The most important thing to understand about a permanent makeup business in Florida is the category it lives in. To the Department of Health, PMU is tattooing, and every rule follows from that.

1. Your license: Tattoo Artist

You apply to the Florida Department of Health for a Tattoo Artist License: 18 or older, a Department-approved bloodborne pathogens and communicable diseases course passed at 70% or better, government photo ID, and the $60 state fee. The license renews annually. No esthetics or cosmetology license is needed first, which is why PMU is its own path at Pristine.

2. Where you may work: a licensed establishment

A tattoo artist may only work in a licensed tattoo establishment. Your application asks you to name the establishment(s) where you will practice. That gives you two ways to start:

• Rent a chair or room in an existing licensed studio (a tattoo shop, or a PMU studio that already holds the establishment license). You hold the artist license; they hold the establishment license. Fastest, cheapest, and how most artists begin.
• Open your own studio, which means becoming an establishment yourself.

3. If the studio is yours: three more pieces of paper

1. Tattoo Establishment License, $200 state fee (county fees may apply), with an inspection for compliance with Florida statutes and administrative code before you open.
2. Biomedical Waste Generator permit, $85, because PMU produces regulated waste (needles, cartridges, blood-contact items). Apply alongside the establishment license, and set up a sharps and biomedical waste pickup contract.
3. Local business tax receipt from your county or city.

A living-room setup does not qualify. The room has to meet establishment standards and pass the inspection like any other studio.

4. Form the LLC before the establishment application

The establishment license, the lease, the waste permit and the payment processor should all be in the business's name. So the order is: file the LLC with the Florida Division of Corporations ($125), get the EIN in the LLC's name (free, irs.gov), then apply for the establishment license and the waste permit as the LLC. If you rent a chair instead, a sole proprietorship with an EIN is workable, but PMU is a needle-on-skin business with a real liability profile, and most artists choose the LLC as soon as they have their own clients.

5. Insurance, consent, and photos

• Professional liability insurance written for permanent makeup, not a general beauty policy. Confirm it covers tattooing.
• Consent forms for every procedure, including a medical history, the risks, aftercare and a photo release. Keep them.
• Before-and-after photos are your marketing; the release is what lets you use them.

6. What to call it

"Studio," "brows," "permanent makeup," "PMU" are all fine. "Medical," "clinic," "cosmetic surgery" and "dermal" imply things you are not licensed to do. Whatever the sign says, the paperwork will say "tattoo establishment"; that is normal. Naming details and the fictitious-name registration are in Naming Your Beauty Business in Florida.

7. Then the money

Deposits, pricing, the merchant account and the startup budget are their own guide: Permanent Makeup Business Plan for Florida.

This is general information, not legal advice. Confirm current fees and requirements with the Florida Department of Health and your county before applying.

Pristine Beauty Academy PMU students can ask Admissions about Own It resources and about job placement at Pristine Spas.

FAQ

Questions people ask

What license do I need to do permanent makeup in Florida?

A Tattoo Artist License from the Florida Department of Health: you must be 18 or older, pass a Department-approved bloodborne pathogens course with at least 70%, show photo ID and pay the $60 state fee. It renews every year. No esthetics or cosmetology license is required.

Can I do permanent makeup from home in Florida?

Only if that home space is a licensed tattoo establishment. Florida requires PMU to be performed in a Department of Health-licensed tattoo establishment, which means the $200 establishment license, a biomedical waste generator permit ($85) and passing an inspection, on top of your artist license.

Do I need an LLC to start a permanent makeup business?

Not to hold the artist license, but if you open your own studio, form the LLC ($125 in Florida) before you apply for the tattoo establishment license and the waste permit, so the business, not you personally, holds the establishment, the lease and the liability.

Do I need a separate EIN for my PMU studio?

You need one EIN for the business entity. If you form an LLC for the studio, apply for the EIN in the LLC's name after the Articles are filed; the bank, the payment processor and the establishment application will all use it.