Getting a nail licence in Pennsylvania
What Pennsylvania State Board of Cosmetology publishes about getting a nail licence, checked on September 7, 2026.
- Required training hours
- 200 hours of instruction in nail technology at a licensed cosmetology school. A 10th grade education or equivalent is required, unless the applicant is over 35 or a veteran.
- Source: Pennsylvania Department of State - Nail Technician Licensure Snapshot · Checked September 7, 2026
- Fees
- $119 for the initial licence, made up of a $26 application fee and a $93 testing fee. Renewal is $97 on a two-year cycle.
- Source: Pennsylvania Department of State - Nail Technician Licensure Snapshot · Checked September 7, 2026
- What the exam covers
- One Board examination, covering state theory and procedure. Pennsylvania requires no continuing education to renew the licence.
- Source: Pennsylvania Department of State - Nail Technician Licensure Snapshot · Checked September 7, 2026
- If you are licensed in another state
- The reciprocity fee is $89. Under Act 41, an active licensee in good standing from a state with substantially equivalent requirements, with no discipline or criminal conviction, may be licensed by endorsement. There is also a path using employment certification showing at least two years of licensed work experience.
- Source: Pennsylvania Department of State - Nail Technician Licensure Snapshot · Checked September 7, 2026
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The oldest line on this page was checked September 7, 2026