How to Start a Beauty Business in New Jersey
New Jersey runs beauty through two licensing boards and a health code. The Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling licenses hair, nail, skin care, barbering and braiding practitioners, plus shops, schools and, since a 2023 law, chair and booth rentals. The Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy licenses massage therapists and registers the businesses that employ them. Tattooing and permanent cosmetics, including microblading, sit outside both boards, under Department of Health body art rules enforced by your local health department. This hub maps every route, fee and renewal rule before you sign a lease.
Who regulates beauty in New Jersey
Most beauty licensing in New Jersey comes from the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety. Two of its boards matter here. The State Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling writes the rules at N.J.A.C. 13:28 and licenses six kinds of practitioner, six kinds of shop, schools, and chair or booth rentals inside licensed shops. The Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy writes the rules at N.J.A.C. 13:37A and licenses massage therapists; it also registers employers, which is the closest thing New Jersey has to a state massage establishment license.
Permanent makeup follows a completely different path. New Jersey has no state tattoo or permanent cosmetics artist license. The Department of Health's body art rules at N.J.A.C. 8:27 set the standards, and the local health authority, meaning your county or municipal health department, approves the establishment, keeps the practitioner qualification files, and renews the permit every year. A cosmetology license does not authorize permanent cosmetics work; the cosmetology rules expressly prohibit licensees from performing it.
The business layer runs through the Department of the Treasury. The Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services (DORES) takes your Certificate of Formation, your tax and employer registration on Form NJ-REG, your LLC annual reports, and alternate name registrations for entities. Sole proprietors and general partnerships register trade names with the county clerk instead. The Division of Taxation administers the 6.625 percent sales tax, and the Department of Labor and Workforce Development runs unemployment insurance, wage rules and employer reporting.
| Agency | What it controls |
|---|---|
| Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling | Practitioner licenses (cosmetologist-hairstylist, beautician, barber, skin care specialist, manicurist, hair braiding specialist, teacher), shop licenses, chair and booth rental licenses, schools |
| Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy | Massage and bodywork therapist licenses, continuing education, employer registration for businesses that employ therapists |
| Department of Health rules, local health authorities | Body art and ear piercing establishment approval and annual permits, practitioner qualification files for tattooing, piercing and permanent cosmetics |
| Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services | Certificates of Formation, Form NJ-REG, LLC annual reports, alternate name registrations (Form C-150G) |
| County clerks | Trade Name Certificates for sole proprietorships and general partnerships |
| Division of Taxation | Sales tax registration, collection and returns |
| Department of Labor and Workforce Development | Minimum wage, unemployment insurance, disability insurance, quarterly employer reports |
New Jersey licenses at a glance
New Jersey's license menu is wider than most states. Alongside the cosmetologist-hairstylist there is a separate beautician license, a genuine barber license at 900 hours, and a hair braiding specialist license built on a short course that recognizes experience. Every practicing license requires the applicant to be at least 17, hold a high school diploma or equivalent, and pass the Board's examination. Licenses renew every two years; the Board mails renewal notices at least 60 days before expiration, and a license renewed more than 30 days late is suspended until it is reinstated.
| License | Training | State fee |
|---|---|---|
| Cosmetologist-hairstylist | 1,200 hours | $50 exam fee; $90 initial; $90 biennial renewal |
| Beautician (beauty culture) | 1,100 hours | $50 exam fee; $90 initial; $90 biennial renewal |
| Barber | 900 hours | $50 exam fee; $90 initial; $90 biennial renewal |
| Skin care specialist | 600 hours | $50 exam fee; $90 initial; $90 biennial renewal |
| Manicurist | 300 hours | $50 exam fee; $90 initial; $90 biennial renewal |
| Hair braiding specialist | 40 hours with 3 years of braiding experience; 50 hours without | $50 exam fee; $90 initial; $90 biennial renewal |
| Shop license (six types) | Licensed premises with an experienced practicing licensee on staff | $150 application including inspection, plus $200 or $100 initial; $200 biennial renewal |
| Chair or booth rental license | Practicing license in good standing, written contract with the shop owner, inspection | Application fee charged by the Board; license renews biennially |
| Massage and bodywork therapist | 500 hours including 100 hours of supervised clinical practice; MBLEx, NCBTMB or NCCAOM exam; $1,000,000 / $3,000,000 liability insurance | $75 application; $120 or $60 initial; $120 biennial renewal |
| Massage employer registration | Business registration with the massage board; employ only licensed therapists | $150, valid two years |
| Permanent cosmetics practitioner | No state license; 100 hour training plus AAM, SPCP or SofTap exam as an apprentice, then 15 supervised procedures on file with the establishment | Local health authority permit fees, set locally |
What every New Jersey beauty business files
Whatever the concept, the state level stack looks like this. Form the entity with DORES, register for taxes and employer accounts on Form NJ-REG, register your business name through the route that matches your entity type, and keep the annual and quarterly filings current. The shop license application itself asks for the entity paperwork and the name registration, so the business filings come first.
| Filing | Who files | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate of Formation (DORES) | LLCs and corporations | $100 (reduced from $125 on July 1, 2026) |
| Form NJ-REG tax and employer registration | Every business | Filed with DORES after formation |
| LLC annual report | Every LLC, every year | $75, due the last day of the formation month |
| Alternate name, Form C-150G | Corporations, LLCs and limited partnerships trading under another name | $50, effective five years |
| Trade Name Certificate | Sole proprietors and general partnerships, in each county of operation | $5 county clerk and $5 Secretary of State statutory fees, plus county recording charges |
| EIN | Every employer | Free from the IRS |
| Sales tax | Sellers of retail products; providers of tanning, massage and tattoo or permanent cosmetic services | 6.625% collected and remitted; hair, skin and nail services are not taxed |
| Unemployment insurance, new employer | Employers | 2.8% combined UI and workforce funds, plus 0.5% employer disability, on the first $44,800 per worker (2026) |
| Minimum wage | Employers | $15.92 per hour from January 1, 2026; tipped cash wage $6.05 |
New Jersey traps worth knowing first
Booth rental is a license now, whatever the old rule says. A 2023 law created the chair or booth rental license, and the Board takes online applications today. The renter needs a practicing license in good standing, a written contract with the shop owner filed with the Board, and an inspection of the chair or booth before working. Older code text still circulating online says booth rental is prohibited; the Board's current process is the one that governs.
Every shop runs under an experienced practicing licensee. The owner does not need a license, but the shop must employ an EPL with at least three years of licensed experience in a category that matches the shop. A full service shop needs a cosmetologist-hairstylist EPL. Budget the manager hire into the plan from day one.
A salon suite here is a mini-suite shop license. Suites of 100 to 349 net usable square feet license as mini-suite shops, each with its own EPL present while services are rendered and waivers for the standard square footage and lavatory rules. The landlord renting the suites needs no gallery license, but each suite is a licensed shop in its own right.
Lashes sit in a gap. No New Jersey license is named for eyelash extensions, no scope of practice lists them, and the cosmetology rules prohibit licensees from tinting eyebrows or eyelashes at all. Permanent eyelash enhancement belongs to the body art rules. Read the lash studio guide before building a menu.
Massage is taxed; haircuts are not. New Jersey taxes services only when the statute lists them. Tanning, massage and tattooing, including permanent cosmetic makeup, are listed and taxable, massage unless a doctor prescribes it. Hair, skin and nail services are not listed, and retail products are taxed as tangible personal property.
The renewal cliff is 30 days. Renew a cosmetology license more than 30 days after expiration and it suspends automatically. Reinstatement means the renewal fee, every past delinquent fee, a $50 reinstatement fee, and a sworn affidavit of where you worked while suspended. Massage licenses all expire together on November 30 of even numbered years.
Braiding is licensed, not exempt, and the scopes have a weaving quirk. Braiders take a 40 or 50 hour specialist course under the 2018 law. But check the fine print before staffing: the beauty culture and barbering scopes include braiding except weaving, while the cosmetologist-hairstylist scope includes all braiding services, and a braiding shop's menu is limited to braiding, merchandise and ancillary services.
Shop types cap the menu. Each shop license type may offer only its own services, plus merchandise sales and, for most types, ancillary beautification services. A manicuring shop gets no ancillary services at all. Pick the shop type that matches the full menu you intend to sell, not the service you open with.
New Jersey guides
Hair Salon
The full service route: cosmetologist-hairstylist at 1,200 hours, the shop license and its 350 square foot floor, the EPL manager rule, and the new booth rental license.
Barbershop
Barbering at 900 hours with shaving at the center of the scope, the barbering shop license, and the headrest chair the rules require.
Nail Salon
The manicuring shop license, the 300 hour manicurist license, and the rule that a nail shop may not add ancillary services.
Lash Studio
No lash license exists, tinting is prohibited, and permanent lash work is body art. The honest map of routes into lash services.
Esthetics & Skin Care
The skin care specialty shop, the 600 hour specialist license, and the stratum corneum line that separates esthetics from medicine.
Salon Suites
New Jersey's suite model is the mini-suite shop license: 100 to 349 square feet, its own EPL, and two regulatory waivers.
Braiding Studio
The hair braiding specialist license from the 2018 law: 40 hours with experience, 50 without, and the braiding shop license.
Microblading & PMU
Permanent cosmetics under the health code: local health authority permits, the 100 hour training and exam route, and the 15 supervised procedures.
Massage Studio
The 500 hour license, insurance as a condition of licensure, employer registration in place of an establishment license, and the sales tax rule.
Official resources
| Resource | What it is |
|---|---|
| Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling, licensing requirements | Training hours and eligibility for each practicing license |
| Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling, FAQ | Shop ownership, mini-suite and chair or booth rental answers from the Board |
| Board applications | Application library, including the online booth and chair rental application |
| Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy, FAQ | Renewal date, continuing education and licensure answers |
| N.J.A.C. 8:27, body art rules | Department of Health standards for body art establishment approval |
| DORES, Getting Registered | Formation sequence, the $100 certificate fee and Form NJ-REG |
| DORES, Registry Fee Schedules | State filing fees for certificates and annual reports |
| NJDOL, 2026 minimum wage | The January 1, 2026 wage rates, including the tipped cash wage |
State sources last reviewed: November 3, 2026
This guide is general information, not legal advice. License rules, fees and forms change; confirm current requirements with the State Board of Cosmetology and Hairstyling, the Board of Massage and Bodywork Therapy, your local health authority, and the Division of Revenue and Enterprise Services before you file or sign a lease.