You’ve picked a company for your new AC installation, and then the paperwork question comes up: who pulls the HVAC permit in Texas, you or them? It matters more than it sounds, because the answer tells you a lot about who’s on the hook if the job isn’t done to code. Here’s how state law, rules from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), and city ordinances split the responsibility.
Quick Answer: Who Pulls the HVAC Permit in Texas
When you hire a pro, the licensed HVAC contractor should pull it, and in Forney the city requires contractors to be registered with it to obtain one. Permit requirements come from city ordinances, not one statewide rule, but TDLR ties permits to the contractor’s license. A homeowner only comes into it when they’re doing the work on a home they own solely as their own, and even then it’s up to the city whether it issues them a permit.
How Texas Splits HVAC Permit Responsibility
Three layers decide this, and they don’t all live in one place.
- State licensing. Under Occupations Code Chapter 1302, a person can’t do air conditioning and refrigeration contracting without a license. Contracting includes installing, repairing, and modifying equipment in a home’s air conditioning system.
- TDLR rules. A license holder affiliated with a contracting company has to give cities a list of the people allowed to pull permits under that license. TDLR’s rule treats permits as pulled under the contractor’s license.
- City ordinances. Cities adopt their own codes and permit rules. State law also requires a licensed contractor to notify a city that they hold a TDLR license, if the city requires that notice.
What Cities Can and Can’t Charge Contractors
Since September 1, 2021, Texas cities can’t charge TDLR-licensed HVAC contractors a registration fee to work in town. They can still charge building permit fees. Forney’s residential applications page, for example, lists mechanical contractors as exempt from its registration fee.
A Local Example: Who Pulls the HVAC Permit in Forney
Forney spells it out plainly. All contractors working inside city limits have to register with the city, and permits, registration, and fees can all be handled through the city’s MyGov portal.
So when you hire a Forney HVAC company, the permit should come from them, under their registration and their license. We walk through what gets permitted there in our Forney HVAC permit guide.
Outside City Limits, the License Still Matters
Not every home sits inside a city, and a Forney mailing address doesn’t guarantee it. In Forney’s extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ), the band just outside city limits, the city lists “City Ordinances” among what it doesn’t regulate, and Kaufman County’s Fire Marshal permits are aimed at public, commercial, and larger multifamily buildings. So there may be no city or county mechanical permit to pull at all.
The state license doesn’t go away, though. A TDLR license is valid statewide, and Chapter 1302 still bars unlicensed air conditioning contracting. Even where nobody issues a permit, the person you hire needs to be licensed, and TDLR’s rules hold licensees to the International Residential Code where no local code has been adopted.
Why “You Pull It, We’ll Install It” Is a Red Flag
Some homeowners get asked to pull the permit themselves so the installer can skip it. Here’s why that arrangement doesn’t hold up under Texas rules.
Texas does exempt a homeowner who does air conditioning work in a building they own solely as their home, as long as they don’t do HVAC contracting for the general public. But TDLR’s rule is blunt about the limits: the exemption “applies only to the homeowner and not to others who may attempt to assist the homeowner.” In plain terms, your exemption doesn’t cover the person you hired. If they’re doing the work, they still need a license.
There’s a second reason it’s a bad sign. TDLR’s penalty matrix lists “Failed to obtain permit” as a licensee violation, tied to violating a city ordinance. A contractor who asks you to pull it may be sidestepping a city permit requirement that TDLR can penalize them for.
How to Check Before the Work Starts
A few quick checks take the guesswork out of it:
- Ask for the company’s TDLR license number. State rules require it on every proposal and invoice, so it should already be on your quote.
- Look that number up on TDLR’s license search, which shows active licenses.
- Ask who’s pulling the permit, and ask for the permit number once it’s issued.
- Ask when the inspection is scheduled and whether you need to be home.
If something goes wrong with a licensed contractor, TDLR takes complaints about air conditioning and refrigeration work. The state’s definition of air conditioning covers controlling temperature, not just cooling, so the same licensing rules apply if you’re replacing a furnace too.
So, Who Pulls the HVAC Permit in Texas?
When you’re hiring a pro, the licensed contractor should pull the HVAC permit, under their license and their city registration. For which replacements need one, see our Texas permit overview. The homeowner route is for homeowners doing their own work on a home they own solely, and it doesn’t stretch to cover anyone helping.
At Bolton Heating & Air, securing the required permits and scheduling any required inspections is part of how we handle installs. We’re a locally owned and operated, licensed HVAC contractor based right here in Forney. If you’ve got a replacement or install coming up, reach out to our team and we’ll walk you through what your city requires.