1.4 The Written Examination: Blueprint, Fees & Test-Day Rules

Why Study the Blueprint First

TDLR contracts with PSI Services LLC to deliver both the written and the practical examination, and PSI publishes a Candidate Information Bulletin (CIB) for the Eyelash Extension License Examination. The CIB is not marketing material — it is the document that tells you the exact number of items drawn from each topic. Studying without it is how candidates end up over-prepared on anatomy and under-prepared on adhesive products.

The current bulletin carries the date January 1, 2026.

The Written Examination at a Glance

The four pretest items are not identified during the exam, do not count toward your score, and exist so PSI can calibrate future questions. The five extra minutes are already built in, so you have 60 minutes on the clock for 44 items — roughly 80 seconds per item. That is generous for recall questions and tight for multi-clause scenario questions, which is the argument for answering the law and sanitation items quickly and banking time for the consultation and application scenarios.

The Official Content Outline

This is the outline as PSI publishes it, with the item counts spelled out. Memorise the percentages and item counts — they tell you where your study hours belong.

What the weights are telling you

• 28 of 40 items — 70% of the exam — come from Infection Control and Eyelash Application and Removal. That is the same 70% you need to pass. Master those two areas and the law and consultation items become margin.
• Licensing and Regulation is only 4 items. It is the smallest area on the exam even though it feels like the biggest chapter in any study guide. Know the licence term, the hours, the CE structure, the display duties, and the scope limits — do not memorise fee schedules for other licence types.
• Skin and Eye Diseases and Disorders sits inside Infection Control, not inside Consultation. Texas frames disease recognition as an infection-control competency, which is why it pairs with the §83.102(b) refusal rule rather than with lash design.
• "Implements" appears twice — once under Cleaning and Disinfecting and once under Application and Removal. Expect tweezer questions from both angles: how you reprocess them, and how you choose and handle them at the workstation.

The Reference List — and Why It Matters

The CIB names the materials used to write the questions:

1. Texas Administrative Code, Chapter 83 (tdlr.texas.gov)
2. Texas Occupations Code, Chapter 1603 (tdlr.texas.gov)
3. Milady, Advanced Services: Eyelashes, 1st Edition, 2023

Two consequences follow. First, when a Texas rule and a manufacturer's marketing claim disagree, the rule wins on the exam. Second, the statutory reference is Chapter 1603 — the chapter created when House Bill 1560 consolidated barbering and cosmetology. Any question or answer key built on the repealed Chapter 1602 is working from a source PSI does not use.

Getting to the Test: Eligibility, Fees, and Scheduling

Eligibility flows from TDLR, not PSI

You cannot buy your way into a seat. TDLR approves eligibility first, and only then does PSI email you scheduling instructions. Under 16 TAC §83.21(a) you must have submitted a completed licence application, paid the applicable licence fee, and completed the hours required by Chapter 83 and the Act.

Fees are per exam and per attempt

A separate fee is required for each attempt, and fees are not refundable or transferable. Your examination fee is forfeited if you do not test within one year of the date PSI receives it. Note that these PSI fees are separate from the $50 TDLR application fee under 16 TAC §83.201(a)(2).

The eligibility window and retakes

• Examination eligibilities are good for 5 years, and you may test an unlimited number of times during that period.
• If you fail, you must wait 24 hours before scheduling again so all systems update. You cannot retake the examination on the same day as the failed attempt.
• You must pass the written examination before you can sit for the practical examination — this appears in both the CIB and 16 TAC §83.21(c).

Booking and rescheduling

Scheduling runs through the PSI test-taker portal or by phone. You choose a modality: an in-person test centre or an online proctored (E-Exam) session on your own computer. PSI's bulletin lists more than twenty written test sites across seventeen Texas cities, including Abilene, Amarillo, Arlington, Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas, Richardson, El Paso, Fort Worth, Harlingen, Houston, Lubbock, McAllen, Midland, San Antonio, Tyler, and Waco. The practical examination is offered at a much shorter list of sites — Amarillo, Austin, Richardson, El Paso, Houston (Northwest), McAllen, Midland, and San Antonio — so plan travel for that attempt separately.

You may reschedule without forfeiting your fee if PSI receives notice 2 days before the scheduled examination date. A voice mail message is not an acceptable cancellation.

Ways to lose your fee outright: failing to reschedule at least 2 days out; not appearing; arriving after the start time; not presenting proper identification; or not being dressed appropriately for the practical examination.

Test-Day Rules That Cost Candidates Their Seat

Identification

You must present one valid, government-issued ID — a passport book, driver's licence, or state ID — containing all five of: printed name, photograph, signature or fingerprint, date of birth, and expiration date. A passport card is not acceptable because it lacks required information. Your identification must match the information TDLR sent to PSI; correcting a name is a TDLR task, not a test-centre task, so verify it well before your appointment.

A current public high school ID is valid only when accompanied by a photocopy of the TDLR student permit, and only until August 31 of the year you graduate. Community and junior college IDs are accepted and need only printed name, photograph, and date of birth.

Arrival and check-in

• At a test centre, arrive 30 minutes before your appointment.
• For a remote proctored exam, you may launch 30 minutes before your booked time; if you attempt to launch after the scheduled start time you will not be allowed in and forfeit the fee.
• For remote exams, if you do not start within 15 minutes after your booked time you forfeit the fee or eligibility.

Prohibited items

Reference materials of any kind; electronic devices of any type, including phones, smart watches, earbuds, calculators, and tablets; hats or headgear not worn for religious reasons; bulky or loose outerwear including open sweaters, cardigans, shawls, scarves, vests, and coats; and other personal items including bags, gum, food, drinks, notebooks, paper, pens or pencils, purses, and reading material.

You may bring a bound word-to-word translation dictionary with no pictures or definitions, provided it contains no highlighting, underlining, indexing, or marking. Writing in the dictionary during the exam forfeits it and terminates the examination.

Remote proctoring specifics

Breaks are not allowed during remote online proctored examinations. You must keep both hands on or above the desktop, keep your eyes on the screen, avoid covering your mouth, and remain in the camera's line of sight. Screenshots or photos of the exam or the results are prohibited at any time. Run PSI's audio, video, webcam, and system compatibility check before exam day.

Scoring and feedback

Your score is displayed on screen at the end of the examination and emailed to you. If you fail, the emailed score report includes a diagnostic report showing your strengths and weaknesses by examination type — meaning by the four content areas above. Use it: a failure concentrated in Eyelash Application and Removal is a different study plan from a failure concentrated in Infection Control.

While testing, you may flag comments on any question using the Comments link. PSI's development staff review substantive comments and, if a discrepancy is found, results may be re-evaluated. This is the only review of the written examination available to candidates, and there is no review of the practical examination at all.