In short. The attestation de capacité covers the company, while the attestation d'aptitude covers the individual refrigerant technician in refrigeration and air conditioning.
Definition: For heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) work in France, the attestation de capacité is the company's refrigerant-handling certificate. The attestation d'aptitude is the individual technician's certificate of competence for refrigerant work in refrigeration and air conditioning.
Key facts
- As of 17 October 2026, the French environment ministry's refrigerant guidance requires the company to obtain an attestation de capacité from an approved body.
- Service Public's occupational guidance lists the intended activity categories and the intervening personnel among the company application's supporting information.
- The France Compétences record describes a theoretical examination and a practical examination for the technician's certification.
- The ministry's August 2026 transition note sets out conversion requirements for company certificates in the older categories I, II, III and IV.
What does the company's attestation de capacité cover?
The company applies for the activities it intends to perform. Service Public describes an application containing the applicant's identity or the company's legal name, legal form, SIRET business identifier and registered address. It also includes the types and quantities of tools used for the work.
The ministry's guidance assigns issuance to an organisme agréé, an approved body, which conducts one or more on-site audits during the certificate's validity.
What does the technician's attestation d'aptitude cover?
The ministry describes the attestation d'aptitude as an individual credential issued by an organisme évaluateur certifié, a certified assessment body. The employing company also holds its own attestation de capacité.
The France Compétences record describes practical tasks performed with the necessary tools and equipment. Its competence list includes testing a system's leak tightness under pressure and using a refrigerant recovery device. The ministry links to this record for assessment bodies; the record includes a downloadable list of organisations preparing candidates for certification:
https://www.francecompetences.fr/recherche/rs/5638/
How does the transition affect validity?
Service Public gives the company certificate a general maximum validity of five years. For certificates issued after 12 March 2024 under the older rules available through 31 December 2026, its guidance identifies a transitional limit of 12 March 2029.
Section IV of the ministry's August 2026 transition note addresses older-category company certificates whose stated validity extends beyond 12 March 2029. The company submits the conversion evidence to its approved body by that date. For personnel moving to categories A1 or A2, the evidence includes refresher-training certificates or proof of enrolment with a commitment to supply the resulting certificates. A provisional company certificate issued through this update retains the original expiry date.
Related terms
- Which QualiPAC qualification covers a heat pump or thermodynamic water heater?
- Which installations does the Ventilation+ qualification cover?
- When may an installer display a Qualit'EnR qualification logo on a website?
FAQ
Does my employee's certificate cover my company?
The ministry requires the company itself to hold an attestation de capacité alongside the individual's attestation d'aptitude for refrigeration and air-conditioning work.
What information should I request about a company's scope?
Service Public identifies activity categories and the people performing those activities in the application. These provide specific points to check alongside the company's identity and equipment information.
Does converting an older company certificate restart its validity?
The transition note, section IV.1, states that updating the certificate leaves its original expiry date unchanged.
Sources
- French environment ministry, "Substances à impact climatique, fluides frigorigènes", updated 28 August 2026
- Service Public Entreprendre, "Climaticien : conditions d'accès et d'exercice en France", verified 21 February 2026
- France Compétences, "Attestation d'aptitude à la manipulation des fluides frigorigènes", record published 10 December 2021
- French environment ministry, "Note: phase transitoire, secteur de la réfrigération, climatisation et pompe à chaleur", revised August 2026
Check how a page reads to answer engines. Open the GEO score analyzer