Cosmetology / Barber License from Colorado to Illinois: Does It Transfer? (2026)

What's different between Colorado and Illinois

Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Illinois. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.

Route, each way

Colorado to Illinois (this page): Licensure by endorsement.

Illinois to Colorado (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.

The route is the same in both directions.

Does coming from Colorado matter?

Coming from Colorado does not change the answer: every origin (the other 49 states and DC) gets the same result for a move into Illinois.

CLC membership

Colorado has enacted the Cosmetology Licensure Compact; Illinois has not.

Application fee

Illinois lists $45 for an out-of-state applicant; Colorado has no verified fee figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.

Training hours

Illinois's first-time-applicant standard is 1,500 training hours for the standard license; Colorado's is 1,500.

The two standards are the same.

Exam rules on record

Illinois and Colorado carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.

• Illinois (this move): Exams are not retaken if your out-of-state license is the same as or substantially similar to the Illinois cosmetologist license; endorsement applicants who cannot satisfy all requirements may be required to submit additional information, take additional coursework, and/or pass the Illinois examination
• Colorado (the reverse move): Exams are not retaken if you passed a written and practical exam accepted by your licensing state (at least 1,000 hours of work experience in the two years before applying can substitute for the practical), or if you have held a current, valid license with a substantially similar scope of practice for at least one year; applicants who do not meet endorsement requirements must take all or part of the Colorado written and practical exams

What changes, Colorado → Illinois

The destination column is what you must satisfy — Illinois sets the rules for this move.

Step by step

1. Confirm Illinois's current requirements on the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) website (linked below) — rules change.
2. Submit the endorsement application to the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) (application linked below).
3. Arrange license verification from your current state.
4. Hold a current, active cosmetologist license in another U.S. state or jurisdiction.
5. Submit official certification of licensure from the jurisdiction of original licensure and from the jurisdiction where currently licensed and practicing, if different.
6. License must be the same or substantially similar to Illinois's; licenses obtained through reciprocity in another state may not qualify.
7. Provide school transcripts and/or verification of work experience if requested.
8. Complete a Department-approved abnormal skin growth (melanoma) education course for applications on or after January 1, 2026.
9. Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.

Official links

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