When Kim Chan-hoe goes to work, he locks the door and checks the security cameras to make sure no police are hanging around. He doesn’t list his full-time job when applying for bank loans, knowing they’d reject him immediately. He says he’s been reported to police so many times, and forced to pay hefty fines, that the officers recognize him now.

That’s because Kim is a tattoo artist — a profession that has been illegal for decades in South Korea, despite growing rapidly in popularity.

“When I walk into a police station or a government office, they don’t see me as a skilled tattoo artist — they see me as nothing more than a criminal with tattoo equipment,” said Kim, who has been tattooing for 17 years and owns Red Waikiki studio in Seoul.

That may change soon as the country’s parliament

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