Louisiana Window Tint Exemption: Who Qualifies and How to Apply

A Louisiana window tint medical exemption is granted by the Louisiana State Police through Form DPSSP 1060, a notarized affidavit that you sign and a Louisiana-licensed doctor completes to certify a sun-sensitive condition recognized by an ICD-9-CM code. Approval also requires a criminal background check, and once granted, most exemptions are reviewed every three years.¹

Who Qualifies

Under RS 32:361.2, the exemption is available to a vehicle owner, the owner’s spouse, and authorized family members who drive the vehicle, provided a diagnosed condition makes normal sun exposure medically harmful. The condition must appear in the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD-9-CM).¹

The state affidavit names three conditions directly: albinism, lupus, and porphyria. A fourth line lets your doctor write in any other sun-related diagnosis and justify it.² Other diagnoses that may support an exemption include a history of melanoma, xeroderma pigmentosum, photosensitivity disorders, and dermatological conditions triggered by UV exposure. Your doctor needs to tie the diagnosis to an ICD-9-CM code and explain why darker tint is medically necessary.

Photophobia Requires More From Your Doctor

If photophobia is the qualifying condition, the affidavit asks for more than a diagnosis. Your physician must explain in writing why sunglasses will not provide adequate protection and why the darker tint will not impair your ability to drive at night. This is the only listed condition that carries these extra justification requirements.¹

A Criminal Record Can Disqualify You

People convicted of violent crimes or drug offenses are not eligible for the exemption, regardless of medical need. The application authorizes a criminal history check through the Louisiana Bureau of Criminal Identification and Information. A disqualifying conviction on your record ends the application.¹

How to Apply

Everything runs through Form DPSSP 1060, the Window Tint Medical Exemption Affidavit issued by the Office of State Police. It has a section for you and a section for your doctor.²

Your section asks for your full name, driver’s license number, date of birth, address, and vehicle details: year, make, model, VIN, and license plate. You sign a declaration that you have not been convicted of a drug offense or violent crime and authorize the criminal history inquiry. Your signature has to be witnessed by a notary public.

You also sign a notarized medical records release. It lets the Louisiana State Police pull any records tied to the qualifying condition and verify the diagnosis at any point while the exemption is in effect.¹

Your doctor’s section must be completed by a physician, optometrist, ophthalmologist, or dermatologist who is licensed to practice in Louisiana. The provider identifies the qualifying condition, prints their name, signs and dates the form, and provides a phone number.²

The completed form goes to the Louisiana State Police. The secretary or a designated representative reviews each application case by case and can approve or deny it based on the evidence. The State Police may also ask the Louisiana Medical Advisory Board for an opinion before deciding.¹

What the Exemption Lets You Do

An approved exemption allows tint at levels that would otherwise violate RS 32:361.1. The statute permits “sun screening material which would be of a light transmission or luminous reflectance in violation of R.S. 32:361.1,” and it does not set a specific replacement floor. In practice, that lifts the standard 25% side-window and 12% rearmost-window minimums for your vehicle.¹

The exemption follows the registered vehicle rather than the person. If you buy a different car, expect to update or reapply with the new vehicle information. The coverage does extend to your spouse and any family members authorized to drive that vehicle, so they do not need their own paperwork to drive it legally.

How Long the Exemption Lasts

Most exemptions are subject to review every three years unless the department decides otherwise. There is one significant exception: a diagnosis of light-sensitive porphyria carries an exemption that lasts for the entire time you own the vehicle, with no three-year review.¹

Carry Your Affidavit

You are required by statute to keep a copy of the approved affidavit in the vehicle at all times. If an officer stops you and you cannot produce it, there is no way to confirm the exemption on the roadside, and you can be cited and forced to contest the ticket in court.¹

A valid, current exemption is a complete defense to a tint citation. Presenting the affidavit at the stop is the fastest resolution; State Police records can also be checked to confirm the exemption exists.

Penalties Without an Exemption

Louisiana treats tint violations as equipment infractions with escalating fines:

First offense: $150
Second offense: $250
Third and later offenses: $350

Court costs stack on top of the base fine. A vehicle with non-compliant tint can also fail state safety inspection, which blocks registration renewal until the film is removed or replaced.

A Federal Rule the Exemption Does Not Override

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 205 requires windows needed for driving visibility on passenger cars to transmit at least 70% of light, and it forbids manufacturers, dealers, distributors, and motor vehicle repair businesses from installing tint that drops a covered window below that threshold.³

Your state exemption lifts Louisiana’s limits for you as the owner. It does not lift the federal “render inoperative” prohibition on the shop doing the installation. Many Louisiana tint installers work with exemption holders regularly, and some will ask to see your approved affidavit before they start.

1
Louisiana State Legislature. Louisiana Code 32-361.2 – Medical Exemption
2
Louisiana State Police. Window Tint Medical Exemption Affidavit Form DPSSP 1060
3
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Interpretation 2743y – Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 205