The date is held and the deposit is paid. The policy says what happens when the date moves.
RESCHEDULES
Most artists give one free reschedule with 48 hours' notice. Two is the next most common. After that the new date takes a new deposit, and some double it. Some put a deadline on the moved deposit, from three weeks to six months, and artists split on the number.
Tuesday night: "Hey, can we push Saturday? Work's crazy right now." You say sure, because it's the first time. Three weeks later the same text comes in for the new date, and you're trying to remember what you agreed to.
One letter a week, on the business side of tattooing.
Deposits, no-shows, pricing, and getting bookings out of the DMs. Free.
How many free moves should a tattoo reschedule policy allow?
One, with 48 hours' notice. That's the most common rule, and my rule too: the deposit moves to a new date once, and the next move takes a new deposit. Two free moves is the second most common.
In the threads, several commenters give one reschedule before another deposit is needed. A 2025 thread has an 18-upvote comment giving two per deposit. The studio pages we read mostly stop at one or two as well. A Brooklyn page moves you once, then you forfeit the deposit and need a new one. A Los Angeles page forfeits it once a session moves more than twice. Three turned up once, in 2023.
A couple of artists give none on paper. One writes "no reschedules, no exceptions" into the agreement and holds to it only when a client gives them a bad feeling, so a move reads as a favor.
Why bend at all? In a 2025 thread on day-of reschedules, a 32-upvote comment said artists quietly make exceptions, and that not keeping the deposit is probably what makes a client reschedule instead of cancel outright. The same comment weighs $100 kept for doing nothing against $800 made on another day, with the client back.
Forty-eight hours' notice is what gives you time to fill a moved date.
What counts as a free move in a tattoo policy?
Only a move the client asks for, with notice. Four things sit outside the count:
Your moves. If you cancel or can't do the date, the deposit moves or comes back with no new one, the client's choice.
Moves inside 48 hours. Those aren't free, even the first, except for a sick client, who most artists move once, free. Otherwise the deposit is kept and the new date takes a new one. The tattoo cancellation policy template has that rule, the sick pass and the lateness one.
Sick or emergency moves. The cancellation template moves a sick client once, free, on top of the free move. One commenter allows two moves in two months plus one emergency move.
A no-show on the new date. That isn't a move. The deposit is kept, and what to do after a no-show has the messages.
What should a tattoo reschedule policy charge after the free moves?
A new deposit for the new date. Four of the studio pages we read call the old one forfeited, void or nullified. A fifth says only that it isn't refunded. Past that, artists vary:
After the free moves | Who does it |
|---|---|
A new deposit, same size | The usual rule, in the threads and on the studio pages |
A doubled deposit | One commenter's shop doubles it after two reschedules |
Half forfeited, half added back | One 2022 commenter: a second rebook forfeits half the deposit ($50) and the client adds another $50 |
The whole session paid up front, or no more bookings | One commenter, for a client who's become a problem |
The sizes are in how much a tattoo deposit should be.
If you don't charge a new deposit then what's the point of the deposit in the first place?
How long should a moved tattoo deposit stay good?
Artists split, and the numbers run from three weeks to six months. These look like two clocks, though several reports don't say which they mean:
Time to pick a new date. Three weeks, from one commenter. Thirty days, on two studio pages that forfeit the deposit if the client hasn't rebooked. Sixty days, on one page that doesn't say what it counts from.
Time until the session has to happen. Two months past the original date for a single session and three months for a bigger piece, from a 55-upvote comment. Three months and six months from one commenter each. A year, on a studio page that voids the deposit after that, also without saying what it counts from.
Three months is about the middle, and it's what the template in the cancellation piece uses. Whatever you pick, say what it counts from: the day they moved it, or the original date. "Good for 3 months" can mean either. The 55-upvote commenter credits a stated cutoff, plus a $100 minimum deposit, with cutting back the constant reschedulers.
What do you say when a tattoo client asks to move again?
Put the rule in the message the client reads before paying:
Moving your date: Your deposit moves once, with at least 48 hours' notice, and stays good for 3 months from your original date. A second move, or any move inside 48 hours, needs a new deposit. If you're sick, tell me and I'll move you once, free. Paying the deposit means you agree to this.
When the second ask comes, answer fast and leave out the apology:
I can move it, but your free move is used. The deposit you paid stays with me, like the policy says, and the new date needs a new deposit of $150. Want the link?
Some artists keep a second move for their own call. One 2022 commenter rolls the deposit over once, twice at their own discretion, and wants a whole new deposit after that.
What if a tattoo client keeps moving?
Some clients move a lot for a reason. One artist's half-sleeve client, chronically ill, rescheduled eight times in a year. The artist charges a new deposit each time and the client keeps paying. A reply in that thread said real reschedules come weeks ahead, and the last-minute ones get blacklisted.
Regulars and flaky clients are covered in what to do after a no-show. Here, one commenter draws a line at three flakes, whatever the reason, and tells the client to find someone else.
Put the number of free moves and the expiry date in the message the client reads before paying.
Quick answers
Can you reschedule a tattoo appointment?
Usually once. Most artists move the deposit to a new date once if the client gives 48 hours' notice. A second move, or one inside 48 hours, usually needs a new deposit.
How many free reschedules should a tattoo policy allow?
One is the most common and two is the second most common. After the free moves, the new date takes a new deposit, and some artists double it.
Do you need a new deposit to reschedule a tattoo?
Not for the first move with 48 hours' notice, or for a sick client's one free move. Past the free moves, or inside 48 hours, the old deposit is usually forfeited and the new date needs a new one.
How long does a moved tattoo deposit last?
Artists split. Reported windows run from three weeks to six months, with one studio at a year. Three months is about the middle.
Start with one. Open the message you send with your deposit link and add two lines: the deposit moves once with 48 hours' notice, and it's good until a date you name.
Checked October 2026. Based on artist threads on r/TattooArtists and r/TattooApprentice (2022 to 2026) and US studio policy pages. It's what artists report, not a survey. The one-or-two-moves norm shows up across many threads and pages; each deadline figure comes from one or two artists or pages.
Read next
Tattoo cancellation policy template, and how to stick to it: notice, sick days, lateness and no-shows in one policy to paste.
Tattoo client no-showed? What to do next: the messages to send when the moved date gets missed too.
Gal, founder of Collabo.ink, the booking app for tattoo artists. For 15 years I booked sessions for dozens of artists, some of them among the best known in the world. Collabo.ink takes your bookings and deposits, so you can focus on what matters: tattooing.
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