Code of Ethics

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A tarot professional strives to uphold the highest ethical standards in all services  rendered and to act affirmatively toward maintaining public trust in the tarot  profession. A tarot professional’s practice is grounded on use of the tarot as a tool to  assist clients with tapping into their own intuitions, spirituality, or creativity. 

Article One | Professionalism 

Adherence to Applicable Laws. A tarot professional will take the initiative to be  knowledgeable of all applicable laws including but not limited to fortune telling  statutes and local municipal codes that may cover their business or the practice of tarot.  

Scope of Profession. The tarot professional applies tarot in a way that falls outside the  scope of occult sciences and is not reading tarot in a manner that claims or purports to  tell fortunes, or with the ability to foretell with any certainty future events, or disclose in  unequivocal terms the mental faculties of any persons. 

Role of the Tarot Professional. The tarot professional provides a client with spiritual  guidance and serves to empower the client toward making more spiritually empowered decisions for him or herself within the framework of the client’s own personal spiritual  beliefs or practices.  

Limitations. A tarot professional shall never claim the ability to cure another of  ailments outside the lawful practice of medicine or provide financial benefits outside  the lawful practice of financial analysis and management. The tarot professional shall  never purport to offer legal, medical, or financial advice. Unless the tarot professional  also possesses the applicable educational background, licensures, certifications, and/or  qualifications to be a psychologist, therapist, counselor, or other mental health  professional, he or she shall not purport to be one. 

Referrals to Qualified Professionals. A tarot professional owes a reasonable duty of  care to his or her client and if an inquiry touches upon legal matters, even by a  tangential connection or in passing, the tarot professional will refer the client to seek the  counsel of a licensed attorney. If an inquiry touches upon health or medical matters,  even by a tangential connection or in passing, the tarot professional will refer the client  to seek diagnosis by a licensed medical doctor. If an inquiry touches upon financial or  real property matters, even by a tangential connection or in passing, the tarot  professional will refer the client to seek advice from a qualified financial consultant,  analyst, or real estate professional. 

Duty to Reject Subsequent Reading Requests. If at any time a tarot professional believes  or has reason to believe that a client is using tarot readings to substitute, and not merely  supplement, counseling from a qualified mental health professional, then he or she has  a duty to reject subsequent reading requests from the client and to refer the client to  seek qualified mental professional support. However, tarot readings may be used as a  supplement to qualified counseling or serve the function of life coaching or general  spiritual guidance. 

No Dishonesty, Fraud, Deceit, or Misrepresentations. A tarot professional shall not use  tarot in a way that purports definitive and absolute knowledge of the future or of  matters that are otherwise hidden or occult. The tarot professional shall not represent  him or herself as matter-of-factly having communication, access to, or knowledge of any  supernatural phenomena. The tarot professional shall never guarantee any one  outcome, positive or negative. A tarot professional shall never engage in deceptive  business or unfair trade practices. A tarot professional shall make no misrepresentations  about his or her competency, certifications, qualifications, or abilities. 

Third Party Consent. A tarot professional is discouraged from providing reading  services on inquiries into the personal affairs, business, intentions, mental faculties, or  activities of third parties who are not present for the reading, unless the client  represents and warrants to the tarot professional that such third party’s express consent  has been obtained. A tarot professional may reasonably rely on such a representation  made by a client, though best practices would include noting the reliance in writing in  the tarot professional’s notes. However, a tarot professional may provide reading  services on inquiries about how the client’s affairs, business, intentions, mental  faculties, or activities might be affected by that third party. 

Article Two | Communications 

The Reading Process. A tarot professional is encouraged to make reasonable efforts to  communicate his or her reading or interpretive process and analytical or intuitive  methods, particular traditions, or the interpretive framework utilized. A tarot  professional will refrain from communicating to a client about curses or the  manifestation of malicious intentions through supernatural or occult means. 

Disclosures. A tarot professional shall make reasonable efforts to disclose to all clients  that tarot readings cannot replace the counseling services of a mental health  professional, and a tarot professional can never guarantee his or her accuracy in the  interpretation of a reading. Also, if and when tarot practice would be explicitly barred  by a jurisdiction’s applicable laws, then the tarot professional must communicate to the  client in clear, unambiguous terms that such readings are to be for entertainment  purposes. See also Article Five, Disclosures. 

No Duty to Retain Records. A tarot professional does not owe a client any duty to  retain the client’s reading records. A tarot professional may, at the discretion of his or  her customary practice, retain records or files on client readings. 

Records Retention. If a tarot professional does elect to retain client records, then he or  she must develop and maintain appropriate record-keeping systems for storing his or  her clients’ personal information in a manner that will reasonably preserve the clients’  confidentiality and privacy. 

Article Three | Fees 

Statement of Fees. A tarot professional shall state his or her service fees before the start  of a reading and cannot later raise or increase the stated fee unless prior contractual  terms allow for the increase. The tarot professional must clearly communicate his or her  fee schedule and payment terms prior to the commencement of any reading. A fee for  any service that is $500.00 USD or more must be contractually agreed upon in writing. 

No Pressure for Additional Services. A tarot professional shall never pressure, compel,  or even imply to clients that additional paid services from him or her are needed after  the reading. A tarot professional shall never purport to possess the power to  manipulate the outcome of events through supernatural or occult means.  

Referral Fees. If a tarot professional makes a referral, then he or she must disclose  whether any referral fees have been paid as compensation or consideration for the  referral. 

Article Four | Confidentiality

Duty of Confidentiality. Although there is not likely to be a legal evidentiary privilege  between a tarot professional and client, a tarot professional nonetheless agrees on his or  her own accord to be bound by a duty of confidentiality. A tarot professional shall not  reveal personal or private information relating to a client reading unless that client has  given informed consent.  Reasonable 

Diligence to Protect Confidentiality. The tarot professional shall exercise  reasonable efforts to prevent the inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure of or access to  information relating to his or her clients, which includes password protection to any  electronic accounts, computers, or data storage units that would include client files and  lock and key to any physical storage units containing hard copy files. Exceptions. However, tarot professionals may reveal personal or otherwise private  information relating to a client reading if the tarot professional reasonably believes it is  necessary to prevent substantial bodily harm or death, or a court order overrides the  confidentiality. Partial information from a tarot reading may be disclosed under the  client’s anonymity for academic, civic, census, survey, or research purposes. 

Article Five | Disclosures 

General Practice Disclosures. A tarot professional shall post a disclosure statement  prominently at office locations, storefronts, on websites, reading venues, or commercial  marketing materials that states essentially as follows: Disclosure Statement: A tarot professional cannot predict the future  with certainty and you should not rely on a tarot reading to make  any decision that would affect your legal, financial, or medical  condition. If your inquiry involves the law, finance, or medicine, then you should seek the advice of a licensed or qualified legal, financial, or medical professional. Also, tarot reading cannot replace qualified  mental health care. A tarot reading can only facilitate how you cope  spiritually with a given situation. In certain jurisdictions, a tarot  professional is required to disclose to you that tarot readings should  be for entertainment purposes only, and if such a law applies to your  reading, then you are hereby on notice thereof. Your tarot  professional is bound by a self-imposed code of ethics, which can be  provided to you upon request. 

Certification Disclosures. A tarot professional is not required to be certified. However,  if he or she obtains a certification related to tarot practice, the tarot professional will  disclose the certifying body or organization that issued the certification. 

Article Six | Public Service

A tarot professional is encouraged to dedicate at least 10% of his or her practice per year  to public service, such as offering reading services to support fundraisers for non-profit  organizations or charitable causes, free readings to persons of limited financial means,  teaching tarot to others free of charge, creating educational materials on tarot for the public free of charge, or participating in activities with the mission of improving the  practice of tarot or the tarot profession. 

Article Seven | Continuing Education 

A tarot professional shall take the initiative to continue his or her tarot education for the  full duration of and throughout his or her professional practice. A tarot professional is  encouraged to take classes or workshops on tarot, attend tarot conferences, symposia,  or conventions, meet and collaborate with other tarot professionals, regularly read on  the practice of tarot, and exercise diligent efforts to hone the tarot professional’s craft  and skill.