12 permits · verified 2026-10-09
What permits do you need to open a salon or barber in Mcallen?
In short
A salon or barber in Mcallen, TX has 7 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 McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department charges $48 per permit, all types for the permit renewal fee. 5 of the 12 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 Mcallen
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backflow Prevention Device Permitonly if it applies to you | City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department | $4 each, for one to five devices | not stated in the published fee schedule | 2026-10-09 |
| Commercial Plumbing Permit | City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department | $39.60 base fee, plus $4.80 per fixture, floor drain or trap | not stated in the published fee schedule | 2026-10-09 |
| Barbering and Cosmetology Establishment License | Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation | $78 per license period | two years | 2026-08-21 |
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 Mcallen
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commercial Electrical Permit | City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department | Varies — formula on the Mcallen page | not stated in the published fee schedule | 2026-10-09 |
| Permit Renewal Feeonly if it applies to you | City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department | $48 per permit, all types | not stated in the published fee schedule | 2026-10-09 |
| Commercial Plan Review Fee | City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department | Varies — formula on the Mcallen page | one-time, per application | 2026-10-09 |
| Commercial Building Permit | City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department | Varies — formula on the Mcallen page | one year; lapses if work is not commenced within six months of issue or is suspended or abandoned for six months | 2026-10-09 |
| Commercial Remodel and Alteration Permit | City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department | Varies — formula on the Mcallen page | one year; lapses if work is not commenced within six months of issue or is suspended or abandoned for six months | 2026-10-09 |
| Sign Permitonly if it applies to you | City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department | $79.80 per sign | one year; lapses if work is not commenced within six months of issue or is suspended or abandoned for six months | 2026-10-09 |
Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.
TX registrations that apply to every type of business
| Permit | Issuing agency | Fee | Renews | Last checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Certificate of Formationonly if it applies to you | Texas Secretary of State | $300 one-time filing | no expiry | 2026-08-20 |
| Assumed Name Certificate (DBA)only if it applies to you | Texas Secretary of State | $25 one-time filing | up to ten years, renewable | 2026-08-21 |
| Texas Sales and Use Tax Permit | Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts | No fee — there is no fee for this permit | no expiry while actively engaged in business | 2026-08-21 |
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 Mcallen?
There is no single figure, and any site quoting one is rounding away the part that matters. Of the 12 records listed for a salon or barber in Mcallen, TX, 7 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 7 that always apply, 2 carry a flat fee, coming to $78.00. That is a floor, not a total. 5 of the 12 are charged as a range or a formula set by the issuing agency, and 0 have no fee published at all. The ones particular to this business that vary:
Commercial Plumbing Permit: $39.60 base fee, plus $4.80 per fixture, floor drain or trap
The other 4 variable fees belong to permits that apply to every type of business here; their formulas are set out on the Mcallen permits page and the TX state page.
Is Mcallen expensive for a salon or barber?
Comparing like with like — only the permits charged as a single flat fee, since a valuation formula has no figure to rank — Mcallen sits where the table below puts it against every other TX jurisdiction covered here that publishes the same permit.
Sign Permit: Mcallen charges $79.80. Across 5 jurisdictions it runs from $75 in Lubbock to $114 in Amarillo, with a median of $88. 1 charges less and 3 charge more.
Read the spread rather than the rank. Sign Permit varies by $39 between the cheapest and dearest jurisdiction here, which is the sort of gap worth knowing before you sign a lease on one side of a city line rather than the other.
Which offices issue these permits in Mcallen?
Permits for a salon or barber in Mcallen, TX come from 4 separate offices: City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department, Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, Texas Secretary of State, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. No single office issues them all, which is why an opening means filing in several places rather than one.
- City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections DepartmentIssues 8 permits on this page, including Commercial Electrical Permit, Permit Renewal Fee, Backflow Prevention Device Permitonlinepermits.mcallen.net/Portal/default.aspx
- Texas Department of Licensing and RegulationIssues 1 permit on this page: Barbering and Cosmetology Establishment License(800) 803-9202www.tdlr.texas.gov
- Texas Secretary of StateIssues 2 permits on this page: Certificate of Formation, Assumed Name Certificate (DBA)www.sos.state.tx.us
- Texas Comptroller of Public AccountsIssues 1 permit on this page: Texas Sales and Use Tax Permitcomptroller.texas.gov/taxes/permit
What does a salon or barber need in Mcallen that other businesses do not?
1 of the 3 permits particular to a salon or barber here applies to no other business type we cover in Mcallen: Barbering and Cosmetology Establishment License.
Commercial Plumbing Permit
$39.60 base plus $4.80 a fixture, floor drain or trap. A new sewer is $15.60, a replaced or repaired sewer $15.60, a water heater $24.00, a new or repaired gas line $15.60, and repair or alteration of drainage or vent piping $39.60. Eliminating a septic system or a grease trap — a sewer plug — is $39.60 each. A lawn or landscape sprinkler system is $24.00 plus $4.00 for the backflow device.
Barbering and Cosmetology Establishment License
Establishment licenses are valid for two years from the date of issue, so the $78 is a two-year cost rather than an annual one — worth halving before you compare it with a yearly permit elsewhere. The fee applies to standard and specialty establishments; a mini-establishment license is $70. It covers full-service, mobile and specialty establishments, and applies to licenses expiring on or after 1 September 2023. Individual practitioners are licensed separately from the establishment, so a salon needs both its own license and a license for each operator working in it.
Shared with other businesses in Mcallen
- Backflow Prevention Device Permit — City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspections Department, $4 each, for one to five devices, not stated in the published fee schedule. Also required for restaurants, coffee shops, retail stores, auto repair shops, veterinary clinics and fitness studios; what it involves is set out on the auto repair shops page.
The other 6 local permits in the tables apply to every type of business in Mcallen, TX; what each one involves is set out on the Mcallen permits page. The 3 state-level registrations apply to every type of business across TX and are covered on the TX state page.
How does a salon or barber compare with other businesses in Mcallen?
The closest match is a auto repair shop, which shares 2 of these permits. A salon or barber also needs Barbering and Cosmetology Establishment License. A auto repair shop needs Commercial Mechanical Permit, 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 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Coffee shops | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Veterinary clinics | 4 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Fitness studios | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| Restaurants | 6 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| Contractors and trades | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Retail stores | 5 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| Childcare centres | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
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 auto repair shops page. Sources for the permits that apply to every type of business are listed on the Mcallen permits page and the TX state page. Confirmed by Editorial Team.
- Permit fee schedule — effective 1 October 2016, page footer updated November 2019City of McAllen Building Permits & Inspection Department · primary source · retrieved 2026-08-24
- Barbering and Cosmetology Fee Changes — TDLRTexas Department of Licensing and Regulation · primary source · retrieved 2026-08-22
Related
Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.