Hammond, IN Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)
Key Facts
- Establishment license fee
- $100/year, expires every December 31
- Individual artist/piercer permit fee
- None charged under § 127.08(B)
- Liability insurance required
- $1,000,000 per occurrence, filed within 30 days
- Minors
- Need parent/guardian present plus both parents' written OK
- Suspension hearing deadline
- Within 14 days of suspension notice
- Penalty range
- $100 to $2,500 per violation, § 127.99
- Licensing authority
- Board of Public Works and Safety
Summary
In the City of Hammond, Indiana, no shop may tattoo or pierce skin without an establishment license, and no artist or piercer may work there without a personal permit, both issued under Chapter 127. The Board of Public Works and Safety signs off only after a public hearing, a City Health Department inspection, and proof of $1,000,000 in liability insurance; the establishment license runs $100 a year and always expires December 31.
No person shall conduct, maintain, operate or cause to be conducted, maintained or operated, any tattoo and/or body piercing establishment within the corporate limits of the city without first being licensed under this chapter. ... No tattoo artist, body piercer ... shall do business within the corporate limits of the city without first obtaining a permit under this chapter. ... (A) The annual license fee for a tattoo and/or body piercing establishment license shall be $100. (B) There shall be no permit fee for a tattoo artist and/or body piercer. ... No minor shall receive a tattoo or body piercing without the presence of a parent or guardian and written permission from both parents or guardians, if not deceased. ... Any person, firm or corporation which violates or disregards any of the provisions of this chapter in any manner whatsoever shall be fined a sum of not less than $100 nor more than $2,500.
Full Breakdown
02 makes it unlawful to operate any tattoo or body piercing establishment in Hammond without a license, and equally unlawful for any tattoo artist, body piercer, or employee with exposure risk to blood or other potentially infectious materials to work without a personal permit. 03, disclosing ownership and staff details, prior criminal history, the number of work stations, hours of operation, and written proof that everyone who will work with needles has completed the Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration bloodborne pathogen training. 04. 04(D) requires a certificate of insurance covering at least $1,000,000 in public liability per occurrence, naming the city for 15 days' notice before cancellation.
07 fixes every license and permit to expire December 31 regardless of issue date, with annual renewal required. 09. 27 bars tattooing or piercing any minor unless a parent or guardian is present and both parents or guardians (if living) have given written permission. 10, must hold a revocation hearing within 14 days, and must issue its written decision within 10 days after that hearing.
Violations & Fines
Violating any provision of Chapter 127, including operating without a license or ignoring the chapter's sterilization, needle-disposal, or work-environment rules, draws a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $2,500 under § 127.99. The Board of Public Works and Safety may also suspend a license immediately on suspected violations, hold a revocation hearing within 14 days of the suspension, and issue its written findings within 10 days after that hearing; grounds for revocation under § 127.10 include employing an unpermitted artist or piercer, aiding an illegal act, or working on a person under the influence of alcohol or controlled substances.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Hammond
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