F-gas certificate: who needs it?

You need an F-gas certificate if you install, maintain, repair, check for leaks or recover refrigerant from air conditioners, refrigeration systems or heat pumps. It has two parts. The fitter holds a personal certificate (BRL 200), and the company holds a company certificate (BRL 100). The obligation comes from the European F-gassenverordening (EU) 2024/573 (EU F-gas Regulation 2024). In the Netherlands it is implemented in the Regeling gefluoreerde broeikasgassen en ozonlaagafbrekende stoffen (Dutch regulation on fluorinated greenhouse gases and ozone-depleting substances) .

Since the new regulation, it is no longer only about F-gases. Anyone who works with natural refrigerants such as propane, CO2 and ammonia must also be certified, according to the Informatiepunt Leefomgeving (IPLO, Dutch Living Environment Information Point) . The Inspectie Leefomgeving en Transport (ILT, Dutch Human Environment and Transport Inspectorate) checks whether fitters and companies hold a valid certificate.

In short: if someone works on the refrigerant circuit, that person needs a personal certificate. If a company does that work for clients, the company also needs a BRL 100 certificate. A sole trader needs both.

Company certificate and personal certificate at a glance

The F-gas certificate is in effect a set of two. This table shows the difference.

	Personal certificate	Company certificate
Who it is for	The fitter	The installation or maintenance company, including a sole proprietorship
Guideline	BRL 200 version 2.0	BRL 100 version 3.0
How you obtain it	Exam at a recognised examination body	Assessment and inspections by a certifying body
Classification	Categories A1, A2, B, C, D and E	Sub-areas I (F-gases and hydrocarbons), II (CO2), III (ammonia)
Validity	7 years, then recertify	As long as you pass the periodic inspections
Checking	Centraal Register Techniek (CRT, Dutch central technical register)	Centraal Register Techniek
Explanation	Personal certificate	BRL 100

Who needs which F-gas certificate?

The question is always: who works on the refrigerant circuit, and for whom is the work done? Three common situations:

Situation	Personal certificate	Company certificate (BRL 100)
Fitter employed by an installation company	Yes, for the fitter	Yes, for the employer
Sole trader who installs split air conditioners and heat pumps	Yes	Yes
Supermarket with its own refrigeration system	Only for its own staff who work on the circuit	No, because it does not work for third parties. If it hires an installer, that installer must hold BRL 100

The owner or user of an installation also has duties, such as a logbook and periodic leak checks. Are you fitting a monoblock heat pump without opening the circuit? Then read certificate needed to install a heat pump.

Old F-gas certificates (categories 1 to 4) remain valid until 12 March 2029 at the latest. After that, every fitter needs a certificate from the new system. Do not wait until the last year, because the examination bodies will then be busy.

All about F-gases and BRL 100 at a glance

Below you find a page for each question. Start with BRL 100 if you run a company, or with the personal certificate if you are a fitter.

Requirements, sub-areas, audit and the transition to version 3.0.

BRL 100 company certificate

Categories A1 to E and how the exam works.

Personal certificate (BRL 200)

What remains of STEK and how it relates to BRL 100.

STEK certificate

What changes: bans, phase-out and new certification.

F-gas Regulation 2024

Frequencies per CO2 equivalent and an example logbook entry.

Leak checks and logbook

When you do and do not need a certificate.

Installing a heat pump

Exam fees, audit costs and a worked example.

Costs

From choosing a category to registration in the CRT.

Step-by-step: obtaining the certificate

What a course gives you and when it is mandatory.

Course or training?

How to see in the CRT whether a fitter is registered.

Checking a certificate

Why an F-gas certificate cannot be bought.

Buying a certificate?

Lost your certificate? Who to ask for a copy.

Requesting a duplicate

Which two certificates you need as a sole trader.

Fitter as a sole trader

The training certificate for car air conditioning after 7 October 2026.

Mobile air conditioning (automotive)

Propane, CO2 and ammonia: which rules apply.

Air conditioning without F-gases

F-gases in your environmental and CO2 policy

Leaking refrigerant is a greenhouse gas. If you have ISO 14001, the F-gas Regulation belongs in your legal register. If you take part in the CO2 Performance Ladder, leaked refrigerant counts in scope 1. If you also work on electrical installations, look at NEN 3140.

Sources

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