Texas has no statewide general-contractor license, so for HVAC, electrical and plumbing work the state-level credentials are the trade licenses themselves. Two agencies issue the ones this guide covers. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) licenses air conditioning and refrigeration (ACR) contractors and technicians and electricians, and PSI gives those exams; the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE) licenses plumbers, and Pearson VUE gives the plumbing exams. This guide sets out who licenses what, the exams LICENA covers, their format, who may apply and the path to a license, using only the PSI bulletins, the TSBPE candidate handbook and the Texas Occupations Code.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR) licenses air conditioning and refrigeration (ACR) work under Occupations Code chapter 1302 and 16 TAC chapter 75, and electrical work under Occupations Code chapter 1305 and 16 TAC chapter 73; PSI gives both sets of exams by computer at test sites across Texas. Plumbing belongs to a separate agency, the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners (TSBPE), under Occupations Code chapter 1301, the Plumbing License Law, and the Board Rules in 22 TAC Part 17; Pearson VUE gives the plumbing exams. There is no separate business-and-law exam: for ACR contractors, Texas Laws and Rules is one of the trade exam's fourteen subject areas, and the journeyman electrician outlines have no Texas law area at all.
Occupations Code §1302.253 splits the contractor license by size: Class A covers equipment of any size, while Class B is limited to not more than 25 tons cooling or 1.5 million Btu/h output heating capacity, applied unit by unit (16 TAC §75.22(c)). The endorsement, not the class, sets the type of work (§1302.254): environmental air conditioning is heating, cooling and ventilation for human comfort; commercial refrigeration and process cooling or heating covers walk-ins, display cases, cold storage, ice machines and process work. Each endorsement has its own exam in each class — four contractor exams in all.
An ACR technician must be registered or certified with TDLR (§1302.501) and works under a licensed contractor (§1302.503(a)). Registration needs no exam. Certification is voluntary and takes the PSI Certified Technician exam; a registered technician may perform the same tasks (16 TAC §75.73(f)), but certification adds the title “certified technician” and a shorter road to the contractor license.
Under §1305.151 electrical work requires a license unless an exemption in §1305.003 applies. Apprentices start at 16 (§1305.161); the journeyman license is the next step, and two years holding it are part of the path to master (§1305.153(a)). PSI's bulletin lists eleven electrician exams; LICENA covers the Journeyman exam.
The TSBPE journeyman exam has a written portion and a hands-on practical, and it is not passed until both are. LICENA drills the written portion only.
ACR contractor (PSI bulletin, Updated 7/9/2026). Class A: 120 scored questions in 230 minutes, fee $74. Class B: 100 scored questions in 170 minutes, fee $60. Each adds 5 non-scored items and 10 minutes and passes at 70%. Open book: Occupations Code 1302, 16 TAC 75, 29 CFR 1904 and the IMC, IFGC and UMC, referenced to the 2024 editions effective September 1, 2026.
ACR Certified Technician. 60 scored questions in 112 minutes plus 4 non-scored items and 8 minutes, 70% to pass, open book, fee $60. No Texas law area; 27 of the 60 questions are testing, diagnostics and service. All ACR exams are offered in English and Spanish at no additional cost.
Journeyman Electrician (PSI bulletin, Updated 9/15/2026). Two portions, each passed separately at 70%: NEC Knowledge, 56 scored and 3 non-scored items in 130 minutes, and Calculations, 24 scored and 2 non-scored items in 110 minutes, with no time carried over. The fee is $78 for both, and a retake is $78. The only book allowed is a soft-bound 2026 NEC with permanent publisher tabs — not the NEC Handbook. Offered in English and Spanish.
Journeyman Plumber (TSBPE Candidate Handbook, August 2025). Written: 100 multiple-choice questions in 120 minutes, fee $68.50, at a Pearson VUE test center. Practical: 6 tasks in 240 minutes, fee $40, only at the Board's Austin and Waco centers, scheduled after you pass the written portion. Each passes at 70%. The written exam is closed book. Candidates study the Plumbing License Law, the Board Rules and either the 2018 IPC with the 2018 IFGC or the 2018 UPC, the editions 22 TAC §367.2(a) adopts; a move to the 2021 UPC and IPC was on the Board's October 21, 2026 agenda with no exam switch date announced when we last checked, so confirm with TSBPE. The handbook offers no Spanish version.
ACR contractor: at least 18, with 48 months of supervised experience in the preceding 72, or 36 in the preceding 48 after holding a technician certification for 12 months (§1302.255). Certified technician: at least 18, plus a certification training program (career and technology education, or a department-approved program of at least 2,000 hours) or 24 months of supervised experience or an equivalent military specialty. Journeyman electrician: 8,000 or more hours of on-the-job training supervised by a master electrician (§1305.155). Journeyman plumber: a U.S. citizen or national, or an immigrant eligible to work in Texas; a Texas Plumber's Apprentice registration or Tradesman Plumber-Limited license, or a journeyman or master license from another state; at least 8,000 hours in the trade; a TSBPE-approved 48-hour course or a Department of Labor-approved apprenticeship (waived for other-state licensees); and approved fingerprints.
ACR and electrical go to TDLR, plumbing to TSBPE. For ACR, choose the endorsement first: it decides your exam.
Electricians submit a complete application, documentation and fees to TDLR (16 TAC §73.21(a)). Plumbers apply to TSBPE with an Employer Certification Form that verifies their hours.
TDLR emails scheduling instructions; book with PSI at test-takers.psiexams.com/tdlnrp or (833) 333-4741, and cancel at least 2 days ahead or lose the fee. For plumbing, Pearson VUE emails an Authorization to Test; book at pearsonvue.com/us/en/tsbpe.html or (888) 304-3589 at least 24 hours ahead. Arrive 30 minutes early with government-issued photo ID.
PSI shows your score on screen, with a subject-area diagnostic if you fail. ACR and electrician candidates have one year from the application to meet every requirement (16 TAC §75.20 for ACR). A plumbing authorization covers up to five written attempts within one year, with waits of at least 30, 60 and then 90 days after successive failures.
The plumbing initial license fee is $40. Electricians renew every year (§1305.167) with four hours of continuing education (16 TAC §73.25). A technician certification expires one year after issue (§1302.5055(c)).
Each page has a free sample, no sign-up. LICENA is a practice tool, not a school, and is not affiliated with TDLR, TSBPE, PSI or Pearson VUE.
ACR Environmental Air practice — the comfort heating, cooling and ventilation exam, Class A and Class B.
ACR Commercial Refrigeration practice — walk-ins, display cases, process cooling and heating, Class A and Class B.
ACR Certified Technician practice — the 60-question trade-knowledge exam, heavy on diagnostics and service.
Journeyman Electrician practice — both portions, NEC Knowledge and Calculations, on the 2026 NEC.
Journeyman Plumber practice — the closed-book written portion, on the IPC/IFGC track.
EPA 608 practice — refrigerant work also brings in the federal EPA Section 608 technician certification, and this free test covers those rules.
Practice for the Texas trade exams LICENA has Texas banks for ACR Environmental Air, Commercial Refrigeration and Certified Technician, Journeyman Electrician and Journeyman Plumber, with a written explanation on every answer in English, Spanish and Russian. The sample is free, no sign-up; the full course is 3 days free · no card · then $9.99 your first month · $19.99/mo after · cancel anytime.
Try the free practice test → EPA 608 certification guide