Illinois Barber License Requirements

Illinois licenses barbers through the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation under the Barber, Cosmetology, Esthetics, Hair Braiding, and Nail Technology Act of 1985 (225 ILCS 410).

The Requirements

Section 2-2 makes a person qualified to receive a barber licence if they have applied in writing or electronically, paid the required fees, and:

1. Are at least 16 years of age;
2. Hold a certificate of graduation from a school providing secondary education, or the recognised equivalent — or are beyond the age of compulsory school attendance;
3. Have graduated from a licensed school of barbering or school of cosmetology, completing 1,500 hours in the study of barbering over a period of not less than 9 months; and
4. Have passed an examination conducted by the Department or its designated testing service.

The Education Requirement Has a Back Door

Read clause 2 carefully. Illinois accepts a secondary school certificate, or its recognised equivalent, or simply being beyond the age of compulsory school attendance. That third limb means an applicant past compulsory schooling age qualifies without producing a diploma or a GED at all.

Up to Two Thirds Can Come From Cosmetology School

A licensed school of barbering may, at its discretion and consistent with Department rules, accept up to 1,000 hours of cosmetology school training at a licensed cosmetology school toward the 1,500-hour barbering requirement. That is a two-thirds credit, and it makes Illinois one of the easiest states in which to move from cosmetology into barbering. Note that it is the school's discretion, not an entitlement.

What It Costs

• Licence fee — $30, submitted with the application
• Barber examination — $112

The examination fee is where Illinois is notably cheap for barbers. Cosmetology candidates pay $200, nail technicians $190 and estheticians $175 for their examinations — a barber pays little more than half what a cosmetologist does.

Applications Run Through CORE

IDFPR launched CORE, its online licensing system, on 30 October 2024. Barber examination and endorsement applications are filed online.

Illinois requires 1,500 hours in the study of barbering, and adds a second constraint most states omit: the course must extend over a period of not less than 9 months. You cannot compress it by attending full time.

Barber School or Cosmetology School

The statute accepts graduation from a licensed school of barbering or school of cosmetology. Where a cosmetology school is involved, the barbering school may accept up to 1,000 of those hours toward the 1,500. In practice this makes a licensed Illinois cosmetologist roughly 500 hours away from a barber licence, though the credit is discretionary rather than guaranteed.

Out-of-State and Foreign Study Counts

Section 2-2 provides that time spent in such study under the laws of another state or territory of the United States, or of a foreign country or province, shall be credited toward the required period of study. The word is shall, not may — unlike the cosmetology-hours credit, this one is mandatory.

An Apprenticeship Route Arrives on 1 January 2027

Illinois currently has no apprenticeship pathway into barbering — school is the only route. That changes shortly.

Public Act 104-478, effective 1 January 2027, amends Section 2-2 to add an alternative: an applicant may qualify by having completed 3,000 hours in an apprenticeship programme for barbers under Section 1-15. At 3,000 hours it is double the school route, but for someone who cannot afford to stop working it will be the first practical alternative Illinois has offered.

If you are planning training that starts in 2027 or later, this is worth waiting to confirm with IDFPR.

A Sunset to Be Aware Of

Section 2-2 is scheduled to be repealed on 1 January 2031. Illinois routinely re-enacts its licensing acts before they lapse, but it means the framework described here has a statutory end date.

Section 2-2(d) requires passing an examination caused to be conducted by the Department or its designated testing service to determine fitness to receive a barber licence. IDFPR publishes a Candidate Study Guide for the National Barber Written Examination.

Barbers Pay the Lowest Examination Fee

IDFPR's published examination fees put barbering well below the other professions it licenses:

• Barber — $112
• Cosmetology — $200
• Nail Technician — $190
• Esthetician — $175
• Barber Instructor — $55

Five Languages From 1 October 2026

Illinois has expanded language access further than almost any other state. IDFPR announced that effective 1 October 2026, examinations for the barber, cosmetology, esthetician and nail technician professions are available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese. The $112 barber fee is the same in every language.

Coming From Another State

An endorsement licence for a barber licensed under the laws of another jurisdiction costs $45 under 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1175.100. IDFPR provides a separate Barber Endorsement online application, and a Verification of Experience Supporting Document (VE-COB) form for documenting practice.

Illinois calculates barber renewal on an annual rate but collects it on a two-year cycle. 68 Ill. Adm. Code 1175.100 sets renewal "at the rate of $25 per year", which works out to $50 per two-year renewal.

No Continuing Education for Barbers

Illinois does not impose a continuing education requirement on barber renewal. IDFPR publishes a Continuing Education Fact Sheet covering the professions it licenses, and provides an out-of-state continuing education approval form for those who need it.

Restoration Has a Capped Ceiling

If your licence lapses, restoration costs $50 plus payment of all lapsed renewal fees, not to exceed $200. That cap matters: however long a licence has been lapsed, the back fees stop at $200, so the worst case for restoration is $250. Restoration from inactive status is simply the current renewal fee.

Other Fees Worth Knowing

• Licence — $30, submitted with the application
• Licensure by acceptance of examination — $30
• Endorsement — $45
• Barber school licence — $450 plus $50 inspection; school renewal $100 per year; change of ownership or location $150 plus $50 inspection; change of name $20; on-site and off-site expansion $50

Managing the Licence

IDFPR handles renewals, reactivation, licence certification requests, name and address changes and third-party authorisations through its online system, with new applications running through CORE since October 2024.

Barbering in Illinois is regulated under the Barber, Cosmetology, Esthetics, Hair Braiding, and Nail Technology Act of 1985, which places five professions under one statute and one Department.

The Illinois Barber Credentials

IDFPR licenses four things on the barbering side:

• Barber
• Barber, Teacher
• Barber, School
• Salon/Shop Registration

Barbering has its own teacher licence and its own school licence rather than sharing cosmetology's, and the Department maintains a separate list of Licensed BCENT Schools covering all five professions.

Barbering and Cosmetology Are Deliberately Permeable

Two provisions in Section 2-2 make Illinois unusually easy to cross:

• You may qualify by graduating from a licensed school of barbering or school of cosmetology.
• A barbering school may accept up to 1,000 hours of cosmetology training toward the 1,500-hour requirement.

Illinois treats the two as adjacent trades with a shared foundation rather than as separate disciplines.

Shops Are Registered Separately

A Salon/Shop Registration is required in addition to a personal licence. IDFPR publishes a mandatory sign for salons and shops and a Salon/Shop Self-Inspection Form, so compliance is partly self-administered between Department inspections.

The Medspa Boundary

IDFPR and the Illinois Department of Public Health issued an updated joint memo on 30 October 2025 covering medical spas, which have proliferated in Illinois offering botulinum toxin injections, dermal fillers, laser hair removal, platelet rich plasma and similar procedures. The memo outlines medspa responsibilities, compliance with IDFPR and IDPH regulations, and the need to make infection prevention a priority. None of those procedures falls inside a barber licence.