A nail technician has a small open cut on one hand. What should be done before working on clients?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Biological Hazards
After a blood exposure in a New Mexico salon, may the service go on with the non-porous items that were contaminated?16.34.7.9(C) NMAC
After smoking, eating or using the restroom, what must a New Mexico practitioner wash before serving a client?16.34.7.9(B)(23) NMAC
Contaminated waste in a New Mexico salon does not release liquid blood when compressed. Where may it go under 16.34.7.9 NMAC?16.34.7.9(A)(22) NMAC
How does New Mexico's blood exposure rule have liquid styptic put on a wound?16.34.7.9(C)(4) NMAC
Which of these must the label of a professional-use nail salon product give, at minimum?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
Why does New Mexico's rule call for proper component mixing practices in an establishment?16.34.7.9(A)(18) NMAC
Why should there be space between the back of a seated nail technician's knees and the front edge of the seat?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Awkward Positions and Repetitive Motions
Show all 60 questions (52 more)
Anatomy and physiology 7
Along which bone do the muscles that move the forearm, such as the biceps brachii and triceps brachii, lie?National Cancer Institute, SEER Training Modules, Muscles of the Upper Extremity
In which conditions does the fungus of athlete's foot thrive?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Athlete's foot
Onychomycosis is another name for which condition?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Fungal nail infection
Where are plantar warts found?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Warts
Which bones of the upper extremity number 10 in all, five to each hand?National Cancer Institute, SEER Training Modules, Appendicular Skeleton
Which change may appear in fingernails and toenails with age?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Aging changes in hair and nails
Why can an injury to a nail or a fingertip last for months?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Paronychia
Chemistry of nail products 5
Damage to the liver and kidneys is among the listed effects of which solvent of nail polish and fingernail glue?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
How does the FDA regulate a nail product that is intended to treat nail fungus?FDA, Nail Care Products
Used salon chemicals are left over at closing time. May they be poured down the sink or toilet?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
What can high levels of ethyl acetate, a chemical in nail polish and polish remover, cause?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
What may frequent use of a formaldehyde nail hardener do to the nails?FDA, Nail Care Products
Pre-service: consultation and set-up 3
A manicure bowl is set out for the next client in a New Mexico salon. What does 16.34.7.9 NMAC require first?16.34.7.9(B)(7) NMAC
Which of these must be cleaned and disinfected before use for each client under 16.34.7.9 NMAC?16.34.7.9(B)(6) NMAC
Which of these raises a client's risk of a fungal nail infection?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Fungal nail infection
Nail service tools 6
A New Mexico client brings in a tool that the rule prohibits. May the practitioner use it on her?16.34.7.9(D)(4)(f) NMAC
A regular client asks a New Mexico salon to keep her own implements in a box for her next visit. What does the rule say?16.34.7.9(D)(4)(g) NMAC
How is a removable drill bit handled after each use under New Mexico's rule for items that cannot be immersed?16.34.7.9(B)(11)(a) NMAC
Where do a New Mexico salon's implements go once they have been disinfected?16.34.7.9(A)(30) NMAC
Which drill bit does New Mexico's rule list among the single use items that are disposed of immediately after use?16.34.7.7(H) NMAC
Which parts of an electric nail drill must be cleaned and disinfected after each use in New Mexico?16.34.7.9(B)(11)(b) NMAC
Manicure and pedicure services 9
A New Mexico pedicure tub has held disinfectant for the full time on the label. What are the last two steps?16.34.7.9(A)(35)(g) NMAC
After the nightly disinfection of a circulating foot spa, what are the last steps?EPA, Recommended Cleaning and Disinfection Procedures for Foot Spa Basins in Salons
An emery board has been used on a wart. May the same board then be used on the nails?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Warts
How often should fingernails be trimmed to lower the risk of damage to the nails?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Paronychia
In New Mexico's steps after each pedicure, with what are the removable parts of the basin scrubbed?16.34.7.9(A)(35)(b) NMAC
To which parts of the body may a New Mexico manicurist/pedicurist apply massage and manipulations?16.34.5.11(A)(4) NMAC
What does New Mexico's rule say about paraffin once it has been used?16.34.7.9(B)(20) NMAC
What must New Mexico's pedicure tub log show about the person who disinfected the tub?16.34.7.9(A)(38) NMAC
Which callus technique lies outside a New Mexico manicurist/pedicurist license?16.34.5.11(B) NMAC
Nail enhancement services 10
A person has become sensitive to products with liquid MMA monomer and goes on being exposed. What often results?EPA, Protecting the Health of Nail Salon Workers (EPA 744-F-07-001)
How are nail primers that contain methacrylic acid usually labeled?FDA, Nail Care Products
How many acrylic nail sets are in the required hands-on training of New Mexico's manicurist/pedicurist course?16.34.8.15(D)(4) NMAC
Titanium dioxide is used in nail polish and in which enhancement product?EPA, Protecting the Health of Nail Salon Workers (EPA 744-F-07-001)
What did the Cosmetic Ingredient Review panel determine about ethyl methacrylate in 2002, as the FDA reports it?FDA, Nail Care Products
What may the heavy filing that liquid MMA monomer needs do?EPA, Protecting the Health of Nail Salon Workers (EPA 744-F-07-001)
When may nail extensions be applied under 16.34.5.11 NMAC?16.34.5.11(A)(3) NMAC
Which enhancement liquid does 16.34.7.9 NMAC bar a New Mexico licensee from buying, selling, using or applying?16.34.7.9(D)(3) NMAC
Which part of a finished acrylic nail is typically quite safe?FDA, Nail Care Products
Which products does New Mexico's manicurist/pedicurist rule name for strengthening, repairing or lengthening the nails?16.34.5.11(A)(3) NMAC
Post-service procedures 2
Before a New Mexico salon closes for the night, what is done to its product containers?16.34.7.9(B)(18) NMAC
Even when treatment of a fungal nail infection works, how long may a new, clear nail take to grow?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Fungal nail infection
New Mexico manicurist/pedicurist rules 10
For what may the 25 miscellaneous hours of New Mexico's manicurist/pedicurist curriculum be used?16.34.8.15(D)(6) NMAC
How many hours does New Mexico's manicurist/pedicurist curriculum give to sterilization, sanitation and bacteriology?16.34.8.15(D)(2) NMAC
How many hours of New Mexico's manicurist/pedicurist curriculum go to salon business and retail sales?16.34.8.15(D)(5) NMAC
How many manicures and pedicures are in the required hands-on training of New Mexico's manicurist/pedicurist course?16.34.8.15(D)(4) NMAC
How many of the 400 hours in New Mexico's manicurist/pedicurist course curriculum are manicuring/pedicuring?16.34.8.15(D)(3) NMAC
May a licensed New Mexico manicurist be the supervising licensee of a beauty salon while hair services are given there?16.34.7.11(B) NMAC
What may a New Mexico manicurist/pedicurist who obtains a manicuring instructor license teach?16.34.5.14(A)(3) NMAC
What must a New Mexico establishment post where it is clearly visible to the public at all times?16.34.7.9(A)(7) NMAC
Which document must be at hand on the premises of every New Mexico establishment, in copy or by access?16.34.7.8(H)(6) NMAC
Who is left out of New Mexico's definition of a manicurist-pedicurist, though they may work on a person's nails?16.34.1.7(MM) NMAC
How this list was compiled: Outline: the National Nail Technology Theory Examination Candidate Information Bulletin of the National-Interstate Council of State Boards of Cosmetology (NIC), effective September 1, 2025, revised March 1, 2026, as posted for New Mexico candidates by the Board's testing center (https://pcshq.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/2025-NM-NailTech.pdf, linked from https://pcshq.com/cosmetology-barbering-new-mexico/); and 16.34.3.9 NMAC, which scores the New Mexico licensing examination in three segments: national practical, national theory written and state law written. Facts: Title 16, Chapter 34 of the New Mexico Administrative Code, Parts 1, 5, 7 and 8, on the State Records Center and Archives' site, and public pages of OSHA, the EPA, the FDA, MedlinePlus and the National Cancer Institute. Each question names its rule or page and links to it. Read 2026-10-12. Licence: Own work. Every question, wrong choice and explanation was written for this site from the public texts named. Nothing comes from the real examination, the sample questions printed in the bulletin, a testing vendor, a textbook or a prep course.
How it works
This unofficial state board practice test for nail technicians in New Mexico (NM) follows the national nail theory outline and state rules. It is not affiliated with the New Mexico Board of Barbers and Cosmetologists or the National-Interstate Council of State Boards of Cosmetology (NIC).
Read the full guide
What New Mexico's nail technician exam is made of
New Mexico scores its manicurist/pedicurist examination in three segments: national practical, national theory written and state law written (16.34.3.9 NMAC). The theory outline, in NIC's bulletin effective September 1, 2025 and opened October 12, 2026, has eight sections, from infection control and safety (15 percent) to nail enhancement services (20 percent).
How this bank is split
Fifty questions follow the eight theory sections in their proportions, written from 16.34.7 NMAC where it covers the line. Ten more are on the manicurist/pedicurist license itself: its scope and its 400-hour curriculum. The New Mexico cosmetology practice test drills the state law segment at length.
Emery boards, buffing blocks, toe separators and sandpaper drill bits are single use in New Mexico (16.34.7.7 NMAC).
The pedicure tub log shows a legible signature, license number, time, date and the disinfectant used (16.34.7.9 NMAC).
The course's hands-on minimum is 45 manicures, 45 pedicures and 20 acrylic nail sets (16.34.8.15 NMAC).
Questions and answers
Is there a free state board practice test for nail technicians in NM?
Yes. Every question here is free and names the New Mexico rule or public page behind its answer. They are our own questions; none comes from the examination.
How many questions are on the New Mexico nail technician theory exam?
NIC's bulletin gives 110 items in 90 minutes, of which 100 count toward the score. New Mexico requires a scaled score of seventy five on each segment (16.34.3.9 NMAC), which is not a share of questions right.
Does this cover the practical segment of the New Mexico exam?
No. The national practical segment is a timed demonstration of services and is not practised here. This page covers the theory written segment and New Mexico's rules for manicurist/pedicurists.