China bans tattoos for minors, forbidding anyone from offering the service to teens. The State Council directive also bars advertisements and online or broadcast content that depicts tattoos. A Chinese player sports tattoos during the men's basketball match at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, July 25, 2021.
China's move to ban tattoos for people aged under 18 years old has been met with mixed reactions as the government continues to expand state regulation of people's lives, in particular younger generations.
But the court ruled in a 5-4 vote that the legislation was constitutional, confirming South Korea as the only developed nation where tattoo artists' work is illegal.
In China, tattoos have a strong and long-standing association with organized crime. If you visit China after getting inked, your tattoos may be perceived differently in different regions of the country. Shanghai, Beijing, and other large urban areas are most accepting of the practice, especially among tourists.
There is currently no nationwide minimum age to get a tattoo in China. For comparison, the US also has no federal minimum age for tattooing, but all 50 states and the District of Columbia have implemented a ban on tattooing people under 18 years old.
Actually, tattoos are fine in Japan. They're not illegal in any way. You may even see some people walking around with fashion tattoos, especially in Tokyo. Although some people in Japan have tattoos, they are usually hidden underneath clothing.
Tattoo culture has exploded in popularity in China over the past decade, as young people have embraced the art form as a fashion statement and form of self-expression. Once extremely rare, tattoo studios are now a common sight in Chinese cities.
For example, in China, holding hands or kissing in public is considered taboo. It's more common for friends of the same sex rather than couples of the opposite sex to hold hands or dance in public.
Tattoos: legal issues
In Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and Queensland, it's a criminal offence for a tattooist to do tattoos for someone under 18 years. In the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales, teenagers under 18 years need to get their parents' permission for tattoos.
Under Chinese law, it is illegal to bring printed religious material into the country if it exceeds the amount for personal use.
In Japan tattoos have long been stigmatized for their association with organized crime gangs, the Yakuza, who pledge their allegiance with full-body markings. Consequently, anyone with ink – regardless of their profession – cannot usually use public swimming pools, hot springs, beaches and even some gyms.
“While tattooing by nonmedical practitioners is illegal, showing them in public is not against the law. Making people hide their tattoos at multiuse facilities just because others dislike them is not reasonable,” Kim emphasized. By law, only medical doctors are legally allowed to tattoo in South Korea.
Tattooing in South Korea has a long and controversial history. South Korean law permits only licensed medical practitioners, as opposed to tattoo artists without medical degrees, to open tattoo parlors, although it is not illegal to have a tattoo. Only the army prohibits tattoos.
While tattoos are not illegal, they can prevent people from getting the full Japanese experience. When using public transportation in Japan, such as trains, tourists with visible tattoos will want to keep in mind that their ink may be offensive to some of the locals.
Tattoos have a long history in China. But for most of that history they were stigmatized, associated with prisoners, vagrants and the criminal underworld. Thanks in part to the influence of celebrities and sports stars, tattoos have become much more socially accepted in the past decade.
In South Korea, tattoos, also called munshin, have long had negative associations. During the Koryo dynasty, which ruled from 918 to 1392 A.D., people were forcibly given tattoos on their faces or arms listing the crimes they had committed or marking them as slaves.
Reasons for getting a tattoo
Tattooing is most popular among Australians in the 20 to 39 year age group. According to McCrindle Research, by 2009, one in four Australians of the Gen Y group— those born between 1982 and 2001—considered having “body art” as an ideal way to celebrate their coming of age.
The ADF has a strict policy regarding personal appearance. The acceptability of tattoos and body piercings will be assessed on a case by case basis by Defence Force Recruiting. If you are considering getting either please contact us for guidance as this may affect your application.
Hook-ups, i.e. casual sexual encounters, are increasingly common and accepted among men and women.
In most of the Western world, such as Western Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States, and Latin America, it is very common to see people holding hands, hugging and sometimes kissing in public. It is not usually socially acceptable to be overly explicit, such as engaging in sexual activities.
There's a common myth that having visible tattoos in China and working as a foreign teacher is a big no. The most common question I've heard since going east is “how can you be a teacher if you have tattoos?” The answer is quite simple: they don't matter.
Significance in modern China
Although the practice of mò xíng (墨刑; tattooing the faces of criminals) has long since disappeared, there still remains a traditional consensus in China that tattoos are a sign of bad people. Tattoos are still used by gangs and criminals, which exacerbates the stigma of tattoos.
Judaism, Christianity, and Islam have been hostile to the use of tattoos, but many religions, in particular Buddhism and Hinduism, make extensive use of them. This article examines their use as tools for protection and devotion.