Cosmetology / Barber License from Hawaii to Pennsylvania: Does It Transfer? (2026)
Does Pennsylvania accept a Hawaii cosmetology license?
A cosmetology license transfers from Hawaii to Pennsylvania by endorsement — there is no automatic reciprocity, but you do not start over. Apply to the Pennsylvania State Board of Cosmetology, verify your Hawaii license, and meet Pennsylvania's endorsement requirements. Exams are not retaken — an applicant who meets the criteria for licensure by reciprocity may obtain the license without examination (49 Pa. Code 7.31(b)).
Verify this exact pair in the checker
Same data, interactive — with share link and board links.
Verdict
Licensure by endorsement
This move runs downhill. Hawaii trained you to 1,800 hours; Pennsylvania requires only 1,250. With the hour test cleared by a margin, your transfer is administrative — license verification, application, fee — and the requirements below read as a checklist rather than an obstacle course.
What's different between Hawaii and Pennsylvania
Computed from both states' verified data rows, in both directions, and from the route every other origin gets into Pennsylvania. Exam notes are our summary of each board's published rules, with sources below.
- Route, each way
Hawaii to Pennsylvania (this page): Licensure by endorsement.
Pennsylvania to Hawaii (the reverse move): Licensure by endorsement.
The route is the same in both directions.
- Does coming from Hawaii matter?
Coming from Hawaii matters here: only 8 of 50 origins (the other 49 states and DC) get this result for a move into Pennsylvania.
The others get: reciprocity agreement (30), compact enacted — not yet issuing; until it issues, reciprocity agreement (11), and compact enacted — not yet issuing; until it issues, licensure by endorsement (1).
- Reciprocity agreements
Pennsylvania's reciprocity agreement list names 41 states, not including Hawaii.
Hawaii's row names no reciprocity agreement states.
- CLC membership
Pennsylvania has enacted the Cosmetology Licensure Compact; Hawaii has not.
- Application fee
Pennsylvania lists $89 for an out-of-state applicant and Hawaii lists $92–$165 for the reverse move; neither may be the full cost.
- Processing time
Hawaii lists 4–8 weeks for the reverse move; Pennsylvania has no verified processing-time figure on file, so the two cannot be compared here.
- Training hours
Pennsylvania's first-time-applicant standard is 1,250 training hours for the standard license; Hawaii's is 1,800.
Pennsylvania's is 550 training hours lower than Hawaii's.
- Exam rules on record
Pennsylvania and Hawaii carry different exam notes (our summaries, below); any state law or jurisprudence exam is listed with each state's requirements.
- Pennsylvania (this move): Exams are not retaken — an applicant who meets the criteria for licensure by reciprocity may obtain the license without examination (49 Pa. Code 7.31(b))
- Hawaii (the reverse move): You may qualify for an examination waiver (no Hawaii exam) if you obtained a passing score on the NIC or PSI Services examination in another jurisdiction — apply via examination waiver with proof of passing; otherwise you must pass Hawaii's licensing examination, administered by PSI Services since January 1, 2026
What changes, Hawaii → Pennsylvania
| Hawaii (current) | Pennsylvania (destination) | |
|---|---|---|
| CLC status | Licensure by endorsement | CLC enacted — not yet issuing |
| Training hours | 1,800 | 1,250 |
| Application fee | $92–$165 (examination-waiver applicants pay $92 if licensed in an odd-numbered year or $165 in an even-numbered year ($20 non-refundable application + $22 license + Compliance Resolution Fund, plus half the renewal fee in even years); exam-route applicants pay the $20 application fee first, with exam fees paid to PSI and license fees after passing; optional temporary permit (exam applicants only) $40) | $89 (licensure by reciprocity / Act 41 endorsement application fee, applied for through the PALS portal) |
| Processing time | 4–8 weeks (applications are ratified at monthly board meetings; license card mailed approximately 2-3 weeks after the meeting) | the board's processing guide describes a three-phase timeline but publishes no fixed durations |
| Licensing authority | Hawaii Board of Barbering and Cosmetology (DCCA Professional and Vocational Licensing Division) | Pennsylvania State Board of Cosmetology |
The destination column is what you must satisfy — Pennsylvania sets the rules for this move.
Step by step
- Confirm Pennsylvania's current requirements on the Pennsylvania State Board of Cosmetology website (linked below) — rules change.
- Submit the endorsement application to the Pennsylvania State Board of Cosmetology (application linked below).
- Arrange license verification from your current state.
- Hold a current license with a minimum of two years of licensed work experience, documented by signed employer certifications.
- Provide criminal history records checks, dated within 180 days, from every state where you lived, worked, or trained during the past five years.
- Be licensed in a state with which Pennsylvania holds a reciprocal agreement; applicants from the eight non-reciprocal states apply by Act 41 endorsement instead.
- Pay the fees listed above, and allow for the processing time shown there.
Official links
Related guides
Sources
Primary sources only — official boards and compact commissions. Data last verified 2026-10-29.
- PA Department of State — Cosmetology Licensure Guide (reciprocity section) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- PA Department of State — Cosmetologist Licensure Snapshot ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- 49 Pa. Code Chapter 7 — State Board of Cosmetology ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Cosmetology Licensure Compact Commission — Pennsylvania becomes 13th state to enact (SB 331) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Cosmetology Licensure Compact Commission — FAQ (compact not yet active) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Hawaii DCCA — Barbering and Cosmetology FAQs (rev. 04/29/2025) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Hawaii DCCA PVL — Board of Barbering and Cosmetology ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Hawaii DCCA PVL — Barbering and Cosmetology Examination Information (NIC/PSI examination waiver; PSI Services vendor from January 1, 2026) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
- Hawaii DCCA — Beauty Operator License application and instructions, forms COSM-00A/COSM-01 (rev. 11/2025) ↗ (accessed 2026-10-29)
Reviewed by the License Reciprocity Editorial Team · verified against primary sources 2026-10-29
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