Colorado microblading and permanent makeup rules
Do you need a license to do microblading in Colorado?
Not stated at the state level. Colorado's cosmetology rules let a licensed cosmetologist or esthetician do permanent makeup on the face, microblading included, only after 132 contact hours of training at an approved school. The state pages we read do not say whether anyone outside those licenses needs a state license for the work. Ask the Colorado Office of Barber and Cosmetology Licensure before you start. Below: the studio license, the agency that issues them, local rules and what Colorado says about microblading itself, each answered from Colorado's own statutes, rules or agency pages, read on October 24, 2026.
- Artist license
- Not stated
- Studio license
- License needed
- Artist fee
- Not stated
- Local rules
- Not stated
Licensed by Colorado Office of Barber and Cosmetology Licensure (Division of Professions and Occupations, DORA).The agency's page The state's own words
The artist
Do you need a license to do permanent makeup in Colorado?
Not stated at the state level. Colorado's cosmetology rules let a licensed cosmetologist or esthetician do permanent makeup on the face, microblading included, only after 132 contact hours of training at an approved school. The state pages we read do not say whether anyone outside those licenses needs a state license for the work. Ask the Colorado Office of Barber and Cosmetology Licensure before you start.
- License needed
- Not stated
The studio
Does a microblading studio need a license in Colorado?
Yes. Where a cosmetologist or esthetician does the work, the place of business must be registered with the Office of Barber and Cosmetology Licensure; services at an unregistered place are prohibited.
- License needed
- License needed
- License name
- Registration for places of business
- State fee
- Not stated
Microblading by name
Is microblading considered tattooing in Colorado?
Yes, by name. Colorado's cosmetology rules say microblading, microstroking and microhairstroking are included in the definition of permanent makeup.
Good to know
What else Colorado asks of permanent makeup artists
- Body art and tattooing are excluded from the permanent makeup rule and fall outside the cosmetology and esthetician license.
- A licensed barber, esthetician, cosmetologist, hairstylist, or nail technician may not provide services at a place of business that is not registered.
Sources
What Colorado's official pages say
Each answer above, in the words of Colorado's own statutes, rules or agency pages, read on October 24, 2026. Rules change, and counties can add their own: confirm with the Colorado Office of Barber and Cosmetology Licensure before you start.
- The artist's license
“Completion of 132 contact hours of training must be completed prior to a licensed”
sos.state.co.us - The studio's license
“Registration with the Director is required of all owners of a place of business where one”
sos.state.co.us “from providing services at a place of business that is not registered.”
sos.state.co.us “The licenses and the registration for places of business must be conspicuously displayed,”
sos.state.co.us - Who issues it
“Office of Barber and Cosmetology Licensure”
dpo.colorado.gov - Microblading by name
“Microblading, Microstroking or Microhairstroking: included in the definition of”
sos.state.co.us - Also good to know
“surgery or trauma, re-pigmentation of the areola, and/or body art or tattooing. The”
sos.state.co.us
Questions
Colorado microblading licenses, answered
Do you need a license to do microblading in Colorado?
Is microblading considered tattooing or permanent makeup in Colorado?
Does a permanent makeup studio need a license in Colorado?
Who licenses permanent makeup artists in Colorado?
Does a cosmetology or esthetician license cover microblading in Colorado?
Plan the rest
Licensed and ready to book clients
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- What Colorado requires to open a salon or studio
- What Colorado inspectors check in a salon
- Renting a room or a chair? Start from a booth rental agreement
Microblading rules in other states
Ready when you are
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