Virginia

What the form asks in Virginia

Virginia’s rule names things the standard waiver form did not ask. A shop in Virginia gets them by default: the questions on its form, the rest on its record in the shop app.

• A photo of the client's ID (on every form)“a copy of the positive identification provided to the tattooer” (18VAC41-50-410(F)(3); a body piercing, 18VAC41-60-210(F)(3))
• The risks of a tattoo the state's rule lists, in writing on a tattoo's consent“must be informed verbally and in writing, using the client disclosure form prescribed by the board, about the possible risk and dangers associated with the application of each tattoo” (18VAC41-50-410(E); the disclosure is also Va. Code § 18.2-371.3's)
• The risks of a piercing the state's rule lists, in writing on a piercing's consent“must be informed verbally and in writing, using the client disclosure form prescribed by the board, about the possible risk and dangers associated with the application of each body-piercing or ear-piercing” (18VAC41-60-210(E); the disclosure is also Va. Code § 18.2-371.3's)
• The artist's own signature, drawn on the record from the shop's dashboard after the work“Signatures of both the client or client's parent or guardian and the tattooer must be on the client disclosure form to acknowledge receipt of both the verbal and written disclosures.” (18VAC41-50-410(E); a body piercing, 18VAC41-60-210(E))
• The artist's license number on the signed waiver, from the shop's artist list“Practitioner's VA License No.” (the board's Tattoo Client Disclosure Form A450-12TDIS-v3, which 18VAC41-50-410(E) prescribes; the body-piercing form's line is "Practitioner's Virginia License No.")
• Aftercare instructions, acknowledged in the consent (on every form)“A statement that the client or client's parent or guardian has received a copy of applicable written care instructions, and that the client has read and understands the instructions” (18VAC41-50-410(F)(7); a body piercing, 18VAC41-60-210(E), (F)(7))

What the record must capture

• Name, address and phone of the client or the parent or guardian
• Date the tattooing was performed
• Client's age, date of birth, and a copy of the ID
• Specific colors and the maker's catalogue or ID number when available
• Location on the body where the tattoo was done
• Name of the tattooer who did the work
• Statement that written care instructions were received
• Signature of the client and, if applicable, parent or guardian

The client shows a valid government-issued photo ID with a printed date of birth. The permanent client record carries the client's age, date of birth, the type of ID shown and a copy of it (18VAC41-50-410(B) and (F)(3) for tattooing; 18VAC41-60-210(B) and (F)(3) for piercing).

"Records must be maintained at the tattoo parlor or permanent cosmetic tattoo salon for at least two years following the date of the last entry." - 18VAC41-50-410(F)

A license on a phone in Virginia

Virginia’s digital license is a real ID. It lives in Virginia Mobile ID app and Apple Wallet. Va. Code § 46.2-230(B):

Any provision of the Code of Virginia, the Virginia Administrative Code, or a local ordinance or regulation with a display requirement, which may be satisfied by the display or possession of a physical credential for which the Department may issue an electronic credential, may be satisfied by displaying or possessing an electronic credential issued pursuant to this article. Acceptance of an electronic credential shall be at the discretion of the person to whom it is presented and subject to the conditions of this section. The text

A picture of one is not. “Unique encryption means screenshots are rejected” The source

On waivers.tattoo: turn on “Choose from library” in Settings and a client whose license lives on their phone can pick a saved photo of their ID for your file. It starts off, and the signed waiver says when a photo was a saved one. The license itself is the proof of age, checked the way Virginia requires.

Minors

18+. Minors only with conditions. Under 18 only when the parent or guardian is physically present for the tattoo. Written consent alone is not enough. The parent or guardian also gets the disclosure and signs the client record. The statute's own words: "No person shall tattoo or perform body piercing for hire or consideration on a person less than eighteen years of age, knowing or having reason to believe such person is less than eighteen years of age except (i) in the presence of the person's parent or guardian, or (ii) when done by or under the supervision of a medical doctor, registered nurse or other medical services personnel licensed pursuant to Title 54.1 in the performance of their duties." (Va. Code § 18.2-371.3). The Board's rule has every client "present at the time of the tattooing or permanent cosmetic tattooing a valid, government-issued, positive identification card", and "The identification must contain a photograph of the individual and a printed date of birth." (18VAC41-50-410(A)); the record keeps "The client's age, date of birth, and a copy of the positive identification provided to the tattooer" (410(F)(3)). The parent or guardian is told the risks "verbally and in writing, using the client disclosure form prescribed by the board" and signs it (410(E)).

"Except as permitted in § 18.2-371.3 of the Code of Virginia, a client must be a minimum of 18 years of age and must present at the time of the tattooing ... a valid, government-issued, positive identification card" - 18VAC41-50-410(A)

On waivers.tattoo: turn on Tattooing under 18 in Settings and a client under 18 gets a parent-or-guardian section — who they are, how they are related, their own signature, and a photo of their ID. Virginia’s rule has the form ask for the minor’s own photo ID too. The signed waiver prints what Virginia requires.

Piercing a minor

18+ to sign alone. Minors only with conditions. The parent or guardian has to be physically present for the piercing. Written consent alone does not satisfy the statute. The parent or guardian also receives the board's client disclosure form verbally and in writing and signs it alongside the client and the piercer. The Board's piercing rule: "Except as permitted in § 18.2-371.3 of the Code of Virginia, a client must be a minimum of 18 years of age and must present at the time of the body-piercing or ear-piercing a valid, government-issued, positive identification card, including a driver's license, passport, or military identification." (18VAC41-60-210(A)).

The criminal statute excludes a mechanized, presterilized ear-piercing system through the outer perimeter or lobe of the ear. The board's regulation still covers ear-piercing as a licensed activity with its own client and record rules.

Class 1 misdemeanor

Va. Code § 18.2-371.3; 18VAC41-60-210(A) The text

On waivers.tattoo: turn on Piercing under 18 in Settings and a client under 18 gets a parent-or-guardian section — who they are, how they are related, their own signature, and a photo of their ID. The signed waiver prints what Virginia requires.

What the consent form must say

• The board's client disclosure form, given out loud and in writing
• A statement that written care instructions were received
• The artist's signature on the disclosure form
• Signature of the client, and of the parent or guardian for a minor

"each client and client's parent or guardian, if applicable, must be informed verbally and in writing, using the client disclosure form prescribed by the board, about the possible risk and dangers" - 18VAC41-50-410(E)

Health history and aftercare

No health-history questionnaire is required by the client rule. Written care instructions must be given to the client, and the record must show the client got them.

"A statement that the client or client's parent or guardian has received a copy of applicable written care instructions" - 18VAC41-50-410(F)(7)

Texting your clients in Virginia

8am to 9pm, the client’s local time. Va. Code Ann. § 59.1-510 et seq. (Virginia Telephone Privacy Protection Act); hours at § 59.1-511; do-not-call and opt-out at § 59.1-514; joint liability at § 59.1-514.1; damages at § 59.1-515, in force since 2020-07-01. It names text messages, so a text counts.

Consent. Two different standards in two different sections. For the hours rule, § 59.1-511 requires only "the prior consent of the contacted person", not written. For the do-not-call rule, § 59.1-514(D)(i) requires "prior express invitation or permission as evidenced by a signed, written agreement stating that the person agrees to be contacted by or on behalf of a specific party and including the telephone number to which the call may be placed."

Your own clients. Yes, but narrowly scoped and it does not lift the hours rule. Va. Code § 59.1-510 defines EBR as a purchase from or transaction with the seller "within the 18 months immediately preceding the date of the solicitation" or an inquiry or application "within the three months immediately preceding." Section 59.1-514(D) applies that exemption "For purposes of this section" only, i.e., to the unwanted-solicitation and do-not-call bar, not to the 8am-9pm window in § 59.1-511. The exemption also "shall not apply when the person called previously has stated that he does not wish to receive telephone solicitations."

It reaches your sender too. A service that texts on your behalf is inside this rule with you. Hiring one does not move the duty off the shop.

No telephone solicitor shall initiate, or cause to be initiated, a telephone solicitation at any time other than between 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. local time at the contacted person's location, unless the telephone solicitor has obtained the prior consent... The text

Private right of action against "any responsible person", which by § 59.1-510 includes the SELLER as well as the solicitor: $500 for a first violation, $1,000 for a second, $5,000 for each subsequent one, and up to $5,000 for a willful first or second violation, plus reasonable attorney fees and court costs (§ 59.1-515). Suit may be filed in general district or small claims court.

Federal law is the floor under it: 8am to 9pm, the client’s local time, prior express written consent for a marketing text, and a STOP honored within 10 business days (47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(1), (e)).

What to do

• Ask separately. A yes to marketing texts belongs on its own tick, not folded into the box a client has to accept to get tattooed. Keep it with the date and what it said.
• Text between 8am to 9pm, the client’s local time. An area code is not where somebody lives, so when you cannot tell, use the tighter window.
• Honor a STOP that day. Federal law gives you 10 business days. Same-day is the version nobody argues with, and it is what the carriers expect.
• Keep the count low. Virginia sets no cap and neither does federal law, but a shop that texts a client more than a couple of times a month is teaching them to reply STOP.

Who inspects you

DPOR licenses the artist and the shop from Richmond; there is no county permit layer in most of Virginia. A city or county may still pass its own health-and-sanitation ordinance for tattoo parlors, and Va. Code 15.2-912 requires any such ordinance to allow unannounced local inspections, so check your locality on top of the state license.

Board for Barbers and Cosmetology, tattooing licenses (tattooer, tattoo parlor, permanent cosmetic tattooer)

DPOR inspects and investigates parlors as the board's enforcement program requires; where a locality has its own tattoo ordinance, Va. Code 15.2-912 requires that ordinance to allow unannounced local inspections.

Licensing

Your shop. Yes, a firm needs a tattoo parlor license (or a limited/event tattoo parlor or permanent cosmetic tattoo salon license) from the Board for Barbers and Cosmetology.

Your artists. Yes, an individual tattooer license from the same board, by exam or apprenticeship; apprentice, guest and limited-term tattooer licenses also exist.

Guest artists and conventions. An out-of-state resident can work a Virginia guest spot on a guest tattooer license: $120, filed by 5 p.m. 21 days before the first day, good for 14 days, up to 5 a year, and the sponsoring shop "is responsible for the acts or omissions of the guest tattooer"; a 14-day guest piercer license has existed since December 18, 2025. A convention runs on a firm's event tattoo parlor license, $220, applied for at least 45 days before and good for 7 consecutive days since January 5, 2026 (it was 5). The license holder keeps the event's records for 2 years after the last entry: "The temporary location client records must be maintained by the license holder."

18VAC41-50-80, -91, -92, -410 The text

The licensing page

Using a generic waiver app in Virginia

A generic waiver app is one form builder for every industry — rafting outfits, gyms, trampoline parks and tattoo shops all start from the same blank template. The tattoo part is yours: you write the questions, you keep them current when the rule changes, and you find out whether you got it right when an inspector reads your file.

In Virginia that is 4 things to set up and keep in step yourself:

• The risks of a tattoo the state's rule lists, in writing on a tattoo's consent
• The risks of a piercing the state's rule lists, in writing on a piercing's consent
• The artist's own signature, drawn on the record from the shop's dashboard after the work
• The artist's license number on the signed waiver, from the shop's artist list

On waivers.tattoo, a shop in Virginia gets all of it the day it starts. Your page opens with Virginia’s questions already on the form, your client signs on their own phone, and the signed waiver prints what they answered.

Virginia in our state-by-state posts

• 19 states give a guest tattoo artist a short-term license, 11 never license the artist, and the signed waivers stay with the shop in almost every state
• 15 states make you keep a copy of a tattoo or piercing client's ID. 10 say who may see it, 1 says when to shred it.
• Do you need a license to tattoo? 36 states license the shop, 29 license the artist, 10 license neither
• How often does the health inspector come to a tattoo shop? 15 states set a clock. 14 say nothing.
• Who inspects your tattoo shop? The regulator in every state, and the number to call first
• Texting your tattoo clients: the hours, the caps, and all 51 state rules
• Can a minor get a tattoo with parental consent? State by state
• Can a minor get a piercing with parental consent? 45 states say yes, each on its own terms
• Do you have to ask health questions before a tattoo? 21 states say yes. Here are the questions.
• Do you have to give tattoo aftercare instructions in writing? 40 states say yes.
• Is a tattoo consent form signed on a phone legal? Yes, since 2000. Here is what your state adds on top.
• What has to be on a tattoo consent form? 33 states say. Here is every line they name.
• 27 states make you check ID before a tattoo. The other 24 give you a reason to.
• How long do you have to keep tattoo consent forms? Every state, one table