How to Fill Out and Submit Indiana’s Window Tint Medical Exemption Form

Indiana does not publish a window tint medical exemption form. To drive legally with tint darker than the state’s 30 percent visible light transmission limit, you need a signed written certification from a physician or optometrist licensed in Indiana stating that you or a habitual passenger must be shielded from direct sunlight for medical reasons. The authority is IC 9-19-19-4. The letter stays in the vehicle at all times and must be renewed every year.¹

Who Qualifies

The statute covers two situations. The first is an individual who owns the vehicle and has a medical need to be shielded from direct sunlight. The second is a habitual passenger with that same need, in which case the driver of the vehicle the passenger regularly rides in is also covered. If your child has a light-sensitive condition and rides with you every day, you qualify as the driver even though the diagnosis belongs to the passenger.¹

The law does not list qualifying diagnoses. Any condition for which a licensed provider is willing to attest that sun protection is medically necessary can support the exemption. Lupus and other autoimmune photosensitivity disorders, xeroderma pigmentosum and similar skin conditions, and eye conditions like chronic photophobia are among the reasons people commonly seek it.

What the Certification Letter Should Contain

Because Indiana has no standardized form, the “application” is a letter you request from your own doctor. Both physicians and optometrists are equally authorized under the statute, so an eye condition does not require a referral to an MD — your optometrist can prepare the letter directly.¹

The statute requires only that the medical reasons be attested to and that the document certify the condition. It does not prescribe a format. To make the letter unambiguous for a tint installer or a police officer, ask your provider to include:

Their full name, practice address, and Indiana license information, on office letterhead.
Your name, or the name of the habitual passenger whose condition is the basis for the exemption.
A clear statement that you or the passenger must be shielded from direct sunlight for medical reasons. A specific diagnosis is not required.
Whether the exemption applies to the driver or to a habitual passenger.
The provider’s signature and the date. The date is what an officer uses to check that the letter is still valid.

Keep a copy in your medical file so next year’s renewal is easy to request.

You Have to Renew Every Year

The certification expires twelve months after it is issued. The statute states plainly that the physician’s or optometrist’s certificate must be renewed annually.¹ A letter dated more than a year ago is no longer a valid exemption, and the tint on your vehicle can be cited as a violation.

For a chronic condition that is not going to change, renewal is typically a short office visit or a call to your provider’s office for a freshly dated letter. Tying it to another yearly appointment is the simplest way to avoid letting it lapse.

Having the Tint Installed

Bring the letter to your tint shop before any work is done. Under IC 9-19-19-4(e), an installer does not violate the law by applying film darker than the standard limits as long as you present the physician’s or optometrist’s certification first.¹ A reputable shop will ask to see it, and some will keep a copy for their own files.

The exemption removes the 30 percent VLT floor for your vehicle. The statute does not substitute a different number, so Indiana law does not cap how dark the film can be once you hold a valid certification. Discuss the right shade with your provider and installer, since very dark front-window film affects night visibility.

Carrying and Showing It at a Traffic Stop

You do not file the certification with the BMV or any other agency. The original or a legible copy must stay in the vehicle whenever it is on the road. The glove box is the practical spot.

Officers are specifically authorized to stop a vehicle to check tint compliance under IC 9-19-19-4(f). The same subsection also prohibits them from inspecting or searching the vehicle, its contents, the driver, or any passenger solely because of a tint violation.¹ If you are stopped, say you have a medical exemption and hand over the letter. A current, signed certification usually ends the stop quickly.

What Happens Without a Current Letter

Driving with illegal tint, either because you never obtained a certification or because the annual renewal lapsed, can result in a traffic citation. A Class C infraction carries a judgment of up to $500 plus court costs. If you admit the violation or plead no contest on or before your court date, the fine for a moving-violation Class C infraction drops to no more than $35.50 plus court costs, with the amount escalating based on your recent violation history in that county and reaching the full $500 only with two or more moving violations in the previous five years.²

A court can also order you to remove the non-compliant tint, which typically costs a few hundred dollars at a professional shop on top of what you paid to have the film installed.

If You Change Vehicles or Sell the Car

The exemption belongs to you or your qualifying passenger, not to the vehicle. Buy a new car, and the same letter still applies — have the tint installed on the new car and keep the certification in the glove box. Sell a vehicle with darker-than-legal tint, and the buyer has no exemption unless they independently qualify and carry their own letter. Mention this to the buyer so they can either have the film removed or obtain their own documentation before driving.

Watch for the Repealed Statute

Older guides sometimes cite IC 9-19-11-3.3 as the medical exemption statute. That section was repealed in 2009.³ The current law is IC 9-19-19-4. If an officer or installer references the old number, point them to the current section.

Commercial Vehicles Are Different

If you drive a commercial motor vehicle, federal rules apply on top of state law. Under 49 CFR 393.60(d), aftermarket tint on CMV side windows cannot reduce light transmission below 70 percent, and there is no blanket federal medical exemption for darker film.⁴ The FMCSA evaluates individual exemption requests, but that process is separate from Indiana’s state-level certification. A CDL driver who needs darker tint for medical reasons would have to pursue the federal exemption in addition to the Indiana letter to stay compliant for both personal and commercial driving.

1
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 9-19-19-4 – Tinting, Glazing, or Sunscreening Vehicle Windows
2
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code Title 34 Civil Law and Procedure 34-28-5-4
3
Indiana General Assembly. Indiana Code 9-19-11-3.3 – Repealed
4
Regulations.gov. Exemption Applications: International Window Film Association; Parts and Accessories Necessary for Safe Operation