1.1 Massachusetts Barber Licensure, Board Rules, and PSI Exam Overview

Massachusetts Barber Licensure, Board Rules, and PSI Exam Overview

Quick Overview: Massachusetts barbering is regulated under M.G.L. c. 112, §§ 87T-87KK and the Board's regulations at 240 CMR 8.00: Barber Regulations. The Board of Registration of Cosmetology and Barbering, inside the Division of Occupational Licensure (DOL), requires 1,000 clock hours at a Board-approved barber school and a passing score on the computer-based PSI National Barber Theory Test. Massachusetts is a theory-only jurisdiction: the current PSI Massachusetts Barber Test Taker Guide lists one $155 Barber Theory Test and no practical examination for initial licensure.

Statutory and Regulatory Architecture

Two layers of law govern the trade, and knowing which layer answers which question is itself an exam skill.

• Statute (the legislature): M.G.L. c. 112, §§ 87T-87KK creates the Board, defines barbering, authorizes examinations, and sets penalties. Section 87T supplies the definitions, 87V authorizes the Board's rules and examinations, 87CC fixes the licence and renewal cycle, 87DD authorizes inspections, and 87II sets the penalty for unlicensed practice.
• Regulation (the Board): 240 CMR 8.00, adopted effective 31 May 2019, contains four operative sections - 8.01 personal licensure eligibility, 8.02 general provisions for barber shops and barber schools, 8.03 licensure of barber schools, and 8.04 licensure of barber shops.

Repealed-citation trap: Massachusetts barbering was once codified at M.G.L. c. 112, §§ 87F-87S. Those sections were repealed by St. 2014, c. 236, § 35 when the barber and cosmetology boards merged. Older textbooks, school handouts and web pages still cite § 87F for "scope of practice" and § 87R for unlicensed practice; both are dead letters. The live citations are § 87T (definition of barbering) and § 87II (penalty for illegal practice).

Barbering is defined in § 87T as shaving or trimming the beard, cutting the hair, giving facial and scalp massages, giving facial and scalp treatments with oils and creams, singeing and shampooing the hair, applying hair tonics, or dyeing the hair - performed or offered for the public generally, with or without compensation.

Educational and Licensure Standards (240 CMR 8.01)

The Barber Licence - 240 CMR 8.01(1)

The regulation lists exactly three requirements. Memorize the list; distractors on state-law questions typically add a requirement that is not there.

1. Successfully complete a course of at least 1,000 clock hours of professional training in a Board-approved barber school;
2. File an application with the Board with all required fees; and
3. Achieve a passing score on an examination satisfactory to the Board.

240 CMR 8.01(1) imposes no high-school-diploma requirement, no minimum age and no good-moral-character clause for the barber licence itself. A high school degree or equivalent appears only in the instructor tiers below. A minimum age of 16 appears in 240 CMR 8.03(7)(a), which governs the student enrollment a school must present for its own licence, not the barber applicant.

The Instructor Tiers - 240 CMR 8.01(2) and (3)

• Barber Instructor: high school degree or equivalent; graduate of a satisfactory barber school; licensed as a Barber with a minimum of two years practical experience as a Barber or as an Assistant Barber Instructor; application with fees; and a passing examination score. A barber instructor may also be employed in a barbershop.
• Assistant Barber Instructor: high school degree or equivalent; graduate of a Board-approved barber school; and licensed as a Barber. This licence expires in two years and cannot be renewed - it is a stepping stone, not a career credential.

Curriculum Behind the 1,000 Hours

The 1,000 hours are not free-form. 240 CMR 8.03(6)(e) prescribes the school's outline of study, which is also a useful map of what the theory test samples:

Out-of-state and Out-of-country Applicants

Massachusetts does not publish a numeric hour-for-hour reciprocity table. The governing language is discretionary:

• Out-of-state - 240 CMR 8.01(4): the Board may, after an approved application and fee, license a person who proves they hold a current licence in good standing as a barber in another state that maintains a standard substantially equivalent to the Commonwealth's. An out-of-state applicant who does not hold such a licence must pass an examination satisfactory to the Board.
• Out-of-country - 240 CMR 8.01(5): the applicant files an application with fees, including transcripts of education or documentation of two years of experience working as a barber in that country, translated into English. Out-of-country applicants must pass the examination.
• Statutory backstop - M.G.L. c. 112, § 87Z: the Board may licence "with or without examination" a person licensed in another state that maintains a substantially equivalent standard, and may require additional education where the other state's standards are inconsistent with Massachusetts standards. "State" is defined broadly to include the District of Columbia, territories, provinces and foreign countries.

The PSI National Barber Theory Examination

The Board has contracted with PSI Services LLC to run the PSI National Barber/Cosmetology Testing Program in Massachusetts.

Mechanics and Scoring

• Question count: 95 multiple-choice questions - 85 scored and 10 non-scored experimental items. Every question has one stem, one key and three distractors.
• Time: 120 minutes (2 hours).
• Passing standard: test takers must score at least 70%. Because experimental items are not scored, that works out to 60 of the 85 scored questions.
• Book status: closed book. The questions were developed from Milady Standard Barbering, 7th edition (2025) and Pivot Point Fundamentals: Barbering (2022).
• Fee: $155.00 Barber Theory Test fee, payable to PSI at the time of scheduling, and not refundable or transferable.
• Eligibility window: test eligibility is good for one year. If it expires, the applicant re-applies to the Board and pays both a new application fee and a new test fee.
• Delivery: on-site at PSI testing centres across Massachusetts - among them Auburn, Charlestown (Boston), Bridgewater, Fall River, Lawrence, Malden, Milford, Norwood, Springfield, West Springfield, West Boylston and Woburn - or online, when an online administration is offered for the test.
• Score report: a passing candidate receives a "PASS" report. A failing candidate receives an overall score plus a per-topic breakdown, which is the fastest way to target a retake.

Official Content Outline and Weighting

The 85 scored items are drawn from eight published topics. Learn the official names - PSI reports your failing score against them.

Safety and Infection Control plus Shaving is 53% of the test - more than half the scored items come from two topics. Study accordingly.

Scope warning: Massachusetts law is not a domain on the PSI outline. Chapter 1 of this guide teaches 240 CMR 8.00 because you must comply with it every working day and because inspectors test it, not because PSI samples it. When an exam question asks about disinfection or razor safety, answer from the national standard unless the stem names Massachusetts.

Applications, Renewal and Lapse

The eLIPSE Migration

On 3 August 2026 the Division of Occupational Licensure moved Cosmetology, Barbering and Electrology licensing onto the eLIPSE platform. PSI stopped handling applications on 20 July 2026. Today:

• Applications and renewals are submitted through eLIPSE, not the older ePLACE portal.
• PSI still delivers the examination and still collects the test fee.
• Digital licences are issued through eLIPSE after the exam is passed.

Renewal Cycle

Barber-side credentials do not renew on the licensee's birthday - that is the cosmetology-side rule and it is a common distractor.

Under M.G.L. c. 112, § 87GG no licensee may work in the occupation until the renewal fee is paid and the renewed licence is issued, and a licence lapsed beyond three years can only be restored by filing a renewal application with the fee and passing a practical examination satisfactory to the Board. A late renewal also carries a $57 late fee. Practising without a current licence exposes the barber to the penalties in M.G.L. c. 112, § 87II, which routes violations to §§ 61-65E.