877.04 Tattooing prohibited; penalty.

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877.04 Tattooing prohibited; penalty.

   (1) It is unlawful for any person to tattoo the body of any human being; except that tattooing may be performed by a person licensed to practice medicine or dentistry under chapters 458 and 459 or chapter 466, or by a person under his or her general supervision as defined by the Board of Medicine.

   (2) Any person who violates the provisions of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083.

   (3) No body of a minor shall be tattooed without the written notarized consent of the parent or legal guardian.

History. ss. 1, 2, ch. 59-439; s. 1, ch. 69-118; s. 1148, ch. 71-136; s. 1, ch. 77-174; s. 124, ch. 92-149; s. 23, ch. 93-260; s. 1426, ch. 97-102; s. 9, ch. 2010-220.

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Note. Section 9, ch. 2010-220, amended and transferred s. 877.04 to s. 381.00787, effective January 1, 2012, to read:

381.00787 Tattooing prohibited; penalty.

(1) A person may not tattoo the body of a minor child younger than 16 years of age unless the tattooing is performed for medical or dental purposes by a person licensed to practice medicine or dentistry under chapter 458, chapter 459, or chapter 466.

(2) A person may not tattoo the body of a minor child who is at least 16 years of age, but younger than 18 years of age, unless:

(a) The minor child is accompanied by his or her parent or legal guardian;

(b) The minor child and his or her parent or legal guardian each submit proof of his or her identity by producing a government-issued photo identification;

(c) The parent or legal guardian submits his or her written notarized consent in the format prescribed by the department;

(d) The parent or legal guardian submits proof that he or she is the parent or legal guardian of the minor child; and

(e) The tattooing is performed by a tattoo artist or guest tattoo artist licensed under ss. 381.00771-381.00791 or a person licensed to practice medicine or dentistry under chapter 458, chapter 459, or chapter 466.

(3) A person who violates this section commits a misdemeanor of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s. 775.083. However, a person who tattoos the body of a minor child younger than 18 years of age does not violate this section, if:

(a) The person carefully inspects what appears to be a government-issued photo identification that represents that the minor child is 18 years of age or older.

(b) The minor child falsely represents himself or herself as being 18 years of age or older and presents a fraudulent identification.

(c) A reasonable person of average intelligence would believe that the minor child is 18 years of age or older and that the photo identification is genuine, was issued to the minor child, and truthfully represents the minor child’s age.