Barber Shop Permit Requirements in Denver, CO

1. EIN (Employer Identification Number)

   Required if you have employees or operate as an LLC/corporation. Free from the IRS.

   Official government source

   Free·Immediate (online application)

   Free

   Immediate (online application)

1. Colorado Shop Registration (place of business) — Office of Barber and Cosmetology Licensure

   Under C.R.S. 12-105-112 each owner of a place of business must register the place of business with the director of DORA's Division of Professions and Occupations; the Division maintains a registry and the registration must be displayed conspicuously on the premises. It is unlawful to offer barbering, cosmetology, hairstyling, esthetician or nail technician services at an unregistered place of business. This is a registration, not an establishment license, and there is no routine pre-opening on-site inspection: under C.R.S. 12-105-120 the director may inspect barbershops, salons, places of business and rented booths only upon written complaint.

   Official government source

   The director is authorised by C.R.S. 12-105-112(1) to set a registration fee based on the Division's actual cost of maintaining the registry; the amount is disclosed in DPO Online Services rather than on the program webpage. The claimed flat '$25 application fee' is not a published Division figure.·Registration is filed through DPO Online Services; no pre-opening inspection is required, so there is no 3-6 week inspection wait.

   The director is authorised by C.R.S. 12-105-112(1) to set a registration fee based on the Division's actual cost of maintaining the registry; the amount is disclosed in DPO Online Services rather than on the program webpage. The claimed flat '$25 application fee' is not a published Division figure.

   Registration is filed through DPO Online Services; no pre-opening inspection is required, so there is no 3-6 week inspection wait.

2. Individual Barber License (per barber)

   Every barber working in the shop must hold a Colorado barber license issued by DORA's Division of Professions and Occupations, Office of Barber and Cosmetology Licensure. The Barber and Cosmetologist Practice Act (C.R.S. 12-105-111(3)(b)) caps the training the director may require at 50 credits or 1,500 contact hours — not the 1,000 hours often quoted. Training must be at a school approved by the state board for community colleges and occupational education or an equivalent out-of-state authority. Initial licensure by examination is processed through PSI, which administers the written and practical exams; licensure by endorsement, reinstatement and renewal are handled in DPO Online Services.

   Official government source

   Application and exam fees are charged by PSI at application and by the Division at licensure; DORA does not publish them on the program webpage — they appear on the PSI application and in DPO Online Services. The claimed flat '$25 application fee per barber' is not a published Division figure.·Training and both exams must be completed before the license application is submitted; the Division does not publish a standard processing time.

   Application and exam fees are charged by PSI at application and by the Division at licensure; DORA does not publish them on the program webpage — they appear on the PSI application and in DPO Online Services. The claimed flat '$25 application fee per barber' is not a published Division figure.

   Training and both exams must be completed before the license application is submitted; the Division does not publish a standard processing time.

3. Colorado Sales Tax License (Colorado Department of Revenue)

   A barber shop that sells retail products (pomade, clippers, shampoo) needs a Colorado sales tax license. Services such as haircuts are not taxable in Colorado — only tangible goods are. Apply through MyBizColorado or form CR 0100. The license runs for a two-year cycle ending at the end of each odd-numbered year. Denver is a home-rule city, so it collects its own sales tax and issues its own separate Denver tax license, which carries no license fee.

   Official government source

   State license fee is prorated by when you apply within the two-year cycle: $16 January–June of an even year, $12 July–December of an even year, $8 January–June of an odd year, $4 July–December of an odd year. New accounts also pay a one-time $50 deposit, refunded automatically once the business has remitted $50 in state sales tax. Denver's own tax license has no fee.·Immediate when filed through MyBizColorado or Revenue Online

   State license fee is prorated by when you apply within the two-year cycle: $16 January–June of an even year, $12 July–December of an even year, $8 January–June of an odd year, $4 July–December of an odd year. New accounts also pay a one-time $50 deposit, refunded automatically once the business has remitted $50 in state sales tax. Denver's own tax license has no fee.

   Immediate when filed through MyBizColorado or Revenue Online

1. Denver: No General Business License for a Barber Shop

   Denver does not require a general business licence of all businesses. Its Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection (formerly Excise and Licenses) issues only the roughly 68 categories in its published licence directory; barber shops are not among them, though massage businesses and body art establishments are, so check the directory for your specific services. What actually applies to a barber shop is state licensing plus Denver tax and premises requirements: each barber must hold a Colorado licence from the Division of Professions and Occupations, the shop itself must be registered as a place of business with the same Division under C.R.S. 12-105-112, and because Denver is a home-rule city that collects its own tax, a shop selling retail products registers with Denver's Treasury Division for a Retailer's Sales, Use, Lodger's Tax License. A Certificate of Occupancy from Community Planning and Development is needed before opening the space.

   Official government source

   No Denver business licence fee applies because no such licence exists, and the Denver Retailer's Sales, Use, Lodger's Tax License is free. State barber licence and place-of-business registration fees are set administratively under C.R.S. 12-20-105 and are not published on the Division's website.·There is no city business licence to wait for. Denver tax registration is completed online in the eBiz Tax Center; state licence timing depends on the Division's processing of your application in Colorado Online Licensing.

   No Denver business licence fee applies because no such licence exists, and the Denver Retailer's Sales, Use, Lodger's Tax License is free. State barber licence and place-of-business registration fees are set administratively under C.R.S. 12-20-105 and are not published on the Division's website.

   There is no city business licence to wait for. Denver tax registration is completed online in the eBiz Tax Center; state licence timing depends on the Division's processing of your application in Colorado Online Licensing.

2. City and County of Denver — Certificate of Occupancy

   A Certificate of Occupancy from Denver Community Planning and Development is required before a barber shop opens; it confirms the space meets zoning, building and fire code requirements for the intended use. CPD's general phone line is 720-865-2700 (the contractor licensing counter is 720-865-2770) — 720-865-2705 is not a listed CPD number.

   Official government source

   Denver charges no fee for the Certificate of Occupancy itself. The cost is the building permit and plan review fees, set by project valuation in Table 1 of Denver's Building and Related Fees policy (ADMIN 125/138): $20 for work valued up to $500; $35 up to $2,000; $35 plus $8 per additional $1,000 up to $25,000; $220 plus $8 per $1,000 up to $50,000; $420 plus $7 per $1,000 up to $100,000; $770 plus $5.60 per $1,000 up to $500,000 — plus a plan review fee equal to 50% of the permit fee on work valued over $2,000. A Temporary Certificate of Occupancy costs $200 and a Certificate of Compliance $25.·The Certificate of Occupancy issues after the permitted work passes final inspection by all reviewing disciplines; Denver publishes no fixed processing window.

   Denver charges no fee for the Certificate of Occupancy itself. The cost is the building permit and plan review fees, set by project valuation in Table 1 of Denver's Building and Related Fees policy (ADMIN 125/138): $20 for work valued up to $500; $35 up to $2,000; $35 plus $8 per additional $1,000 up to $25,000; $220 plus $8 per $1,000 up to $50,000; $420 plus $7 per $1,000 up to $100,000; $770 plus $5.60 per $1,000 up to $500,000 — plus a plan review fee equal to 50% of the permit fee on work valued over $2,000. A Temporary Certificate of Occupancy costs $200 and a Certificate of Compliance $25.

   The Certificate of Occupancy issues after the permitted work passes final inspection by all reviewing disciplines; Denver publishes no fixed processing window.

Official Sources

• Colorado DORA — Office of Barbering and Cosmetology
• City and County of Denver — Business Licensing
• City and County of Denver — Community Planning and Development
• Colorado Department of Revenue — Sales Tax

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