How to transfer your Cosmetologist licence to Illinois (2026)

Cosmetologist work in Illinois is licensed at state level, by the Illinois Board of Cosmetology (or Barbering and Cosmetology). This page says what a cosmetologist licensed or working in another state has to do to work in Illinois, in the order to do it, and what goes wrong when the order is reversed.

How the transfer works

Every state licenses cosmetologists and most offer licensure by endorsement or reciprocity to a licensed cosmetologist from a state with comparable training hours, typically 1,000 to 1,600. Where your hours fall short of Illinois's minimum, the board may count work experience toward the gap or require additional training. Expect Illinois's law and rules exam in any case.

Exam: the NIC written and practical exams, used by most states.

How long: two to eight weeks. Fee: $50 to $200; the current figure is on the licensing body's own site.

What to have ready before you move

• Licence verification from your board
• School transcript with hours
• Proof of work experience (tax records, employer letters)
• NIC exam scores if your state used them

Start the paperwork before you give notice. Every week the licence is not done is a week you are not paid, and nothing in the process needs you to be in Illinois already.

What people get wrong

• Falling short on hours and finding out after the move
• Letting the old licence lapse before the new one issues

Who hires cosmetologists in Illinois

Cosmetologists in Illinois are hired by salons, salon chains, spas, cruise lines and booth-rental salons. The metros with the most of that work are Chicago, Aurora, Naperville, Rockford and Springfield. Employers who could not hire locally and have filed with the Department of Labor are on the Illinois openings page.

For the money side: the median cosmetologist in Illinois earned $34,800 a year ($17 an hour) in May 2024 across 13,770 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Illinois has a flat 4.95% state income tax. What that leaves you after tax is its own page.

Everything about Illinois, on one page

The Illinois page has the registries and boards, the income tax table, the programs that pay you to come and the openings filed this month. If you know which state you are leaving, the move pages compare the two directly. Creating a free Workmerica profile with your trade and your destination puts you in front of Illinois employers hiring from out of state.