Tattoo School Arkansas: Training, Exam, and License Renewal

To become a tattoo artist in Arkansas, you have to go through a licensed body art institution — there is no tattoo school in Arkansas that operates outside the Department of Health’s framework, and self-teaching or informal apprenticeship will not qualify you for a license. The path is a supervised training program lasting between six and twenty-four months at a Department-approved facility, followed by a written and practical examination and a $100 annual artist license fee.¹²

What the Training Program Involves

You train as a student artist under a licensed instructor at an approved body art establishment, logging supervised hands-on hours alongside classroom instruction. The program runs a minimum of six months and a maximum of twenty-four. Your instructor records every hour of training in an official Artist Training Log kept by the Department of Health.¹

The curriculum covers practical tattooing technique, aftercare communication, equipment sterilization, sanitation standards, and the inspection procedures that apply to licensed shops. Arkansas treats these programs as private career schools, and the instructor must be registered with the State Board of Private Career Education.³

Finding a Qualified Trainer

Not every working tattoo artist can teach. A trainer must have held a Department of Health artist license for at least five years in the discipline they teach, and must have worked in a licensed body art establishment for at least five years in compliance with state rules. They must also have completed the bloodborne pathogen course required by state law.³ Only a limited number of facilities in Arkansas run approved training programs, so locating a qualified instructor is often the first practical obstacle.

What You Need Before You Enroll or Test

You must be at least 18 years old and hold a high school diploma or GED. Both are non-negotiable.

You also need to complete a bloodborne pathogen training course that meets OSHA standards and is approved by the Department of Health. The course covers transmission risks and safety protocols for blood-borne infections, and it has to be renewed every year for the life of your license.⁴

When you are ready to apply for your license, submit a completed Body Artist License Application to the Department of Health with proof of your training completion, a valid government-issued photo ID, and the $100 annual artist license fee.²

The Licensing Exam

Once the Department approves your application, you can register for the exam. The written test covers the Department’s rules for tattoo and permanent cosmetic establishments, along with bacteriology, sterilization procedures, infection control, and technique.⁵ It is generally administered at the Department of Health in Little Rock on the third Tuesday of each month, with no exam offered in December.

The exam fee is $50, paid before you sit for the test.² Bring proof of current bloodborne pathogen training with you. If you don’t pass, you’ll file a retake application through the Department before rescheduling; both the initial and retake applications are on the Department’s Body Art Forms page.¹

If You Are Already Licensed in Another State

Arkansas does not automatically recognize out-of-state tattoo licenses, but you can skip the full training program through a qualifications review. If you hold a current body art license from another state issued within the last two years, you can submit proof of your licensure, documentation of the shops where you worked, proof of bloodborne pathogen certification, and evidence that you completed at least a six-month training program. If you can’t produce training records, a reference letter from the other state’s regulatory agency about your compliance history and knowledge of health standards can substitute.⁶

Even with an approved qualifications review, you still have to pass both a written and a practical exam at a licensed Arkansas establishment. The reciprocity fee is a one-time $500.² If you come from a state that doesn’t license tattoo artists at all, you have to complete the full Arkansas training program.⁶

Keeping the License Active

Individual artist licenses expire on December 31 each year, with fees for the next year due by that date.⁷ Renewal means a renewal application, the $100 annual fee, and a current bloodborne pathogen certificate. There is no additional continuing education requirement beyond that annual course.⁴

If your fee is still unpaid by March 1, your license is suspended for 90 days.⁷ Renewing within 90 days of expiration adds a $100 reinstatement fee to the regular renewal fee. Beyond 90 days, the $100 reinstatement fee applies along with all overdue licensing fees.²

Fully lapsed licenses take more than a fee to revive. You submit a reinstatement application, document any body art work or training you completed since your license expired, and retake both the written and practical exams. The Department will also pull your original training file to confirm that your initial six-month apprenticeship was completed.⁸

One Important Boundary

An individual artist license does not authorize you to open or operate a tattoo shop on your own. Every location where tattooing is performed must hold a separate Certificate of Sanitation from the Department of Health, with its own $150 annual fee and its own inspection.⁷² Operating a tattoo business without a current establishment license is a Class D felony in Arkansas.

1
Arkansas Department of Health. Body Art Forms
2
Code of Arkansas Rules. 17 CAR 54-402 – Fees for Body Art
3
Legal Information Institute. Arkansas Code R. 005 – Rules Pertaining to Body Art Establishments
4
Arkansas Department of Health. Body Art FAQs
5
Cornell Law Institute. Arkansas Code R. 007.04.93 – Rules and Regulations Pertaining to Permanent Cosmetic and Tattoo Establishments
6
Arkansas Department of Health. Arkansas State Board of Health Rules for Cosmetology and Body Art
7
Justia Law. Arkansas Code 17-26-603 – Department of Health
8
Arkansas Department of Health. Lapse License Request – Body Art