North Dakota

What the form asks in North Dakota

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

• An allergies question: medicines, ointments, soaps, latex, anything put on the skin“History of allergies or adverse reactions to pigments, dyes, or other skin sensitivities” (N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01-05(1)(d))
• A bleeding-disorder question“History of hemophilia (bleeding)” (N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01-05(1)(b))
• The medications and blood thinners question, always on“Use of medications such as anticoagulants, which thin the blood or interfere with blood clotting” (N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01-05(1)(f), other medications at (1)(g))
• Aftercare instructions, acknowledged in the consent (on every form)“Verbal and written instructions, approved by the department, for the aftercare of the body art procedure site shall be provided to each client by the operator upon completion of the procedure.” (N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01-04(1))
• A note after the procedure, written in the shop app, on the record“Any complications that occurred during the body art procedure” (N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01.1-07(2)(j), effective 2026-10-01)
• A box the client ticks: they are doing this of their own free will and have read and understood the form“Is obtaining services voluntarily of the client's own free will and volition” (N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01.1-07(3)(a), (b), effective 2026-10-01)

What the record must capture

• Client's name and signature
• Date of birth
• Address
• Date and time of the procedure
• Name of the operator who did the work
• Type and location of the procedure on the body
• For a minor, signed proof of parent or guardian presence and consent

For a client under 18 the rule requires proper identification of the parent, legal custodial parent or guardian, on top of their presence and written consent; there is no statewide photo-ID rule for adult clients, but Fargo requires one for everybody.

"All client records shall be confidential and be retained for a minimum of three years and made available to the department upon notification." — N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01-05(3)

A license on a phone in North Dakota

North Dakota’s digital license is a real ID. It lives in Apple Wallet, Google Wallet and Samsung Wallet. North Dakota DOT Driver License Division, Mobile ID for Business:

North Dakota Mobile ID offers businesses a secure and convenient way to validate customer age and identity. Available on Apple and Android devices, this digital driver’s license/ID provides a reliable alternative to physical cards, streamlining verification processes, and improving customer privacy and experience. The text

A picture of one is not. “North Dakota Mobile ID is currently the ONLY form of mobile phone-based identification that is recognized by North Dakota, and it is only available to individuals that have a current, valid North Dakota-issued driver license or ID card.” The source

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 North Dakota requires.

Minors

18+. Minors only with conditions. A minor can be tattooed only when it "takes place in the presence of and with the written consent of the individual's parent or legal guardian", and the rules add the "proper identification of a parent, legal custodial parent, or legal guardian". The signed proof of their presence and consent goes into the client record. From 2026-10-01 the new Body Art Code adds the minor's own: "Identification for the minor must include a state-issued driver's license or government-issued photo identification if available, or a copy of the minor's birth certificate." A city or county can be stricter: a political subdivision "may enact and enforce an ordinance restricting tattooing" if it is "equal to or more stringent than this section". Nothing requires any shop to tattoo a minor, and plenty decline.

"...to tattoo... an individual who is under eighteen years of age unless the tattooing... takes place in the presence of and with the written consent of the individual's parent or legal guardian." — N.D.C.C. § 12.1-31-13(2); N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01-03(9); from 2026-10-01, § 33-41-01.1-07(1)(d)(7)

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 North Dakota requires.

Piercing a minor

18+ to sign alone. Minors only with conditions. A parent, legal custodial parent or legal guardian physically present, giving written consent, and showing proper identification. Nothing requires a shop to pierce a minor at all, and the rule says so.

Split. The health rule excludes an outer-perimeter or lobe piercing done with a presterilized single-use stud-and-clasp system from both 'body art' and 'body piercing'. The criminal statute's 'pierce' has no such carve-out and reaches any part of the body, so the class B misdemeanor still applies.

Class B misdemeanor

N.D.C.C. s 12.1-31-13(2); N.D. Admin. Code s 33-41-01-03(9) 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 North Dakota requires.

What the consent form must say

• Confirmation the health questions were asked, or that you tried
• The client's signature
• Signed and dated acknowledgment of the education and aftercare handouts
• For a minor, the parent or guardian's written consent and signature

"The operator shall ask the client to sign a release form confirming that the information described in subsection 1 was obtained or that the operator attempted to obtain the information." — N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01-05(2)

Health history and aftercare

The rules spell out the health questions: diabetes, hemophilia, skin disease or sensitivities, pigment allergies, epilepsy or fainting, blood thinners, medications beyond routine antibiotics/allergy meds/birth control, hepatitis, HIV, high blood pressure or heart disease, pregnancy, contagious disease, immune disorders, and serious physical or mental health problems. The client signs a release confirming you asked. Department-approved education goes out before the work and department-approved written aftercare goes out after it, both signed and dated by both sides, client keeps a copy, you keep the original with the record. The department's disclosure statement and the complaint-filing notice have to be posted in public view.

"Verbal and written instructions, approved by the department, for the aftercare of the body art procedure site shall be provided to each client by the operator upon completion of the procedure." — N.D. Admin. Code § 33-41-01-04(1)

Texting your clients in North Dakota

8am to 9pm, the client’s local time. N.D. Cent. Code ch. 51-28 (Telephone Solicitations); hours at § 51-28-05. It names text messages, so a text counts.

Consent. A communication is not a "telephone solicitation" at all if made "[t]o any subscriber with that subscriber's prior express written request, consent, invitation, or permission" (§ 51-28-01(8)(a)). The statute requires the consent be WRITTEN but does not spell out a form.

Your own clients. Not a "telephone solicitation" if made "[b]y or on behalf of any person with whom the subscriber has an established personal or business relationship" (§ 51-28-01(8)(b)). "Established business relationship" is defined at § 51-28-01(4) as a purchase, rental or lease of the seller's goods or services, or a financial transaction, "within the twenty-four months immediately preceding the date of a telemarketing call." A 24-month limit, longer than most.

It reaches your sender too. Its own words are “make or cause to be made”, so a service that texts on your behalf is inside this rule with you. Hiring one does not move the duty off the shop.

A caller may not use an automatic dialing-announcing device nor make any telephone solicitation before eight a.m. or after nine p.m. at the telephone subscriber's location. The text

Private right of action, § 51-28-11: "Any person who receives a telephone solicitation or message in violation of this chapter may bring an action to enjoin such violation, or for damages, or both." Actual damages or up to $2,000 per violation, whichever is greater, plus costs, expenses and reasonable attorney fees. § 51-28-19 makes "each telephone solicitation or message" a separate violation. One-year limitations period (§ 51-28-12)

Federal law is the floor under it: 8am to 9pm, the client’s local time, prior express written consent for a marketing text, and a STOP honored within 10 business days (47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(c)(1), (e)).

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. North Dakota 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's Food and Lodging unit licenses and inspects body art establishments statewide, and publishes the list of who is licensed. But the Century Code lets any city or county pass its own ordinance as long as it is at least as strict, Fargo has done exactly that, so a Fargo shop answers to Fargo Cass Public Health on top of the state rules.

Food and Lodging, Tattoo and Body Art Establishments (N.D. Admin. Code art. 33-41)

• Fargo Cass Public Health, Regulations for Owners and Operators of Body Art Establishments (Fargo Municipal Code art. 25-33). Stricter than the state: photo ID required for every client, and the ID of any client under 18 photocopied into their record. · City of Fargo

No fixed number. The rule says inspections happen as often as necessary through the year to ensure compliance. The inspector shows identification on the way in, then wants the client records, the sterilizer spore-test results kept 3 years, the posted license, and the posted disclosure statement and complaint notice. You get a copy of the report; the department keeps the original.

Licensing

Your shop. Yes, a body art establishment license from the department, $135 a year, not transferable between people or places, posted somewhere clients will readily see it. Temporary licenses cover trade shows and demonstrations, and mobile establishments have their own rules.

Your artists. No separate state artist license appears in the rules, but every operator must be at least 18, certified in CPR, and vaccinated against hepatitis B (or documented as immune or medically exempt), and must start the vaccine series within 30 days of starting work.

The licensing page

Using a generic waiver app in North Dakota

A generic waiver app is one form builder for every industry — rafting outfits, gyms, trampoline parks and tattoo shops all start from the same blank template. The tattoo part is yours: you write the questions, you keep them current when the rule changes, and you find out whether you got it right when an inspector reads your file.

In North Dakota that is 5 things to set up and keep in step yourself:

• An allergies question: medicines, ointments, soaps, latex, anything put on the skin
• A bleeding-disorder question
• The medications and blood thinners question, always on
• A note after the procedure, written in the shop app, on the record
• A box the client ticks: they are doing this of their own free will and have read and understood the form

On waivers.tattoo, a shop in North Dakota gets all of it the day it starts. Your page opens with North Dakota’s questions already on the form, your client signs on their own phone, and the signed waiver prints what they answered.

North Dakota in our state-by-state posts

• 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? 20 states say yes. Here are the questions.
• Do you have to give tattoo aftercare instructions in writing? 38 states say yes.
• What has to be on a tattoo consent form? 32 states say. Here is every line they name.
• 26 states make you check ID before a tattoo. The other 25 give you a reason to.
• How long do you have to keep tattoo consent forms? Every state, one table