On Sunday, August 22nd, the new federal gift certificate law went into effect. What does this mean to your medical spa?

In essence, the new law sets a 5-year minimum term for most gift certificates sold in the U.S. and it doesn't shorten any minimum terms required by your State law. Period.

The new law is just extending the terms of expiration if they previously were less than 5 years. If your State had a minimum term of more than 5 years, such as MA (7 years), your term will not change.

In addition, if your State does not permit you to apply an expiration date, such as the Stets of CA, CT, FL, ME, MN, MT, NH, RI and WA, of course those terms would still apply to any gift certificates you sell.

Gift certificates sold prior to August 22nd will be grandfathered in. If you have questions you can always visit the National Conference of State Legislatures.

If you have any questions about whether this new federal law pertains to you, you should check your state laws regarding gift certificate expiration, or consult with your legal representative or accountant.