Costs of BRL 100 certification and the F-gas personal certificate
An F-gas personal certificate costs €845 for the A1 exam and €795 for the A2 exam at Koninklijke PBNA (Dutch examination body), excluding VAT (prices as of October 2026). With an old category 1 or 2 certificate, you pay €745 for the supplementary exam. For BRL 100 (Dutch certification scheme for F-gas work), the certification bodies do not publish fixed rates. After an intake you receive a quote tailored to your sub-areas and the size of your company.
Besides the direct costs, you have internal costs: time for procedures, calibrated equipment and hours for technicians taking the exam. To find out which certificates you need, read F-gas certificate: who needs one?. Current exam prices are listed by Koninklijke PBNA and the other exam bodies named by Ondernemersplein (Dutch government business portal) .
Prices from exam bodies and certification bodies change. The amounts on this page are a snapshot from October 2026. Always ask for a current price or quote yourself.
What does the F-gas personal certificate cost?
You get the personal certificate by passing an exam. A course is not mandatory, but it is wise if you have little practical experience. These are the PBNA prices:
| Exam | Price (excl. VAT) | For whom |
|---|---|---|
| A1, theory and practice | €845 | Technicians without a certificate, all quantities |
| A2, theory and practice | €795 | Technicians without a certificate, systems up to 3 kg |
| Supplementary exam | €745 | Holders of an old category 1 or 2 certificate |
| Practical part resit | €425 per part | If you do not pass a practical part |
| Theory resit | €145 | If you do not pass the theory |
Source: PBNA, F-gas exams , accessed October 2026. STEK and STE Examenbureau (Dutch examination bodies) offer the same exams at their own rates. Prices for categories B (CO2), C (ammonia), D and E differ per exam body.
A new certificate is valid for 7 years. So plan for recertification after 7 years too. There are no fixed prices for that yet.
What does BRL 100 certification cost?
Certification bodies such as Kiwa, DEKRA, SGS, Bureau Veritas, CIBV and ECH-groep make a quote after an intake meeting. There are no public standard rates. You can, however, split the costs into fixed items:
| Cost item | When | What the amount depends on |
|---|---|---|
| Intake and quote | One-off, at the start | Usually part of the quote |
| Initial assessment | One-off | Number of sub-areas, number of technicians, number of locations |
| Inspection at a work location | Within 6 months of the provisional certificate | Travel time, duration of the inspection |
| Periodic inspections | At Kiwa at least every 24 months | Same factors as the initial assessment |
| Extension to sub-area II or III | If you add CO2 or ammonia | Extra audit day or part-day |
| Rescheduling an audit | If you cancel at short notice | Conditions of the body |
Moving from BRL 100 version 2.0 to 3.0 does not cost an extra audit. The first regular audit after 31 August 2026 becomes a transition audit and replaces the normal audit. If you extend to CO2 or ammonia at the same time, a full transition audit does follow.
Internal costs of BRL 100
The internal costs are often higher than the audit costs. Think of:
| Internal cost item | Example |
|---|---|
| Writing procedures and work instructions | Leak check work instruction, charging, recovery, working with propane |
| Equipment and calibration | Leak detector, refrigerant scale, gauge set, recovery unit |
| Registration | Work orders and a system to track refrigerant flows |
| Exams and training for technicians | See the table above, plus hours technicians do not produce |
| Internal checks | Someone who keeps certificates, calibration and registration up to date |
If you already have ISO 9001 or VCA, you can use your existing document control and calibration list. That saves setup work.
Worked example: installation company with four technicians
Installation company Klimaat Oost has four technicians and wants BRL 100 version 3.0 for sub-area I. Two technicians hold an old category 1 certificate. Two new technicians have nothing yet. They choose PBNA.
| Item | Calculation | Amount (excl. VAT) |
|---|---|---|
| Supplementary A1 exam, 2 technicians | 2 × €745 | €1,490 |
| Full A1 exam, 2 technicians | 2 × €845 | €1,690 |
| Practical part resit, 1 part (reserve) | 1 × €425 | €425 |
| Subtotal exams | €3,605 | |
| BRL 100: initial assessment and inspection | According to quote | Request a quote |
| BRL 100: periodic inspections | According to quote, at least every 24 months | Request a quote |
| Internal hours and calibration | Own estimate | Own budget |
The exam costs are easy to predict here. For the BRL 100 audits, request quotes from two or three bodies if you can, so you can compare. Read how to do that at choosing a certification body.
How long does BRL 100 certification take?
The lead time depends mainly on how well prepared you are. After the initial assessment you receive a provisional certificate, which lets you work. Within 6 months the inspection at a work location follows, and then the definitive certificate.
Make sure your technicians have passed their exam before the auditor visits. If they are demonstrably enrolled for training and the exam, the transitional arrangement does not count this directly as a serious shortcoming.
How do you keep F-gas certification costs down?
- Plan exams early. All old certificates expire on 12 March 2029. If you wait, you run into full exam schedules.
- Use exemptions. With an old category 1 or 2 certificate, you take a supplementary exam instead of the full exam.
- Choose only the sub-areas you really need. If you do not work with CO2 or ammonia, leave out sub-areas II and III.
- Compare quotes. Rates and waiting times differ between bodies.
- Do not buy a certificate without an exam. It does not appear in the register, so it is no saving. Read why at buying an F-gas certificate.
- Combine with existing systems. You can extend a quality manual from ISO 9001 with BRL 100 procedures.
Common mistakes when budgeting
- Budgeting only the exam fees. Technician hours, travel time and any resits count too.
- Forgetting that the personal certificate is now valid for 7 years. Recertification comes back into your multi-year budget.
- Postponing an audit at short notice. Some bodies then charge part of, or the full, audit price.
- Equipment without calibration. A deviation costs a corrective action and sometimes an extra visit.
For a general picture of certification costs, read what does ISO certification cost.