{"id":"hairdressers-act-1988","name":"Hairdressers Act 1988","slug":"hairdressers-act-1988","collection":"act","jurisdiction":"sa","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":71579,"registerId":"sa-hairdressers-act-1988-current","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-02","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Hairdressers Act 1988","content":"South Australia\nHairdressers Act 1988\nAn Act to prohibit the practice of hairdressing by unqualified persons; to repeal the Hairdressers Registration Act 1939; and for other purposes.\n\nContents\n1\tShort title\n3\tRepeal and vesting\n4\tInterpretation\n4A\tRecognition by Commissioner of a qualified person\n4B\tRight of review\n5\tHairdresser must be qualified\n6\tSummary proceedings\n7\tEvidentiary provision\n8\tRegulations\nLegislative history\n\nThe Parliament of South Australia enacts as follows:\n1—Short title\nThis Act may be cited as the Hairdressers Act 1988.\n3—Repeal and vesting\n\t(1)\tThe Hairdressers Registration Act 1939 is repealed.\n\t(2)\tOn the commencement of this Act, the assets and liabilities of the Hairdressers Registration Board of South Australia vest in the Minister.\n\t(3)\tThe Minister will discharge those liabilities out of the proceeds from those assets and will apply the surplus proceeds (if any) towards promoting the interests of the profession of hairdressing in such manner as the Minister thinks fit.\n4—Interpretation\nIn this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—\nCommissioner means the Commissioner for Consumer Affairs;\nhairdressing means the cutting, colouring, setting, or permanent waving or other treatment of a person's hair;\nprescribed qualifications—\n\t(a)\tin the case of a person who was, as at 30 June, 1988, required to be registered under the repealed Act—means registration under that Act on that day; and\n\t(b)\tin any other case—means qualifications declared by regulation to be prescribed qualifications;\nqualified person means—\n\t(a)\ta person who holds prescribed qualifications; or\n\t(b)\ta person who it has been determined by the Commissioner under section 4A has qualifications, training or experience that the Commissioner considers appropriate to carry on the practice of hairdressing,\nand unqualified person has a corresponding meaning;\nthe repealed Act means the Hairdressers Registration Act 1939 repealed by this Act;\nTribunal means the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal established under the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013.\n4A—Recognition by Commissioner of a qualified person\n\t(1)\tThe Commissioner may, on application under this section, determine that the applicant has qualifications, training or experience that the Commissioner considers appropriate to carry on the practice of hairdressing.\n\t(2)\tAn application must be made in the manner and form approved by the Commissioner.\n\t(3)\tFor the purposes of making a determination on an application under this section, the Commissioner may require that—\n\t(a)\trecords or information be provided by the applicant in support of the application; and\n\t(b)\tall or any part of the application, or any supporting records or information, be verified by statutory declaration.\n4B—Right of review\n\t(1)\tAn applicant for a determination may apply to the Tribunal under section 34 of the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013 for review of a determination of the Commissioner refusing the application under section 4A.\n\t(2)\tSubject to subsection (4), an application for review must be made within 1 month of the making of the determination by the Commissioner.\n\t(3)\tThe Commissioner must, if so required by the applicant, state in writing the reasons for the Commissioner's determination to refuse the application.\n\t(4)\tIf the reasons of the Commissioner are not given in writing at the time of making the determination and the applicant (within one month of the making of the determination) requires the Commissioner to state the reasons in writing, the time for making an application for review runs from the time at which the applicant receives the written statement of those reasons.\n5—Hairdresser must be qualified\n\t(1)\tAn unqualified person who carries on the practice of hairdressing for fee or reward is guilty of an offence.\nPenalty: \nFor a first offence—$1 000.\nFor a second or subsequent offence—$4 000.\n\t(2)\tA person who employs an unqualified person to carry on the practice of hairdressing is guilty of an offence.\nPenalty: \nFor a first offence—$1 000.\nFor a second or subsequent offence—$4 000.\n\t(3)\tThis section does not prevent the employment by a qualified person of a person who is undertaking an apprenticeship in hairdressing.\n6—Summary proceedings\nThe offences constituted by this Act are summary offences.\n7—Evidentiary provision\nAn allegation in a complaint for an offence against this Act that a specified person was, as at 30 June, 1988, required to be registered under the repealed Act but was not so registered as at that day will, in the absence of proof to the contrary, be taken to be proved.\n8—Regulations\n\t(1)\tThe Governor may make such regulations as are contemplated by this Act or as are necessary or expedient for the purposes of this Act.\n\t(2)\tIn particular those regulations may—\n\t(a)\texempt, or provide for the exemption of, conditionally or unconditionally, any person or class of persons from all or any of the provisions of this Act;\n\t(b)\tregulate, restrict or prohibit the practice of a prescribed branch of hairdressing by persons of a prescribed class;\n\t(c)\tprescribe penalties not exceeding $500 for breach of any regulation.\nLegislative history\nNotes\n\t•\tPlease note—References in the legislation to other legislation or instruments or to titles of bodies or offices are not automatically updated as part of the program for the revision and publication of legislation and therefore may be obsolete.\n\t•\tEarlier versions of this Act (historical versions) are listed at the end of the legislative history.\n\t•\tFor further information relating to the Act and subordinate legislation made under the Act see the Index of South Australian Statutes or www.legislation.sa.gov.au.\nPrincipal Act and amendments\nNew entries appear in bold.\nYear\nNo\nTitle\nAssent\nCommencement\n1988\n35\nHairdressers Act 1988\n21.4.1988\n1.1.1989: s 2\n2001\n1\nHairdressers (Miscellaneous) Amendment Act 2001\n22.3.2001\n16.2.2003 (Gazette 13.2.2003 p581)\n2019\n14\nStatutes Amendment (SACAT) Act 2019\n11.7.2019\nPt 13 (ss 93 to 95)—2.12.2019 (Gazette 21.11.2019 p3928)\nProvisions amended\nNew entries appear in bold.\nEntries that relate to provisions that have been deleted appear in italics.\nProvision\nHow varied\nCommencement\ns 2\nomitted under Legislation Revision and Publication Act 2002\n\ns 4\n\n\nCommissioner\ninserted by 1/2001 s 3(a)\n16.2.2003\nhairdressing\nsubstituted by 1/2001 s 3(b)\n16.2.2003\nqualified person\nsubstituted by 1/2001 s 3(c)\n16.2.2003\nTribunal\ninserted by 14/2019 s 93\n2.12.2019\nunqualified person\ndeleted by 1/2001 s 3(d)\n16.2.2003\nss 4A\ninserted by 1/2001 s 4\n16.2.2003\nss 4B\ninserted by 1/2001 s 4\n16.2.2003\ns 4B(1) and (2)\nsubstituted by 14/2019 s 94(1)\n2.12.2019\ns 4B(4)\namended by 14/2019 s 94(2)\n2.12.2019\nTransitional etc provisions associated with Act or amendments\nStatutes Amendment (SACAT) Act 2019, Pt 13\n95—Transitional provisions\n\t(1)\tA right of appeal under section 4B of the principal Act in existence before the relevant day (but not exercised before that day) will be exercised as if this Part had been in operation before that right arose, so that the relevant proceedings may be commenced before the Tribunal rather than the Administrative and Disciplinary Division of the District Court.\n\t(2)\tNothing in this section affects any proceedings before the Administrative and Disciplinary Division of the District Court commenced before the relevant day.\n\t(3)\tIn this section—\nprincipal Act means the Hairdressers Act 1988;\nrelevant day means the day on which this Part comes into operation;\nTribunal means the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal established under the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 2013.\nHistorical versions\n16.2.2003\n\n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"issue_detection":{"absurdities":[],"contradictions":[]},"summary":{"complexity_score":1,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"Scope assessment cannot be performed as the legislative text was not retrievable. No content was available to compare against original or amended intent."},"complexity_factors":["No legislative text was available for analysis — the source returned a 404 Page Not Found error","Cannot assess provisions, definitions, obligations, penalties, or regulatory structure without the actual content","Complexity score of 1 reflects absence of analysable material, not simplicity of the underlying law"],"plain_english_summary":"**⚠️ Content Unavailable**\n\nThe actual text of the *Hairdressers Act 1988* (South Australia) could not be retrieved. The link provided returned a **'Page Not Found'** error from the South Australian legislation website, likely due to a broken or outdated URL following a website update in March 2026.\n\n**What we do know:**\n- This is a South Australian law dating from 1988\n- Based on its title, it would historically have governed the **licensing and regulation of hairdressers** in South Australia — covering things like who can legally cut or style hair for payment, training requirements, and workplace standards\n- Many older occupational licensing laws like this have since been **repealed or significantly reformed** across Australian states as part of deregulation efforts\n\n**What you should do:**\n- Visit [www.legislation.sa.gov.au](https://www.legislation.sa.gov.au) directly and search for 'Hairdressers Act 1988' to find the current version\n- Contact the South Australian Office of the Parliamentary Counsel at OPCWeb@sa.gov.au if you cannot locate it\n- Check whether this Act is still in force or has been repealed"},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":2,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The legislation remains tightly focused on its original purpose: ensuring hairdressers are qualified. The 2001 amendments modernised the qualification recognition system (replacing board registration with Commissioner determination), and the 2019 amendment updated the appeal body to SACAT. Neither expansion altered the core scope of regulating who can practise hairdressing."},"complexity_factors":["Short statute with only 8 operative sections (plus interpretation)","Minimal defined terms (only 6 key definitions in section 4)","Straightforward offence structure with clear penalties in section 5","Simple administrative process in section 4A with no complex procedural requirements","Single evidentiary presumption in section 7 (deemed proof of non-registration)","No nested exceptions or complex conditional logic—only one explicit exemption (apprentices in section 5(3))","Regulation-making power is standard and non-complex","Legislative history shows only two substantive amendments in 35 years (2001 and 2019)"],"plain_english_summary":"This South Australian law makes it illegal to work as a hairdresser without proper qualifications. It replaced an older 1939 law that required hairdressers to register with a board.\n\n**What it does:**\n- **Bans unqualified hairdressing for money**: Only people with proper qualifications (or recognised equivalent experience) can cut, colour, set, or treat hair for payment.\n- **Bans employing unqualified people**: Salon owners can't hire unqualified hairdressers either.\n- **Allows apprentices**: Qualified hairdressers can still employ people learning the trade through apprenticeships.\n- **Sets up a recognition system**: If you don't have formal qualifications but have relevant training or experience, you can apply to the Commissioner for Consumer Affairs to be recognised as qualified.\n- **Provides appeal rights**: If the Commissioner refuses your application, you can appeal to the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (SACAT).\n\n**Who it affects:**\n- Anyone working as a hairdresser in South Australia\n- Salon owners and employers\n- People seeking to enter the profession with non-standard qualifications\n\n**Penalties:**\n- First offence: $1,000\n- Repeat offences: $4,000\n\n**Why it matters:**\nThis law protects consumers by ensuring people cutting and chemically treating hair have proper training. It also provides flexibility for experienced workers who may have learned their trade outside formal channels to gain recognition."},"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"The Act departs from the prior registration-board model by repealing the Hairdressers Registration Act 1939 and vesting the Board's assets and liabilities in the Minister (s3). Regulatory control shifted toward administrative recognition by the Commissioner rather than built-in statutory registration (s4A), with refusals reviewable by the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (s4B). The Governor’s regulation power permits exemptions and regulation of particular branches or classes (s8). Practically, liability and compliance now fall on individual practitioners and their employers (penalties in s5), with administrative discretion and delegated rule‑making centralised in the Commissioner and Governor."},"complexity_factors":["Short, focused statutory scheme with limited number of provisions","Delegated administrative discretion: Commissioner may recognise qualifications on application (s4A)","Judicial/administrative review limited by timeframes and Tribunal route (s4B)","Broad regulation-making power including conditional exemptions and prescribed branches (s8)","Criminal penalties for individuals and employers with tiered fines (s5)","Evidentiary presumption about historical registration status (s7)","Transitional vesting of assets and liabilities to the Minister (s3)","All offences are summary, affecting enforcement forum and procedure (s6)"],"plain_english_summary":"This Act makes it an offence for an unqualified person to practise hairdressing for reward (with set fines) and makes it an offence to employ an unqualified person (s5). It replaces the old registration board, vests its assets in the Minister (s3), lets the Commissioner recognise an applicant as qualified (s4A) and allows review of refusals by the Tribunal (s4B). The Governor can make regulations and exemptions (s8)."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/hairdressers-act-1988","history":"/api/acts/hairdressers-act-1988/history","analysis":"/api/acts/hairdressers-act-1988/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/hairdressers-act-1988/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/hairdressers-act-1988/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/hairdressers-act-1988/documents"}}