Virginia tanning laws for salon owners

What Virginia's tanning law covers

Virginia's statewide tanning law is one short chapter of the Code: Title 59.1, Chapter 24.1, sections 59.1-310.1 to 59.1-310.6. It applies to any business that gives people access to UV tanning devices. It names no licensing agency and sets no inspection schedule. Anyone other than a customer who knowingly and willfully breaks it is guilty of a Class 3 misdemeanor (§ 59.1-310.6). City and county rules, including local business licenses, are outside this page.

Before a client's first UV session

1. Check the date of birth. Nobody under 18 may use a UV tanning device, a parent's signature does not change that, and the law makes the owner responsible for checking age (§ 59.1-310.5(G)).
2. Hand over the written warning statement with its five warnings (eye damage without eyewear, burns, premature aging and skin cancer, reactions with foods, cosmetics and medications, and consulting a physician when taking drugs) and get the client's signature on a duplicate (§ 59.1-310.3(A), (B)).
3. Identify the client's skin type on the Fitzpatrick scale, write it down, and tell the client their maximum recommended exposure time (§ 59.1-310.5(B)). Our Fitzpatrick skin type guide explains the six types.
4. Get the signed acknowledgment that the client read and understood the warnings and will wear the eyewear you provide (§ 59.1-310.5(F)).
5. Show the client how to use the handrails, floor markings or other aids that keep the manufacturer's recommended exposure distance (§ 59.1-310.5(C)).

At every session

• Keep a knowledgeable operator on site whenever you are open (§ 59.1-310.5(A)).
• Hand out sanitized protective eyewear before each use, and do not start the session for anyone who has not been given it (§ 59.1-310.5(C)).
• Keep the session within the manufacturer's maximum exposure time (§ 59.1-310.5(E)).
• Clean the device after each use with a cleaner or sanitizer that kills bacteria (§ 59.1-310.5(D)). See our tanning bed sanitation guide.
• Decide how you apply the re-sign rule. Subsection F allows the acknowledgment either at each visit or each time a client signs or renews a contract. Pick one, write it into your desk procedure and apply it every time.

Signs, equipment and advertising

Post two kinds of sign, with the exact wording in § 59.1-310.4: one where people entering can read it, and one at each tanning device. Acts 2023, c. 183 changed "nurse practitioner" to "advanced practice registered nurse" in both signs, so check that older signs match the current text.

Use a timer accurate to plus or minus 10 percent of the time selected, and keep each device's interior at or below 100 degrees Fahrenheit (§ 59.1-310.5(E)). Our timer guide covers how to check it. Every device must also meet federal law (§ 59.1-310.2). Never claim that indoor tanning is safe, without risk or good for health, in person or in promotional material (§ 59.1-310.5(H)). See our advertising claims guide.

What changed recently

The last big change was Acts 2020, c. 387 (House Bill 38, approved March 23, 2020). It added the under-18 ban and removed the parental signature rule for clients under 15. The only later amendment to the chapter was the 2023 sign wording. The history notes on the chapter show no amendment in 2024, 2025 or 2026, and the Division of Legislative Services summaries of those three sessions list no tanning facility changes.

How TanVision helps

With TanVision's consent forms, clients sign the warning statement on their own phone or a tablet, and the signed record keeps the signature and the exact wording they agreed to. A session cannot start without a signed statement and a date of birth on file. TanVision does not ask for a new acknowledgment at each visit or contract, so Virginia's re-sign rule stays a desk step.

Each salon's minimum age is 18 by default. In Virginia, a parent's signature never makes a minor eligible for a UV bed, so set Minors and UV rooms to No at Settings > Tanning rules: check-in then refuses UV rooms to any client under 18, even with guardian consent on file, while a parent's consent still opens spray rooms. At Yes, the default, consent on file lets a younger client start a session in any room, UV included. With skin typing switched on, exposure safety will not start a UV session until the client's Fitzpatrick skin type is on file, recommends a time from it, and refuses any typed time above the room's own maximum. Each client record shows the client's visits, consent status and notes. Compare other states on the tanning laws by state page.