Tattooing, body piercing, branding, subdermal implants, or scarification - License - Fee - Adoption of rules - Exemptions - Injury reports - Penalty
N.D. Cent. Code § 23-01-35
in effect23-01-35. Tattooing, body piercing, branding, subdermal implants, or scarification -
License - Fee - Adoption of rules - Exemptions - Injury reports - Penalty.
1. As used in this section:
a. "Body piercing" means any method of piercing the skin or mucosa to place
jewelry through the skin or mucosa.
b. "Branding" means the process in which a mark or marks are burned into human
skin tissue with the intention of leaving a permanent mark.
c. "Scarify" or "scarification" means the practice in which a mark or marks are cut
into human skin tissue with the intention of leaving a permanent mark.
d. "Subdermal implant" means to insert a foreign object beneath the skin to
decorate an individual's body.
e. "Tattoo" or "tattooing" means any method of placing ink or other pigment into or
under the skin or mucosa by the aid of needles or any other instrument used to
puncture the skin, resulting in permanent coloration of the skin or mucosa. This
term includes all forms of cosmetic tattooing.
2. A person may not operate a facility providing tattooing, body piercing, branding,
subdermal implant, or scarification services without a license issued by the department
under this section.
a. An applicant for a license shall submit an application for a license to the
department, on a form provided by the department, with a license fee established
by the department. The application must include the name and complete mailing
address and street address of the facility and any other information reasonably
required by the department for the administration of this section.
b. The department shall inspect each facility to ensure compliance with this section
and any rules adopted by the department prior to issuing a license. The operator
of a facility shall grant the department access to the premises of a facility during
normal hours of operation, including access to customer and personnel records.
The inspection must be conducted at a frequency determined by the department
and as often as necessary to ensure compliance with this section and any rules
adopted by the department.
c. The holder of a license shall display the license in a conspicuous place at the
facility for which the license is issued.
d. A license issued under this section expires annually. Within sixty days after
December thirty-first, an expired license may be renewed by submitting the
renewal application, renewal fee, and a late fee established by the department by
rule.
e. The license may not be transferable from one place or person to another.
3. The department shall adopt rules to regulate any person that receives compensation
for engaging in the practice of tattooing, body piercing, branding, subdermal implants,
or scarification. The rules must establish health and safety requirements and
limitations with respect to the age of an individual who may receive a tattoo, body
piercing, scarification, branding, or subdermal implants and may prohibit any practice
that the department deems unsafe or a threat to public health.
4. A facility is exempt from subsection 2 if the facility provides body piercing that is limited
to the piercing of the noncartilaginous perimeter or lobe of the ear and the facility does
not provide tattooing, branding, scarification, or subdermal implants. A person is
exempt from regulation under subsection 3 if the person's practice under this section is
limited to piercing of the noncartilaginous perimeter or lobe of the ear. A licensed
health care professional acting within that professional's scope of practice and the
associated medical facility are exempt from this section.
5. If a customer of a facility regulated under this section reports to the facility an injury the
customer or operator of the facility believes to have resulted from the tattooing, body
piercing, branding, subdermal implanting, or scarification provided at the facility, the
operator of the facility shall provide the customer with written information on how to
report the alleged injury to the department. If a licensed health care professional treats
a patient for an injury the professional determines, in the exercise of professional
judgment, occurred as a result of a service regulated under this section, the
professional shall report the circumstances to the department. A licensed health care
professional is immune from liability for making or not making a report under this
subsection.
6. The fees established by the department must be based on the cost of conducting plan
reviews, conducting routine and complaint inspections and enforcement actions, and
preparing and sending license renewals. Fees collected under this section must be
deposited in the department's operating fund in the state treasury and any expenditure
from the fund is subject to appropriation by the legislative assembly. The department
shall waive all or a portion of the fee for any facility that is subject to local jurisdiction.
7. A person operating a facility providing tattooing, body piercing, branding, subdermal
implant, or scarification services without first obtaining a license issued by the
department under this section is guilty of a class B misdemeanor.
8. An individual that receives compensation for engaging in the practice of tattooing,
body piercing, branding, subdermal implant, or scarification services who fails to
comply with this section or any of the rules adopted by the department is guilty of a
class B misdemeanor.
9. In addition to the criminal penalties provided in this section, the department may issue
a cease and desist order or obtain a court order or injunction to restrain and enjoin
violations of any provision of this section without proof of actual damages sustained by
an individual and without the department being required to file an undertaking.
10. The department may deny a license application or, after notice and a hearing in
accordance with chapter 28-32, suspend, revoke, or take other disciplinary action
against the license of an individual who fails to comply with this section or with any of
the rules adopted by the department.
Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://ndlegis.gov/cencode/t23c01.pdf#nameddest=23-01-35Fetched: 10/16/2026