Connecticut State Board of Cosmetology

Connecticut does not license the beauty industry through a single stand-alone agency the way some states do. Instead, the Examining Board for Barbers, Hairdressers and Cosmeticians sets policy and hears disciplinary matters, while day-to-day licensing is administered by the Department of Public Health's Practitioner Licensing and Investigations Section (PLIS). Together they license hairdressers/cosmeticians (Connecticut's general cosmetology license), barbers, estheticians, eyelash technicians, and nail technicians. Barbers are licensed under Connecticut General Statutes Chapter 386, while hairdressers, cosmeticians, estheticians, eyelash technicians, and nail technicians all fall under Chapter 387.

PLIS is located at 410 Capitol Avenue in Hartford, with mail addressed to P.O. Box 340308, Hartford, CT 06134-0308. The office does not meet with visitors who don't have a scheduled appointment; applicants who need to drop off paperwork in person can use the drop box at the first-floor security desk. Applications for every license type in this group are accepted online only, through the state's eLicense portal at elicense.ct.gov.

General licensing questions can be directed to (860) 509-7603 or oplc.dph@ct.gov, which PLIS lists as its preferred contact method. Applicants for a specific license, such as hairdresser or barber, can also reach the dedicated processing team by email at dph.hairdresserteam@ct.gov. The department asks that all correspondence note the profession in question so it reaches the right reviewer.

All five personal license types renew every two years for a $100 fee, and Connecticut does not require continuing education for any of them. Hairdresser/cosmetician and barber licenses expire biennially on the last day of the licensee's birth month; esthetician, eyelash technician, and nail technician licenses also renew on a two-year cycle. Esthetician, eyelash technician, and other "appearance enhancement" licensees receive renewal notices by email and are required to renew online, while other licensees are typically notified by mail about 60 days before expiration.

Every personal license PLIS issues in this group — hairdresser/cosmetician, barber, esthetician, eyelash technician, and nail technician — renews on a two-year cycle for a flat $100 fee, and none of them require continuing education hours to renew. For hairdressers and barbers specifically, the license expires biennially on the last day of the licensee's month of birth, so the exact renewal date depends on when the license was originally issued relative to that birth month.

Most licensees receive a renewal notice by mail roughly 60 days before their license expires, with a final notice mailed about 30 days after expiration if the license hasn't been renewed. Estheticians and eyelash technicians are notified by email instead and are required to complete their renewal online through the eLicense portal at elicense.ct.gov; other appearance-enhancement licensees can also renew there using instructions included with their renewal notice. Licensees who haven't received a notice near their expected renewal date can email oplc.dph@ct.gov to request one.

Connecticut law (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 19a-88(e)(4)) builds in a 90-day grace period after a license expires. During that window, the licensee may keep practicing and can still renew the license as normal. On the 91st day past expiration, the license becomes void and the holder must apply for reinstatement rather than a simple renewal.

Reinstatement requirements scale with how long a license has been lapsed. For a lapsed hairdresser license, applicants who haven't practiced anywhere for two to eight years must pass the Prometric licensing exam or complete a 135-hour refresher course; those who haven't practiced for more than eight years must pass the exam and complete a 245-hour refresher. Every reinstatement also requires a $100 reinstatement fee and a written summary of the applicant's professional activity since the license lapsed, submitted online through eLicense.

PLIS investigates complaints against practitioners it licenses, including hairdressers/cosmeticians, barbers, estheticians, eyelash technicians, and nail technicians, for matters within the department's jurisdiction over a license — such as sanitation violations, scope-of-practice issues, and unlicensed practice. The department does not have jurisdiction over fee disputes, billing disagreements, or general customer-service complaints unless they involve fraud, and it cannot obtain a refund or other compensation for a consumer; its authority is limited to action against the practitioner's license.

Complaints are filed using a fillable complaint form, available in English and Spanish, submitted by mail to the Practitioner Investigations Unit (MS#12HSR, P.O. Box 340308, Hartford, CT 06134-0308), by email to DPH.PLISComplaints@ct.gov, or by fax to (860) 707-1916. Consumers can also call the Practitioner Investigations Unit at (860) 509-7552 to have a complaint form mailed to them. A separate form should be submitted for each practitioner being reported.

The department acknowledges receipt of a complaint in writing, typically within two weeks, and opens an investigation if the allegations fall within its jurisdiction. Because DPH is a public agency, complaint information may be disclosable under Connecticut's Freedom of Information laws, and any resulting department action is administrative — such as a reprimand, practice restriction, or remedial education — rather than a route to financial compensation for the complainant.