16 permits · verified 2026-09-11
What permits do you need to open a salon or barber in Honolulu County?
In short
A salon or barber in Honolulu County, HI has 3 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 13 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting charges $600 one-time — $200 non-refundable Initial Review fee plus a $400 Processing fee for the conditional use permit (minor) — general. 4 of the 16 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-09-11 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.
Permits particular to a salon or barber in Honolulu County
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sign Permitonly if it applies to you | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting | $18–$70 one-time, by estimated value of the sign work — $18.00 ($.01-$500.00), $35.00 ($500.01-$1,000.00), $70.00 ($1,000.01 and above) | one-time, per sign | 2026-09-11 |
| Conditional Use Permit (Minor) — Generalonly if it applies to you | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting | $600 one-time — $200 non-refundable Initial Review fee plus a $400 Processing fee | one-time, per application | 2026-09-11 |
| Salon/Barber/Cosmetology County License (not found)only if it applies to you | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Customer Services, Business License Section | No fee | not applicable | 2026-09-11 |
| Beauty Shop License | Hawaii DCCA, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division | $176 on-time renewal; inactive status is $12 | biennial — every license renews by 31 December of odd-numbered years, regardless of issue date | 2026-09-04 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
Local permits that apply to every type of business in Honolulu County
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Business License — City and County of Honolulu positiononly if it applies to you | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Customer Services, Business License Section | No fee | not applicable | 2026-09-11 |
| Building Plan Review Feeonly if it applies to you | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting | Varies — formula on the Honolulu County page | one-time, per project | 2026-09-11 |
| Fire Plans Review Feeonly if it applies to you | Honolulu Fire Department, Fire Prevention Bureau | Varies — formula on the Honolulu County page | one-time, per project | 2026-09-11 |
| Commercial Building Permit & Certificate of Occupancy | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting | Varies — formula on the Honolulu County page | one-time, per project | 2026-09-11 |
| Special Management Area (SMA) Permit Determinationonly if it applies to you | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting | $150 one-time, per tax map key (TMK) parcel | one-time, per property | 2026-09-11 |
| Zoning Verificationonly if it applies to you | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting | No fee | one-time, per request | 2026-09-11 |
| Zoning Varianceonly if it applies to you | City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting | $2,400 one-time — $400 non-refundable Initial Review fee plus a $2,000 Processing fee | one-time, per application | 2026-09-11 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
HI registrations that apply to every type of business
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| General Business License — Hawaii positiononly if it applies to you | Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Business Registration Division | No fee | not applicable | 2026-09-04 |
| Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to you | Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Business Registration Division | $51 one-time filing, including the $1 state archives fee | perpetual, but an annual report is due every year | 2026-09-04 |
| Articles of Incorporationonly if it applies to you | Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Business Registration Division | $51 one-time filing, including the $1 state archives fee | perpetual, but an annual report is due every year | 2026-09-04 |
| Annual Reportonly if it applies to you | Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Business Registration Division | $15 a year on paper; a $10 late fee applies per year delinquent | annual — due at the end of the calendar quarter containing the entity's own original registration date | 2026-09-04 |
| General Excise Tax License | Hawaii Department of Taxation | $20 one-time registration | no expiration — remains active until closed, surrendered or revoked for abandonment | 2026-09-04 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
How much does it actually cost to permit a salon or barber in Honolulu County?
There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 16 records listed for a salon or barber in Honolulu County, HI, 3 apply to every business of this type and 13 are conditional. Adding every fee on the page together would overstate what most operators pay, because it would include permits they never need.
Of the 3 that always apply, 2 carry a flat fee, coming to $196.00. That is a floor, not a total. 4 of the 16 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 4 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:
Sign Permit: $18–$70 one-time, by estimated value of the sign work — $18.00 ($.01-$500.00), $35.00 ($500.01-$1,000.00), $70.00 ($1,000.01 and above)
The other 3 variable fees belong to permits that apply to every type of business here; their formulas are set out on the Honolulu County permits page and the HI state page.
Which offices issue these permits in Honolulu County?
Permits for a salon or barber in Honolulu County, HI come from 6 separate offices: City and County of Honolulu, Department of Customer Services, Business License Section, City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting, Honolulu Fire Department, Fire Prevention Bureau, Hawaii DCCA, Professional and Vocational Licensing Division, Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Business Registration Division, Hawaii Department of Taxation. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.
- City and County of Honolulu, Department of Customer Services, Business License SectionIssues 2 permits on this page: General Business License — City and County of Honolulu position, Salon/Barber/Cosmetology County License (not found)Kapalama Driver Licensing Center, Window #17, 925 Dillingham Blvd., Honolulu, HI 96817 · (808) 768-9700www.honolulu.gov/csd/business-license
- City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and PermittingIssues 7 permits on this page, including Building Plan Review Fee, Commercial Building Permit & Certificate of Occupancy, Sign Permit650 South King Street, 7th Floor, Honolulu, HI 96813 · (808) 768-8000www.honolulu.gov/dpp
- Honolulu Fire Department, Fire Prevention BureauIssues 1 permit on this page: Fire Plans Review Fee636 South Street, Honolulu, HI 96813 · (808) 723-7139fire.honolulu.gov/fire-code/permits
- Hawaii DCCA, Professional and Vocational Licensing DivisionIssues 1 permit on this page: Beauty Shop License335 Merchant Street, Room 301, Honolulu, HI 96813 · (808) 586-3000cca.hawaii.gov/pvl
- Hawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, Business Registration DivisionIssues 4 permits on this page: General Business License — Hawaii position, Articles of Organization (LLC), Articles of Incorporation, Annual Report335 Merchant Street, Room 201, Honolulu, HI 96813 · (808) 586-2727cca.hawaii.gov/breg
- Hawaii Department of TaxationIssues 1 permit on this page: General Excise Tax License830 Punchbowl Street, Honolulu, HI 96813 · (808) 587-4242tax.hawaii.gov/geninfo/licensing
What does a salon or barber need in Honolulu County that other businesses do not?
2 of the 4 permits particular to a salon or barber here apply to no other business type we cover in Honolulu County: Salon/Barber/Cosmetology County License (not found) and Beauty Shop License.
Salon/Barber/Cosmetology County License (not found)
No fee applies. The same complete CSD business-license list has no barber, beautician, or cosmetology category anywhere in it. Hawaii's own state Beauty Shop License (Board of Barbering and Cosmetology), recorded at the state layer at $176 on a biennial cycle, remains the real trade-specific credential; a salon's Honolulu-specific obligations are otherwise the same Commercial Building Permit and any applicable zoning or sign permits recorded elsewhere in this file.
Beauty Shop License
Barbering and cosmetology are regulated by the same board and require the same beauty shop license, priced at $176 to renew on time — every license shares the identical 31 December deadline in odd-numbered years no matter when it was first issued. Restoring a license after that deadline costs $276, considerably more than renewing on time, or $112 to restore from inactive status.
Shared with other businesses in Honolulu County
- Sign Permit — City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting, $18–$70 one-time, by estimated value of the sign work — $18.00 ($.01-$500.00), $35.00 ($500.01-$1,000.00), $70.00 ($1,000.01 and above), one-time, per sign. Also required for restaurants, coffee shops, retail stores, fitness studios, auto repair shops and veterinary clinics; what it involves is set out on the restaurants page.
- Conditional Use Permit (Minor) — General — City and County of Honolulu, Department of Planning and Permitting, $600 one-time — $200 non-refundable Initial Review fee plus a $400 Processing fee, one-time, per application. Also required for retail stores, fitness studios, contractors and trades, auto repair shops and veterinary clinics; what it involves is set out on the contractors and trades page.
The other 7 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Honolulu County, HI; what each one involves is set out on the Honolulu County permits page. The 5 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across HI and are covered on the HI state page.
How does a salon or barber compare with other businesses in Honolulu County?
The closest match is a auto repair shop, which shares 2 of these permits. A salon or barber also needs Salon/Barber/Cosmetology County License (not found) and Beauty Shop License. A auto repair shop needs Auto Repair Shop County License (not found) and Motor Vehicle Repair Dealer License, which a salon or barber does not.
| Business | Its own permits | Shared with a salon or barber | Only a salon or barber needs | Only it needs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auto repair shops | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Retail stores | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Veterinary clinics | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Fitness studios | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
| Coffee shops | 4 | 1 | 3 | 3 |
| Contractors and trades | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Restaurants | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| Childcare centres | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 |
| Food trucks | 3 | 0 | 4 | 3 |
Sources
Every figure for the permits explained on this page was read from one of these government pages on the date shown. Sources for the permits shared with other businesses are listed with their explanations on the restaurants page and contractors and trades page. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Honolulu County permits page and the HI state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.
- Business License — the Department of Customer Services' own current page naming the complete, fixed list of individual business licenses it issues (Auctioneer, E-GUN, Firearms, Garbage/Refuse, Glass Recycler, Pawn Broker, Peddler, Pedicab, Pepper Spray, Scrap Dealer, Secondhand Dealer, Tear Gas/Obnoxious Substance, Used Vehicle Parts, Wrecking/Salvaging), including the Peddler definition reaching 'foodstuffs'City and County of Honolulu, Department of Customer Services · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-11
- Hawaii Board of Barbering and Cosmetology — beauty shop license feesHawaii Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
Related
Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.