6. Consumer Safety Through Legislation

6.1 German Tattoo Ink Regulation

In Germany, tattoo inks and permanent makeup are regulated by the Tattoo Ink Regulation. This regulation specifies what substances may be included in tattoo inks and how the labeling must present information relevant to consumers. The German Tattoo Ink Regulation is based on the European resolutions ResAp 2003_2 and ResAp 2008_1.

6.2 European Regulation

Due to the need for harmonization within the European Economic Area to ensure the free movement of goods within the EU, a European regulation is currently being drafted. This regulation will uniformly govern over 4,000 different substances in tattoo inks and is intended to provide the highest possible level of safety for consumers. Nevertheless, every consumer should be aware that tattoo inks and their ingredients can cause allergic reactions, and therefore a tattoo is never 100 percent risk-free.