Knowledge/Licences and standards/Refrigerant licence classes, and the one that doesn't exist
Refrigerant licence classes, and the one that doesn't exist
There's no RAC02. The Australian Refrigeration Council (ARC) issues two that matter for air con. RAC01 is the full refrigerant handling licence. RSS03 is the restricted split system one, covering single-head systems under 18 kW, install and decommission only, with no service work involving refrigerant at all.
- Full licence
- RAC01unrestricted handling
- Restricted
- RSS03split systems only
- RSS03 limit
- Under 18 kWsingle head
- RSS03 service work
- Noneinstall and decommission only
What RSS03 doesn't let you do
This is the bit that surprises people. RSS03 is an install and decommission licence. It doesn't cover service work involving refrigerant. So going back to find and fix a charge problem on a system you put in yourself sits outside it.
The size limit is single head, under 18 kW. A multi-head system is outside it, whatever the total capacity.
Your licence and your business's authorisation
These are two different things and they get mixed up all the time. A refrigerant handling licence belongs to a person. It covers the work they do with their own hands. A refrigerant trading authorisation belongs to the business. It lets the business buy, hold and get rid of refrigerant - acquire, possess and dispose of, in the legal wording.
So here's what the law actually says. To buy refrigerant, your business needs a trading authorisation. You'll sometimes hear that wholesalers need your licence to open a trade account. No wholesaler's published material says that, and it's a separate claim from what the law requires.
The bit that catches your marketing, not your installs
An ARC licence or authorisation number has to appear on advertising, invoices, receipts and quotes. That's an obligation on your website, your ads and your quoting template, not just on the card in your wallet.
It's the easiest thing in this whole area to fix, and it's often missed. Usually that's because whoever built the website and whoever holds the licence aren't the same person.
Is your advertising carrying your licence number?
Plenty aren't, and it's a five-minute fix once someone points at it.
If you want a second set of eyes over your quoting template and your website, just ask.
Who this is for: small and medium HVAC contractors in Victoria. If you're a homeowner after a rebate or a repair, you need a licensed contractor, not us, and yours can point you the right way.
Related
- Who regulates HVAC work in Victoria now?The Victorian Building Authority is gone. It became the Building and Plumbing Commission on 1 July 2025, and split system installs are plumbing work.
- Victoria's rental minimum standards, date by dateEvery date from March 2027 to July 2030 and what triggers each one. Plus one to tell every landlord: existing evaporative already complies.
- What does a restricted electrical licence actually cover?A restricted electrical worker can issue a Certificate of Electrical Safety, and must. But the licence covers less than most of the trade thinks.
Review date: 1 March 2027. Figures in this area change without much notice and this page carries some that will go stale. Every number above is dated and sourced so you can check it yourself. If you find something out of date here, tell us and we will fix it.