(a) No person shall perform a body piercing procedure on an individual who is under eighteen (18) years of age unless written consent has been given by the individual’s parent, legal guardian or legal custodian in accordance with subsection (b); however, this subsection (a) shall not apply to an individual who has been emancipated by marriage or by a court order directly pertaining to body piercing.

Attorney's Note

Under the Tennessee Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
class C misdemeanorup to 30 daysup to $50
For details, see Tenn. Code § 40-35-111

Terms Used In Tennessee Code 62-38-305

  • Body piercing: includes ear piercing except when the ear piercing procedure is performed on the ear with an ear piercing gun. See Tennessee Code 62-38-301
  • body piercing procedure: means the service performed or the procedure utilized for body piercing. See Tennessee Code 62-38-301
  • Business: means any entity that provides body piercing services or procedures for compensation. See Tennessee Code 62-38-301
  • Department: means the department of health. See Tennessee Code 62-38-301
  • Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
  • Minor: means an individual under the age of eighteen (18). See Tennessee Code 62-38-301
  • operator: means a person who controls, operates, conducts or manages a body piercing establishment, whether or not the operator is actually engaging in body piercing. See Tennessee Code 62-38-301
  • Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Proof of age: means a driver license or other generally accepted means of identification that describes the individual as eighteen (18) years of age or older, contains a photograph or other likeness of the individual and appears on its face to be valid. See Tennessee Code 62-38-301
  • signed: includes a mark, the name being written near the mark and witnessed, or any other symbol or methodology executed or adopted by a party with intention to authenticate a writing or record, regardless of being witnessed. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(b) A parent, legal guardian or legal custodian of an individual under age eighteen (18) who desires to give consent to a business for performance of a body piercing procedure on the individual under the age of eighteen (18) shall do all of the following:

(1) Appear in person at the business at the time the procedure is performed;
(2) Sign a document provided by the business that explains the manner in which the procedure will be performed and the methods for proper care of the affected body area following performance of the procedure;
(3) Produce proof of age;
(4) Sign a statement that the individual is the minor‘s parent, legal guardian or legal custodian;
(5)

(A) Present proof of guardianship or custody of the minor;
(B) For purposes of subdivision (b)(5)(A), “proof of guardianship or custody” includes a copy of an order of guardianship, a decree for custody, a birth certificate or any other form of proof of guardianship or custody that is permitted by rule of the department of health; and
(6) Sign a statement as specified by rule stating in writing that the individual consents to the procedure being performed on the minor and that the individual providing consent is in fact the parent, legal guardian or legal custodian of the minor. The statement shall include the following declarations and disclosures:

(A) The undersigned is fully aware that to falsify legal standing as to parentage or being the legal guardian or legal custodian is a Class C misdemeanor; and
(B) Pursuant to § 40-35-111, a Class C misdemeanor means imprisonment for a period of no greater than thirty (30) days or a fine not to exceed fifty dollars ($50.00), or both.
(c) Records of body piercing procedures performed on minors shall be maintained by the operator for two (2) years. A copy of all paperwork on a minor shall be forwarded to the department within thirty (30) business days following the performance of the body piercing procedure, and the department shall retain such paperwork for two (2) years. The paperwork shall include, but not be limited to:

(1) The signed document that explains the manner in which the procedure will be performed and the methods for proper care;
(2) A copy of the proof of age;
(3) The statement in writing that the individual is the minor’s parent, legal guardian or legal custodian; and
(4) The signed statement that provides consent to perform a body piercing procedure on a minor that stipulates that the individual understands the consequences for falsifying the individual’s legal standing as to parentage or being the legal guardian or legal custodian.
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