Indiana Cosmetology License Requirements

Indiana licenses every beauty culture trade through a single board — the State Board of Cosmetology and Barber Examiners — operating under the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency (PLA). The path from student to licensee is consistent across the cosmetologist, barber, esthetician, manicurist, and electrologist credentials, with hour requirements being the main variable. Here is the standard route to a cosmetologist license in Indiana.

Step 1 — Meet the Preliminary Education Requirement

Cosmetologist applicants must have completed the 10th grade or its equivalent. Manicurist applicants need only an 8th grade education, while barber applicants must be 18 — or 17 with a high school diploma or equivalent. Beauty culture instructor applicants need a high school diploma.

Step 2 — Complete an Approved Indiana Beauty Culture School

Cosmetology requires 1,500 hours of instruction at an Indiana-approved beauty culture school. Programs cover hair, skin, nails, sanitation, Indiana law and rules, and the practical skills evaluated within the curriculum. The school issues a Beauty Culture Education Certification that you upload with your application. Department of Labor registered apprenticeships are accepted as an alternative.

Step 3 — Pass the PSI Written Examination

Indiana uses PSI Examination Services for the written portion of the licensing exam. Schedule your test through the PSI candidate portal. Since July 1, 2013, the written examination has been embedded in the Indiana school program. Your PSI Pass Notice is uploaded with the online application.

Step 4 — Submit the Online Application Through MyLicense

Create an Access Indiana account, log into MyLicense.IN.gov, and submit the cosmetologist license application. You will need:

• $40.00 application fee by credit or debit card (nonrefundable)
• Beauty Culture Education Certification from your school
• PSI Pass Notice (or apprenticeship completion certificate)
• Positive Response Documentation if you answer Yes to any background questions, plus court documents
• Name change documentation if names differ across documents
• Your Social Security number — disclosure is mandatory under IC 4-1-8-1

Step 5 — Wait for License Issuance

The PLA processes complete applications administratively. Incomplete applications are abandoned after one year and a new application is required. Once issued, your individual beauty culture license is valid for the remainder of the four-year cycle and must be posted at your workstation.

Indiana sets training hour minimums separately for each beauty culture license. All hours must be completed at an Indiana-approved beauty culture school under 820 IAC 4-1, with the school submitting monthly verified reports of student hours and enrollment status to the board.

Indiana Beauty Culture Hour Requirements

• Cosmetologist — 1,500 hours. Full hair, skin, and nail program.
• Barber — 1,500 hours. Barbering school instruction.
• Beauty Culture Instructor — 1,000 hours. Plus a primary beauty culture license held continuously alongside the instructor credential.
• Esthetician — 700 hours. Skin care, facials, and hair removal.
• Manicurist — 450 hours. Nail care services — Indiana's lowest individual training requirement.
• Electrologist — 300 hours. Plus an active cosmetologist or esthetician license held continuously.

Department of Labor Apprenticeship

Applicants who complete a U.S. Department of Labor registered apprenticeship program may submit the apprentice number and a copy of the certificate of completion in lieu of school hours.

Substantially Equal Hours (Reciprocity and Provisional)

For reciprocity and provisional applicants, the board credits one (1) year of licensed practice in another jurisdiction as 100 hours of education, with minimum prior-education thresholds:

• Cosmetology and Barber: 1,000 prior hours minimum
• Esthetics: 400 prior hours minimum
• Manicuring: 300 prior hours minimum (or 100 hours if the applicant has 20+ years of licensed practice)
• Electrology: 200 prior hours minimum
• Beauty Culture Instructor: 700 prior hours minimum

Hours above another state's minimum requirement do not count toward the substantially equal calculation.

Indiana licensure relies on a written examination administered by PSI. Practical skills are evaluated by the Indiana-approved beauty culture school as part of the standard program rather than at a separate state-level practical exam.

Written Examination — PSI

Register for the Indiana written examination through the PSI Candidate Information Bulletin. The bulletin lists testing center locations across Indiana, online check-in steps, government-issued ID requirements, and reschedule windows. Examination content outlines were revised effective March 8, 2017 and remain in force.

Embedded School Program (Since 2013)

Effective July 1, 2013, Indiana embedded the written examination into the approved beauty culture school program. Most current students take the PSI exam during their final stretch of school. Graduates from before July 1, 2013 who never passed must submit a Waiver request to extend the three-year deadline.

Practical Skills

The school issues the Beauty Culture Education Certification once the practical curriculum and required hours are complete. The certification — not a separate state-administered practical exam — confirms practical competence to the board. Provisional and reciprocity applicants may have practical skills reviewed through verification of out-of-jurisdiction licensed practice.

Reinstatement Examination

If your Indiana license has been expired five years or more, you must retake and pass the written licensing examination as remediation. After application, schedule the exam using the registration information in your eligibility letter, and pass within one year.

Indiana operates a four-year renewal cycle for individual beauty culture licenses, codified in IC 25-8-4. Each license expires four years after the initial expiration date set by the Indiana Professional Licensing Agency.

No Continuing Education

Indiana does not require continuing education for any individual beauty culture license. The former 820 IAC Article 6 (Continuing Education) was repealed and has not been replaced. Renewal is purely a matter of completing the online renewal application and paying the $40 fee on time.

Fees at Renewal

• Individual beauty culture license: $40.00
• Beauty culture salon or mobile salon: $40.00
• Beauty culture school: $400.00
• Tanning facility: $200.00

All fees are nonrefundable and must be paid by credit or debit card through MyLicense.

Online Renewal Walkthrough

1. Sign in to MyLicense.IN.gov using your Access Indiana account. Personal email is required (not an employer email) for security and legal purposes.
2. From the left-hand menu, select Renew License. Renewals are available no earlier than 90 days prior to expiration.
3. Pay the $40 renewal fee.
4. Confirm your contact information and submit. The system shows a confirmation page; print or save it for your records.

Reinstatement Past Three Years

Per IC 25-1-8-6, an individual beauty culture license expired beyond three years can be reinstated for an $80.00 reinstatement fee (the $40 renewal fee plus the $40 application fee), plus board-determined remediation. Licenses expired five or more years require passing the written licensing examination again within one year of reinstatement application. If the board cannot verify the prior license and the applicant has no expired license to submit, the applicant must complete an Indiana beauty culture school program and re-apply by examination.

Indiana issues the following individual beauty culture licenses through the State Board of Cosmetology and Barber Examiners:

Cosmetologist

Full hair, skin, and nail services. Requires 10th grade education and 1,500 school hours, plus the PSI written examination.

Barber

Hair cutting, shaving, and shop services. Requires the applicant to be at least 18 — or 17 with a high school diploma — plus 1,500 school hours and the PSI written examination.

Esthetician

Skin care, facials, and hair removal. Requires 10th grade education and 700 school hours, plus the PSI written examination.

Manicurist

Nail care services. Requires 8th grade education and 450 school hours — the lowest individual entry requirement in Indiana — plus the PSI written examination.

Electrologist

Permanent hair removal using electric current. Requires 10th grade education and 300 school hours, plus an active cosmetologist or esthetician license held continuously and the PSI written examination.

Beauty Culture Instructor

Authorizes teaching at a licensed Indiana beauty culture school. Requires a high school diploma, 1,000 instructor-training hours, and a primary beauty culture license held continuously alongside the instructor credential.

Provisional License

Issued to applicants from jurisdictions that do not license the applicable trade. The provisional holder must work under the personal supervision of an Indiana-licensed counterpart (cosmetologist for cosmetologist applicants, etc.) until upgrade requirements are met. Provisional licenses are not granted for instructors.

Facility licenses — beauty culture salon, mobile salon, beauty culture school, and tanning facility — are issued separately and require their own applications, fees, and inspections.