Illinois: Permanent Makeup & Nano Brows Regulation

Verified against official sources, 2026-07-12.

How can you check Nano Brows providers in Illinois?

No online lookup located: As of 2026-07-12, we did not locate a public online lookup. You may ask the provider for the credential's name and issuing agency.

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

Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH), Body Art program; IDPH may designate certified local health departments as its agents (410 ILCS 54/50(b))

Does it cover permanent makeup / nano brows?

Coverage: explicitly-covered

410 ILCS 54/10: "'Tattooing' includes imparting permanent makeup on the skin, such as permanent lip coloring and permanent eyeliner." 77 IAC 797.100: tattooing "includes all forms of cosmetic tattooing"; 'body art' expressly lists cosmetic tattooing. IDPH: microblading/PMU "DO NOT fall under the license of cosmetology or esthetics." Exemption: physician-performed work (physician-performs, not physician-supervision).

Artist requirements

License required	No individual artist license at this level
Training	none specified — no individual license exists; operator must verify each artist's proficiency (797.1300(c))
Exam	none
Bloodborne pathogen	yes — OSHA-compliant BBP training documentation kept on file at the establishment (797.1300(d); 29 CFR 1910.1030); out-of-state training accepted
Minimum age	18 (artist/apprentice, 797.400(b)); clients under 18 prohibited (720 ILCS 5/12C-35)
Fee	n/a — no individual credential; IDPH: "The location holds the Body Art permit with IDPH, not the individual"
Renewal	n/a

Facility requirements

License required	Yes
Inspection regime	pre-issuance inspection mandatory (410 ILCS 54/30(a)); periodic inspections thereafter (54/30(b); 797.1500); certificate must be conspicuously displayed (54/35(c))
Fee	$500/yr + $50 per additional work station (797.1200(b)); temporary events: $250, max 14 days (54/20; 797.1400)
Renewal	annual

Local variation

County-level variation: Yes

No preemption — the state certificate is "separate from any other licensing requirement that may exist within communities or political subdivisions" (77 IAC 797.100); IDPH: city and county governments may both add requirements. Chicago requires its own license; suburban Cook County inspects as an IDPH-adjacent role.

Local overlays

Chicago (city)

Separate city Regulated Business License required (Municipal Code of Chicago §4-6-060, 'Tattooing, body piercing and tanning facilities'): $250 / 2-year term; commercial general liability insurance ≥$300,000 per occurrence naming the City; zoning approval; IDPH registration/inspection approval is a prerequisite; city definition mirrors the state's ('imparting permanent make-up on the skin'). License activity category is explicitly 'Tattoo / Permanent Body Art and Make-Up / Micro Blading'. Business-level only — no individual artist credential.

Reciprocity

Not addressed (no artist license to reciprocate). IDPH accepts out-of-state BBP training; guest artists work under a location's registration or a 14-day temporary certificate (410 ILCS 54/20).

Pending / recent changes

Active changes: None identified

No bill amending 410 ILCS 54 or creating artist licensure found in the 104th GA; no Part 797 rulemaking listed on IDPH's proposed-rules page. Adjacent only: SB2986 (IDOC gang-tattoo-removal pilot referencing the Act) stalled in Assignments 2026-03-27. A search-result claim of a 2025 Part 797 amendment ('49 Ill. Reg. 7969') could NOT be verified and contradicts both official sources — treated as erroneous.

What this means before you book

In Illinois, permanent makeup (including nano brows and microblading) is legally tattooing and may only be performed inside a body art establishment holding a current IDPH certificate of registration, which must be displayed where clients can see it; a cosmetology or esthetics license does not cover these services. Illinois registers the location, not the artist, so ask to see the shop's IDPH certificate and the artist's bloodborne-pathogen training documentation. Clients under 18 are prohibited (physician-performed work excepted); in Chicago the shop must also hold a city Regulated Business License, checkable on the city's open-data portal.

Statutes & sources cited

Tattoo and Body Piercing Establishment Registration Act, 410 ILCS 54 (P.A. 94-1040, eff. 2007-07-01)
Body Art Code, 77 Ill. Adm. Code 797 (adopted 33 Ill. Reg. 246, eff. 2008-12-26)
720 ILCS 5/12C-35 (tattooing the body of a minor)