Tanning laws · TX
Texas 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
Texas bans UV tanning for anyone under 18, with no parental-consent exception (Health and Safety Code 145.008(f)). There is no state tanning license: the requirement was removed in 2015 and the state's licensing rules were repealed on November 10, 2025. Chapter 145 still requires photo ID, signed warnings, eyewear and customer records kept for 3 years.
Texas at a glance
- Minimum age for UV tanning
- 18. Texas Health and Safety Code 145.008(f) says a tanning facility may not allow a person younger than 18 years of age to use a tanning device. Source 1
- Parental consent for minors
- Not available. S.B. 329 (2013) rewrote 145.008(f) as a flat under-18 ban and repealed 145.008(g). Before September 1, 2013, a minor aged 16 and a half or older could tan with a parent or guardian's written consent given in person at the facility. Source 4
- Spray tan age rule
- Chapter 145 sets no spray-tan age. Its under-18 rule in 145.008(f) covers a "tanning device", which 145.002(7) defines as equipment that emits electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths between 200 and 400 nanometers and is used for tanning human skin. Source 1
- State license or registration
- None. The Department of State Health Services' tanning licensing rules (25 TAC 229.341 to 229.357) were repealed effective November 10, 2025. The adoption notice says S.B. 202 (2015) removed the licensing requirement from chapter 145 and that the department no longer has the authority to license tanning facilities. Source 2
- Inspections
- Chapter 145 sets no scheduled state inspection. Under 145.011(c), whoever keeps the chapter's records must let a health authority copy or verify them at reasonable times when asked. Source 1
- Operator training
- No course or certificate is named. Section 145.008(a) requires an operator present during operating hours who is sufficiently knowledgeable in the correct operation of the facility's tanning devices and who explains the listed hazards to each first-time customer. Source 1
- Time between sessions
- Chapter 145 sets no minimum time between sessions. Section 145.008(d) limits each exposure to the maximum exposure time recommended by the device's manufacturer. Source 1
- Signed warning statement
- Before a customer's first use of a device, and each time a person executes or renews a contract to use the facility, the person must show photo identification and sign a statement that they read and understood the required warnings and agree to use protective eyewear (145.008(e)). The written warning's contents are set by 145.005(a). Source 1
- Customer records
- Keep each customer's record at the facility until at least the third anniversary of their last use: date and time of each use, minutes used, any injury or illness, the signed statement, their Fitzpatrick skin type as they determine it, and any family or past medical history of skin cancer (145.008(i)). Keep an incident log for 3 years after each incident (145.008(j)). Source 1
- Injury reporting
- Chapter 145 sets no deadline for reporting an injury to a state agency. Record any injury or illness in the customer's record (145.008(i)(3)) and each alleged injury in the facility's incident log (145.008(j)). Source 1
- Protective eyewear
- Before each use, provide clean, properly sanitized eyewear that protects against UV and allows adequate vision to keep balance, kept near each device and free of charge. Do not let anyone use a device without eyewear that meets U.S. Food and Drug Administration requirements (145.008(b)). Source 1
- Replacement lamps
- Chapter 145 has no lamp-replacement rule of its own. Section 145.004(a) requires every tanning device a facility uses to comply with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations. Source 1
- Timers
- Chapter 145 sets no timer-testing interval. Section 145.008(d) requires a timer accurate to plus or minus 10 percent of the device's maximum timer interval, located so the customer cannot set or reset their own exposure time. Source 1
What changed in 2025, and what did not
Texas stopped licensing tanning salons. The legislature removed the licensing requirement in 2015 with S.B. 202, and on November 10, 2025 the Department of State Health Services repealed the old licensing rules in 25 TAC chapter 229, subchapter T. There is no state license to renew and no state inspection schedule.
The operating rules did not go away. Chapter 145 of the Health and Safety Code still sets the age limit, the paperwork, the eyewear and the records. The attorney general or a local district, county or city attorney can sue over a violation, with a civil penalty of up to $25,000 a day for each violation (145.0121), and breaking the chapter is a Class A misdemeanor for anyone other than the customer (145.013). Your city or county may have its own rules, so check with them too.
At the front desk: a new client
- Check photo ID and the date of birth. Turn away anyone under 18 for UV, even with a parent standing there.
- Hand over the written warning statement. Section 145.005(a) lists what it must say, including the eye, burn, skin-aging and medication warnings.
- Have them sign a statement that they read and understood the warnings and agree to wear protective eyewear (145.008(e)).
- Explain the points in 145.008(a)(4): the hazards of UV, that eyewear is required, photosensitivity from drugs or other agents, how skin type relates to exposure time, your devices' maximum times, how tanning works, and the need to avoid overexposure.
- Record their skin type on the Fitzpatrick scale, as the client determines it, and ask about family and personal history of skin cancer. Both belong in the record.
At every visit
- Have an operator on site whenever you are open (145.008(a)).
- Put clean, sanitized eyewear with each device before each use, free of charge, and refuse the session if the client will not wear it (145.008(b)). See the eye protection guide.
- Clean and sanitize every body-contact surface after each use (145.008(c)).
- Keep each session within the manufacturer's maximum time, with the timer out of the client's reach (145.008(d)).
- Keep other people out of the area of a device that is in use (145.008(h)), and keep contact surfaces and the surrounding area at or below 100 degrees Fahrenheit (145.008(d)).
- When a client signs or renews a contract, such as a membership, check photo ID and get a fresh signed statement (145.008(e)).
Records, signs and advertising
Keep each client's record until at least three years after their last session, and keep an incident log of injuries, sessions without eyewear, mechanical problems and complaints for three years after each incident (145.008(i) and (j)). Do not share a client's record except in the cases 145.016 allows, such as the client's own request or a health authority's request. More in the recordkeeping guide.
Post a warning sign at least 11 by 17 inches where people entering can see it, and a second sign of the same size at each device. Each has its own required wording, set out word for word in 145.006(a) and (b). Do not claim that tanning is safe, free from risk or good for health (145.007). See the advertising guide.
How TanVision helps with the Texas paperwork
Clients sign TanVision's consent forms on their own phone or a tablet, and each signed record keeps the signature and the exact wording they agreed to. You can add your own questions, such as family and personal history of skin cancer. At check-in, a session cannot start without a signed statement and a date of birth on file.
Each session is saved with its date and time, the minutes, the client's skin type at the time and the staff member on it, inside the client record. With a USB 2D barcode scanner, Scan ID reads the date of birth from the barcode on a driver's license or ID card and records the day the ID was checked, but it does not compare the photo with the person, and TanVision does not ask for a new signature when a contract renews, so the desk still looks at the photo ID and collects the fresh statement. If a parent or guardian signs the consent form for someone under 18, TanVision records guardian consent, because some states allow it. Texas does not, so set Minors and UV rooms to No at Settings > Tanning rules: check-in then refuses UV rooms to every client under 18, even with guardian consent on file, while the consent still opens spray rooms. At Yes, the default, consent lets that client start any room, UV included, with only a warning.
Compare other states on the tanning laws page, including Florida.
Common questions
- Do I need a license to open a tanning salon in Texas?
- Not from the state. S.B. 202 removed the licensing requirement in 2015, and the Department of State Health Services repealed its tanning licensing rules effective November 10, 2025. The operating rules in Health and Safety Code chapter 145 still apply, and a city or county may have its own requirements.
- Can a 16- or 17-year-old tan in Texas with a parent's permission?
- No. Since September 1, 2013, section 145.008(f) bars anyone under 18 from using a tanning device, with no exception for parental consent.
- Can minors get a spray tan in Texas?
- Chapter 145 sets no age for spray tanning. Its under-18 rule applies to tanning devices, which the chapter defines as equipment that emits electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths between 200 and 400 nanometers and is used for tanning.
- How long must a Texas tanning salon keep client records?
- Until at least the third anniversary of the client's last session, under section 145.008(i). The incident log is kept for three years after each incident, under 145.008(j).
- Does Texas have a 24-hour rule between tanning sessions?
- Chapter 145 sets no minimum time between sessions. It limits each session to the manufacturer's maximum exposure time. A salon may still set its own gap as house policy; see the 24-hour rule guide.