HVAC path pairs a business exam with a technical one, and both are open book with tight clocks. ContractorPrepHQ offers practice built for that pairing: original questions written from ICC's Kentucky outlines and the listed references, a diagnostic, topic drills with explanations and timed practice exams with a readiness score. Kentucky Business and Law prep is $99 and trade prep is $149 with the Business and Law prep included; both are one-time purchases with lifetime access and a 30-day money-back guarantee. The continuing-education hours needed at renewal come only from HBC-approved courses.