Maine: Permanent Makeup & Nano Brows Regulation

Verified against official sources, 2026-07-16.

How can you check Nano Brows providers in Maine?

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

Maine DHHS / Maine CDC, Health Inspection Program (HIP) — FIRST TRUE PMU-SPECIFIC LICENSE IN THE DB: 'Micropigmentation Practitioner' is its own statutory chapter (32 M.R.S. ch. 63-A), license category, fee line, and lookup dropdown value, wholly separate from Maine's Tattoo Artist license (ch. 63)

PMU-specific credential — This jurisdiction uses a credential specifically named for permanent makeup, permanent cosmetics, or micropigmentation. The badge does not compare training standards, establish that the credential covers every PMU technique, verify a particular provider, or indicate quality or safety.

Does it cover permanent makeup / nano brows?

Coverage: explicitly-covered

PMU is the license's entire subject. Microblading = micropigmentation by DHHS determination (notice 2022-03-04, upd. 2024-09-04: "the Department has decided to consider microblading as a type of micropigmentation... will not create a separate microblade-only license"; the one-year transitional microblade-only license expired 2022-10-18). Curriculum enumerates eyebrows, eyeliner, lip liner, full lip color; machine-vs-hand is an equipment standard (rule §6), not a license distinction. Exemption (§4312(3), verbatim): "This chapter does not apply to a physician or a person acting under the control or supervision of a physician" — NARROWER than the tattoo chapter's 'practitioner of the healing arts' exemption; independent NP/PA status UNRESOLVED.

Artist requirements

License required	Yes
Training	TIERED by background (rule §8): licensed cosmetologists/estheticians ~37 hrs + 3 supervised procedures; nail techs ~55; electrologists/medical licensees ~37; tattoo artists ~37; GENERAL PUBLIC 200 hrs incl. 14 completed procedures (4 brows/4 eyeliner/4 lipliner/2 full lip) — CONFLICT FLAG: DHHS's 2022/2024 notice claims a reduction to 100 hrs but the filed rule text still reads 200; neither figure publishable as settled. PLUS mandatory AAM BOARD CERTIFICATION within 2 years of licensure (rule §8(I) verbatim; unique in DB). SPCP-claim correction: SPCP/CPCP does NOT satisfy Maine practitioner requirements — SPCP appears only in a notice-level instructor-qualification allowance
Exam	no state exam — competency via tiered training + the third-party AAM board exam within 2 yrs
Bloodborne pathogen	no standalone BBP certificate required (asymmetry vs Maine tattoo/piercing licenses — confirmed across statute, rule, and the HHE-608 form); infection-control knowledge folded into training and §4313(1)(D)
Minimum age	18+ artist (§4315(1)); CLIENTS: FLAT 18+ BAN — rule §4(B) verbatim: "No micropigmentation shall be practiced on the person of any one who is less than 18 years of age, as verified by a driver's license, liquor ID card, military ID card, or other adequate record" — NO consent exception; NOTE the ban lives in the RULE (not a numbered statute section; §4203 is tattoo-chapter only); Maine's three body-art chapters use non-uniform minors standards (piercing allows consent)
Fee	$150 biennial (statutory cap, PL 2025 c. 339; current HHE-608 charges it; rule's $50 is stale); additional inspections $100 charged (statutory cap $200); late $25/<30 days, $100+$25 after
Renewal	biennial (expires Sept 30; §4312(2), (2-A))

Facility requirements

License required	No
Inspection regime	no separate establishment license — the practitioner license attaches to a specific 'micropigmentation facility' which is inspected as part of licensure (≥150 sq ft procedure room, 4-ft partitions, 10/25 foot-candle lighting, autoclave w/ monthly spore tests, approved water/sewage; rule §§3,5); compliance determined at least every 2 years (§4319); conditional-license mechanism for non-compliance (§4312(2-B))
Fee	included in practitioner license (one licensure + one follow-up inspection); additional-location fee UNRESOLVED (tattoo has a $50 line; micropigmentation has none)
Renewal	with practitioner license

Local variation

County-level variation: Yes

Statewide DHHS scheme + home-rule municipalities may layer local requirements (DHHS's own FAQ directs applicants to check local zoning/permits); confirmed example: Westbrook requires a city tattoo-establishment license — but its ordinance names tattoo only, PMU extension UNRESOLVED; no statewide municipal survey performed.

Reciprocity

Equivalency pathway, not true reciprocity (rule §8(H) + DHHS FAQ verbatim): out-of-state applicants must document training hours EQUAL to Maine's §8 requirements AND obtain AAM board certification within 2 years — same substantive bar as in-state applicants.

Pending / recent changes

Active changes: None identified

132nd Legislature fully adjourned (2nd Reg. Session sine die 2026-04-29); no ch. 63-A/63 bill found. OWNER-ORDERED RE-CHECK 2026-07-16: Revisor chapter index still 'extracted 10/20/2025' (pre-2026-session text); Laws-of-Maine session-law application is JS-gated (unfetchable); no 2026 micropigmentation/tattoo law surfaced in any sweep — NO EVIDENCE of a 2026 amendment, but definitive incorporation check QUEUED post-2026-07-29 (general effective date) via browser session. PL 2025 c. 339's LD/bill number still unidentified (minor).

What this means before you book

Maine is the only state in this database so far with a dedicated micropigmentation license: PMU artists hold their own DHHS license (not a tattoo license), must train under a licensed practitioner on a tiered curriculum, and must earn American Academy of Micropigmentation board certification within two years — with the studio space inspected by the state. PMU is banned outright for anyone under 18. You can check licensed micropigmentation providers through the state's Health Inspection Search.

Statutes & sources cited

32 M.R.S. ch. 63-A, §§4311-4319 (Micropigmentation; REVIEWER RE-FETCHED official Revisor PDF 2026-07-16, current through 2025-10-01 — definition, license, $150 fee cap (PL 2025 c. 339), eligibility, penalties $500-$1,000/violation (PL 2023 c. 113), biennial compliance verified verbatim)
10-144 C.M.R. ch. 211 (Rules Relating to Micropigmentation Practitioners; eff. 1998-01-01 and NEVER FORMALLY AMENDED — carries STALE $50 fee and 200-hr training figures that conflict with current statute/practice; see flags)
CONTRAST: 32 M.R.S. ch. 63 (Tattoo Artists) is a separate scheme; §4311(2) verbatim: "'Micropigmentation' means placing nontoxic dyes or pigments into or under the skin to form marks for cosmetic or medical purposes. 'Micropigmentation' does not include tattooing."