A North Carolina manicurist punctures her own finger during a service. Which step comes first in 21 NCAC 14H .0404?21 NCAC 14H .0404(b)
A patron's skin is punctured during a North Carolina manicure. What is the licensee's last step in the first aid rule?21 NCAC 14H .0404(c)
Against which fungus must a disinfectant be EPA registered as effective, under the definition in 21 NCAC 14H .0403?21 NCAC 14H .0403(a)
Into which containers must used lancets and disposable razors go in a North Carolina shop?21 NCAC 14H .0403(m)
Mixed disinfectant concentrate is poured into a spray bottle in a North Carolina shop. What must that bottle carry?21 NCAC 14H .0403(v)
What does 21 NCAC 14H .0302 require of the air in a shop's clinic area while patrons are served?21 NCAC 14H .0302(a)
What strength of alcohol-based hand sanitizer does North Carolina's rule accept in place of soap and water before and after each client?21 NCAC 14H .0401(c)
When a North Carolina licensee uses a disinfectant, which personal protective equipment must be worn?21 NCAC 14H .0401(g)
Which first aid supplies must each North Carolina cosmetic art shop have available?21 NCAC 14H .0404(a)
Show all 60 questions (51 more)
Anatomy and physiology 9
Brittle nails are frequently a normal effect of what?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Nail abnormalities
How many phalanges do the two upper extremities hold together?National Cancer Institute, SEER Training Modules, Appendicular Skeleton
Paronychia that comes on suddenly is caused by which kind of organism?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Paronychia
What are the most common causes of an ingrown toenail?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Ingrown toenail
What may result when the nail bed or the base of the nail is crushed?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Nail abnormalities
Where do fungal nail infections occur more often?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Fungal nail infection
Which bones of the lower extremity number 14 in all, seven to each foot?National Cancer Institute, SEER Training Modules, Appendicular Skeleton
Which muscles of the leg plantar flex the foot, pointing the toes down?National Cancer Institute, SEER Training Modules, Muscles of the Lower Extremity
Which parts of the body offer fungi dead tissue to live on?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Fungal nail infection
Chemistry of nail products 6
Loss of smell is among the listed effects of which artificial nail chemical?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
Some nail ingredients are harmful when swallowed. Why are they not harmful when used on the nails?FDA, Nail Care Products
What strength of formaldehyde do the water solutions called formalin usually hold?EPA, Protecting the Health of Nail Salon Workers (EPA 744-F-07-001)
Which chemical, found in some nail polish and nail hardener, can cause cancer?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
Which effects are listed for acetone, the solvent in nail polish remover?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
Why should cuts or cracks in the skin be covered when working with nail products?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
Pre-service: consultation and set-up 3
Dirty implements rest on a work surface during a North Carolina service. What does the rule require of that surface?21 NCAC 14H .0402(e)
North Carolina's statute says the term "manicuring" shall not include what?N.C. Gen. Stat. 88B-2(12)
Under 21 NCAC 14H .0401, a licensee may not perform services on a client believed to have which of these?21 NCAC 14H .0401(f)(4)
Nail service tools 8
An implement cannot be immersed. How is it cleaned under 21 NCAC 14H .0403?21 NCAC 14H .0403(g)(3)
An implement has been disinfected for the manufacturer's contact time. What does North Carolina's rule require before its next use?21 NCAC 14H .0403(g)(2)
Besides razor-type callus shavers, which implements may a North Carolina licensee not use or possess in a shop?21 NCAC 14H .0401(e)(2)
How are implements that have not been disinfected kept in a North Carolina shop?21 NCAC 14H .0403(l)
How much space must a North Carolina shop keep from the center of one manicuring table to the center of the next?21 NCAC 14H .0204
What does North Carolina's rule say about a machine used for a cosmetic art service and the FDA?21 NCAC 14H .0401(f)(12)
Where must disinfected electrical implements be stored under North Carolina's rule?21 NCAC 14H .0403(i)
Which electric nail file may a North Carolina licensee neither use nor possess in a shop?21 NCAC 14H .0401(e)(5)
Manicure and pedicure services 11
After each patron, what is circulated through a North Carolina footspa for 10 minutes?21 NCAC 14H .0403(p)(2)
At the end of the day, what must be done to a footspa's screen before it is put back, under North Carolina's rule?21 NCAC 14H .0403(q)(3)
Cream has been dispensed in a portion from its jar. May the unused part go back, under 21 NCAC 14H .0403?21 NCAC 14H .0403(n)
For how long must a North Carolina shop keep each footspa's cleaning record available to a patron or an inspector?21 NCAC 14H .0403(r)
How often must a pedicure chair that touches the patron's skin be disinfected in a North Carolina shop?21 NCAC 14H .0403(t)
Lotion has been portioned out for a pedicure and has touched the patron. What happens to what is left when the service ends?21 NCAC 14H .0403(k)
Wet towels prepared for services are left unused at the end of the day. What does North Carolina's rule say?21 NCAC 14H .0403(d)
What is the usual interval for trimming the toenails?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Paronychia
What must be done each day with a towel warmer machine in a North Carolina shop?21 NCAC 14H .0403(x)
What must each North Carolina footspa cleaning record include?21 NCAC 14H .0403(r)
Which growths of skin does 21 NCAC 14H .0401 bar a licensee from cutting or removing?21 NCAC 14H .0401(f)(7)
Nail enhancement services 12
A North Carolina manicurist wants to use an enhancement product in a way its manufacturer does not describe. What does the rule say?21 NCAC 14H .0401(f)(1)
By the EPA nail salon guide of March 2007, how many states had restricted or banned the use of liquid MMA monomer?EPA, Protecting the Health of Nail Salon Workers (EPA 744-F-07-001)
Does North Carolina's statutory definition of manicuring take in nail extensions and artificial nails?N.C. Gen. Stat. 88B-2(12)
For an acrylic overlay, which four tasks does North Carolina's manicuring curriculum name?21 NCAC 14T .0605(d)
For which artificial nail liquid is there a warning that exposures while pregnant may affect the child?OSHA, Health Hazards in Nail Salons: Chemical Hazards
Of what are artificial nails primarily composed?FDA, Nail Care Products
What does 21 NCAC 14H .0401 say about Methyl Methacrylate Liquid Monomer (MMA) in a shop or school?21 NCAC 14H .0401(e)(1)
What is poly(ethyl/methyl methacrylate) used as in nail services?EPA, Protecting the Health of Nail Salon Workers (EPA 744-F-07-001)
Which enhancement service must a North Carolina manicuring student pass an evaluation on before performing it on a live model?21 NCAC 14T .0605(c)
Which nail product is made with ethyl cyanoacrylate?EPA, Protecting the Health of Nail Salon Workers (EPA 744-F-07-001)
Which reaction can traces of methacrylate monomer cause in people who have become sensitive to it?FDA, Nail Care Products
Why are powder MMA polymers considered safer than liquid MMA monomer?EPA, Protecting the Health of Nail Salon Workers (EPA 744-F-07-001)
Post-service procedures 2
In what must waste material be kept in a North Carolina cosmetic art shop?21 NCAC 14H .0402(b)
What should be done with hangnails to help prevent nail problems?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Nail abnormalities
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 (https://prov-testing.github.io/nic_cib/nail_technology_national_theory_english.html), which the examination page of the North Carolina Board of Cosmetic Art Examiners' test administrator lists for the Nail Technician license (https://provexam.com/test-information/north-carolina-board-of-cosmetic-art-examiners, reached from https://www.nccosmeticarts.com/exams.aspx). Facts: 21 NCAC 14H (infection control) and 14T .0605 (manicuring curriculum) in the North Carolina Administrative Code, linked from the Board's rules page; N.C. Gen. Stat. Chapter 88B on ncleg.gov; and public pages of the National Cancer Institute, MedlinePlus, OSHA, the EPA and the FDA. 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 North Carolina (NC) nail tech exam practice test follows the national nail technology theory outline that the Board's examination uses. It is not affiliated with the North Carolina Board of Cosmetic Art Examiners or the National-Interstate Council of State Boards of Cosmetology (NIC).
Read the full guide
What the North Carolina manicurist theory exam covers
North Carolina gives the National Nail Technology Theory Examination. NIC's bulletin, effective September 1, 2025 and opened October 12, 2026, lists eight sections: infection control and safety 15 percent, anatomy and physiology 15, chemistry of nail products 10, pre-service 5, nail service tools 13, manicure and pedicure services 18, nail enhancement services 20 and post-service 4.
Why the answers cite North Carolina rules
Where the Board's infection control rules (21 NCAC 14H .0400) or its manicuring curriculum (21 NCAC 14T .0605) cover a section, the question is written from them. The state board manicure practice test has 100 further questions on the same outline.
Hand sanitizer counts in North Carolina only at 62 to 70 percent alcohol, before and after each client (21 NCAC 14H .0401).
Footspa cleaning records are kept at least 90 days and show date, time, reason and staff member (21 NCAC 14H .0403).
A manicuring course is 300 hours and begins with infection control and blood exposure procedures (21 NCAC 14T .0605).
Questions and answers
Is there a practice test for the NC state nail tech exam?
This page is one: 60 free questions of our own in the eight sections of the theory outline, each naming the North Carolina rule or public page behind its answer. None comes from the examination.
How many questions are on the NC nail tech exam, and what score passes?
NIC's bulletin gives 110 items in 90 minutes, of which 100 count toward the score. The Board's licensure page asks manicurists for 75 percent or higher. Exam mode here asks 60 questions at the same pace.
Does this cover the NC nail tech practical exam?
No. North Carolina law gives each examination a practical and a written portion (G.S. 88B-18); this page practises the written, theory portion only.