Westminster, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)
Key Facts
- Enforcing agency
- Orange County Health Care Agency health officer
- Sterilization standard
- Autoclave, 15 psi, 251°F, 15 minutes minimum
- Maximum fine
- $1,000 per misdemeanor violation
- Fee basis
- Annual county board resolution health service fees
- Dormitory use
- Prohibited in tattoo establishments
Summary
Westminster regulates tattoo and dermatography shops under Chapter 8.10, requiring hot and cold running water, daily-cleaned floors, metal or porcelain operating tables, and county health officer inspections. Operators must disclose ink sources, sterilize equipment by autoclave, and avoid using the space as a dormitory, with violations charged as misdemeanors.
All tattooing establishments shall be equipped with running hot and cold water, with adequate toilet facilities and with all appliances, furnishings and materials as may be necessary to enable persons employed in and about such establishments to comply with the requirements of this section. ... The floors, furnishings and equipment of tattooing establishments shall be kept clean at all times during business hours. For purposes of this paragraph, a floor shall not be considered clean if it has not been swept and mopped within the preceding 24 hour period. ... All operating tables in tattooing establishments shall be constructed of metal with white enamel or porcelain finish, or stainless steel. ... Each tattooing establishment shall have adequate lighting and ventilation. ... No tattooing establishment shall be used as a sleeping room or dormitory.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4982734; v10 updated 2026-06-10).
Full Breakdown
10 defines a tattoo or dermatography establishment as any premises used for marking or coloring skin with tattoos, overseen by the Orange County Health Care Agency's health officer. 020 requires running hot and cold water, adequate toilets, daily-swept and mopped floors, metal, white-enamel, porcelain or stainless-steel operating tables, adequate lighting and ventilation to a standard the health officer prescribes, and bars using the premises as a sleeping room or dormitory. 030 requires operators to disclose all dye and ink sources to the health officer in writing and bars use of any dye disapproved by that officer.
040 mandates autoclave sterilization at 15 psi and 251 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 15 minutes, individually wrapped equipment, and single-use dye cups that are never refilled. 050). 110). 190 has the county health officer periodically inspect establishments and charge health service fees set annually by county board resolution, paid directly to the county and retained as reimbursement.
Violations & Fines
Section 8.10.200 makes both operator noncompliance during a procedure and a proprietor's failure to maintain the establishment a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000. Each day a maintenance failure continues counts as a separate violation, so ongoing noncompliance compounds the exposure well beyond a single citation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Westminster require a special city permit to open a tattoo shop?
Can a shop use any ink or dye it wants?
What's the penalty for an unsanitary Westminster tattoo shop?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Westminster
California rules heatmap·Compare Westminster to another location·View the California business licensing & operations overview
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Tattoo & Body Modification in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Orange County handle tattoo & body modification.