Montana hair braiding rules

Do you need a license to braid hair in Montana?

Q: Do you need a license to braid hair in Montana?

No license needed. Braiding by hand is exempt from licensing when it is only natural hair braiding; dyeing, chemical treatments and tape, keratin-bond or fusion methods fall outside that exemption.

Q: Do you need a license to do locs in Montana?

No license needed. Starting and maintaining locs is exempt from licensing when the work is only natural hair braiding, which the statute defines to include locking.

Q: Do you need a license to do hair extensions or sew-ins in Montana?

No license needed. Sewn-in and braided-in extensions are exempt from licensing when done only as natural hair braiding; glued, bonded, tape-in and fusion extensions fall outside that exemption.

Q: Do you need a license to install wigs in Montana?

Not stated. Montana's official pages we read do not say whether installing wigs on a client needs a license. Ask the Montana Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists before you offer it.

No license needed. Braiding by hand is exempt from licensing when it is only natural hair braiding; dyeing, chemical treatments and tape, keratin-bond or fusion methods fall outside that exemption. Below: locs (no license needed), hair extensions and sew-ins (no license needed) and wig installs (not stated), each answered from Montana's own statutes, rules or board pages, read on October 29, 2026, with the state's own words.

Braiding: No license needed
Locs: No license needed
Extensions: No license needed
Wig installs: Not stated

Licensed by the Montana Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists.The board's site Hours and fees for each license The state's own words

Hair braiding

Do you need a license to braid hair in Montana?

No license needed. Braiding by hand is exempt from licensing when it is only natural hair braiding; dyeing, chemical treatments and tape, keratin-bond or fusion methods fall outside that exemption.

License needed: No license needed
Exemption: Services by an individual who engages only in natural hair braiding are exempt; dyes, reactive chemicals and chemical hair joining agents are outside that definition.

Montana is one of 35 states whose official pages exempt hair braiding from licensing.

Locs

Do you need a license to do locs in Montana?

No license needed. Starting and maintaining locs is exempt from licensing when the work is only natural hair braiding, which the statute defines to include locking.

License needed: No license needed
Exemption: Locking and twisting are named in the natural hair braiding definition, so locs are exempt when the work is only natural hair braiding.

Montana is one of 25 states whose official pages exempt starting and maintaining locs from licensing.

Hair extensions and sew-ins

Do you need a license to do hair extensions or sew-ins in Montana?

No license needed. Sewn-in and braided-in extensions are exempt from licensing when done only as natural hair braiding; glued, bonded, tape-in and fusion extensions fall outside that exemption.

License needed: No license needed
Exemption: Sewn-in and braided-in extensions are exempt as natural hair braiding; tape, keratin-bond and fusion methods are excluded from that exemption.

Montana is one of 11 states whose official pages exempt hair extensions and sew-ins from licensing.

Wig installs

Do you need a license to install wigs in Montana?

Not stated. Montana's official pages we read do not say whether installing wigs on a client needs a license. Ask the Montana Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists before you offer it.

License needed: Not stated

Good to know

What else Montana asks of braiders

Under the statute, natural hair braiding does not mean the practice of cosmetology.
Dyes, reactive chemicals, and tape, keratin-bond or fusion joining methods are not part of natural hair braiding.
Operating a salon, shop or booth requires a license applied for through the department.

Sources

What Montana's official pages say

Each answer above, in the words of Montana's own statutes, rules or board pages, read on October 29, 2026. Rules change: confirm with the Montana Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists before you start charging for a service.

Hair braiding: “services by an individual who engages only in natural hair braiding.”
mca.legmt.gov
“"Natural hair braiding" means the service of twisting, wrapping, weaving, extending, locking, or braiding hair by hand or with mechanical devices”
mca.legmt.gov
“The term does not include the application of dyes, reactive chemicals, or other preparations to alter the color of the hair or to straighten, curl, or alter the structure of the hair or the use of chemical hair joining agents, such as synthetic tape, keratin bonds, or fusion bonds.”
mca.legmt.gov
Locs: “"Natural hair braiding" means the service of twisting, wrapping, weaving, extending, locking, or braiding hair by hand or with mechanical devices”
mca.legmt.gov
“services by an individual who engages only in natural hair braiding.”
mca.legmt.gov
Hair extensions and sew-ins: “the use of natural or synthetic hair extensions, natural or synthetic hair fibers, decorative beads, or other hair accessories”
mca.legmt.gov
“The term does not include the application of dyes, reactive chemicals, or other preparations to alter the color of the hair or to straighten, curl, or alter the structure of the hair or the use of chemical hair joining agents, such as synthetic tape, keratin bonds, or fusion bonds.”
mca.legmt.gov
“services by an individual who engages only in natural hair braiding.”
mca.legmt.gov
Also good to know: “The term does not mean the practice of cosmetology.”
mca.legmt.gov
Also good to know: “The term does not include the application of dyes, reactive chemicals, or other preparations to alter the color of the hair or to straighten, curl, or alter the structure of the hair or the use of chemical hair joining agents, such as synthetic tape, keratin bonds, or fusion bonds.”
mca.legmt.gov
Also good to know: “A person, firm, partnership, corporation, or other legal entity desiring to operate a salon, shop, or booth shall apply to the department for a license.”
mca.legmt.gov