Skin Piercing Registration - Applying for a Licence

To offer skin-piercing treatments - including tattooing, acupuncture and ear piercing - both the person performing the treatment and the premises must be registered with the local authority.

The Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982

If you wish to apply for a body piercing registration or to change the details of an existing registration, download a copy of the application for registration of premises and/or persons concerned with acupuncture, tattooing, cosmetic piercing, skin colouring and electrolysis form here.

Current application fees can be found on the application for registration of premises and/or persons concerned with acupuncture, tattooing, cosmetic piercing, skin colouring and electrolysis form.

The process of applying for registration is relatively straightforward. Once you have completed the application form, we will arrange to visit you so that the standards of your premises can be assessed. If there are any areas where improvement is needed, we will provide you with the information you need to comply with the licensing conditions.

Once you and your premises are registered, we will inspect on a regular basis as part of our general health and safety enforcement work. As part of the registration process, you will need to update us with any changes to your business.

Please note that some details of your premises may be included on our web-site, so that customers are able to choose a registered premises for their skin piercing. Your details may also be shared with other statutory bodies as appropriate.

Tacit approval does not apply to this licence, as it is in the public interest that the authority must process your application before it can be granted. If you have not heard from us within 28 days, please contact us for an update on your application.

Please note that your application may take longer than 28 days to process, although most will be acknowledged, processed and completed within this timescale.

If your application is refused, or if you do not accept any of the licence conditions imposed as part of the approval, you should contact the officer dealing with your licence in the first instance. We will always inform you of the appeal procedures when refusing a licence, or on request. We will also inform you of our complaints procedure, should you feel that your application has been improperly processed.

British Association of Beauty Therapy and Cosmetology (BABTAC) 

British Association of Skin Camouflage

British Institute and Association of Electrolysis 

Guild of Professional Beauty Therapists