1.2 NM Licensure, Scope of Practice, Renewal & Penalties
Key Takeaways
A New Mexico esthetician applicant must be at least 17, have completed a 600-hour course within the preceding 24 months, pay fees, and pass the Board's practical and written exams (16.34.5.8 NMAC).
Rule 16.34.5.12 NMAC lists the esthetician's services; hair removal by electrolysis, other invasive techniques, or shaving is excluded, and the title "medical esthetician" is not allowed.
Under 16.34.7.9 NMAC, any procedure or product that contacts or penetrates the dermal layer of the skin is considered invasive and prohibited.
Practitioner licenses expire at the end of the birth month, not to exceed 24 months; the esthetician original and two-year renewal fee is $100 and the late fee is $40.
Working on an expired or invalid license draws a $1,000 first-offense fine and $5,000 for a second offense under 16.34.15.8 NMAC.
1.2 NM Licensure, Scope of Practice, Renewal & Penalties
This section covers what you need to qualify, what the license lets you do, where you may legally work, and how renewal works. It also covers what happens when a licensee breaks the rules. These are the questions the open-book state law exam asks. They also come up whenever an employer, landlord, or client asks you to do something your license may not cover.
Who Qualifies for a Practitioner License (16.34.5.8 NMAC)
To be licensed as an esthetician, you must submit proof that you:
- are at least 17 years of age;
- completed the course of study for the license in a licensed school within the preceding 24 months;
- paid the required fees; and
- passed the practical and written examinations conducted by the Board.
A December 27, 2022 amendment to 16.34.5.8 NMAC removed the old requirement that practitioner applicants have an education equivalent to the second year of high school. The 2026 amendments still require instructors to have the equivalent of four years of high school. Separately, you must be at least 16 to enroll in a licensed esthetics course (16.34.8 NMAC).
The 600-Hour Esthetics Curriculum (16.34.8 NMAC, as amended January 13, 2026)
| Subject block | Hours | Topics named in the rule |
|---|---|---|
| Theory | 125 | Orientation, state laws and regulations, professional image, first aid, chemistry, electricity, job seeking, ethics |
| Sterilization, sanitation, bacteriology | 75 | Methods of sanitation and sterilization, chemical agents, bacteria types and growth, infections, infection-control and safety standards |
| Facials | 350 | Anatomy, physiology, massage theory, facial treatments and makeup, electrical appliances and machines, artificial eyelashes, removal of unwanted hair, lash and brow tinting, light therapy, consultation, record keeping |
| Salon business, retail sales | 50 | Opening a salon, business plans, written agreements, regulations and laws, salon operations and policies |
What the Esthetician License Allows (16.34.5.12 NMAC)
Under 16.34.5.12 NMAC, an esthetician may:
- use cosmetic preparations on the skin for cleansing and stimulating;
- apply massage and manipulation techniques using the hands or mechanical apparatus;
- apply light therapy, high frequency, and other types of facial treatments;
- use specialized skin care and facial machines;
- apply cosmetic makeup preparations, antiseptics, powders, oils, clays, or lotions to any part of the body;
- apply product to eyelashes and eyebrows, including eyelash extensions and lash and brow tinting; and
- remove superfluous or unwanted hair by any means except electrolysis, other invasive techniques, and shaving.
Two limits follow directly from the same rule:
- An esthetician shall not perform any services other than those listed. Doing so can lead to revocation or other discipline.
- "Medical esthetician" is not an allowable title. The rule calls it misleading and says it could be deemed deceptive or fraudulent.
Related licenses fill the gaps. Permanent hair removal with an electric current needs an electrologist license (600 hours). Nail services need a manicurist/pedicurist license. The combined manicurist/esthetician license requires 950 hours under the 2026 curriculum rule.
Where the Legal Line Sits: the Dermis
Many textbooks teach estheticians to keep exfoliation in the stratum corneum. That is a sound clinical habit, but it is not the wording of New Mexico law. The legal line is in 16.34.7.9(D) NMAC. That rule says a procedure performed by any means that comes into contact with or penetrates into the dermal layer of the skin is considered invasive, and it prohibits products that contact or penetrate the dermis. Combine that with 16.34.5.12, and the result is clear:
- Inside scope: cleansing, extractions, superficial chemical exfoliation, microdermabrasion, masks, light therapy, high frequency, waxing, tweezing, makeup, lash and brow services.
- Outside scope: anything that reaches the dermis, plus services the rule never lists: injectables, prescribing drugs, diagnosing disease, electrolysis, and shaving.
- Gray areas: New Mexico's rules do not name dermaplaning or microneedling. The scope list excludes shaving and invasive techniques, and 16.34.7.9 bans razor-edged tools used to remove skin. Ask the Board for written guidance before you offer any blade-based or needling service.
Who Is Exempt (16.34.5.18 NMAC, added January 13, 2026)
The Act does not apply to the following people while they are carrying out their professional duties:
- physicians and chiropractors
- military medical officers
- registered nurses
- funeral service practitioners
- people who provide only eyebrow threading, although the place where they work must still hold an establishment license
- people who provide only hair braiding
- makeup artists and hairstylists employed for theatrical or film productions, working only at production locations
Where You May Work: Establishments, Not "Booth Licenses"
Services covered by the Act must be performed in a licensed establishment or in an approved mobile outreach unit (16.34.7.8 NMAC). Rule 16.34.7.12 says that offering licensed services for pay in an unlicensed establishment is malpractice under § 61-17A-21. Before you start work, you must ask to see the establishment license. You may not provide services until you have actually seen a valid, current license. If the owner cannot show one, you must notify the Board.
The fee rule used to list a separate "booth establishment license." That category was deleted on January 13, 2026. The Board's 2025 inspection notice explains how the license works today:
| Your situation | Need your own establishment license? |
|---|---|
| Employee of a licensed establishment | No. The owner is responsible for compliance |
| Renting space under the establishment's name | No. The owner is responsible for everyone in the establishment |
| Independent operator in a building that rents individual units (salon suites) | Yes. Each unit must be separately licensed |
| Operating under a city business license in your own business name | Yes |
| Providing services where the Board has not licensed the location (for example, a spa or clinic, or a medical office not overseen by a licensed physician) | Yes |
An establishment license costs $200 for the original and $50 for the annual renewal. You must file the application at least 15 days before opening, and the license renews on the last day of the month of original issue. The establishment must be under the immediate supervision of a Board licensee who is licensed in every service being performed there (16.34.7.11). The holder of a temporary license may not act as supervisor.
Renewal, Fees, and Continuing Education
- Expiration: practitioner licenses expire at the end of the licensee's birth month, not to exceed 24 months (16.34.2.8(D) NMAC).
- Fee: the esthetician license is $100 for the original license and for each two-year renewal (16.34.14.8 NMAC). The Board's FAQ also describes renewal as $100 for a two-year period. The late fee is $40. RLD's fee web page still labels the $100 as an "annual" renewal fee, but the amended rule controls.
- Responsibility: timely renewal is entirely the licensee's responsibility. You upload a recent color headshot with each renewal.
- Continuing education: none is required for practitioner renewal. Instructors need 24 contact hours per two-year cycle, and their licenses expire March 31 (16.34.9.8 NMAC).
- Contact changes: report changes to your mailing address, residential address, email, phone, or place of business within 30 days (16.34.1.10 NMAC).
Posting, Identification, and License Custody
- Licenses are Board property. Licenses must not be altered, and inspectors may retrieve any license that is altered, suspended, revoked, expired, or left behind by a departed licensee (16.34.2.9).
- Post every license, except identification licenses, where it is clearly visible to the public upon entry to the establishment. Upload or attach a recent color headshot to the license (16.34.2.10).
- Show a driver's license or other ID when the public, the Board, or its representative asks.
- Duplicate licenses cost $25.
Discipline and Fines (16.34.15.8 NMAC)
Any violation can bring a civil penalty in addition to other discipline. The Board publishes a fixed schedule:
| Violation | 1st offense | 2nd offense | 3rd and later |
|---|---|---|---|
| Failure to comply with establishment requirements | $200 | $400 | Up to $999 or other discipline |
| Failure to comply with sanitation and safety requirements | $200 | $400 | Up to $999 or other discipline |
| Failure to post required licenses | $200 | $400 | Up to $999 or other discipline |
| Working on an expired or invalid license | $1,000 | $5,000 | Up to $10,000 or other discipline |
| Performing services for pay in an unlicensed establishment | $500 | $600 | Up to $999 or other discipline |
Other enforcement rules to know:
- A re-inspection fee of $200 is charged for each re-inspection after a failed inspection.
- Failing to respond to a Board request within 10 business days is a separate violation (16.34.11.10).
- Defaulting on a student loan can lead to a fine of up to $999, suspension, revocation, or non-renewal.
- Only certain felony convictions can bar licensure (16.34.2.15). These include homicide, kidnapping and aggravated assault, sexual offenses, child abuse, and fraud or forgery. The Board may not consider arrests without conviction, sealed or expunged records, or juvenile adjudications.
Under 16.34.2.8 and 16.34.14.8 NMAC as amended January 13, 2026, when does a New Mexico esthetician practitioner license expire, and what does renewal cost?
Every year on December 31, with a $50 renewal fee and a $40 late fee
Annually on the anniversary of original issue, with a $75 renewal fee
Every three years on June 30, with a $150 renewal fee and 12 CE hours
End of the birth month, at most 24 months; $100 per two-year renewal
An esthetician in Santa Fe starts work in a treatment room she rents under the name of a licensed day spa. According to the Board's licensing guidance after the 2026 rule changes, what does she need?
Her own esthetician license only; the spa's establishment license covers the room
A separate booth establishment license, which costs $200 and must be renewed every year
A full establishment license of her own for the single rented room, posted beside the door
A medical director permit approved by the New Mexico Medical Board
Under 16.34.7.9 NMAC, when is a procedure performed by hand, chemical, mechanical, or electrical means considered invasive and outside a New Mexico esthetician's practice?
When it removes any cells at all from the stratum corneum, even during a basic facial
When it comes into contact with or penetrates into the dermal layer
When it uses any electrical current, including high frequency or galvanic
When it is performed on any area of the body below the neck
Sections you finish are checked off in the contents.