Spa and Salon Safety

Your Guide to Safer, More Informed Service Visits

Before receiving or providing personal services such as manicures, facials or piercings, it is important to ensure your health and safety are protected. Serious infections like hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV can be spread if proper steps to clean, disinfect or sterilize are not taken by staff at the spa or salon.

Customers Receiving Services

Operators Providing Services

Blue banner with snowflakes showing close-ups of a manicure, pink glitter nails, eyebrow microneedling, and a pedicure

This page advises what to do before and during you visit the spa or salon, to reduce your risk of infection. It offers practical checklists to help you identify key safety practices before undergoing receiving both non-invasive (i.e., manicures, pedicures, facials) and invasive (i.e., micro-needling, tattooing, body piercings, etc.) procedures. York Region Public Health plays a vital role in inspecting spas and salons to help protect the public from infection.

Steps to Protect Yourself at the Spa and Salon

1

Before you go

Use YorkSafe to check if your spa or salon is inspected by York Region Public Health. See the results of the latest Public Health Inspection Report.

YorkSafe Reports

2

While you're there

YorkSafe - Green Pass Sign

Review the Checklists and Resources section for the spa or salon service you are going to receive. These resources outline what you should look for at the spa and salon to reduce your risk of infection.

Once you arrive, make sure to look for the green YorkSafe Proof of Public Health Inspection sign. As you enter, take time to observe spa/salon practices and ask staff any questions you may have.

3

Don’t be afraid to refuse the service

If you are uncomfortable with what you see or what you hear, don’t be afraid to refuse the service. You have the right to make sure you receive safe services.

Checklists and Resources for Safer Spa and Salon Visits

Use these checklists and resources for more details on things to look for when receiving different types of services.

 Non-invasive services


Non-invasive services generally include services where the skin is not intentionally broken. Use the following checklists and resources when receiving non-invasive services:

Invasive services


Invasive services include services where skin is intentionally broken. Use the following checklists and resources when receiving invasive services:

York Region's Role in Keeping You Informed

Spas and salons in York Region are inspected regularly by York Region Public Health. During inspections, Public Health Inspectors provide infection prevention and control education and ensure compliance with health regulations. However, it is equally important for clients to know what to look for at the spa/salon to protect themselves. 

Is your service provider qualified?

Some spa and salon services offer injections, fillers, platelet-rich-plasma (PRP), colonic irrigation, skin tag and mole removal by electrocoagulation/thermocoagulation. These services are considered Controlled Acts and must be performed by a qualified provider. For your safety, ask if your provider has the proper qualifications before you agree to receiving these services.

We inspect spas and salons

Public Health Inspectors inspect spas and salons to:

  • Make sure spas and salons follow proper steps to reduce the risk of infection to clients during services
  • Respond to client concerns and complaints

Spa and salon owners and operators in Ontario must comply with applicable legislation and infection prevention and control best practices to reduce the risk of infection to clients and workers during services.

Check that your spa or salon is inspected by York Region Public Health. You can see the results of your spa’s latest health inspection report by visiting York.ca/yorksafe

Tip

We recommend choosing a licensed and inspected spa or salon that complies with public health regulations for your protection.

Health Risks Associated with Personal Services

Spas and salons aim to provide relaxing, safe experiences—but infections can spread if proper infection control practices are not followed. Spas and salons welcome many clients daily, which can increase the risk of serious infections, such as hepatitis B and C, HIV, and fungal conditions from spreading. These infections can be spread through:

  • Direct skin contact
  • Inhalation
  • Absorption
  • Injection
  • Contact with cuts or open wounds

Proper handwashing as well as proper cleaning and disinfecting of tools and surfaces between clients are essential to preventing the spread of infection.

When to avoid spa and salon services

Your skin is your first defense against infection. When it is broken, irritated or infected, your risk of getting and spreading infection increases. 
For this reason, we recommend that you avoid getting a spa and salon service on the parts of your body where you have:

  • A cut, tear or open wound
  • A rash or skin infection (fungal or bacterial infection)
  • Irritated or severely dry, chapped skin
Spa and Salon tools

It is important that each type of tool is treated appropriately. Some tools used in spas and salons are meant to be used more than once, while others must be thrown away after one use. Tools that cannot be properly cleaned and disinfected are called single-use. These must be used only once and then discarded. Reusable tools must be cleaned and disinfected and/or sterilized after each client to keep everyone safe.

Review the checklists in this guide to see which tools need to be thrown away after each use and which can be re-used.

Cleaning and disinfection

Proper cleaning and disinfection is important to kill microorganisms that cause infections. Cleaning is the physical removal of dirt with soap and water, while disinfecting is the use of chemical solutions to kill most bacteria and viruses. Cleaning must be done before disinfection because dirt and debris make it harder for chemicals to contact and kill germs. Disinfectants that are commonly used at the spa and salon include, household bleach, 70%-90% ethyl/isopropyl alcohol.

Tip

Tools that break the skin and come into contact with blood or body fluids must be cleaned and disinfected with a high-level disinfectant.

For Personal Service Settings Operators and Workers

As a personal service provider, your commitment to client safety is essential. York Region Public Health is here to help you maintain safe, high-quality services and stay informed about current standards and expectations.

What you need to know
Protocol, Regulation and Infection Prevention and Control Guide

Public Health inspects personal service settings as required under the Ontario Public Health Standards at least once every 12 months to ensure compliance with the Personal Service Settings Regulation 136/18 and adherence to infection prevention and control practices. This regulation does not apply to a setting where the personal services are mainly provided by a member of a health professional under the Regulated Health Profession Act, who is engaged in the practice of his or her profession.

Operators can learn about best practices by reading the Guide to Infection Prevention and Control in Personal Service Settings, 2019. This document provides the minimum standards for cleaning, disinfection, sterilization of equipment, maintenance of the premises, personal hygiene and basic infection control practices to reduce the risk of blood borne infections such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C, HIV and other types of infection for both clients and personal services settings workers.

Resources for Personal Service Settings Operators and Workers
Disinfection Posters
Record Logs
Special events vendors and organizers

If you are the organizer of a special event where personal services will be offered, you are required to:

If you are a vendor of a special event where personal services will be offered, you are required to:

  • Complete the Personal Service Settings Vendors Application Form
  • This form is for those who are providing personal services such as tattooing, body piercing, ear piercing, etc.
  • Email/fax/drop off the Personal Service Settings Vendor Application Form 20 days before the event
Personal service setting resources

Related Resources