Hawaii: Permanent Makeup & Nano Brows Regulation
Verified against official sources, 2026-07-14.
How can you check Nano Brows providers in Hawaii?
Online lookup available: You may search the issuing agency's public lookup for the provider or establishment.
A lookup result reflects only the information shown by the issuing agency. Directory inclusion does not certify a provider's credentials or legal compliance.
Who regulates it
Hawaii Department of Health (DOH), Sanitation Branch — individual tattoo ARTIST licenses (written exam + medical screening) AND tattoo SHOP permits (pre-operation inspection)
Does it cover permanent makeup / nano brows?
Coverage: covered-as-tattoo
HAR 11-17's tattooing definition (inserting pigment under the skin) is tool-neutral — machine PMU/nano brows fall within the tattoo-artist licensing scheme. No DOH page using 'permanent makeup'/'microblading' located (explicit-statement UNRESOLVED; the DOH tattoo program is the only applicable scheme identified — no cosmetology PMU pathway: the Board of Barbering & Cosmetology statutes contain no tattoo/PMU authority). Physician exemption: §11-17-2 excludes physicians acting within scope.
Artist requirements
| License required | Yes |
|---|---|
| Training | no hour minimum — qualification is by WRITTEN EXAM plus a physician's certificate (TB clearance + syphilis serology within 30 days of application) — the only medical-screening requirement in this DB |
| Exam | written exam (sanitation, sterilization, aseptic technique; administered by DOH district offices) |
| Bloodborne pathogen | covered within exam/sanitation rules (no separate certificate requirement identified) |
| Minimum age | 18+ artist; CLIENTS under 18: written parental/guardian consent (HAR §11-17-8) |
| Fee | per DOH Sanitation Branch posted schedule (exam + biennial license; HAR figures stale — see discrepancy flag) |
| Renewal | biennial |
Facility requirements
| License required | Yes |
|---|---|
| Inspection regime | tattoo shop permit requires DOH inspection BEFORE operation; ongoing sanitation inspections; temporary event permits available |
| Fee | per posted schedule |
| Renewal | annual |
Local variation
County-level variation: No
Single statewide DOH scheme (district offices administer per county, same rules).
Reciprocity
NONE — no endorsement/reciprocity provision; out-of-state artists take the HI exam. 14-day temporary permits exist for visiting artists at licensed shops.
Pending / recent changes
Active changes: None identified
No 2026 tattoo/PMU bill located in the Hawaii Legislature (session adjourned 2026-05-07) — UNRESOLVED margins (search-based).
What this means before you book
Hawaii licenses tattoo artists (the scheme PMU falls under) through the Health Department with a written exam plus a physician's certificate including TB and syphilis screening — unique nationally — and shops are inspected before opening. The DOH publishes downloadable lists of licensed artists and shops you can check directly. There's no reciprocity: artists moving from the mainland must pass Hawaii's exam.
Statutes & sources cited
- HRS §321-13 (DOH authority over tattoo artists/shops; licensing + fee authority)
- HAR Title 11, ch. 11-17 (Tattoo Artists and Shops): §11-17-3 artist licensing (written exam; physician's certificate incl. TB clearance + syphilis serology within 30 days of application), §11-17-4 shop permits (pre-operation inspection), §11-17-6 sanitation, §11-17-8 minors (written parental/guardian consent required under 18)
- HAR/HRS FEE DISCREPANCY (flagged): HAR 11-17 lists artist exam/license fees that differ from the DOH Sanitation Branch's current posted fee sheet — current-figures currency UNRESOLVED; posted sheet treated as operative, rule text as stale