Portsmouth, VA Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)

Portsmouth Health District administers body art permitting under Chapter 3, Article III of the City Code. Section 3-301 requires separate permits for the studio and every body artist, valid one year and displayed publicly; the annual application must list the business address, owner information, proof of state licensure, and the location of every body artist working there, updated within seven calendar days of any change. The health department charges the fee set in Appendix A for issuance and for plan review of any new studio or of construction changes, and no permit issues for a studio in a mobile location; it must occupy a permanent building.

Under § 3-302, studios face unannounced inspections and must follow sterilization, single-use needle, and bloodborne-pathogen protocols, keep client and sterilization-log records for four years, and require artists to complete annual training in bloodborne pathogens, CPR, and first aid plus hepatitis B vaccination documentation. , no work area may be visible from a public street or sidewalk, no drug paraphernalia may be sold or displayed on the premises, and no tattoo artist or piercer may work on a sexually private area of a member of the opposite sex.

Section 3-304 makes it a separate offense to operate without zoning clearance, a business license, or a certificate of occupancy, or to tattoo or pierce anyone under 18 without a parent or guardian present. Section 3-305 lets the health director suspend or revoke a permit for up to two years for a first health-code violation, and lets the city manager revoke the business license or zoning clearance for a first business-practice violation; repeat offenders can lose eligibility permanently.