Tanning Permitting

Tanning facilities require an annual facility permit, testing of operators, and inspections of the facility.

Permits

Apply for or renew a facility permit online. You can also download the paper form and mail it in.

Training & Testing

Owners and managers of tanning facilities will need to pass the exam to meet their testing requirements.

Owner/Manager Test

You can take this exam online . We will monitor test completions and will issue a "Score released: DIAL Tanning Facility Test – Owner/Manager" email when an owner or manager passes the exam.

Once the exam is passed, your email will be attached to your facilities' registration and your exam expiration date will be updated in your facilities registration. Please keep this email on file so you can use it for proof of testing when you renew your license in the future.

Please note, a few counties may offer this owner/manager exam and/or require the test be taken through the county directly rather than online. In these cases, the county exams are administered on paper in a traditional proctored environment through the county personnel. Contact your county health provider for details on this. Call the county health department responsible for your county to confirm whether you are able to use the online test or if you are required to take the exam at the local testing site at the county.

• Owner/Manager test

Employee/Operator Test

Facilities may also use the online employee/operator test for their employees.

Once the employee completes the test, facilities will need to retain a screenshot of the passed test page as proof of testing completion for each employee/operator. DIAL will not send confirmation emails when operators pass the operator test. Facility owner/managers will be responsible for keeping proof of testing for each employee/operator passing of the test. Proof of testing for each employee/operator will be reviewed by the inspector during the annual inspection.

• Employee/Operator test
• Operators training program (PDF)

Timing

Scores will be released 24 to 72 hours after you complete the exam. This email will be used as proof of passing for the owner/manager exam.

Inspection

Annual inspections are conducted to ensure that the facilities are in compliance with the Iowa requirements and that the health and safety of Iowans is protected.

Laws & Rules

Facilities covered under these requirements include but are not limited to, public and private businesses, hotels, motels, apartments, condominiums, and health and country clubs. Approximately 1000 facilities have a permit to operate as a tanning facility in Iowa.

These rules do not regulate spray tanning or red light therapy units.

Link a New Account to an Existing Business

If you need to link a new account to an existing business, contact the Regulatory Programs Help Desk at 855.824.4357 or email amandasupport@dom.iowa.gov. Do not submit a new company registration.

Add Individuals to Manage your Business Account

To manage your facility registration online an individual must have an account in the new online system. The identified authorized individual for your facility create an account. Once this process is completed, contact amandasupport@dom.iowa.gov. Include the authorized individual's name, the PIN number  in their account, and which facility the individual should be authorized.