Hairdresser guidelines

Hair salons must be registered and inspected on an annual basis, and comply with a number of legal requirements including: 

• Health (Registration of Premises) Regulations 1966  
• Health (Hairdressers) Regulations 1980 [legislation.govt.nz]
• Trade Waste Bylaw 2018

If you only operate at your customers’ homes, you do not need to be registered.

Before applying for a registration certificate, check if you also need:

Resource consent

Your proposed business must comply with District Plan rules. We recommend getting in touch with our planning team to discuss any requirements by phoning 0800 732 732 or emailing general@southlanddc.govt.nz.

Find out more about resource consents.

Building consent

Your proposed business must comply with the Building Act 2004. We recommend getting in touch with our building team to discuss your project and clarify any requirements by phoning 0800 732 732 or emailing building-cs@southlanddc.govt.nz.

Here are some helpful links to get you started:

• Mobile, home based, and commercial hair salons https://www.southlanddc.govt.nz/home-and-property/building-services/hair-salons-and-home-hairdressers/
• Backflow preventers https://www.southlanddc.govt.nz/home-and-property/building-services/backflow-preventers/

Further details are available on the building services page.

Here is a checklist of our requirements:

• Completed health registration application form 
• Payment of the application fee 
  • Refer to our fees and charges for the application fee
  • Refer to the application form for instructions on how to make a payment

If you are a registered user you can apply online. It's faster! Find out how to become a registered user and apply online at the bottom of this page. 

One year unless withdrawn earlier by Council.  If the licence holder wants to continue use of the area after the expiry date, a renewal is to be applied for prior to expiry.

Fees for other registered premises are available here.

A full schedule of Southland District Council’s fees and charges is available here fees and charges page.

The first inspection is carried out prior to trade starting and the issue of a registration certificate, and yearly thereafter.

Although mobile hairdressers must comply with the same health requirements, they are not required to register.

However, we would like to carry out hygiene assessments of your practices before trade begins.

Home based hairdressers must comply with the same health requirements as any other salon, and must be registered and inspected on an annual basis.

The design and construction of the facilities used must meet the requirements of:

• Health (Registration of Premises) Regulations 1966  
• Health (Hairdressers) Regulations 1980 [legislation.govt.nz]
• New Zealand Building Code

For advice on registering a hair salon or making changes to an existing business please contact the health team by email health@southlanddc.govt.nz or phone on 0800 732 732.

To contact our other teams Planning, Building, and Water and Waste email general@southlanddc.govt.nz or phone 0800 732 732