Body piercing businesses carry out procedures that penetrate the skin, so infection control practices need to be in place to prevent infections spreading from one person to another.

Body piercing is a skin penetration procedure where the skin is punctured to create a hole in a part of the body (including the ear and nose), to attach a piece of jewellery to the body.

Poor cleaning and hygiene can allow viral, bacterial, and fungal infections from being spread from contaminated equipment and surfaces. This can include diseases such as Hepatitis C and B and other infections including cellulitis, staphylococcal, streptococcal and pseudomonas.

Businesses can find rules for skin penetration procedures in the Public Health Regulation 2022 (the Regulation).

Further action may be taken if a business fails to comply with the Regulation. This may include: