Mobile-First Application Eliminates Unnecessary Steps, Saving Time and Increasing Access
Improves the Renewal Process for More Than 300,000 Cosmetologists, Nail Specialists, Hair Dressers, Estheticians and Barbers
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the launch of Click to Renew, a nation-leading tool to simplify professional licensing across New York State. By launching an easy-to-use digital platform, Click to Renew allows New Yorkers in a wide range of licensed professions to renew their licenses quickly and securely. Since its soft launch in October, nearly 5,000 licensees have successfully renewed with this new system. On average, licensees using Click to Renew complete the process in under 4 minutes, a 91 percent reduction from the previous average renewal time of over 45 minutes. The improvements are already delivering a better customer experience, with a 96 percent approval rating by users on the platform. More than 300,000 license-holders will benefit from the initial launch of this new tool, with further plans to bring the ease and convenience of Click to Renew to additional license types in the near future.
“New Yorkers work hard to keep their businesses running, and they deserve a government that works just as hard for them,” Governor Hochul said. “With Click to Renew, we are slashing hours of wasted time for barbers, hairstylists and other licensed professionals so they can spend less time navigating bureaucracy and more time serving their customers. Their time is valuable, and we should treat it that way.”
Renewing occupational licenses historically has been challenging due to time-consuming forms and difficult-to-use, dated, computer systems. After receiving feedback from hundreds of New Yorkers around improving the license renewal process through her EXPRESS NY initiative, Governor Hochul directed her team to streamline processes and build new, user-centered technology solutions.
Click to Renew is a first-in-the-nation, mobile-first platform, co-designed with real New Yorkers, and built entirely by in-house state personnel. This new platform is available for New York’s 300,000 barbers, cosmetologists, estheticians, nail specialists, natural hair stylists and waxers. To streamline the process, the Department of State removed 22 redundant and unnecessary steps from the process, saving the average licensee 40 minutes each time they renew their license and making it possible to conveniently renew your license via smartphone for the first time. In the soft launch phase, nearly three-quarters of all renewals were completed via mobile devices.
EXPRESS NY builds on Governor Hochul’s commitment to cutting red tape while investing in the services and programs that New Yorkers need. Last fall, the Governor issued a call for recommendations across state agencies to improve the delivery of government services. These recommendations, along with nearly 4,000 public proposals submitted through the EXPRESS NY portal, have led to more than 120 state actions to cut red tape and make government work better that are projected to save New Yorkers more than 5 million hours and tens of millions of dollars each year. Today’s launch builds on these earlier reforms by the Department of State to streamline license renewal application questions by 67 percent for more than 840,000 licensees statewide.
New Yorkers can renew their licenses with the new Click to Renew tool at renew.ny.gov/dos.
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