1.5 Displaying the License, Mobile Shops, and Residential Barber Services

Why this topic matters

Two blueprint subtopics sit together here: "displaying the license" and "mobile shops and residential services." These are the parts of Tennessee law that most directly affect where and how you work each day. Missing a display requirement or serving a client at home without the right certificate is a violation even if every haircut is perfect.

Displaying the license

T.C.A. § 62-3-118 requires every holder of a certificate of registration to:

1. Display the certificate in a conspicuous place adjacent to or near the holder's work chair
2. Notify the Board of any mailing address change within 30 calendar days

Board Rule 0200-01-.05 adds two details:

• Master barber and technician certificates must be posted at the station where the registrant works.
• Certificates for barber shops, barber schools, and barber instructors must be posted conspicuously on the premises.
• No certificate may be laminated.

Willfully failing to display a certificate is a Class B misdemeanor (§ 62-3-130). Clients use the display to confirm that the person holding the razor is licensed. Anyone can also check a license at verify.tn.gov.

Common traps

• Keeping your license in a drawer, in your car, or at home violates the rule even if the license is current.
• Laminating a certificate violates Rule 0200-01-.05.
• The Tennessee rules do not require a photograph attached to the certificate. Do not confuse this with other states' rules.

Mobile shops

T.C.A. § 62-4-102 defines a mobile shop as a self-contained, self-supporting, enclosed motor vehicle that may be used as a barber shop, cosmetology shop, dual shop, or other licensed shop. Barbering in a mobile shop is governed by § 62-3-134 and, through Barber Rule 0200-01-.19, by the Board's mobile shop rule, Rule 0440-01-.19.

Getting a mobile shop license

Under § 62-3-134, the Board issues a mobile shop certificate to an applicant who:

• Holds a valid, current barber shop registration for a fixed location (the "primary shop")
• Pays the application fee and initial registration fee
• Passes an initial inspection

Rule 0440-01-.19 adds these requirements:

• The mobile shop and primary shop must be owned by the same person, persons, or entity. A partnership agreement where different people run each one must be disclosed.
• The application lists the primary shop, the mobile shop's name, the services offered, and the mobile shop's manager.
• The first license expires on the same date as the primary shop's license. Fees are not prorated.
• All Board mail goes to the primary shop's permanent address.
• The primary shop may be held liable for the mobile shop's violations.

Operating rules

Required equipment for a barber mobile shop (Rule 0440-01-.19(5)(a)):

• One shampoo bowl with hot and cold running water in the work area, and a chair
• One enclosed storage area for clean towels
• One covered, labeled container for soiled towels
• One covered, labeled trash container kept sanitary
• One dry sterilizer (with fumigant) or sanitary compartment
• One wet sterilizer
• One standard workstation for each operator
• One ultraviolet sanitizer
• One first aid kit

If the primary shop's registration expires or is revoked, the Board must revoke the mobile shop certificate. If the primary shop is suspended, the mobile shop is suspended for the same period (§ 62-3-134).

Also note Rule 0200-01-.07(3): a barber shop in a mobile home or mobile unit will not be approved as a regular shop unless it sits on a permanent foundation or is otherwise made immobile, unless it is licensed as a mobile shop.

Residential barber services

Residential services means any barbering service under § 62-3-105 performed in the residence of the person receiving it (§ 62-3-135). Under § 62-3-135, no one may provide residential services without a residential barber certificate.

Qualifying for the certificate

The applicant must:

1. Hold a valid, current barber certificate of registration
2. Pay the application and registration fees
3. Pass an initial inspection of the residential kit (Rule 0200-01-.20). No home services may begin until the kit is approved.

Fees under Rule 0200-01-.11(1)(c):

The residential kit (Rule 0200-01-.07(7))

The barber must carry, at all times when working in residences:

1. An enclosed, labeled container of clean towels kept apart from other equipment
2. An enclosed, labeled container only for soiled towels
3. A clean cape
4. A chair cloth
5. Trash bags
6. A leak-tight container for wet disinfectant solution
7. A container of wet disinfectant solution
8. An aerosol spray disinfectant for clippers
9. A portable ultraviolet sanitizer
10. A first aid kit
11. Extra disposable gloves
12. A bottle of alcohol
13. Hand sanitizer
14. Cotton balls
15. Cotton swabs
16. A portable shampoo bowl, but only when required

A portable shampoo bowl is required only for services that involve removing chemicals, such as color, permanents, relaxers, and conditioners. It must be available for inspection before the certificate is issued. A barber who adds chemical services later must notify the Board and get a new equipment inspection at the barber's expense (Rule 0200-01-.07(8)).

Duties and status

• Show the certificate first. Before performing residential services, the barber must make the residential barber certificate available for the client to review (§ 62-3-135(f)).
• Tied to the barber license. The residential certificate expires on the same date as the master barber registration (Rule 0200-01-.20). It is revoked if the barber registration expires or is revoked, and suspended if the barber registration is suspended (§ 62-3-135).
• No late window beyond one year. If it is not renewed within one year of expiration, the barber must file a new initial application and pass a new kit inspection.

Scenario check

A barber with a mobile trailer parks at a festival, the owner of the fixed shop is the barber's cousin, and the trailer's gray water drains onto the grass. Three violations stand out:

• The mobile shop and primary shop must have the same owner (or a disclosed partnership arrangement).
• Wastewater must go to a sanitary sewer system.
• If the trailer has no mobile shop license of its own, barbering there is unlawful under § 62-3-109(d).