What to bring for a guest spot or convention
Updated October 16, 2026
Have a current BBP certificate you can show on your phone, with a number the shop or inspector can look up. The local health department's license or temporary permit is a separate requirement and is set by where you're working, not where you live.
What hosts ask for
Artists who guest spot often describe the BBP cert as the one document every shop asks to see. Keep the PDF where you can pull it up fast, and make sure the retrain-by date hasn't passed.
The local license is separate
Each state or county sets its own body-art license rules, and some issue temporary or event permits for visiting artists. Your home license doesn't carry over by itself. If the local rule names an approved-provider list or an hour minimum, your cert has to meet that rule, not your home county's.
Make it checkable
A certificate with a verification number and a public lookup page lets a shop or inspector confirm it in a few seconds. Every TattooCert certificate has one, at tattoocert.com/verify.