North Dakota hair braiding rules
Do you need a license to braid hair in North Dakota?
No license needed. Braiding does not need a cosmetology license in North Dakota, as long as no penetrating chemical treatments, dyes, straighteners, joining agents, perms or bleach are used. Below: locs (no license needed), hair extensions and sew-ins (license needed) and wig installs (not stated), each answered from North Dakota'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
- License needed
- Wig installs
- Not stated
Licensed by the North Dakota State Board of Cosmetology.The board's site Hours and fees for each licenseThe state's own words
Hair braiding
Do you need a license to braid hair in North Dakota?
No license needed. Braiding does not need a cosmetology license in North Dakota, as long as no penetrating chemical treatments, dyes, straighteners, joining agents, perms or bleach are used.
- License needed
- No license needed
- Exemption
- Natural hair braiding is excluded from the definition of cosmetology, provided no penetrating chemical hair treatments, coloring, straightening, joining agents, permanent waves or bleach are applied.
North Dakota is one of 35 states whose official pages exempt hair braiding from licensing.
Locs
Do you need a license to do locs in North Dakota?
No license needed. Starting and maintaining locs does not need a cosmetology license in North Dakota when no listed chemical agents are used.
- License needed
- No license needed
- Exemption
- Locking is listed in the statute as natural hair braiding, which is excluded from cosmetology, provided no penetrating chemical hair treatments or other listed chemical agents are applied.
North Dakota 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 North Dakota?
Yes. Extensions joined with chemical agents, such as synthetic tape, keratin bonds or fusion bonds, need a cosmetology license; sew-ins without chemical joining agents fall under natural hair braiding and do not.
- License needed
- License needed
- Licenses that allow it
- Cosmetologist
- License for this work alone
- None
- Exemption
- Sewn-in extensions done without chemical hair joining agents are natural hair braiding, which is excluded from cosmetology.
Wig installs
Do you need a license to install wigs in North Dakota?
Not stated. North Dakota's official pages we read do not say whether installing wigs on a client needs a license. Ask the North Dakota State Board of Cosmetology before you offer it.
- License needed
- Not stated
Good to know
What else North Dakota asks of braiders
- Braiding stays outside cosmetology only while no penetrating chemical treatments are used; the statute lists further chemical agents in the definition.
- The board says any location where cosmetology services are performed must be licensed as an establishment unless an exemption applies.
- Maintaining natural hair braids is part of natural hair braiding under the statute.
Sources
What North Dakota's official pages say
Each answer above, in the words of North Dakota's own statutes, rules or board pages, read on October 29, 2026. Rules change: confirm with the North Dakota State Board of Cosmetology before you start charging for a service.
- Hair braiding
“The term does not include natural hair braiding or threading.”
ndlegis.gov “The term does not include the use of penetrating chemical hair treatments,”
ndlegis.gov “joining agents, permanent wave styles, or chemical hair bleaching agents applied”
ndlegis.gov - Locs
“by beading, braiding, cornrowing, extending, lacing, locking, sewing, twisting, weaving,”
ndlegis.gov “The term does not include natural hair braiding or threading.”
ndlegis.gov “The term does not include the use of penetrating chemical hair treatments,”
ndlegis.gov - Hair extensions and sew-ins
“Hair extensions using chemical hair joint agents, such as synthetic tape,”
ndlegis.gov “keratin bonds, or fusion bonds; and”
ndlegis.gov “"Cosmetologist" means an individual licensed under this chapter to practice”
ndlegis.gov “or wrapping human hair, natural fibers, synthetic fibers, and hair extensions into a”
ndlegis.gov “The term does not include natural hair braiding or threading.”
ndlegis.gov “joining agents, permanent wave styles, or chemical hair bleaching agents applied”
ndlegis.gov - Also good to know
“The term does not include the use of penetrating chemical hair treatments,”
ndlegis.gov - Also good to know
“Under N.D.C.C. § 43-11-15, any location where cosmetology services are performed must be properly licensed as an establishment, unless a specific exemption applies.”
ndcosmetology.com - Also good to know
“The maintenance of natural hair braids.”
ndlegis.gov
Questions
North Dakota hair braiding licenses, answered
Do you need a license to braid hair in North Dakota?
Do you need a license to do locs in North Dakota?
Do you need a license to do hair extensions or sew-ins in North Dakota?
Do you need a license to install wigs in North Dakota?
What do you need to open a braiding salon in North Dakota?
Plan the rest
Ready to fill your book
- Hours, exams and fees for each North Dakota cosmetology and barber license
- What North Dakota requires to open a salon or shop of your own
- What North Dakota inspectors check in a salon
- Renewing a North Dakota cosmetology or barber license
- Renting a chair or a suite? Start from a booth rental agreement
- A deposit and cancellation policy for long appointments
Hair braiding rules in other states
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