Barber Schools and License Requirements in South Dakota

Written by Barber-License.com Editorial Staff, Last Updated: November 13, 2026

Barbers in South Dakota are licensed by the South Dakota Board of Barber Examiners, part of the Department of Labor and Regulation in Pierre. It’s a separate agency from the South Dakota Cosmetology Commission, and a cosmetology license doesn’t let you work in a barbershop. The rules come from SDCL chapter 36-14 and the Board’s rules in ARSD article 20:39. If you’re comparing states, see barber schools in every state.

South Dakota has one route to a barber license: barber school. The old apprentice barber license was repealed in 2017, so you can’t train your way in at a shop. Here’s the path as of November 2026, with what each step costs.

To become a barber in South Dakota, follow these steps:

1. Complete 1,500 Hours at an Approved Barber School
2. Apply for Your Exams and License
3. Pass the NIC Theory Exam and the State Practical Exam
4. Start Working as a Licensed Barber in South Dakota
5. Renew Your License Every Year

Step 1. Complete 1,500 Hours at an Approved Barber School

South Dakota law requires 1,500 hours of barber education, taken over no less than nine months, at a barber school the Board approves (SDCL 36-14-13 and 36-14-17). You need to be 18 to be licensed. The Board’s school rule (ARSD 20:39:03:06) sets the minimum hours for each subject:

The same rule splits the program into 1,200 hours of practical work and 300 hours of theory, classroom instruction, and demonstrations. You spend your first 150 hours in class, demonstrations, and practice before you work on a paying client in the school’s clinic. A school can’t make you train more than eight hours a day, though it can let you earn more than eight if you choose. Up to 300 theory and classroom hours can come through a Board-approved distance learning plan.

Where to Train

The Board posts its list of approved barber schools. The list is dated April 2022 and shows one school, South Dakota Barber College in Rapid City. Before you enroll anywhere, call the Board at 605.773.6193 to confirm the school is approved today. Hours from a school the Board doesn’t approve won’t count toward your license.

Already a Cosmetologist, Nail Technician, or Esthetician?

If you hold one of those licenses, the Board can credit related hours from that training toward the 1,500, subject by subject, up to the limits in ARSD 20:39:03:08. Those limits add up to 1,130 hours at most, and what you actually get depends on your coursework and the Board’s review. College coursework can count too: the school applies credit for general coursework under SDCL 36-14-7.1, and each college credit hour equals 30 clock hours. Send an official transcript so the hours can be reviewed.

Trained in Another State?

If you graduated from a barber school in another state, you can’t take South Dakota’s exams. You have two options: get licensed in your own state and transfer the license (Step 2 explains how), or enroll in a South Dakota barber school and finish the hours South Dakota still requires. For the second option, have your school send the Board an official transcript and ask your state’s barber board for a certification of your education. The Board audits them and tells you how many hours carry over.

Step 2. Apply for Your Exams and License

When you’re ready to test, mail the Board’s Application for Examination, which you’ll find on its forms page, to the Board at 217 W. Missouri Ave., Pierre, SD 57501. Here’s what goes in the envelope:

• The application: Every section filled in, including your school, completion date, and total clock hours.
• The fee: A $225 check or money order. Under ARSD 20:39:05:01, that one fee covers your exams and your first license. It’s nonrefundable.
• Criminal history: If you’ve ever been convicted of a felony or any state or federal crime, attach the details and a certified copy of your court records.

Your school also sends the Board your Student Education Record. The Board won’t issue your license until it has that record.

Licensed in Another State?

South Dakota calls this a license transfer. You need a current barber license from another state or country, and you must be at least 18. Under SDCL 36-14-14, you qualify if your state’s requirements are substantially the same as South Dakota’s, or if you can prove by affidavits that you’ve worked as a barber for at least five years. Here’s how the Board’s Transfer Application works:

• Fee: $225, nonrefundable.
• Documents: A copy of your birth certificate, passport, permanent resident card, naturalization certificate, or driver’s license, plus a clear photo or a copy of your photo ID.
• Certifications: Every state where you’ve ever held a barber license mails or emails a certification straight to the Board. A copy of your license doesn’t count, and certifications can take a while, so request them first.
• Short on hours: If your state required fewer than 1,500 hours, you get 50 hours of credit for each month you’ve worked as a licensed barber there. You show it with a work experience affidavit.
• Exams: If you passed state board exams in another state, you don’t retest in South Dakota.

Incomplete transfer applications are held for three months, and you can’t work in South Dakota until your license arrives. If you’re licensed next door, compare North Dakota’s barber license requirements, Minnesota’s barber licensing rules, or Iowa’s barber license steps with what South Dakota asks for.

Step 3. Pass the NIC Theory Exam and the State Practical Exam

You take two exams, and you need at least 75% on each one (ARSD 20:39:04:03). The Board’s examinations page lays out both.

The Theory Exam

• What it is: The National-Interstate Council of State Boards of Cosmetology (NIC) Barber Styling theory exam.
• Who gives it: The testing company Prov. You register on Prov’s site with the candidate ID and coupon code the Board emails you, so you don’t pay Prov anything at checkout. Pick the barber exam and your language carefully: choose the wrong one and you may have to reapply and pay again.
• Where: Online with a remote proctor, which needs a computer and internet access, or at a listed test site.
• When: You can sign up for the theory exam while you’re still enrolled in a South Dakota barber school. The Board’s registration guide gives you 90 minutes once you start.
• Changes: Cancel or reschedule at least three business days before your exam.
• Practice: Prov sells an optional NIC Barber Styling practice exam for $39. The Board doesn’t require or endorse it.

The Practical Exam

The practical is the Board’s own hands-on exam, developed in South Dakota. State law requires the Board to hold exams at least twice a year (SDCL 36-14-19), and the Board sets the date and place. Call the Board at 605.773.6193 for the current schedule and what to bring.

If you fail either exam, you can retake it without asking the Board first. Once you’ve passed both and the Board has your Student Education Record, it mails your license within 48 hours, weekends and holidays excluded.

Step 4. Start Working as a Licensed Barber in South Dakota

With your license, you can work in a licensed barbershop. Display your license near your work chair where clients can see it (SDCL 36-14-20). If you want to cut hair in a cosmetology salon, the Board has to inspect your station and issue a barbershop license for it first.

Opening Your Own Barbershop

You don’t need a barber license to own a shop, but every shop must be under the direct supervision of a registered barber at all times. You need a shop license before you open, and a shop license doesn’t transfer. A new owner or a new address means a new license and a new inspection. Here’s what the Board’s Barbershop Application charges:

• Inspection fee: $150 on the application, although SDCL 36-14-28 caps the original inspection fee at $125. Confirm the amount with the Board before you pay.
• Shop license: $250.
• Chairs: $20 for each barber chair.

The Board inspects new shops on the first and third Wednesday of each month, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Central Time, so plan to be there. After that, shop licenses expire May 31 each year. Renewal costs $225 plus $20 for each chair, and the Board inspects every shop yearly for $150 (ARSD 20:39:05:04 and 20:39:05:05).

Teaching Barbering

To become a barber instructor, you need a South Dakota barber license, at least one year of licensed experience, and 500 hours of instructor training. At least 100 of those hours are spent teaching in a licensed barber school under a licensed instructor. Then you pass the Board’s instructor theory exam (ARSD 20:39:03:10).

Step 5. Renew Your License Every Year

You renew your South Dakota barber license every year by May 31 on the Board’s renewal form, and a license you don’t renew expires June 1 (SDCL 36-14-22). South Dakota moved the deadline from June 30 in 2025, so ignore older guides. Here’s what renewal costs under ARSD 20:39:05:01:

• On time: $200, postmarked by May 31.
• Late: $200 plus a $30 restoration fee and a $25 expired license fee for each year the license has been expired.
• Lapsed three years or more: You retake both the theory and practical exams.

If you’re stepping away from barbering, return the renewal form anyway and mark that you won’t renew. No fee is due.

Barber Salary and Jobs in South Dakota

BLS doesn’t publish a barber wage for South Dakota. Nationally, barbers earned a median annual wage of $38,210 as of May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That figure covers barbers on a shop’s payroll and leaves out self-employed barbers and chair renters. For comparison, hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists in South Dakota earned a median of $49,800 as of May 2025.

Projections Central doesn’t publish a barber projection for South Dakota either. For hairdressers, hairstylists, and cosmetologists in the state, it estimates a 7.5% increase between 2024 and 2034, from 990 jobs to 1,060, with an average of 130 openings per year. Nationally, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects barber employment to grow 3% from 2025 to 2035.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is barber school in South Dakota?

South Dakota requires 1,500 hours of barber education over at least nine months at a Board-approved school. Schools can’t require more than eight hours a day, though some let you choose longer days. At eight hours a day, five days a week, 1,500 hours takes about 38 weeks. Licensed cosmetologists, nail technicians, and estheticians can get credit for related hours.

Can you become a barber in South Dakota through an apprenticeship?

No. South Dakota repealed its apprentice barber license in 2017, and the law now requires 1,500 hours at an approved barber school. Barbers licensed in another state can transfer, and if their state required fewer hours, they get 50 hours of credit for each month they’ve worked there.

How much does a South Dakota barber license cost?

The application fee is $225, and it covers the NIC theory exam, the state practical exam, and your first license. Renewal costs $200 a year. Transferring a license from another state also costs $225. School tuition and your tool kit are separate.

Does South Dakota use the NIC barber exam?

Yes, for the written part. You take the NIC Barber Styling theory exam through Prov, online or at a test site. The practical exam is South Dakota’s own, given by the Board of Barber Examiners. You need 75% on each.

When does a South Dakota barber license expire?

You renew every year by May 31 for $200, and a license you don’t renew expires June 1. A late renewal adds a $30 restoration fee and a $25 expired license fee for each year it has been expired, and after three years you retake both exams.

• Licensing agency: The South Dakota Board of Barber Examiners, under SDCL chapter 36-14 and ARSD article 20:39.
• Training: 1,500 hours over at least nine months at a Board-approved barber school. There’s no apprenticeship route.
• Exams: The NIC Barber Styling theory exam through Prov and the Board’s practical exam, 75% to pass each.
• Fees: $225 to apply, which covers both exams and your first license, $200 to renew, and $225 to transfer an out-of-state license.
• Renewal: Every year by May 31. An unrenewed license expires June 1.

2025 US Bureau of Labor Statistics salary figures for Barbers and for Hairdressers, Hairstylists, and Cosmetologists. Job growth projections (2024-2034) are from the US Department of Labor-sponsored resource, Projections Central. Figures reflect state and national data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed November 2026. National job outlook figures (2025-2035) are from the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook.