What is a tattoo guest artist agreement?
Guest spots keep a studio's books full and bring artists to new clients, but they are often arranged in a few messages. Then questions come up mid-week: who holds the deposits, who pays card fees, whose needles and ink are used, who keeps the consent forms, and who does the touch-up after the guest has left town. In many places a guest also needs a local or temporary permit before tattooing at all.
This template sets the dates, hours and station, and a commission split or a day rate with settlement daily, weekly or at the end, plus card fees and tips. It requires the guest's permits and training on file before tattooing, sets hygiene and safety standards, batch records and incident reporting, and says who provides supplies. It covers ID and age checks, the studio's consent and health forms and who keeps records, who takes and refunds deposits and the deposit policy shown to clients, aftercare and touch-ups, studio rules and promotion, insurance, and cancelling the guest spot.
- Best for
- Tattoo studios hosting visiting artists for guest spots
- Signed by
- The studio owner or manager and the guest artist
- Pay options
- Commission split or day rate
- Length
- 3 pages, initialled by both on every page
When to use a tattoo guest artist agreement
- A studio hosting a well-known artist for a two-week guest spot
- An artist touring several cities and signing with each host studio
- A guest spot around a tattoo convention
- A studio trying a new artist on a day-rate basis before offering a chair
- A regular guest whose terms the studio wants to write down
What you fill in
23 blanks, then the name and email of each person who signs: studio, guest artist.
1 The guest spot
- Agreement date*
- Studio (legal or trading name)*
- Studio address*
- Guest artist's legal name*
- Name or handle the guest works under
- Guest's home studio
- First day*
- Last day*
- Working hours*
- Station and equipment provided*
2 Money
- Payment arrangement* Commission split · Day rate
- Guest's share of each tattoo price
- Currency*
- Day rate paid to the studio
- Settled* at the end of each working day · at the end of each week · on the last day of the guest spot
- Card payment fees* shared in proportion to each party's share of the price · paid by the Studio · paid by the Guest Artist
3 Supplies and deposits
- Supplies* The Studio provides all consumables, including needles, cartridges and inks. · The Guest Artist brings their own needles, cartridges and inks. The Studio provides other single-use consumables. · The Guest Artist brings all their own supplies.
- Client deposits* The Guest Artist takes and holds deposits for their own bookings. · The Studio takes and holds deposits for all bookings.
- Deposit policy*
4 Aftercare and rules
- Touch-ups after the guest spot* The Guest Artist arranges touch-ups at their next visit or their home studio. · A Studio artist may do a free touch-up within the period on the aftercare sheet, if the Guest Artist agrees.
- Studio rules
- Notice to cancel the guest spot (days)*
- Governing law*
5 Who signs
- Studio signature and date, job title, initials on every page · The studio owner or manager.
- Guest artist signature and date, initials on every page · The visiting tattoo artist.
What the tattoo guest artist agreement covers
- The guest spot
- Licences, permits and training
- Hygiene and safety
- Clients, consent and records
- Payment
- Deposits
- Aftercare and touch-ups
- Studio rules and promotion
- Responsibility and insurance
- Cancelling the guest spot
- General
Using the tattoo guest artist agreement, step by step
1 Name the studio and guest
Enter the studio, the guest's legal name and the name or handle they work under, and their home studio if any.
2 Set the dates and station
Enter the first and last day, working hours and the station and equipment provided.
3 Choose the money terms
Choose a commission split or day rate, enter the share or rate, when it's settled and who bears card fees.
4 Set supplies, deposits and rules, then send
Choose who provides supplies and holds deposits, enter the deposit policy, touch-ups, any studio rules and cancellation notice, then send it.
Tips before you send it
- Check the local permit rules before the guest books clients — many cities, counties and states require a temporary or guest licence and bloodborne pathogens training.
- Keep copies of the guest's permits and certificates on file; inspectors may ask for them.
- Decide who holds deposits before bookings open, and show the deposit policy to every client.
- Agree touch-ups in advance — clients will call the studio, not the guest's home city.
Sign it online in minutes
- Fill in the blanks. Names, dates and amounts go straight into the agreement — the preview shows exactly where.
- Name who signs. Tick “This is me” for your own part. FileIt builds the PDF with every signature, date and initials box on the right line, and you can check or move anything before sending.
- Send it. Each signer gets a secure link and signs from any device — no account needed. The signed PDF, with an audit trail and a Certificate of Completion, is filed in your vault and emailed to everyone.
Tattoo guest artist agreement: frequently asked questions
Who keeps the client consent forms?
The studio. Clients sign the studio's consent and health forms, which stay at the studio for as long as the law requires. The guest may keep their own clients' contact details and design records.
Commission split or day rate?
With a split, all prices go through the studio and the guest receives their share. With a day rate, the guest pays the studio a fixed amount per day worked and keeps the full price of their tattoos. Tips belong to the guest either way.
What if the guest spot is cancelled?
Either side may cancel with the notice you set, or at any time for illness, emergency or a permit not being granted. The parties then contact affected clients together, and whoever holds a deposit refunds it where the policy or law requires.
Can it be signed electronically?
In most countries, including the US (ESIGN Act and UETA), the UK, the EU (eIDAS) and Canada, an electronic signature is generally valid for an agreement like this one. FileIt keeps an audit trail and a Certificate of Completion with the signed PDF as evidence of who signed and when.
Is this template free?
Yes. The template is free to use with the eSignature app in FileIt, and the people you send it to don't need a FileIt account to sign.