Pennsylvania cosmetology license lookup.

How to check a Pennsylvania cosmetology licence

The Board's page does not describe a lookup tool of its own. It links to the Department of State's statewide service, Verify a Professional or Occupational License, and sends licensees to PALS (pals.pa.gov) to apply, renew or get support. Search for the person or salon there. Our PALS license verification guide explains the search itself.

The Board page does not define licence status values or describe the licence-number format, so this page does not either. If a status is unclear, the Board lists 1-833-DOS-BPOA (Monday to Friday, 9:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.) and St-COSMETOLOGY@pa.gov for specific documentation requests such as letters of good standing and disciplinary documents.

Which licences the Board covers

The Board regulates cosmetologists and cosmetology teachers, estheticians and esthetician teachers, nail technicians and nail technology teachers, cosmetology, esthetician and nail technology salons, and cosmetology schools. Natural hair braiders, braider teachers and braiding salons no longer need a licence under Act 100 of 2024, and the Board no longer accepts applications, renewals, reactivations or changes for those types, so a missing braiding licence is not a red flag.

What a cosmetologist licence requires

The Board's licensure snapshot gives two routes. By school: at least 1,250 hours at a licensed cosmetology school, completed over at least 8 consecutive months for day students or 15 for night students. By apprenticeship: 2,000 hours in a licensed salon under a licensed cosmetology teacher, or in a Board-approved apprentice program. Applicants need the tenth grade or equivalent (the page says this does not apply to applicants over 35 or veterans) and must pass the state theory and procedural examinations.

Listed fees are $119 for an initial licence ($26 application fee and $93 to the testing organization), $89 for reciprocity or Act 41 applicants, and $97 to renew. Licences renew biennially. The snapshot states there is no continuing education requirement for licensure. For applicants licensed elsewhere, reciprocity requires a minimum of two years of licensed work experience in the other jurisdiction, and Act 41 lets boards endorse licensees from jurisdictions with substantially equivalent requirements who are active, in good standing and free of discipline or criminal conviction.

What this page cannot tell you

It cannot say whether any person or salon is licensed today. Fees and hours are as the Board published them at retrieval; check the Board's pages for changes.

Sources

• Pennsylvania State Board of Cosmetology (Retrieved November 2026)
• Cosmetologist licensure snapshot (Retrieved November 2026)