California Esthetician License: 600 Hours, Exam, and Renewal

To get licensed as an esthetician in California, you need to be at least 17, have completed the 10th grade, finish 600 hours of Board-approved training (or a qualifying apprenticeship), and pass a written state exam. Those are the core California esthetician license requirements, set by the California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology (CBBC) under the Business and Professions Code. The details below walk through each step, plus fees, reciprocity, scope of practice, and renewal.

Who Can Apply

Two things have to be true before you enroll anywhere. You must be at least 17 years old, and you must have completed the 10th grade in a public school or the equivalent, such as a GED. These are statutory prerequisites under California Business and Professions Code Section 7324, and your school or apprenticeship sponsor will verify them before admitting you.¹

The 600 Hours of Training

The 600 hours must come from a school approved by the CBBC for its skin care program. Hours completed at a school before it received Board approval do not count, so confirm a school’s status before you enroll.² The CBBC website maintains a searchable list of approved schools.

Business and Professions Code Section 7364 splits the 600 hours into four required subjects with minimum hours for each:³

Health and Safety — 100 hours. Hazardous substances, chemical safety, safety data sheets, protection from chemical injuries, and the health and safety laws that apply to the profession.
Disinfection and Sanitation — 100 hours. Disinfection procedures that protect both clients and technicians, including proper cleaning of all equipment used in establishments.
Skin Care — 350 hours. Facials, massage techniques, exfoliation, cleansing, and the use of esthetic devices, cosmetic products, and various lotions and creams. Procedures cannot result in the destruction of live tissue.
Hair Removal and Lash/Brow Beautification — 50 hours. Waxing, sugaring, tweezing, depilatory use, eyelash tinting and perming, brow lamination, and applying false eyelashes. Laser and light-based hair removal are excluded.

The Apprenticeship Alternative

If you prefer to learn on the job, California permits a skin care apprenticeship in place of school. The apprenticeship runs a minimum of two years and 3,200 hours.³

At least 220 of those hours are classroom-based Related Training Hours provided by your program sponsor, covering cosmetology chemistry, health and safety, disinfection and sanitation, bacteriology, anatomy, skin analysis, facials, hair removal, and makeup. The rest is On-the-Job Training under the direct supervision of a licensed trainer. As an apprentice, you are an employee of the establishment: your employer must pay at least minimum wage and carry workers’ compensation for you. Commission pay and station rental are not allowed.⁴

The Written Exam

Once training is done, you take the state written exam. California eliminated the practical exam for all license types effective January 1, 2022, under Senate Bill 803, so there is no hands-on component anymore.⁵

The esthetician exam has 75 scored questions plus 10 unscored pretest questions, with 90 minutes to finish. It emphasizes infection control, safety procedures, and California regulatory requirements. Passing is 75%.⁵ If you fail, there is no limit on retakes and no mandatory wait, but you pay the application fee again each time.⁶

What It Costs

The application and examination fee is $75. After you pass, the initial license fee is $40, for $115 total to the Board. Renewal every two years is $50.³ School tuition, textbooks, and supplies are separate and vary widely by program.

If You Are Licensed or Trained in Another State

Hold a current esthetician license from another state? California has a reciprocity process. You do not repeat training. You submit a reciprocity application and a certification letter from your current state confirming the license is active and in good standing.⁷

If you worked as an esthetician in another state without holding a license there, California converts documented experience into training hours at a rate of 100 hours for every three months of practice. Six months of full-time work equals the 600-hour requirement.¹

What Your License Lets You Do

The license authorizes a defined scope of services. Working outside it can lead to discipline, and some of the lines catch people off guard.⁸

Within scope: facials, superficial chemical peels, microdermabrasion, microcurrent treatments, LED devices, high-frequency current, extractions (without needles), waxing and sugaring, eyelash extensions, lash lifts, brow lamination, eyelash and eyebrow tinting, makeup application, and ultrasonic skin scrubbers.

Prohibited: any laser treatment, intense pulsed light (IPL), microneedling, nanoneedling, dermaplaning, radio frequency, injections of any kind, dermarolling, body contouring or fat-reduction treatments, electrolysis (which needs a separate electrologist license), skin tag or mole removal, and the use of prescription products. Cosmetic tattooing and threading fall outside the Board’s jurisdiction entirely.⁸

Keeping the License Active

The license expires every two years and renews for $50. California does not require continuing education, which sets it apart from many other states. You just pay the renewal on time.⁶

Miss the deadline and the license goes delinquent, meaning you cannot legally work. Let it sit unrenewed for five years and the Board cancels it, at which point you have to apply from scratch and retake the exam. Do not wait for a paper notice; the Board warns that renewal notices may not be sent if you have unpaid fines or an outdated address on file.⁶

1
California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. License Requirements
2
California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. Information on Opening a School of Barbering, Cosmetology, or Electrology
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California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. 2026 Board of Barbering and Cosmetology Act and Regulations
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California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. About the Apprenticeship Program
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California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. Information Regarding the Written and Practical Examinations
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California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. Frequently Asked Questions
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California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. Reciprocity Application Instructions and Checklist for All License Types
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California Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. Estheticians Flier