What Services Am I Legally Permitted To Offer As An Esthetician in Florida?
Estheticians in Florida are required to know what services they are legally allowed to offer. Staying compliant with Florida law is important if you want to be allowed to continue to work in the esthetician field. There are updates to the services that are allowed from time to time as well, which is one of the reasons that estheticians in Florida need to stay on top of the legal services allowed in this state.
If you are working as an esthetician in the state of Florida, you will need to provide only the services that you are licensed for, and you can only offer these services in prescribed ways. Being aware of these rules can save you a lot of time and headaches as well as reduce the risk that you will lose your esthetician license. If you have been fined or cited for the incorrect usage of your license in the state of Florida, you might be prevented from working until your case has been completely reviewed.
If you are ready to learn more about the services that you are legally permitted to perform as an esthetician in the state of Florida, you need to keep reading.
What is an Esthetician License?
Estheticians are licensed to perform specific skin services. They provide facial services as well as massage, waxing, skin cleansing, and they are also allowed to provide makeup services. This is one of the most limited of the licenses that salon and spa employees can hold, which is why it is often the license that is violated by accident. While there is detailed training about the limitations of this license when someone is seeking to get the license, there can be issues when an esthetician moves to a new state and starts to work under new rules.
Many estheticians are not aware that they are not allowed to perform all the same services as regular cosmetologists. Employers at salons and spas are also sometimes unaware of the limitations of this kind of license, and they can ask employees to provide services that are not covered by an esthetician license. Holders of this kind of license need to be very diligent about following the rules and limitations that are related to their license, even when asked to perform services by an employer.
For those who are interested in performing more advanced services, additional licensure is almost always required. Performing services that are not covered by an esthetician license is a violation of Florida law.
What Esthetician Services Are Legally Permitted?
The general services that are legally permitted in Florida with an esthetician license are:
- Spa services
- Skin care regimens
- Body treatments
- Hair braiding
- Hair wrapping
- Applying toe and fingernails polish
- Makeup application
Esthetician license holders are not allowed to provide hair services to clients or nail services without obtaining separate licenses for these practices. This is one of the main confusions that can lead to problems for estheticians in the state of Florida. It can be easy to assume that you will be allowed to perform simple nail services or even offer hair washing with your esthetician license. This is not the case, however, and this confusion can lead to warnings, fines, and the loss of your license.
In salons and other kinds of spa environments, the daily work environment can get very busy. Sometimes management will ask practitioners to provide services they are not licensed to perform. Holders of any license should never agree to perform services that are not covered by their current licensure to avoid repercussions.
This also extends to providing these kinds of services unlicensed at home. If you are actively seeking customers to come to your home to receive services that you are not licensed for, you can face the same penalties as those who are providing these services in a salon without a license to provide them. The state of Florida takes the limitations of esthetician licenses very seriously, and you should as well.
New Rules That Impact Estheticians in Florida
As of 2021, there are some new rules that pertain to estheticians in the state of Florida. These rules change the nature of services that can be provided to clients by holders of this license. Some of these changes are modifications of existing rules, and some are alterations to what is allowed under the heading of an esthetician license. Estheticians need to be aware of the changing rules and regulations that can impact the use of their licenses in the state of Florida.
- Microblading is not considered to be a cosmetologist practice and cannot be performed even by those with a general cosmetology license. Estheticians cannot perform these services without a license for tattoo services. Even a full facial specialist registration will not allow you to provide services of this nature in or out of the salon.
- Bodily intrusion was redefined to include any service that perforates the skin, such as permanent makeup, laser, and pulsed light services, ultrasound skincare, radiation skincare, plasma pen or Hyaluron pen services, injections, or any use of FDA-approved medical devices. These services are now beyond the scope of an esthetician or cosmetologist and cannot be performed in the salon or spa or at home.
- Manual exfoliation services now require that sharps be disposed of in a biohazard container in order to comply with Florida law.
- Makeup application no longer requires a cosmetology license or full facial registration.
- Microneedling is also now considered beyond the scope of an esthetician or licensed cosmetologist.
- Lash lift services can be performed by cosmetologists and full facial specialists but not by estheticians.
These changes impacted a variety of services that estheticians might have assisted with in spas and salons in Florida before 2021. If you have been helping with these services at work or even providing them, you must stop doing so immediately. These are no longer services that are considered within the scope of your license, and you might lose your ability to work if you are reported for providing these services without a license.
What Happens if I Am Reported For Providing These Services?
If you have been reported for providing services that are not covered by the scope of your esthetician license, there are various tiers of fines and penalties that you might be faced with. You will want to make sure that you seek legal counsel for any offense that might bring with it a fine or the potential to lose your license.
- Unlicensed and Performing Services
If you have been allowed to work without an active license, you will be fined $500 for a first offense. You will also be fined $50 for each month that you performed these services without a license. The maximum for this added fine is $500.
- Breaking of Rules Set by the Cosmetology Board
When you are found to be in violation of any of the rules set forth by the Cosmetology Board of Florida, you will be fined $500 for the first offense and you will face revocation of your license for a second with an added $500 fine.
- Using a Suspended License
If you are practicing with a suspended license, you will be fined $500, and your license will be further suspended for another year. You might also be refused the right to seek licensure in the future.
- Advertising Services Not Allowed With Your License
If you are found to be advertising services that you are not allowed to perform with your cosmetology license, you will be fined $100 for the first infraction and $500 for all subsequent infractions.
The Cosmetology Board will look at each case uniquely and take into consideration other offenses if there are any and other issues that have happened related to the license in question. Public safety is the main concern of the board, so those who are practicing in the salon without the right training are considered to be a danger to the public. This is why these offenses are taken so seriously and why you should also take the limits of your license seriously.
You should remember that all of the states in the US have different rules for what kinds of service each kind of salon license can perform. If you have been working in another state and are seeking licensure in Florida, be sure that you pay attention to which services you are allowed to perform with your set of licenses. Even if you were fully licensed to perform all of the wide array of salon and spa services in another state, you might need further training to be allowed to provide these services in Florida.
This is one of the most common ways that people violate their licensing and are fined or lose their license. It can be easy to make assumptions about the kinds of services that you can provide when you have moved to Florida and started working under new rules and guidelines. This problem can be magnified when salon owners and managers do not educate themselves about the limitations of certain license types and ask employees to perform services that they are not allowed to perform.
Be aware that both you, as the practitioner, and the salon will be fined if you are found to be providing services that you are not allowed to perform. Even if you have been told incorrectly by your manager that you can offer these services, you will be held accountable along with the salon. Being employed and directed to perform services without a license does not spare you penalties under Florida law for offering services that you are not trained to perform.
How Can a Lawyer Help?
If you have been fined or cited for performing services without a license, you will want to consider seeking the help of a legal professional for your case. There are often many mitigating circumstances that are looked into by the cosmetology board when adjudicating these types of cases, but they cannot make an accurate judgment without complete information. The results of the investigation into your situation can be skewed if you are not allowed to present your own side of the story accurately.
Since you are not allowed to be fined or cited more than a couple of times for most infractions before your license is suspended, getting legal counsel can be critical to your livelihood. You should be aware as well that infractions under one license can also impact your ability to work using your other licenses. If you have been found to be providing services like microblading in your salon, you will likely be unable to perform hair and nail services until the board has finished reviewing your case. You can also lose all of your licenses to practice each of the services that you perform each day due to issues with infractions under one license.
This is one of the impacts of the process of fines and citations that many practitioners are not aware of. There are many estheticians and cosmetologists who believe that they will only be restricted from performing services under a single license when they are fined. This is often not the case due to concerns over public safety. You could spend weeks without being able to earn a living when you are being investigated for an infraction under a single license that you hold. Making sure that you are supported by a legal professional can be critical to your ability to work in the future in the state of Florida.
Working With a Skilled Lawyer Matters
If you have been fined or cited for performing services that you are not licensed to perform, you will want to be sure to reach out to us right away. We can help you to keep your license and to be allowed to practice in the salon or at home without further impediments. Contact us today for a consultation to help you to avoid fines and long-term penalties.
See Also: