Makeup Artist Licensing

States Licensed

37

of 50 states and D.C.

×

Burden Rank

57th

for average burdens 1st is worst

=

Combined Rank

32nd

for states licensed x average burdens 1st is worst

VT NH MA CT RI NJ DE DC MD
Change from 2017 to 2022, if any:
↑
Burden increased
↓
Burden decreased
↕
Mixed burden change
N
New license
E
Eliminated license
2022 Licensing Burden Rank
Lower Burden Rank
Higher Burden Rank
No state license

How does my state compare to others?

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Definition

Makeup artists apply cosmetics to face or exposed body areas to improve or otherwise alter people’s appearances. 1 Some states issue licenses specific to makeup application, but others interpret the work as falling under a broader license. See Appendix B for details.

2022 Snapshot

  • 14 unlicensed states
  • Days lost range from 0 (Nevada, Ohio) to 233 (Alabama, Georgia, Kansas)
  • Fees range from $0 (Ohio) to $450 (Alaska)
  • 34 states require 1+ exam
  • 28 states set minimum age
  • 28 states set minimum grade

Changes Since 2017

  • 4 licenses removed by Florida, Minnesota, Mississippi and Nebraska; none created
  • Fees changed most often and changes were almost evenly split between increases and decreases; 5 states reduced education, while Louisiana increased it
  • Burden rank worsened 1 spot, largely because other occupations improved; combined rank improved 4 spots, largely because of 4 eliminated licenses

2022 Licensing Burden in Detail

N New License
E Eliminated License
Increase
Decrease

Data Notes: 2022 data collected between February 3, 2020, and March 18, 2022. Fees include charges for application review and license issuance; exams; background checks, credit reports and fingerprinting; recovery fund contributions; third-party certification; and certain fees for training courses. Calendar days lost were estimated based on required education and experience; except for amounts smaller than one day, days lost are rounded to whole days and thus may not reflect very small changes between 2017 and 2022. Appendix A details methods for estimating days lost and calculating burden ranks. Complete data, including revised 2017 data, are available at https://ij.org/report/license-to-work-3/ltw3-data/.

Additional Resources