Tanning laws · IL
Illinois tanning laws for salon owners
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Researched and written by the TanVision team
General information, not legal advice. Check your state’s current rules.
The short answer
Illinois bans UV tanning for anyone under 18, even with a parent's permission. Each salon needs a yearly IDPH permit for every location and is inspected every year. Clients sign a warning statement at the first visit and at least yearly, may not tan within 24 hours of a session, and every visit is recorded permanently.
Illinois at a glance
- Minimum age for UV tanning
- 18. A tanning facility may not let anyone under 18 use UV tanning equipment, whether or not a parent or guardian gives permission (210 ILCS 145/25(2)). Age is checked against a government-issued ID with a photo and birth date (77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.190(c)). Source 1
- Parental consent
- Not available. 210 ILCS 145/25(2) applies the under-18 ban regardless of a parent's or guardian's permission, and 77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.190(c) bars under-18s from tanning equipment either alone or with another person present. Source 1
- Spray tan age rule
- None. The under-18 ban in 210 ILCS 145/25(2) covers UV tanning equipment and expressly excludes devices that apply spray-on, mist-on or sunless tans (145/25(2)(d)). Source 1
- License or permit
- An IDPH permit is required before a tanning facility operates, with a separate application for each location (210 ILCS 145/10(a), (c)). A permit lasts one year, covers only the owner and location named on it and cannot be transferred; a new owner applies before taking possession (145/10(f), (h)). Fees: $250 to apply, $150 to renew at least 30 days before expiry, $250 once a permit has expired (145/10(b), 145/15(a); 77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.60(d), (e), 795.90(e)). Source 1
- Inspections
- IDPH or its local agent completes an initial inspection within 90 days of an application, then inspects each facility at least once a year after the first permit year (210 ILCS 145/10(d), 145/15(c); 77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.70(a), 795.90(d)). Source 1
- Operator training
- 77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.180: operators must be trained before they work, covering ten listed topics that include Part 795 and 21 CFR 1040.20, exposure schedules, injuries, eyewear, emergency procedures, photosensitizing agents and the six skin types. Keep a list of trained operators with the date, hours and materials of their training, and have a trained operator present whenever equipment runs. Part 795 names no state exam or approved course. Source 2
- Time between sessions
- 24 hours. Operators may not let a client use tanning equipment if the client used a tanning facility in the previous 24 hours, and the client certifies this on the intake form (77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.180(e), 795.190(b)). Source 2
- Consent statement
- At the first visit and at least once a year after, the client receives the written warning in 795.150(a) and signs a statement that they read and understood it; for a client who cannot read it, the operator reads it aloud before a witness and both sign (77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.190(a)). The Act also requires a written copy of the warning before each use (210 ILCS 145/25(1)(f)). Source 2
- Client records
- Keep each client's medication and cosmetics form confidential, and keep it and a record of their total visits, dates, exposure times and equipment used as a permanent record; visit records stay available for at least five years after the business closes (77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.190(b), (d)). Permanent means at least five years after the last visit (795.30). Copy computer records at least monthly to storage other than the computer's hard drive (795.190(e)). Source 2
- Injury reporting
- Send IDPH a written report of any tanning injury or alleged injury within 10 working days of it happening or of learning about it, with the details listed in 77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.200. An injury is any incident from a tanning device that leads a client to seek medical attention (795.30). Source 2
- Protective eyewear
- 77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.170: give each client protective eyewear meeting 21 CFR 1040.20(c)(4) before every session, with instructions, and keep documents showing it meets that standard. Sanitize it before each use in a solution of set strength, test the solution with a test kit at least once each day of operation, and refuse service to anyone who will not wear it. Source 2
- Replacement lamps
- Replace lamps, bulbs and filters with the type named on the unit's label or an equivalent that meets 21 CFR 1040.20 (77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.150(b)(7)). Keep manufacturer literature or FDA certification showing each replacement is equivalent, and a log of each replacement lamp's install date, position and model (795.100(b), (c)). Neither the Act nor Part 795 addresses reselling used equipment. Source 2
- Timer checks
- Each unit needs a timer meeting 21 CFR 1040.20(c)(2), with a maximum setting no longer than the manufacturer's maximum exposure time and an error of no more than 10% of that maximum (77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.150(b)(2)). The Act and Part 795 set no timer-testing interval; IDPH says its yearly inspections check for accurate timers. Source 2
Who regulates tanning in Illinois
The Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) permits and inspects tanning facilities under the Tanning Facility Permit Act (210 ILCS 145) and the Tanning Facilities Code (77 Ill. Adm. Code 795). Certified local health departments may inspect for IDPH under contract, and your city or county can add its own business and zoning requirements.
At the front desk, every visit
- Check age against a government-issued ID that shows a photo and a birth date. Nobody under 18 may use UV equipment, with or without a parent (210 ILCS 145/25(2); 795.190(c)). You do not have to keep a copy of the ID.
- Have the client fill in the intake form: prescription and over-the-counter medications, cosmetics, toiletries and any tanning accelerator applied, plus a certification that they have not tanned at any facility in the past 24 hours (795.190(b)). Keep it confidential.
- At the first visit, and at least once a year after, give the written warning and have the client sign that they read and understood it (795.190(a)). The Act also calls for a written copy of the warning before each use (145/25(1)(f)).
- Hand over sanitized protective eyewear with instructions, and do not start the session if the client will not wear it (795.170(a), (f)).
- Show the client the correct position, the handrail if there is one and the emergency stop, and keep the time within the manufacturer's maximum, taking skin type into account (795.180(d), (e)).
- Log the visit with its date, exposure time and the unit used (795.190(d)).
Staff, equipment and the permit
- A trained operator must be present whenever equipment runs, and token-operated units may not be used without one (795.180(c), (h)).
- Keep a list of trained operators with each one's training date, hours and materials (795.180(b)).
- Display the permit where people entering can see it, post the IDPH warning sign within 3 feet of each unit, keep emergency phone numbers in view and keep a list of common photosensitizing agents for clients (795.70(e), 795.150(a), 795.180(f), (g)).
- Sanitize eyewear before each use, test the solution strength at least once each day you operate, and disinfect every surface a client touched inside the unit after each use (795.170(c), (d); 795.210(d)).
- Keep the replacement-lamp log and proof that each lamp is equivalent (795.100(b), (c)).
- Do not claim that tanning is safe or free from risk, and do not mention your IDPH permit in advertising (795.120).
Records and injury reports
Intake forms and visit records are a permanent part of each client's file. Part 795 defines permanent as at least five years after the client's last visit, and visit records must stay available for at least five years after the business closes (795.30, 795.190(d)). If you keep them on a computer, copy them at least monthly to storage other than that computer's hard drive (795.190(e)).
Send IDPH a written report of any injury or alleged injury within 10 working days of it happening or of your learning about it. It must name the client, the date, the unit, your facility and permit number, the nature of the injury and the client's health care provider, if any (795.200).
What has changed recently
No amendment to the Act or to Part 795 took effect in 2024, 2025 or 2026, according to the source notes on the official texts read on 2026-09-29. The last Public Act to amend the Act is P.A. 99-642 (effective July 28, 2016), which amended Section 80 on operating without a permit. Part 795 was last amended effective November 24, 2014. The under-18 ban has applied since January 1, 2014 (P.A. 98-349).
How TanVision helps
With TanVision's consent forms, clients sign on their own phone or a tablet, and you can add your own questions, such as the medication list and the 24-hour certification Illinois asks for. A session cannot start without a signed statement and a date of birth on file. TanVision does not ask clients to sign again after a year, so when the yearly acknowledgment falls due, the client signs again through the same link and the new record is filed beside the old one.
Each salon's minimum age is 18 by default, which matches Illinois. Set Minors and UV rooms to No at Settings > Tanning rules: check-in then refuses UV rooms to anyone under 18, even with guardian consent on file, while a parent's consent still opens spray rooms. At Yes, the default, guardian consent on file lets a minor start a session in any room. The gap between UV sessions is one salon setting that starts at 24 hours, exposure safety refuses a typed time over the room's maximum, and each client record shows the client's visits, newest first, with the date, time, room, bed level and minutes. Compare other states on the tanning laws by state page, starting with neighboring Indiana.
Common questions
- What is the minimum age to tan in Illinois?
- 18. Since January 1, 2014, 210 ILCS 145/25(2) has barred anyone under 18 from UV tanning equipment at a tanning facility, even with a parent's or guardian's permission. The desk checks a government-issued ID with a photo and birth date.
- Can a 17-year-old get a spray tan in Illinois?
- The state's under-18 ban does not cover spray. Section 25(2) of the Tanning Facility Permit Act excludes devices that apply spray-on, mist-on or sunless tans from the tanning equipment it bars minors from using.
- How often do Illinois tanning clients sign the warning statement?
- At the first visit and at least once a year after that (77 Ill. Adm. Code 795.190(a)). Separately, the Act says the operator gives the client a written copy of the warning before each use (210 ILCS 145/25(1)(f)).
- Is there a 24-hour rule for tanning in Illinois?
- Yes. Operators may not let a client tan if the client used a tanning facility in the previous 24 hours, and the client certifies this on the intake form (795.180(e), 795.190(b)).
- How long must an Illinois tanning salon keep client records?
- Permanently, which Part 795 defines as at least five years after the client's last visit. Visit records must also stay available for at least five years after the business closes, and computer records need a monthly copy on storage other than the computer's hard drive.