South Carolina: Permanent Makeup & Nano Brows Regulation

Verified against official sources, 2026-07-16.

How can you check Nano Brows providers in South Carolina?

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

SPLIT REGIME — SC Dept of Public Health (DPH, DHEC's health successor since the July 2024 agency split) licenses TATTOO FACILITIES (S.C. Code tit. 44 ch. 34 + Reg. 60-111), but PMU/micropigmentation is EXCLUDED from tattooing and reserved to PHYSICIAN-DIRECTED MEDICAL PRACTICE (LLR Board of Medical Examiners Micropigmentation Policy + Reg. 60-111 §§100.V, 900.L). SCHEMA v1.3 (R1c gate ruling, 2026-07-16): license_required = 'medical-only' — PMU performable only by/under licensed medical practitioners; the Tattoo Facility Act governs body tattooing separately (facility-only, face work banned)

Does it cover permanent makeup / nano brows?

Coverage: explicitly-covered

THE DB'S MOST RESTRICTIVE PMU REGIME: eyebrow/eyeliner/lip PMU (hand OR machine — §100.V is tool-agnostic: 'needle or electronic machine') is a MEDICAL PROCEDURE performable ONLY by/under a physician — Board of Medical Examiners policy (2005, unrescinded) verbatim: 'the physician must direct the course of the patient's treatment, must directly supervise the person performing the procedure, and must be on site when the procedure is performed'; DPH FAQ confirms tattoo artists may NOT perform microblading/PMU. Tattoo artists are DOUBLY excluded (face ban §44-34-100(E) + §900.L). NO PMU practitioner license exists (confirmed absent). Delegation categories (RN? aesthetician?) UNRESOLVED — Nursing AO #72 (microblading) is dead-linked and absent from the current AO index; AO #39 (cosmetic procedures) omits micropigmentation. Cosmetology board: no jurisdiction (own pages route to Medical/Nursing boards).

Artist requirements

License required	No individual artist license at this level
Training	NO individual tattoo-artist license (facility-only licensing); artist conditions ride the facility license: 21+, annual BBP/infection-control course, Red Cross First Aid, Adult CPR, OSHA compliance; 'Experienced Tattoo Artist' vs 'Trainee' (1,000 supervised hours within 36 months). FOR PMU: no license category exists at all — practitioners operate under physician direction/delegation (Medical Practice Act), with the physician bearing responsibility
Exam	none (either track)
Bloodborne pathogen	yes — annual, tattoo track; PMU track = medical-office standards under physician responsibility
Minimum age	tattoo artist 21+ (§44-34-50(A) — highest artist floor in the DB); CLIENTS: FLAT under-18 tattoo ban (§44-34-100(A), no consent exception; civil action for violations §44-34-60(D)); physician medical-necessity tattooing exempt at any age (§16-17-700); intoxicated clients barred (§44-34-100(C))
Fee	n/a (facility-based)
Renewal	certifications annual

Facility requirements

License required	Yes
Inspection regime	tattoo facility license (DPH): $400/yr ≤8 stations + $50/added station + $50 certification fee; LOCAL AUTHORIZING ORDINANCE prerequisite (§44-34-20(B)(5) — opt-IN by city/county, not referendum: the county-referendum lead was DISCARDED); 1,000-ft buffer (new licenses); 3-week newspaper notice; tattooing ONLY (no other retail/piercing, §44-34-20(C)); unannounced inspections; Class I-III violations $100-$5,000; autoclave logs 2 yrs; separate sterilization room. PMU: physician's office (medical-facility standards, no DPH body-art license)
Fee	$400/yr + $50/station over 8; 25% late
Renewal	annual

Local variation

County-level variation: Yes

Statewide DPH scheme with a LOCAL OPT-IN GATE: no facility license may issue absent a local ordinance (or administrator letter) authorizing tattooing in that jurisdiction — municipalities/counties that never opt in have NO licensed tattoo facilities. PMU is unaffected by the local gate (medical practice).

Reciprocity

None: facilities license fresh (no interstate recognition); artists have an experience-recognition definition only (out-of-state license/1,000 hrs from a state meeting SC minimums = 'Experienced Tattoo Artist', skipping the trainee period — not a license transfer); PMU = ordinary physician licensure (out-of-state physicians need SC medical licensure).

Pending / recent changes

Active changes: Yes

H.3099 + companion H.3015 (126th GA, prefiled 2024-12-05, referred House 3M Committee 2025-01-14, NO action since): H.3099 would REPEAL §44-34-100(E) (the head/face/neck ban) and allow retail/piercing in tattoo facilities + add an institution-waiver to the 1,000-ft buffer — IF ENACTED it would NOT by itself un-gate PMU from medicine (Reg. 60-111 §§100.V/900.L and the Medical Board policy are independent of §100(E)) — HIGH-value watch. H.3484 (braiders/makeup artists) = non-permanent makeup, immaterial.

What this means before you book

South Carolina treats permanent makeup as a medical procedure: eyebrow, eyeliner, and lip pigmentation may only be performed by a physician or under a physician's direct, on-site supervision — licensed tattoo artists are expressly prohibited from face work and from micropigmentation, and no PMU practitioner license exists. (Tattoo studios themselves are state-licensed facilities in cities and counties that have authorized tattooing by ordinance, with artists 21+, and no tattooing of anyone under 18.) When choosing a PMU provider in South Carolina, the question to ask is which physician directs and supervises the procedure.

Statutes & sources cited

S.C. Code §44-34-10 et seq. (Tattoo Facility Act; REVIEWER RE-FETCHED the full chapter at scstatehouse.gov 2026-07-16, verbatim): §44-34-100(E): 'It is unlawful for a tattoo artist to tattoo any part of the head, face, or neck of another person'; §44-34-100(A): flat under-18 ban; §44-34-50(A): artist 21+, annual BBP/infection-control + Red Cross First Aid + CPR; §44-34-90: 'This chapter does not restrict the activities of a physician or surgeon'; §44-34-20(B)(5): licensure requires a certified LOCAL ORDINANCE authorizing tattooing; §44-34-110: 1,000-ft church/school/playground buffer + 3-week newspaper notice; penalties ≤$2,500/1 yr. NOTE: §44-34-10(1) still names DHEC — DPH operates it post-split
S.C. Code Regs. 60-111 (Standards for Licensing Tattoo Facilities; CURRENT — renumbered from 61-111 in the DHEC→DPH split, republished 2025-05-23, 49 SR 5 Doc 5352): §100.V verbatim: micropigmentation/permanent cosmetics = 'A medical procedure performed above the jaw line and anterior to the ear and frontal hairline... application of eyeliner; eye shadow; and lip, eyebrow, or cheek color... shall not be construed to be included in the definition of tattooing'; §900.L verbatim: 'The tattoo artist is not authorized to... perform micropigmentation or permanent cosmetic procedures. Tattoo removal, micropigmentation or permanent cosmetic procedures shall be provided only by physicians or other legally authorized healthcare providers.' STALE-CITE TRAP: 61-111 still hosted and cited by DPH's own FAQ
S.C. Code §16-17-700 (criminal tattoo statute: physician may tattoo any age if medically necessary/appropriate + may delegate to an employee 'in accordance with Section 40-47-60' — a GHOST CITE: no §40-47-60 exists in current ch. 47 (1976-Code relic); delegation clause verbatim-identical across two official agencies)