The licence, before the machine.

Scalp micropigmentation has no licence of its own anywhere in the United States. It is regulated as tattooing in most states, as permanent makeup in a few, and by the county or city rather than the state in others. Check what your state will let you do with the training before you choose a course or pay a deposit.

The pattern in most states

Almost every state asks for some version of these four things:

1. Bloodborne pathogens training. An approved course, usually the OSHA-standard one, renewed every year or two. It is the one requirement that is close to universal.
2. An artist licence or registration. Issued by the state health department, a body-art board, or in some states the cosmetology board. Often an application, a fee, proof of the pathogens course and a minimum age of eighteen. Some require an exam on infection control.
3. A licensed establishment. You cannot work from a kitchen or a hotel room. The room has to be inspected and registered as a tattoo or body-art establishment, with hand-washing, sterilisation and waste-disposal standards.
4. Consent and record-keeping. Written consent, aftercare instructions, client records kept for a set number of years, and in most states a ban on treating minors.

What varies is how much training the state wants to see before it issues the licence, and which board issues it.

Florida

Florida licenses tattoo artists through the Department of Health under Chapter 381 of the Florida Statutes, and scalp micropigmentation falls under tattooing. An artist licence requires you to be at least eighteen, to complete a Department-approved course in bloodborne pathogens and communicable diseases, and to apply with the fee. The licence renews annually, and the room you work in must hold a tattoo establishment licence, inspected by the county health department. There is no state-mandated apprenticeship or hour count for tattooing in Florida, which is one reason the state is a common place to train and to start. Temporary establishment licences exist for guest work and events.

New York

New York City licenses tattoo artists through the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. You complete the city’s infection-control course, pass the exam, and hold a licence that renews on a cycle, while the studio holds its own permit and is inspected. Outside the five boroughs, tattooing is governed by Article 4-A of the New York State Public Health Law, with permits and inspections handled by county and local health departments, so an artist in Westchester or on Long Island deals with their county rather than the city. If you intend to work in both, plan for both.

States with formal training hours

A handful of states go further and require documented training before licensing. Oregon is the clearest example, because tattoo licensure there requires hours from a licensed career school plus supervised practical work, and a weekend course does not count toward it. Others attach SMP to permanent-makeup or cosmetology licensing, which can mean an esthetics or cosmetology qualification first. A few states have effectively no state-level regulation and leave everything to the county. Before you assume your state is like Florida, look it up.

How to check your state in ten minutes

• Search the name of your state with “tattoo license” and “health department”. Read the state’s own page, not a training school’s summary of it.
• Confirm which board issues the licence, and whether permanent makeup is treated the same as tattooing. If PMU is licensed separately, ask which category SMP sits in; it varies.
• Check whether an hours requirement or apprenticeship exists. If it does, a three-day course anywhere is a supplement to it, not a replacement.
• Check the establishment rules, because they decide where you can legally work on day one after training.
• If you plan to travel to clients, check guest-artist and temporary permit rules in the states you will visit.

Why this belongs before the course

The order that works is to know your state’s requirements first, take the bloodborne pathogens course, then train, then license, then open a compliant room. Discovering an hours requirement after training can set you back months, or longer if the course never covered licensing at all. A student in one of our cohorts last year had booked the course and bought the kit without looking up his own county, We spent ten minutes checking it in the room, but he needed that information a month earlier.

The three-day intensive covers licensing in the room, with the Florida and New York requirements walked through for the Miami and New York cohorts. The wider picture, what the work pays and the first ninety days, is in how to become an SMP artist, and the real numbers are in what SMP artists really earn.

This page describes the general pattern and the two states we teach in. It is not legal advice, and licensing rules change; confirm the current requirements with your state or city health department before you enrol anywhere.

Do you need a license to do scalp micropigmentation?

Yes, but not an SMP licence, because none exists anywhere in the United States. SMP is regulated as tattooing in most states, as permanent makeup in a few, and by the county or city rather than the state in others. Almost every state asks for bloodborne pathogens training, an artist licence or registration, a licensed establishment, and written consent with record-keeping.

How do you get an SMP license in Florida?

Florida licenses tattoo artists through the Department of Health under Chapter 381 of the Florida Statutes, and SMP falls under tattooing. You must be at least eighteen, complete a Department-approved bloodborne pathogens and communicable diseases course, and apply with the fee. The licence renews annually and the room must hold a tattoo establishment licence inspected by the county health department.

Does Florida require an apprenticeship or training hours for SMP?

No. There is no state-mandated apprenticeship or hour count for tattooing in Florida, which is one reason the state is a common place to train and to start. The requirements are age, the approved bloodborne pathogens course, the application and fee, and a licensed establishment. Temporary establishment licences exist for guest work and events.

How is SMP licensed in New York?

New York City licenses tattoo artists through the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene: you complete the city's infection-control course, pass the exam and hold a licence that renews on a cycle, while the studio holds its own permit. Outside the five boroughs, tattooing is governed by Article 4-A of the State Public Health Law and handled by county and local health departments.

Which states require training hours for SMP?

A handful require documented training before licensing. Oregon is the clearest example, where tattoo licensure needs hours from a licensed career school plus supervised practical work, so a weekend course does not count toward it. Others attach SMP to permanent-makeup or cosmetology licensing, which can mean an esthetics or cosmetology qualification first. Look up your own state before assuming it is like Florida.

Sources

• Florida Department of Health, Tattoo Artist Licensure
• Florida Statutes, Chapter 381 (Public Health, sections 381.00771 to 381.00791 on tattooing)
• NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Tattooing licences
• New York State Department of Health, Public Health Law Article 4-A, Regulation of Body Piercing and Tattooing