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10 permits · verified 2026-10-09

What permits do you need to open a salon or barber in Lake Charles?

In short

A salon or barber in Lake Charles, LA has 5 permits that apply to every business of this type, plus 5 more that depend on your premises, signage or how you are set up. City of Lake Charles Permit Center charges $50 annual for the portable commercial sign permit. 1 of the 10 are charged as a range or formula rather than a flat fee. Verified 2026-10-09 against the issuing agencies’ published fee schedules.

Permits particular to a salon or barber in Lake Charles

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Occupational License Tax — Retail DealersCity of Lake Charles Finance Department, Occupational License Division$50–$6,200 a year, by gross receipts bracket under Table 1, the state-prescribed retail dealers schedule the city administers directlyannual — calendar year; the minimum fee is $50 for a business commencing before July 1, or $25 for one commencing July 1 or later2026-09-08
Portable Commercial Sign Permitonly if it applies to youCity of Lake Charles Permit Center$50 annualannual2026-09-08
Certificate of OccupancyCity of Lake Charles Permit Center$20 per application — the $15 Certificate of Occupancy application/inspection fee plus the $5 technology/computer feeone-time, per application2026-10-09
Barber Shop RegistrationLouisiana Board of Barber Examiners$30 a yearannual2026-09-04
Salon LicenseLouisiana State Board of Cosmetology$55 a year, effective 1 August 2025annual2026-09-04

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

LA registrations that apply to every type of business

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Articles of Incorporationonly if it applies to youLouisiana Secretary of State, Commercial Division$75 one-time filing — rising to $95 from 1 October 2026perpetual, but an annual report is due every year2026-09-04
Annual Reportonly if it applies to youLouisiana Secretary of State, Commercial Division$30 a year for an LLC or a corporation, rising to $35 from 1 October 2026; a nonprofit's is $10annual, within thirty days of the entity's own renewal date2026-09-04
Sales Tax CertificateLouisiana Department of Revenue, Central Registration SectionNo feenot stated as expiring — an ongoing tax account2026-09-04
General Business License — Louisiana Position (geauxBIZ checklist)only if it applies to youLouisiana Secretary of State, Commercial DivisionNo feenot applicable2026-09-04
Articles of Organization (LLC)only if it applies to youLouisiana Secretary of State, Commercial Division$100 one-time filing — rising to $125 from 1 October 2026perpetual, but an annual report is due every year2026-09-04

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 Lake Charles?

There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 10 records listed for a salon or barber in Lake Charles, LA, 5 apply to every business of this type and 5 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 5 that always apply, 3 carry a flat fee, coming to $105.00. That is a floor, not a total. 1 of the 10 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 2 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:

Occupational License Tax — Retail Dealers: $50–$6,200 a year, by gross receipts bracket under Table 1, the state-prescribed retail dealers schedule the city administers directly

Which offices issue these permits in Lake Charles?

Permits for a salon or barber in Lake Charles, LA come from 6 separate offices: City of Lake Charles Finance Department, Occupational License Division, City of Lake Charles Permit Center, Louisiana Secretary of State, Commercial Division, Louisiana Department of Revenue, Central Registration Section, Louisiana Board of Barber Examiners, Louisiana State Board of Cosmetology. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.

What does a salon or barber need in Lake Charles that other businesses do not?

2 of the 5 permits particular to a salon or barber here apply to no other business type we cover in Lake Charles: Barber Shop Registration and Salon License.

Occupational License Tax — Retail Dealers

The city publishes the same statewide rate table directly rather than a city-specific schedule of its own, and applies it to restaurants, retail stores, salons, fitness studios, and auto repair shops as retail/service businesses under Table 1. The city's own codified ordinance text adopts this by law, not merely by practice: Code of Ordinances § 12-27 states the license tax 'is hereby fixed, determined, ordained and levied to be the same as those maximum amounts which may be fixed, levied and collectable by a governing authority under R.S. 47:354 through 47:359' — R.S. 47:354 being the Table 1 retail-dealers schedule applied here. An unusual case should still be confirmed with the Occupational License Division (337-491-1442). A Certificate of Occupancy must be completed before this license is issued.

Portable Commercial Sign Permit

This $50 annual fee applies specifically to portable/temporary commercial signs. For a permanent on-site or off-site sign, the current code prints different figures in its 2023 fee schedule (Appendix A, Ord. 19497) and in the older zoning fee appendix, and neither text says which governs, so no permanent-sign figure is shown here; confirm with the Permit Center (337-491-1294) before budgeting for a permanent sign.

Certificate of Occupancy

Both figures are printed in the City's codified Chapter 24 Appendix D fee schedule (Ord. No. 17681, 9-21-16, in the current Supplement 21 Update 1 of the Code): 'Certificate of Occupancy Application/Inspections: $15.00', and 'Each applicant applying for a Certificate of Occupancy shall pay a $5.00 technology/computer fee in addition to any fees.' The City's Occupational License Procedures sheet states that if an inspection is required 'a fee of $20.00 will be charged by the Permit Center', and that 'A LICENSE WILL NOT BE ISSUED UNTIL THE CERTIFICATE OF OCCUPANCY IS COMPLETED.' The 2023 Appendix A city fee schedule prints no Certificate of Occupancy line.

Barber Shop Registration

Thirty dollars a year, considerably cheaper than a cosmetology salon's $55 — Louisiana keeps its barber board entirely separate rather than merging it with cosmetology, and a shop must pass a board inspection before opening. The statute cross-references this same fee for the initial inspection without stating a distinct opening figure, so the same $30 is recorded here for both an initial registration and its annual renewal. A barber's own individual certificate is a separate cost on top, $40 to examine for in-state or $80 out-of-state, then $50 a year to renew.

Salon License

Fifty-five dollars a year for any establishment providing cosmetology services, current from a fee change effective 1 August 2025. Barbering is regulated separately by its own board rather than being folded into cosmetology — see the barbershop registration record.

The 5 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across LA and are covered on the LA state page.

How does a salon or barber compare with other businesses in Lake Charles?

The closest match is a fitness studio, which shares 3 of these permits. A salon or barber also needs Barber Shop Registration and Salon License. A fitness studio needs nothing here that a salon or barber does not.

Permits particular to each business type in Lake Charles, LA, compared with a salon or barber
BusinessIts own permitsShared with a salon or barberOnly a salon or barber needsOnly it needs
Fitness studios3320
Auto repair shops6323
Coffee shops6323
Retail stores6323
Restaurants8325
Veterinary clinics4232
Contractors and trades110511
Food trucks4054

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 that apply to every type of business are listed on the Lake Charles permits page and the LA state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.

  1. City of Lake Charles — Occupational License Tax TableCity of Lake Charles, Finance Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-08
  2. City of Lake Charles — Occupational License Procedures, including the July 1 half-year minimum fee rule and the Certificate of Occupancy preconditionCity of Lake Charles, Finance Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-08
  3. City of Lake Charles Code of Ordinances, Chapter 12 (Licenses and Regulations), Article I (Occupational License Taxes), § 12-27 (Rates, terms and conditions) — read directly: the license tax 'is hereby fixed, determined, ordained and levied to be the same as those maximum amounts which may be fixed, levied and collectable by a governing authority under R.S. 47:354 through 47:359' (Ordinance No. 8471, 6-3-1987; Ordinance No. 8672, 6-1-1988)City of Lake Charles, Louisiana (Code of Ordinances, via elaws.us) · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-18
  4. City of Lake Charles Code of Ordinances, § 18-8.1 — Commercial portable signs; subsection (g), annual portable sign permit fee of $50.00 (Ord. No. 8283, 7-2-86, as amended through Ord. No. 19426, 11-16-22)City of Lake Charles, Louisiana (Code of Ordinances, via Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  5. City of Lake Charles Code of Ordinances, Chapter 24 (Zoning), Appendix D — Fee Schedule, including the Certificate of Occupancy application/inspection fee and the $5.00 technology/computer fee (Ord. No. 17681, 9-21-16; Supp. 21 Update 1)City of Lake Charles, Louisiana (Code of Ordinances, via Municode) · primary source · retrieved 2026-10-09
  6. Louisiana Revised Statutes section 37:375 — barber examiners fee schedule, including the $30 shop registration feeState of Louisiana · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
  7. Louisiana Secretary of State — live business filing fee schedule, current as of 4 September 2026Louisiana Secretary of State · 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.