If you operate a hair, beauty, tattooing or skin penetration business you must be registered with Council and comply with the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008.
Hair, beauty, tattooing and skin penetration businesses include:
- hairdressing
- beauty therapy treatments including: makeup, waxing, threading, manicures, pedicures, spray tans, microdermabrasion and facials
- colonic irrigation
- tattooing and cosmetic tattooing
- body and ear piercing
- any other skin penetration procedures including: dry needling, micro-blading, laser and electrolysis
Did you know?
It is an offence to operate a hair, beauty and skin penetration businesses business without a current Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 Certificate of Registration. The Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008 and Regulations aim to protect public health by preventing or containing outbreaks of infectious diseases. They also encourage business proprietors to provide and maintain environments free from infectious diseases.
Infection prevention and control is important so that you do not transmit a disease or infection to yourself or your clients.
The Infection prevention and control guidelines for hair, beauty, tattooing and skin penetration industries (2019) helps those involved in these industries to comply with requirements in the:
Visit the Victorian Department of Health website for health guidelines for hair, beauty, tattooing and skin penetration industries.
Design, construction and operation guidelines
Approved notices and information sheets
The Public Health and Wellbeing Regulations 2019 requires businesses to:
- Display the Department of Health approved notice about the scope of registration in a prominent position in the entry to the business .
- Provide clients who receive tattooing, ear piercing, body piercing, or any other skin-penetration procedures with written information about the risk of infectious diseases associated with the process that is accurate and not misleading.
Visit the Victorian Department of Health website to get more information on notices about scope of registration and client information sheets.
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You must register your place of business (premises) with the local council in which it is located.
Exemptions from registering
If your business is operated by and within the scope of practice of a registered health practitioner under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law, you may not need to register with the local council.
Registered health practitioners listed below do not need to register their business. All other registered health practitioners, for example physiotherapist or osteopath, must register their business if undertaking skin penetration procedures.
Exempt health professionals
- Dentists
- Medical practitioner
- Nurses or midwives
- Podiatrists
- Acupuncturists registered with the Chinese Medicine Board or other registered health practitioner endorsed by their National Board to practice as an acupuncturist
- Pharmacists for the purposes of administering vaccines (not for other skin penetration practices, for example, ear piercing)
The registering body for exempt professionals is the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) For further information please visit the AHPRA website.
Registering a new hair, beauty or skin penetration business
Buying and transferring an existing hair, beauty and skin penetration business
If you are purchasing a hair, beauty and skin penetration business that has an existing business registration, an application must be made to Council to transfer the registration to the new owner of the business.
Transfer a hair, beauty and skin penetration business
Renewing your hair, beauty and skin penetration businesses registration
Operators of hair, beauty and skin penetration businesses must renew their business registration each year.
You will receive a letter with clear instructions on how to renew your registration.
An exception applies to hairdressers and temporary makeup businesses who are not required to renew as they have an ongoing registration.
Under the Public Health and Wellbeing Act 2008, our Environmental Health Officers can inspect any business that is involved with providing health and wellbeing services.
We may conduct inspections without giving prior notice, at any time during business trading hours. Our inspections focus on a wide range of issues including:
- cleanliness of premises and equipment
- personal hygiene
- sterilisation processes
- record keeping
If you want to make a complaint about a hair, beauty and skin penetration businesses in our municipality, please let us know
Report an issue