Window Tint Medical Exemptions: How They Work by State and What Tint Shops Should Keep on File (2026)

A window tint medical exemption lets a driver or regular passenger with a certified light-sensitivity condition — lupus, porphyria, albinism, xeroderma pigmentosum and similar disorders — run darker tint than the state's normal limit, on that state's terms. A licensed physician (in some states an optometrist, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner) certifies the condition, and the driver carries a state certificate or the signed statement itself; Georgia's exemption lasts 4 years, North Carolina's permit 5, and Florida's certificate has no expiration date but is void once the car is sold. Limits often survive: Georgia still stops at 23% on the front side windows with no windshield tint, and California's and Pennsylvania's exemptions don't cover dark film on the front side windows at all. For the shop, the job is to see the document, keep a copy, and write the installed VLT on the invoice.

The short version

• •An exemption is state paperwork, not a doctor's note that works everywhere. Who certifies, what the driver carries, and how long it lasts all change at the state line.
• •Darkness floors often still apply. Georgia allows nothing below 23% on the front side windows; New York and North Carolina tie the shade to the certified or permitted level.
• •California and Pennsylvania are the traps. California's medical provision covers removable shades, not applied dark film; Pennsylvania's certificate covers only colorless UV film.
• •Keep a copy per vehicle and write the VLT on the invoice. Illinois makes it law: installers must keep the physician's statement in their permanent records.
• •Installers carry real risk. Installing illegal tint is a misdemeanor in Florida, Ohio, North Carolina, and Texas, and Texas fines a shop up to $1,000 for skipping the required label.

What a tint medical exemption is

States commonly carve out an exception to their VLT limits for a person "required for medical reasons to be shielded from the direct rays of the sun," and extend it to the vehicles that person owns or regularly rides in.

The qualifying conditions overlap from state to state. New York's DMV lists albinism, chronic actinic dermatitis, dermatomyositis, lupus, porphyria, xeroderma pigmentosum, prolonged severe drug photosensitivity, and photophobia tied to an eye or neurological disorder. Florida's form adds total or facial vitiligo, and Illinois's statute names light sensitivity from a traumatic brain injury. States also say what doesn't qualify: Georgia rejects conditions that eyewear or legal tint blocking 99.9% of UV light can handle, and New York requires that clothing, sunscreen, eye protection, and clear UV film fall short.

States run the exemption one of three ways:

1. 1.A state certificate or permit — Florida, Georgia, New York, Arizona, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania review an application and issue a document, a sticker, or both.
2. 2.A signed statement the driver carries — Texas, Ohio, and California rely on the signed statement itself.
3. 3.A hybrid — Illinois wants a physician's statement in the car, a copy with the Secretary of State, and distinctive plates or a plate sticker.

Bottom line: your state's model decides what you ask to see before you cut film.

How medical exemptions work in 10 large states

From the official pages linked below, October 2026. "None stated" means no renewal term is given.

Texas

Texas DPS no longer issues exemption certificates. The driver keeps a signed statement from a licensed physician or optometrist in the vehicle, saying sunscreening is necessary to safeguard their health. The statute makes medical need a defense to prosecution, not a permit (Transportation Code 547.613(e)), and DPS's medical-waiver notice still bars windshield film below the top 5 inches or the AS-1 line, whichever is less.

Florida

The owner files form HSMV 83390, certified by a Florida-licensed physician, dermatologist, physician assistant, or advanced practice nurse, and pays $6.50 per vehicle. The certificate carries the VIN and a decal number, has no expiration date, and becomes void when the car is sold (Fla. Stat. 316.29545). FLHSMV's procedure makes the owner responsible for removing the film before a sale — a removal job worth offering.

California

The medical provision allows sun-screening devices on the front side windows when the driver or front passenger has a letter from a physician and surgeon or an optometrist, and not during darkness (Vehicle Code 26708(b)(10)). The devices must be removable — a frame, temporary fasteners, or a roller shade — with at least 35% luminous transmittance (26708.2). Applied film on the front side glass must be clear, at least 88% VLT, with an installer's certificate.

Georgia

The application needs a Georgia-licensed physician or optometrist — physician assistants and nurse practitioners can't sign — plus a $10 fee, and DPS says the packet must be mailed directly from the medical office. Approval lasts 4 years, rides in the vehicle, and never allows windshield tint or front side windows below 23% light transmission, plus or minus 3% (DPS Rule 570-22-.06).

New York

Form MV-80W is completed by a New York-licensed physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner after an exam within 60 days of filing, and states the minimum light transmission required. The exemption covers the windshield and front side windows once DMV grants it and its sticker is on the window (VTL 375(12-a)(c)). In 2024 DMV warned enforcement agencies about fraudulent exemption certificates (DMV memo).

Arizona

The applicant sends ADOT's medical exemption application, certified by an MD, DO, naturopathic medical doctor, or ophthalmologist, to the Medical Review Program and keeps a certificate in each vehicle they own. The statute's exemption covers the side and rear windows (A.R.S. 28-959.01(G)).

North Carolina

After a doctor completes DMV's medical form, the Drivers Medical Evaluation Program can issue a permit that lists the vehicle, windows, and permitted tint levels and lasts 5 years unless the program sets a shorter term. DMV's sticker goes on the lower left of the rear window "between the window and the tinting when the tinting is installed"; failing to display it is a $200 infraction (G.S. 20-127(f)).

Illinois

The owner needs a certified statement from an Illinois-licensed physician, carried in the vehicle, renewed every 4 years, and copied to the Secretary of State, plus distinctive plates or a plate sticker. Installers may install exempt tint only when those plates or that sticker are on the car, and must keep a copy of the physician's statement in their permanent records (625 ILCS 5/12-503).

Pennsylvania

PennDOT issues a certificate of exemption when a licensed physician or optometrist certifies the condition, and it must be carried in the vehicle (75 Pa.C.S. 4524(e)). The regulation limits it to colorless, UV-filtering material, and when an exempt car is sold the owner must remove the material and give the buyer a notarized statement naming the business that removed it (67 Pa. Code 175.265).

Ohio

Ohio's tint rules don't apply to a car registered to a person, or their parent, guardian, or spouse, holding an affidavit from an Ohio-licensed physician or optometrist that the person's condition requires darker film; the affidavit rides with the person or driver (Ohio Adm. Code 4501-41-05).

Bottom line: six of these states issue a document you can check; in the rest it's a signed letter.

What the shop should check and keep on file

Check the document before you quote

1. 1.Right person, right car. Florida's certificate carries the VIN, Georgia's form lists VIN and plate, and North Carolina's permit names the vehicle.
2. 2.Still valid. Georgia approvals last 4 years, Illinois statements are renewed every 4 years, North Carolina permits last 5, and Florida and Pennsylvania exemptions end when the car is sold.
3. 3.What it allows. Install to the level on the document — New York's certified minimum, North Carolina's permitted levels, Georgia's 23%.
4. 4.Who signed. Georgia won't accept physician assistants or nurse practitioners; Illinois requires an Illinois-licensed physician.

Keep a copy per vehicle

In Illinois a copy is mandatory; elsewhere it's how you prove the shade matched a valid exemption if the customer is stopped. File it with the job and VIN, visible only to staff who need it — it names a medical condition. Texas DPS told inspectors to note such documents but not copy them; a Texas shop can log the document type, signer, date, and who viewed it instead.

Write the installed VLT on the invoice

• •Film brand, line, and nominal VLT for each window
• •A meter reading of glass plus film for each window after install
• •The exemption type, any certificate or decal number, and its dates
• •The customer's signature acknowledging the shade and that carrying the exemption is their job

Apply the labels your state requires

• •Texas: a compliant label permanently installed between film and glass (547.609), at the rearmost bottom corner of the driver's side window per DPS.
• •Florida: a nonremovable label on the inside left door jamb with the film's trade name and your business name (316.2955).
• •North Carolina: the customer's DMV medical sticker, under the film at install.
• •Georgia: installers must certify the light transmission after installation (DPS Rule 570-22-.05).
• •Arizona: sellers and installers must state conspicuously that tint on the driver or passenger side window may be illegal in some states (28-959.01(F)).

Know the installer penalties

Bottom line: the copy, the meter readings, and the label are your defense; skip them and the shop is on the hook, not only the driver.

How to say no politely

Refusals go fine when every customer gets the same answer plus a legal option:

• •No paperwork yet: "I can install that shade once your exemption is in hand. Today I can put ceramic film on the front doors at the legal limit, which still cuts the heat."
• •Darker than allowed: "Your Georgia letter goes down to 23% on the front doors, so that's the darkest I can install."
• •California or Pennsylvania: "Here the exemption covers removable shades or clear UV film, not dark film on the front doors."
• •A doubtful document: "We need the state certificate or signed statement on file first — same rule for every car."

Bottom line: say no to the shade, not the customer — and put the policy on your website and quote template.

Laws change: verify before you rely on this

This guide summarizes the official pages linked above as of October 2026 and is not legal advice. Rules move — California amended its window statute effective January 1, 2026, and Texas ended safety inspections for non-commercial vehicles in 2025 — so check your state's statute or DMV page before changing policy. For base VLT limits, use the free tint law lookup, the tint laws by state guide, or the short answer on state tint laws; more playbooks are in the window tint guides.

Keep the shade and the paperwork with the job

Wraptor's tint shop software records the film and VLT installed on each window of a job, so the shade is on the invoice if anyone asks later, and document e-signatures let the customer sign off before you start. Book a demo or start a free trial.

FAQ

What medical conditions qualify for a window tint exemption? It varies by state, but official lists overlap: lupus, porphyria, albinism, xeroderma pigmentosum, dermatomyositis, severe drug photosensitivity, and photophobia tied to an eye or neurological disorder. Florida adds total or facial vitiligo and Illinois names light sensitivity from a traumatic brain injury, while Georgia rejects conditions that eyewear or legal UV-blocking tint can handle.

Can a tint shop install darker tint with a medical exemption? In 8 of the 10 states covered here yes, but only to the limit the exemption allows and only after you have seen it; Georgia stops at 23% on the front side windows, and New York and North Carolina tie the shade to the certified or permitted level. California's exemption covers removable shades of at least 35%, not applied dark film, and Pennsylvania's covers only colorless UV film. Illinois installers must keep a copy of the physician's statement.

How does the Texas tint medical exemption work? Texas DPS no longer issues certificates, so the driver carries a signed statement from a licensed physician or optometrist saying sunscreening is necessary for their health. Medical need is a defense to prosecution under Transportation Code 547.613, and windshield film is still barred below the top 5 inches or the AS-1 line.

How does the Florida tint medical exemption work? The owner files form HSMV 83390, certified by a Florida-licensed physician, dermatologist, physician assistant, or advanced practice nurse, and pays $6.50 per vehicle. The certificate has no expiration date but becomes void when the car is sold, and the owner must have the film removed before a sale.

Can tint installers be fined for illegal tint? Yes. Installing illegal tint is a second-degree misdemeanor in Florida, a fourth-degree misdemeanor with civil liability in Ohio, and a Class 3 misdemeanor in North Carolina, and Illinois fines installers $50 to $500. Texas makes it a misdemeanor and fines a shop up to $1,000 for leaving out the required label.

What should a tint shop keep on file for a medical exemption? A copy of the exemption filed with the job and VIN, after checking that it matches the vehicle, hasn't expired, and allows the shade you're installing. Put the film, nominal VLT, and a meter reading for each window on the signed invoice; in Illinois, keeping the physician's statement in your permanent records is required by law.

Sources: Texas Legislature — Transportation Code ch. 547 · Texas DPS — window tinting standards · Texas DPS — window tint medical exemption notice · Texas DPS — inspection program changes · Florida Legislature — s. 316.29545 · Florida Legislature — s. 316.2955 · Florida Legislature — s. 316.2956 · FLHSMV — form HSMV 83390 · FLHSMV — procedure RS-48 · California Legislature — Vehicle Code 26708 · California Legislature — Vehicle Code 26708.2 · California Legislature — Vehicle Code 26708.5 · Georgia DPS — exemption application and rules · Georgia DPS — medical exemption page · NY DMV — medical exemptions · NY DMV — form MV-80W · NY Senate — VTL 375 · NY DMV — 2024 window tint memo · ADOT — window tinting exemption · Arizona Legislature — A.R.S. 28-959.01 · NC General Assembly — G.S. 20-127 · Illinois General Assembly — 625 ILCS 5/12-503 · Pennsylvania General Assembly — 75 Pa.C.S. 4524 · Pennsylvania Code — 67 Pa. Code 175.265 · Ohio Laws — ORC 4513.241 · Ohio Laws — OAC 4501-41-05.