Delaware makeup artist rules
Do you need a license to do makeup in Delaware?
Yes. Applying makeup to clients for pay requires a Delaware cosmetologist or aesthetician license; there is no separate makeup license. Below: weddings, events and house calls (allowed), makeup for theater, film, television or photo shoots (no license needed) and applying makeup to demonstrate or sell cosmetics (no license needed), each answered from Delaware's own statutes, rules or board pages, read on October 30, 2026, with the state's own words.
- Makeup for pay
- Full license
- Weddings and house calls
- Allowed
- Theater and film
- No license needed
- Cosmetics counter
- No license needed
Licensed by the Delaware Board of Cosmetology and Barbering.The board's site Hours and fees for each licenseThe state's own words
Makeup for pay
Do you need a license to do makeup in Delaware?
Yes. Applying makeup to clients for pay requires a Delaware cosmetologist or aesthetician license; there is no separate makeup license.
- License needed
- License needed
- Licenses that allow it
- Cosmetologist, Aesthetician
- Shorter makeup license
- None
Delaware is one of 33 states whose official pages put applying makeup for pay under a license.
Weddings, events and house calls
Can a makeup artist work at weddings or in clients' homes in Delaware?
Yes, on conditions. Licensed work may be done away from a salon only for listed groups, such as a person with a disability at home, and a licensed shop must sponsor it and keep records; weddings and events are not on the list.
- Work outside a salon
- Allowed
- Conditions
- Only for named groups, such as an invalid or handicapped person at their residence, and the work must be sponsored by a licensed shop, which keeps a record of the services.
- Separate permit
- None named
Theater, film, TV and photo shoots
Do you need a license to do makeup for theater, film, TV or photo shoots in Delaware?
No license needed. Makeup by people employed in theater, radio, television, film, modeling or photography needs no Delaware license.
- License needed
- No license needed
- Exemption
- Persons employed to render cosmetology or hairstyling services in the course of, and incidental to, the business or employers engaged in the theatrical, radio, television or motion picture production industries, modeling or photography are not prohibited from practicing under the chapter.
Delaware is one of 25 states whose official pages exempt makeup for theater, film, television or photo shoots from licensing.
Cosmetics counters
Do you need a license to apply makeup at a cosmetics counter in Delaware?
No license needed. Demonstrating home-use makeup to make a retail sale needs no license if you charge the customer nothing and tie the demonstration to no purchase.
- License needed
- No license needed
- Exemption
- Persons employed to demonstrate or administer makeup intended for home use to make retail sales need no license if they accept no payment from the consumer and the demonstration is not contingent on a purchase.
Delaware is one of 34 states whose official pages exempt applying makeup to demonstrate or sell cosmetics from licensing.
Good to know
What else Delaware asks of makeup artists
- Eyelash extension work requires a Cosmetologist or Aesthetician license.
- Permanent makeup is treated as body art, so it needs a Division of Public Health permit rather than a professional license.
- A mobile salon needs its own shop application, filed through DELPROS.
Sources
What Delaware's official pages say
Each answer above, in the words of Delaware's own statutes, rules or board pages, read on October 30, 2026. Rules change: confirm with the Delaware Board of Cosmetology and Barbering before you start charging for makeup or booking work on location.
- Makeup for pay
“4.7.7 Makeup: 20 theory hours; 100 practical hours”
regulations.delaware.gov “e. Massaging, stimulating, beautifying, or similar services, of the scalp, face, arms, hands or the upper body.”
delcode.delaware.gov “4.1.2 Facial massage/treatment; skin care; hair removal; make-up: 50 theory hours; 138.5 practical hours”
regulations.delaware.gov “4.7 Aesthetics curriculum. The apprentice teacher is responsible for ensuring that the apprentice completes the following 1,200 hour curriculum.”
regulations.delaware.gov - Weddings, events and house calls
“except that a practicing licensee, duly licensed pursuant to this chapter, may render the services which that practicing licensee is licensed to offer”
delcode.delaware.gov “An invalid or handicapped person in the person’s place of residence;”
delcode.delaware.gov “as long as the practicing licensee is sponsored by a licensed shop and a record of those services is maintained by that shop, on the following individuals:”
delcode.delaware.gov - Theater, film, TV and photo shoots
“Persons employed to render cosmetology or hairstyling services in the course of, and incidental to, the business or employers engaged in the theatrical, radio, television or motion picture production industries, modeling or photography.”
delcode.delaware.gov - Cosmetics counters
“Persons employed to demonstrate, recommend or administer cosmetic preparations, lotions, creams, makeup, perfume or hair appliances or tools intended for home use,”
delcode.delaware.gov “if those persons neither accept payment from the consumer for that demonstration nor make the demonstration contingent upon the purchase of any product or service.”
delcode.delaware.gov - Also good to know
“In 2021, The Delaware Board of Cosmetology and Barbering instituted statutory revisions that now require a Cosmetologist or Aesthetician license to apply eyelashes and eyelash extensions.”
dpr.delaware.gov - Also good to know
“Permanent make-up services are a form of body art/tattooing.”
dpr.delaware.gov - Also good to know
“If the new salon/shop is in a mobile unit, submit the Mobile Salon or Shop application in DELPROS, the online portal.”
dpr.delaware.gov
Questions
Delaware makeup artist licenses, answered
Do you need a license to do makeup in Delaware?
Can a makeup artist work at weddings or in clients' homes in Delaware?
Is theater, film or photo-shoot makeup exempt in Delaware?
Can you apply makeup at a cosmetics counter in Delaware without a license?
What do you need to open a makeup studio in Delaware?
Plan the rest
Ready to fill your calendar
- Hours, exams and fees for each Delaware cosmetology and esthetician license
- What a Delaware esthetician may and may not do
- Lash extensions, brow tinting and waxing rules in Delaware
- Permanent makeup and microblading rules in Delaware
- What Delaware requires to open a salon or studio of your own
- A deposit and cancellation policy for bridal bookings
Makeup artist rules in other states
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