Clifton, NJ Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)
Key Facts
- Tattooing status
- Prohibited except by licensed physician
- Tattoo violation penalty
- Up to $500 fine, 30 days
- Body piercing license
- $400 per year, Health Dept.
- License term
- Feb. 1 to Jan. 31
- Reinspection fee
- $125, due in 10 business days
- First-offense piercing fine
- $250 minimum
Summary
Clifton bans tattooing outright except when performed by a licensed physician for medical or cosmetic purposes. Body piercing establishments are treated differently: they may operate but only after obtaining an annual $400 license from the Health Department.
§ 407-1. Tattooing of human beings prohibited; exception. No person shall tattoo a human being or conduct the business of tattooing, with the exception that a licensed physician may tattoo a human being for medical or cosmetic purposes. ... § 211-9. License required. A. No person, firm or corporation shall operate any establishment or utilize any premises in the City of Clifton for the purpose of body piercing without first applying for and obtaining a license from the Clifton Health Department. ... § 211-10. A. The annual license fee for each establishment shall be $400.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4963532; v64 updated 2026-07-21; through 07-21-2026).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 407 flatly prohibits the practice: § 407-1 states no person may tattoo a human being or conduct the business of tattooing, carving out only a licensed physician tattooing for medical or cosmetic purposes. A violation carries a fine of up to $500 or imprisonment up to 30 days, or both, under § 407-2. Body modification through piercing is regulated separately and more permissively under Chapter 211, Article II. C. 1 et seq. Section 211-10 sets the annual license fee at $400, plus a $125 reinspection fee, payable within 10 business days or a summons issues.
The Health Officer may suspend or revoke a body piercing license immediately to abate a threat to public health, with the licensee entitled to a show-cause hearing on at least three days' notice (§ 211-12), and may inspect any licensed establishment and its required records at any time (§ 211-13). A separate, near-identical licensing scheme in Article I of the same chapter governs ear piercing establishments at a lower $250 annual fee (§ 211-2, § 211-3), distinguishing routine ear-lobe piercing with a pre-sterilized stud system from body piercing elsewhere on the body.
Violations & Fines
Tattooing without the physician exception is punished by a fine of up to $500 or imprisonment up to 30 days, or both, under § 407-2. Operating an unlicensed body piercing establishment, or continuing after suspension or revocation, is punished under § 211-14 by escalating fines: not less than $250 for a first violation, not less than $500 for a second, and not less than $1,000 for the third and each subsequent violation, with each day of a continuing violation a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Clifton
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