Sauk County, WI Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)
Key Facts
- Enforcing agency
- Sauk County Health Department
- License required
- Before any tattoo/piercing operation begins
- Minimum age
- 16 for piercing (consent at 16-17); 18 for tattoos
- License expires
- June 30 each year
- Penalty
- $500-$2,000 forfeiture per day (Sec. 30.016(3))
Summary
Sauk County Code § 30.010 bars anyone from operating a tattoo, body-piercing, or other body-art establishment without a Health Department license, and Sec. 30.014 sets strict age, sanitation, and sterilization rules, including a ban on tattooing or piercing anyone under 18 without a physician or signed parental consent.
No person shall operate a body art establishment without first obtaining a license from the Health Department. The issuance of licenses shall be governed by this ordinance and as set forth in applicable state regulations as adopted by reference. ... (3)Expiration. Such licenses shall expire on June 30 following their issuance except that licenses issued under Wis. Admin. Code ch. SPS 221.04(2)(a), for tattooing and piercing establishments and for other body art establishments or temporary body art establishments initially issued during the period beginning on April 1 and ending June 30 shall expire June 30 of the following year. ... 2.Minors.a.No person under 16 years of age may be body pierced.b.No person age 16 or 17 may be body pierced unless an informed consent form has been signed by his or her parent or legal guardian in the presence of the operator.c.No person under 18 years of age may be tattooed except by a physician in the course of the physician's professional practice, as permitted under Wis. Stats. § 948.70(3).
Full Breakdown
Sauk County Code Chapter 30, the Body Art Licensing and Regulation Ordinance, makes the Sauk County Health Department the state's Wis. Stats. § 463.16 designated agent for licensing tattoo, body-piercing, and other body-art establishments, including temporary ones, under Sec. 30.005 and Sec. 30.006. Sec. 30.010 requires a license before any operation begins, bars transferring a license between people, establishments, or locations, and sets a June 30 expiration each year, with a special rule for licenses first issued between April 1 and June 30, which run to the following June 30.
A new establishment or new operator needs a pre-inspection first, and the Health Department has 15 business days to grant or deny a written application under Sec. 30.010(8). Sec. 30.013 lets the Board of Health set license, late, and re-inspection fees, and requires payment by September 1 each year or the license lapses. Sec. 30.014 layers on detailed sanitary rules: no one under 16 may be body pierced at all, 16- and 17-year-olds need a parent or guardian's signed, in-person consent, and no one under 18 may be tattooed except by a physician under Wis.
Stats. § 948.70(3). Practitioners must wear gloves, use single-use needles for piercing, sterilize reusable tattoo equipment in a monthly spore-tested autoclave, and keep patron records, including any adverse effects, for at least two years. The Health Officer can suspend a license immediately for a violation creating immediate danger to health under Sec. 30.010(7), with a hearing available under Sec. 30.011.
Violations & Fines
Sec. 30.016(3) sets a forfeiture of not less than $500.00 nor more than $2,000.00 per day of violation for operating an unlicensed or noncompliant body-art establishment, and a second or later violation can cost the establishment and the practitioner their license for up to three years. The Sauk County Corporation Counsel can also seek an injunction in circuit court, and each day of violation is a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a minor get a tattoo or piercing in Sauk County?
How long does a body art establishment license last?
What sterilization rules apply to reusable equipment?
What happens if an establishment operates without a license or violates the rules?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Sauk County
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