Kansas: Permanent Makeup & Nano Brows Regulation
Verified against official sources, 2026-07-14.
How can you check Nano Brows providers in Kansas?
Online lookup available: You may search the issuing agency's public lookup for the provider or establishment.
A lookup result reflects only the information shown by the issuing agency. Directory inclusion does not certify a provider's credentials or legal compliance.
Who regulates it
Kansas State Board of Cosmetology — a RARE cosmetology-board licensing state: named license categories for tattoo artist, COSMETIC TATTOO ARTIST, and body piercer, plus establishment licenses (K.S.A. 65-1940 et seq.; K.A.R. 69-15-1 to -31 — rule cite CORRECTED from 28-24)
Does it cover permanent makeup / nano brows?
Coverage: explicitly-covered
K.S.A. 65-1940(l), verbatim: "'Cosmetic tattooing' means the process by which the skin is marked or colored by insertion of nontoxic dyes or pigments into or under the subcutaneous portion of the skin, by use of a needle, so as to form indelible marks for cosmetic or figurative purposes." The 'cosmetic tattoo artist' license is a distinct named category — but training/exam standards are IDENTICAL to tattoo artists (no lighter esthetics track, premise corrected). Exemptions (65-1941(a)): physicians and their supervisees, licensed dentists and supervisees, self-tattooing. First use of the 'cosmetology-adjacent' enum value in this DB.
Artist requirements
| License required | Yes |
|---|---|
| Training | 600 hrs at an approved school + 50 procedures, OR 1,200 hrs under an approved trainer + 50 procedures (identical for cosmetic tattoo artists and tattoo artists); age 18+; HS diploma/equivalent; CE: 8 hrs infection-control/BBP at initial licensure, 5 hrs biennially at renewal (8 if late); apprentice + trainer license structure (trainer: 5 yrs/≥1,500 hrs-yr practice, max 1 apprentice) |
| Exam | BOTH written (≤150 MCQ / 2 hrs / 75% pass) AND practical (75% pass) via Ergometrics — one of only two dual-exam states in the DB |
| Bloodborne pathogen | yes — CE-based infection control/BBP |
| Minimum age | 18+ (artist); clients under 18: notarized written consent + parent/guardian present (65-1953) |
| Fee | exams $50+$75+$75; practitioner license $100 (renewal $50, late $75, reinstatement $125); apprentice/trainer licenses $15 |
| Renewal | biennial (practitioner) |
Facility requirements
| License required | Yes |
|---|---|
| Inspection regime | complaint-driven inspections during business hours (K.A.R. 69-15-11); establishment must admit Board inspectors |
| Fee | $50 license / $50 annual renewal (late $80) |
| Renewal | annual, expires 1 yr from issuance month; non-transferable |
Local variation
County-level variation: No
State Board occupies licensing; local layer atop it UNRESOLVED for the KC metro's Kansas side (Wyandotte UG code JS-blocked — no confirmation either way).
Local overlays
Kansas City (KS side — Wyandotte County / KCK Unified Government) (county)
UNRESOLVED: Wyandotte UG's code (Municode ch. 8) and permits pages are JS-rendered — no tattoo/body-art content surfaced and no official confirmation of a local layer either way (browser probe queued). NOTE: the KC metro spans MO+KS — the Missouri side operates under Missouri's state practitioner/establishment licensing; see the MO entry's Kansas City overlay.
Reciprocity
No endorsement/reciprocity statute in 65-1940–1954; K.A.R. 69-15-4 credits out-of-state training hours (trainer licensed + good standing + matching content) but the Kansas exams are still required (69-15-5(a)). WATCH: HB 2068 (2025-26, SIGNED) enacts a cosmetology COMPACT tagged 'Body Art' but titled/testified as hair/nail/skincare — whether tattoo/cosmetic-tattoo licenses are compact-covered is UNRESOLVED (high-priority watchlist: would change multi-state PMU practice).
Pending / recent changes
Active changes: Yes
Two 2025-26 laws SIGNED: HB 2338 (temporary location + guest body artist permits, ≤14 days — amends 65-1958) and HB 2068 (cosmetology compact — body-art scope UNRESOLVED, see reciprocity). No other pending KBOC body-art rulemaking found.
What this means before you book
Kansas licenses PMU artists as 'cosmetic tattoo artists' through the State Board of Cosmetology on the SAME standard as tattoo artists — 600-1,200 training hours, 50 procedures, and both written and practical exams — plus a separate establishment license; you can verify a license by type in the Board's portal. Clients under 18 need notarized written consent with the parent or guardian present at the appointment.
Statutes & sources cited
- K.S.A. 65-1940 et seq. (Ch. 65 Art. 19: definitions incl. 'cosmetic tattooing' (l); license categories (e))
- K.A.R. 69-15-1 to 69-15-31 (Board rules: training, exams, establishments, fees)
- K.S.A. 65-1953 (minors: prior WRITTEN AND NOTARIZED parent/guardian consent + presence during the procedure; records 5 yrs; class A misdemeanor)
- K.S.A. 65-1958 as amended by HB 2338 (2025-26, SIGNED: temporary location + temporary guest body artist permits, ≤14 days)