Tattooing, acupuncture, ear piercing and electrolysis

The fee for each type of registration until 31 March 2025 is:

• £201.50 for the premises registration (this price includes one personal registration)
• £78.50 for each additional personal registration

All applications must be submitted on the correct application form (link below) together with the appropriate fee. Once your application has been  received, our admin team will contact you to take the appropriate payment over the phone.

Premises Registration form for Tattooing, Ear piercing, Electrolysis and Acupunture (Word doc) [62KB]

• Personal Registration Application form for Tattooing, Ear piercing , Electrolysis and Acupuncture (Word doc) [61KB]

Once your application has been validated, an Environmental Health officer will contact you to arrange an inspection of the premises.

When these procedures are completed successfully, the registration will be issued and no further application or annual fee will be required. However, it should be noted that premises registrations cannot be transferred.

Separate applications must be submitted for both the premises and each personal registration.

If you make any changes to the premises registered, or details of the registration holder(s) change, please contact us for further advice.

If you have not heard from the authority within 10 working days of the application being made, please email Environmental Health for a progress report.

We have adopted the provisions of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 to enable us to regulate acupuncture, ear piercing, electrolysis and tattooing.

Bylaws for the purposes of securing the cleanliness and good management of such premises and the staff carrying out such services have also been adopted.

Any registration will be subject to compliance with St Helens Borough Council current bylaws:

Byelaws for Tattooing, Ear piercing, Electrolysis and Acupuncture (PDF) [46KB]

It is against the law to tattoo a person who is under the age of 18. No-one can provide any sort of consent. If a tattoo artist carries out a tattoo on a person who is under 18, the tattoo artist could face a fine of up to £1000 and could be at risk of losing their registration. The law is clear.

If you or someone you know has been tattooed while under the age of 18, please email environmentalhealth@sthelens.gov.uk.

Unregistered tattooists often work from home or at 'tattoo parties' and often using cheap kits that can be bought online. These kits are often of poor quality and come without instructions, resulting in unclean equipment which can put the tattooist and the customer at risk of infection. Also, investigations have found that the inks provided sometimes contain dangerous bacteria and high levels of toxic metals.

Prevention of infection is not just a case of using a new needle for each person as sharing any equipment, including items like ink pots, can pose a risk.

Using an unregistered tattooist, often at a reduced price, is simply not worth the risk. It needs to be remembered that the tattooing procedure is similar to minor surgery in that if it is carried out incorrectly or by someone who does not have suitable controls in place, you could be putting yourself at risk of contracting a blood-borne virus.

There are strict levels of control and hygiene required of a tattoo artist and in their studio. This helps avoid unnecessary risks to themselves or their customers. It is important that you take proper care of your tattoo, following the advice provided by the tattoo artist.

If you or someone who is tattooing illegally, please email environmentalhealth@sthelens.gov.uk.