11.4 Scope of Practice, License Renewal, and Continuing Education

What the statute lets an esthetician do — and what it takes off the table

O.C.G.A. § 43-10-1(8) defines "Esthetician" or "esthetics operator" as an individual who, for compensation, engages in any one or a combination of the following practices, esthetics, or cosmetic skin care:

• (A) Massaging the face, neck, décolletage, or arms of an individual;
• (B) Trimming, tweezing, shaping, or threading eyebrows;
• (C) Dyeing eyelashes or eyebrows or applying eyelash extensions; or
• (D) Waxing, threading, stimulating, cleansing, or beautifying the face, neck, arms, torso, or legs of an individual by any method with the aid of the hands or any mechanical or electrical apparatus or by the use of a cosmetic preparation.

The next sentence is the scope wall: Such practices of esthetics shall not include the diagnosis, treatment, or therapy of any dermatological condition or medical aesthetics or the use of lasers. The term shall not apply to an individual whose activities are limited to the application of cosmetics.

Read that last exclusion in both directions. A department-store makeup artist who only applies marketed cosmetics is not practicing under the esthetician license term. Completing 1,000 school hours does not turn a cosmetics-counter job into a substitute for the certificate when the person begins charging for waxing, lash extensions, or machine facials. Cosmetics-only application is not the esthetician license; the listed compensated services are.

School kits under Rule 240-16-.01 / apprentice kits under Rule 240-5-.01 list acids at 3.5 pH or above (glycolic, salicylic, mandelic, citric, lactic, azelaic on the apprentice list). That is a kit specification, not a statutory invitation to medical-depth peels, laser toning, or dermatologic therapy. When a lesion looks like disease, stop the cosmetic service and recommend the client seek a medical opinion — the same referral instinct the PSI National consultation domain tests.

A Buckhead client asks for a "laser glow facial" and a diagnosis of whether a mole is "just a beauty mark." The Georgia-licensed esthetician refuses both. Mole evaluation is diagnosis. Laser is named out of the statute. Offer a cosmetic facial on intact, healthy skin (the consumer sign from 240-4-.02) or send the client to a physician. Rule 240-4-.03(1) also requires licensees to represent qualifications truthfully and provide only services within the scope the practitioner is qualified by education, experience, and skill to perform.

Five CE hours, first renewal off the clock

Rule 240-3-.01, citing O.C.G.A. § 43-10-10 for exemptions, is the continuing-education rule.

To renew, each licensee shall provide proof of five (5) CE hours:

• Three (3) hours in a health and safety course developed or approved by the Board. A health and safety course of at least three hours developed and offered through a college, university department, or division of continuing education of the Department of Education, the Technical College System of Georgia, the Board of Regents, or The American Red Cross may be accepted without prior approval.
• Two (2) hours in a course previously registered with the Board in any of: industry or trade show; health and safety; industry trends; computer skills; business management; or the area of practice for the type of license held.

If audited, the licensee submits written proof from the CE provider of attendance and/or completion. To reinstate a lapsed license after expiration, Rule 240-3-.01(1)(c) requires payment of all fees required by law or rule, including reinstatement fees, and documentation of 5 CE hours for each lapsed period.

First-time renewal is exempt. Rule 240-3-.01(2)(a)(1) : the holder of a license who is renewing a license for the first time shall not be required to meet the CE requirements. A newly licensed esthetician in Columbus who received her certificate in November of an even year and is hitting her first renewal does not hunt five CE hours for that first cycle. She still renews on time. Exemption from CE is not exemption from paying the renewal and keeping the certificate current.

Other exemptions in Rule 240-3-.01(2) (see O.C.G.A. § 43-10-10):

• Licensees who have held a license for 25 years or more and can submit documentation to the Board's satisfaction.
• Written exemption requests with proof of active-duty National Guard or U.S. military service, or active-duty Reservists; transitioning service members on separation leave within 24 months of retirement or 12 months of separation; age 65 or older; disability (including documented permanent disability or an award letter such as Social Security or federal railroad retirement); illness or temporary disability documented by an appropriate licensed physician or specialist; and other hardship as the Board determines case by case, requiring a written sworn statement signed before a notary.

Instructors of esthetics (and the other listed practice areas), seeking renewal, must submit proof of fifteen (15) hours of continuing education in the cosmetology profession approved by the Board since the last instructor-license renewal. At least half of those 15 hours shall be in teaching techniques, lesson planning, or other advanced teacher training (240-3-.01(4)).

Call-in or mail-in CE marketed as Board-approved is not valid; Rule 240-3-.02(8) tells providers not to represent that those formats are recognized, and credits from them shall not be accepted.

When the esthetician license expires

Board Rule 240-1-.03 says licenses shall be issued and renewed in accordance with the Joint Secretary Rules at 295-2. Fees live on the Board fee schedule. Electronic renewal notices are sent only as a courtesy. The responsibility of license renewal, on or before expiration date, remains with the license holder. Always follow the current SOS/GOALS renewal notice in your account. This chapter also opened the Joint Secretary chapter itself.

Rule 295-2-.02, opened at https://rules.sos.ga.gov/gac/295-2, states that the following licenses expire on August 31 of the odd-numbered years, effective as of the 2021 renewal cycle, including (c) Cosmetology (Estheticians and Manicurists); with a lapsed, late renewal period from September 1 to September 30 of odd years. That is an official current page stating the August 31 odd-year date for estheticians. Do not apply the Hair Design September 30 even-year date (295-2-.08) or the salon/shop June 30 odd-year date (295-2-.01) to an individual esthetician certificate.

The Board FAQ this chapter opened (https://sos.ga.gov/page/georgia-state-board-cosmetology-and-barbers-faq) states that if a license is not renewed, it is placed in lapsed-late renewal status for thirty (30) days. An individual who continues to practice with an expired license is in violation of the law and may be subject to a fine, a public disciplinary action, and/or criminal prosecution. A license not renewed within those thirty days becomes lapsed and requires reinstatement.

Rule 240-1-.04 adds the Board reinstatement mechanics: failure to renew within six (6) months following expiration shall have the same effect as a revocation, requiring application for reinstatement, a reinstatement fee, and other conditions the Board deems necessary. Reinstatement is not granted if the applicant has outstanding fines or fees. The rule's reinstatement fee for an individual or instructor license is $200 (salon/shop $300; school $1,000), plus the CE hours for each lapsed period under 240-3-.01. Confirm live SOS/GOALS amounts if the fee schedule has moved; $200 is the figure on the Rule 240-1-.04 page opened for this chapter.

Renew in GOALS. The SOS GOALS page this chapter opened walks licensees through a renewal application, late periods, and payment in the portal. Chrome is the stated browser. Do not mail a paper renewal and assume it was accepted; SOS has said paper applications are returned.

Expired-license scenario

An Atlanta esthetician lets August 31 of an odd year pass without renewing. On September 10 she still has wax appointments on the book. Joint Secretary Rule 295-2-.02 is already in the September 1–30 late window; the FAQ treats continued practice on an expired license as a legal violation, not a paperwork inconvenience. She stops providing services, logs into GOALS, pays the late renewal if still inside the published window, and completes CE unless she is in her first renewal (exempt) or another documented exemption applies. If she waits past the late window, she is in reinstatement, not a simple late click: Rule 240-3-.01 wants 5 CE hours per lapsed period, and Rule 240-1-.04 wants the reinstatement fee and a clean fine ledger. She does not "just work through September and catch up in October."

Keep the three clocks separate when you study: 70 percent is the exam; 75 percent is school Level 1 before clinic; five CE hours (3+2) is renewal after the first cycle; August 31 odd years is the Joint Secretary expiration for estheticians. Mixing those four numbers is how otherwise careful candidates miss Georgia items.