Licensing system for refrigeration, heating and air conditioning technicians

This work is currently on hold

The Government is reviewing Aotearoa New Zealand’s work health and safety regulatory system.

For more information on the review go to the Health and safety reform page.

Further work on a licensing system for refrigeration, heating, and air conditioning technicians is therefore on hold, pending the outcome of the review of the wider work health and safety system.

Please feel free to contact us with any questions at HSWRegs@mbie.govt.nz.

2019 and 2020 policy decisions on the licensing system

In 2019, following public consultation, the previous Government agreed to introduce a licensing system for all technicians that work on commercial or industrial refrigeration, heat pump or air conditioning systems that use hazardous natural refrigerants. Further decisions were made in 2020 on technical details.

The licensing system would aim to support health and safety by ensuring technicians have appropriate training and experience to manage the risks to both themselves and others that arise from work on these systems.

Ensuring technicians are appropriately qualified is of increasing importance as hazardous refrigerants enter use. New Zealand is in the process of phasing down the use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) under its environmental commitments. HFCs are commonly used refrigerant substances, but have high global warming potential. Alternative refrigerants pose less environmental risk, but often carry increased risks to health and safety due to being more flammable, toxic or operating at very high pressure.

Licensing requirements

Technicians that work on “commercial or industrial” systems that use flammable, toxic or very high operating pressure (VHOP) refrigerants would need to be licensed. This would not apply to technicians that work on domestic or “light commercial” systems, such as vending machines, refrigerated display cabinets, retail icemakers and small drop-in packaged refrigeration units.

The work that requires a licensed technician would include installation, commissioning, repair, maintenance, decommissioning or dismantling of relevant commercial or industrial refrigeration, heating and air conditioning systems, except where:

• The work is in relation to an automotive air conditioning system
• The work is in relation to a system on a ship or aircraft, and is being carried out by a technician licensed under maritime or civil aviation rules
• The work is “prescribed electrical work” (PEW) under the Electricity (Safety) Regulations done by a worker authorised to carry out PEW.

A licence would not be required where the technician only works on systems that do not use hazardous refrigerants, or only on domestic or light commercial systems.

Licence categories

Licences would be based on both the types of system and the types of hazardous refrigerant a technician is qualified to work on.

Technicians could choose to either apply for a licence for only one type of hazardous refrigerant (for instance, to only work with flammable refrigerants or toxic refrigerants) or one that includes multiple types of hazardous refrigerants, depending on which types they are qualified to work with.

Regulated product steward for synthetic refrigerants (Ministry for the Environment)

The Ministry for the Environment is progressing work on a regulated product stewardship scheme for synthetic refrigerants.

Read more about updates on priority products for product stewardship(external link) - Ministry for the Environment

Background documents