Rules & submission
By entering PMU Vision Cup 2026 you agree to the rules below. Please read them before you submit — an entry that does not meet them can be rejected, and an entry fee is not refunded once the entry is in.
Contest rules
- 1.
No refunds after submission
Once an entry has been submitted for judging, the entry fee is non-refundable, regardless of the outcome.
- 2.
Entries must follow category requirements
The organizer may reject any entry that violates the contest rules or does not meet its category's photo/video requirements.
- 3.
No watermarks, filters, or heavy retouching
Submitted photos and video must be unedited beyond basic color/exposure correction — no watermarks, decorative filters, or heavy retouching that alters the work being judged.
- 4.
You must own the rights to what you submit
By submitting, you confirm that you either own the submitted photos/video or have the explicit consent of the model/client shown to use and submit this material.
- 5.
Permission to use your submission
By submitting, you grant the organizer permission to use your submitted materials for judging, on the contest website, and in promotional and Instagram posts.
- 6.
Fake, AI-generated, or stolen work is disqualified
Any entry found to be fake, AI-generated, or taken from another artist's work will be disqualified, at any stage of the contest.
- 7.
Category and division reassignment
The organizer may reassign an entry's category or division if necessary, at their discretion.
- 8.
The judges' scoring decisions are final
A judge's professional scoring judgment is final. An appeal may address a documented technical, tabulation, eligibility, or platform error — not a disagreement with artistic judgment.
- 9.
The organizer may ask for proof of authorship
The organizer may request further evidence that a submitted work is your own, such as process photographs, appointment records, or the model's confirmation. If fraud or a rules violation comes to light later, a placement may be revoked and the published results corrected.
- 10.
Awards are based on score, not popularity
Placement is the sum of every assigned judge's score against the published criteria. There is no public vote, no follower count, and no popularity component anywhere in the result.
What we ask you to submit
Photo and video standards
These apply to every category. Your category's own page lists the specific shots it asks for.
- Every photograph and the video must be taken on the same day, on the same model or client.
- Neutral, even lighting and a plain, uncluttered background.
- No filters, no retouching, and no colour manipulation beyond basic exposure correction.
- No watermarks, logos, studio names, or Instagram handles anywhere in the frame.
- Remove mapping marks before the after photographs are taken.
- The model's head level and their expression neutral, so the work is not distorted by the pose.
- No makeup covering, competing with, or standing in for the permanent makeup being judged.
- The model or client must be at least 18 and must have consented to the submission.
Video
- 15 to 20 seconds long.
- A single continuous take.
- No editing, no cuts, and no added music or captions.
- No slow motion, and no portrait mode or background blur.
File formats, and grounds for rejection
- Photographs as JPG, JPEG, or PNG.
- Video as MP4 or MOV.
- 1080p or better.
- No password-protected, corrupted, or otherwise unreadable files.
- An entry that does not meet these standards may be rejected, and a rejected entry is not refunded once submitted.
How the judges score
Every entry in a category is scored by each assigned judge against that category's published criteria. The criteria and the points available for each are shown on the category's own page.
- Judges score only what is visible in the submitted material — never the artist, the studio, or a reputation.
- Natural facial asymmetry is respected. It is the work that is judged, not the face it was done on.
- The top of the scale is reserved for work that is genuinely exceptional, so that it still means something.
- One deficiency is scored once, under the criterion it belongs to, rather than counted again under every criterion it touches.
- Judges never see your name, your photographs' metadata, or any other entrant's scores.
Frequently asked questions
What categories can I enter?
Every category open this season is listed on the categories page. You can enter as many as you like — each one is judged independently, by the judges assigned to it.
Is there an entry fee?
Yes, and it is priced per participant rather than per category: 1 category — $75.00 · 2 categories — $130.00 · 3 categories — $180.00 · 4 categories — $220.00, plus $40.00 for each category beyond those. You pick your categories and pay once, at checkout.
What do I need to submit?
Each category lists its own photo and video requirements once you start an entry, and the photo and video standards on this page apply to all of them. You can upload at your own pace, and your entry stays a draft until you submit it.
How does judging work?
Every entry is scored by our jury against the same published criteria for its category. Your name and your photographs' metadata are stripped before a judge ever sees the entry — there is no public voting and no popularity component.
Can I edit my entry after uploading?
Yes, your entry stays a draft — and fully editable — until you submit it for judging. After that it is locked, so that every judge scores the same material.
Still have a question? Contact us.