Hawaii

What the form asks in Hawaii

Hawaii’s rule names things the standard waiver form did not ask. A shop in Hawaii gets them by default: the questions on its form, the rest on its record in the shop app.

• Aftercare instructions, acknowledged in the consent (on every form)“Immediately after tattooing, the tattoo artist shall advise the customer on the care of the tattoo and instruct the customer to consult a physician at the first sign of infection.” (Haw. Admin. R. § 11-17-10(i))

What the record must capture

• The date the tattoo was applied
• Client name, address, and age
• Branch of service, rate or rank, and serial number for armed forces
• The design of the tattoo and where it went on the body
• The name of the tattoo artist
• The client's signature

The rule makes you write down the client's age, but it does not require you to check a photo ID.

Digital records. Hawaii's 1981 rule says the customer record is "permanently recorded, in ink or indelible pencil, in a bound book kept solely for this purpose." Hawaii's electronic transactions law says an electronic record satisfies a law that requires a record in writing, and that one kept accurately and within reach satisfies a law that requires a record be kept, unless a law enacted after June 28, 2000 specifically prohibits an electronic record, and the 1981 rule is older than that and never mentions one (Haw. Rev. Stat. §§ 489E-7(c), 489E-12(a), (f)). Your inspector reads the rule, so if they want a book on the shelf, print the signed forms. This is our reading of the two laws side by side, not a lawyer's. ("The information required in subsection (a) shall be permanently recorded, in ink or indelible pencil, in a bound book kept solely for this purpose." - Haw. Admin. R. § 11-17-12(b))

"This book shall be available at reasonable hours for examination by the director and shall be kept in the tattoo shop for two years from the date of last entry." — Haw. Admin. R. § 11-17-12(b)

A license on a phone in Hawaii

Hawaii’s digital license is a real ID. It lives in Apple Wallet. Hawaii Department of Transportation, Hawaiʻi-issued REAL IDs in Apple Wallet (2024-08-28):

A variety of apps, such as Tap2iD Mobile, Veriscan and Mobile ID Verify, are available for businesses to download and use to securely and privately accept mobile driver’s licenses and ID cards, including IDs in Apple Wallet, for in-person age verification. The text

On waivers.tattoo: turn on “Choose from library” in Settings and a client whose license lives on their phone can pick a saved photo of their ID for your file. It starts off, and the signed waiver says when a photo was a saved one. The license itself is the proof of age, checked the way Hawaii requires.

Minors

18+. Minors with a parent’s consent. Under 18 needs the written consent of a parent or legal guardian. Keep that consent on file in the shop, the records rule gives it the same 2 years as the customer book. The rule's own words: "Written consents for persons under eighteen years of age shall be kept on file for two years in the tattoo shop." (Haw. Admin. R. § 11-17-12(c)), and the statute makes it a violation to be "Tattooing any person under the age of eighteen without the written consent of the person's parent or legal guardian or not maintaining the consent forms in a confidential manner at the tattoo shop for not less than two years" (HRS § 321-379(b)(6)). Nothing in the rule or the statute asks for the parent in the room, a minor's ID or a floor age. A county can be stricter: "When standards, ordinances, or rules are established by other divisions or subdivision of government, the more stringent state or county rules shall apply." (§ 11-17-1).

"It shall be unlawful to tattoo any person under the age of eighteen years without the written consent of the parents or legal guardian. All written consent shall be kept on file in the tattoo shop." — Haw. Admin. R. § 11-17-7(b)

On waivers.tattoo: turn on Tattooing under 18 in Settings and a client under 18 gets a parent-or-guardian section — who they are, how they are related, their own signature, and a photo of their ID. The signed waiver prints what Hawaii requires.

Piercing a minor

Not set by the state. No state rule on piercing a minor. Hawaii sets no age rule for a piercing: its tattoo statute reaches tattooing only, so your county and your house rule decide. With no state requirement to satisfy, this shop's own applies: a parent or legal guardian present, signing the waiver themselves, and showing government photo ID, with a copy kept in the client record.

no state statute or rule; HRS ch. 321 Part XXX and HAR ch. 11-17 cover tattooing only The text

On waivers.tattoo: turn on Piercing under 18 in Settings and a client under 18 gets a parent-or-guardian section — who they are, how they are related, their own signature, and a photo of their ID. The signed waiver prints what Hawaii requires.

What the consent form must say

"The signature of the customer." — Haw. Admin. R. § 11-17-12(a)(6)

Health history and aftercare

Chapter 11-17 sets aseptic-technique and approved-supply standards and bars tattooing anyone under the influence of intoxicating substances, but it does not require a health-history questionnaire or written aftercare instructions. Its aftercare rule is spoken: right after the tattoo, the artist advises the customer on its care and tells them to see a physician at the first sign of infection.

"The tattoo artist shall use standards of aseptic technique in tattooing, dressing, and other operations that are approved by the director." — Haw. Admin. R. § 11-17-11(a)

Texting your clients in Hawaii

8am to 9pm, the client’s local time. Hawaii has no telephone-solicitation or texting rule that goes past federal law, so federal law is the whole of it here. A marketing text to a cell phone needs prior express written consent: a signed agreement that names who may text, says the texts may be automated, and says the person does not have to agree in order to buy anything. A client can take that back any way they like, and you have 10 business days to stop.

No person or entity shall initiate any telephone solicitation to … any residential telephone subscriber before the hour of 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. (local time at the called party’s location) The text

47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(1), (e). The hours reach a text because the rules set forth in paragraph (c) and (d) of this section are applicable to any person or entity making telephone solicitations or telemarketing calls or text messages to wireless telephone numbers.

What we read in Hawaii: Read HRS chapter 481P, sections 481P-1 through 481P-8, in full at capitol.hawaii.gov. Hawaii's window, 8am to 9pm at the consumer's location under section 481P-3(8), is the federal window written into state law, and the words “text message” appear nowhere in the chapter.

What to do

• Ask separately. A yes to marketing texts belongs on its own tick, not folded into the box a client has to accept to get tattooed. Keep it with the date and what it said.
• Text between 8am to 9pm, the client’s local time. An area code is not where somebody lives, so when you cannot tell, use the tighter window.
• Honor a STOP that day. Federal law gives you 10 business days. Same-day is the version nobody argues with, and it is what the carriers expect.
• Keep the count low. Hawaii sets no cap and neither does federal law, but a shop that texts a client more than a couple of times a month is teaching them to reply STOP.

Who inspects you

The state does both halves: no one tattoos without a license and no shop opens without a permit, and the department inspects the shop before it issues or renews that permit. The director can suspend or revoke either one after notice and a hearing.

Sanitation Branch, tattoo artist license and tattoo shop permit (Haw. Admin. R. ch. 11-17)

The department inspects the shop for compliance before it issues or renews the shop permit, which runs to December 31 each year. The customer book has to be available at reasonable hours for the director to examine.

Licensing

Your shop. A tattoo shop needs a Department of Health permit before it operates: $125 to apply and $75 a year to renew, expiring December 31 each year, posted where people can see it.

Your artists. Every tattoo artist needs a state license from the Department of Health, which takes a written examination and is renewed every 2 years, by December 31 of each even-numbered year; the 1981 rule adds a physical examination.

Guest artists and conventions. The Department of Health's posted copy of the tattoo law, amended through 2009, says an artist not licensed in Hawaii can get a temporary license for up to 14 consecutive days a year, for an event or for work at a permitted tattoo location, applied for at least 60 days before with a $100 fee. The same copy gives an event location a temporary permit for up to 7 consecutive days a year, $500 for an event of up to 40 artists; confirm both with the department before you book.

HRS § 321-374 The text

The licensing page

Hawaii in our state-by-state posts

• 19 states give a guest tattoo artist a short-term license, 11 never license the artist, and the signed waivers stay with the shop in almost every state
• Do you need a license to tattoo? 36 states license the shop, 29 license the artist, 10 license neither
• How often does the health inspector come to a tattoo shop? 15 states set a clock. 14 say nothing.
• Who inspects your tattoo shop? The regulator in every state, and the number to call first
• Texting your tattoo clients: the hours, the caps, and all 51 state rules
• Can a minor get a tattoo with parental consent? State by state
• Can a minor get a piercing with parental consent? 45 states say yes, each on its own terms
• Do you have to ask health questions before a tattoo? 21 states say yes. Here are the questions.
• Do you have to give tattoo aftercare instructions in writing? 40 states say yes.
• What has to be on a tattoo consent form? 33 states say. Here is every line they name.
• 27 states make you check ID before a tattoo. The other 24 give you a reason to.
• How long do you have to keep tattoo consent forms? Every state, one table