Solarium standards

What they mean for customers

The solarium industry in Victoria has been regulated since 2008. Any person or business that possesses, sells or maintains a tanning unit needs to hold a management licence. In February 2009, the Victorian Government introduced further changes to the management licence for tanning units that are consistent with the revised Australian standard, which was released in January 2009. These apply to the operation of all solariums in Victoria.

The Victorian licence requires that operators must:

• Ban people under 18 years of age from using their solarium
• Ban people with very fair skin (skin type I) from using their solarium
• Display mandatory health warnings
• Provide a consent form outlining the risks of solarium use for customers to read and sign
• Complete a skin assessment of all clients
• Ensure all staff have completed training in carrying out skin assessments and determining exposure times
• Ensure clients wear protective eyewear.

Several other Australian states and territories have introduced or are drafting similar legislation and a national agreement to regulate solariums across Australia is also being finalised.

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