Bounce house rules in Minnesota: permits, inspection, and insurance
State-regulated. A dedicated inflatable amusement equipment registration exists.
Informational only. Informational only, not legal advice. Amusement-device rules change between legislative sessions, and several of the entries here record changes made in the last three years. The binding authority is the agency named on this page. Confirm the current rule with them before you set up.
Reviewed August 2026
Binding authority: the Department of Labor and Industry
Who regulates inflatables in Minnesota
Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry (DLI)
Permit or registration
Yes. Inflatable Amusement Equipment Registration with the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, for owners providing inflatables for commercial use, including facility addresses and proof of insurance. The fee is $100 for a two-year period.
Inspection
An amusement ride must be inspected at least once annually by a certified amusement ride inspector. Where the certified inspector is not an employee or agent of the insurer, the independent inspection service provider must first provide proof of $1,000,000 liability insurance. Inflatables must comply with ASTM F2374-07 for fall protection.
Insurance required by the state
Yes. Limits of not less than $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate, written by an insurer authorized in Minnesota. A copy of the policy, or a certificate identifying each ride by name, manufacturer and serial number, must be filed with each sponsor, lessor or landowner before operating. Certificates are filed with the commissioner no later than 30 days before the first Minnesota operation in a calendar year for seasonal rides, or within 10 days of the insurance effective date for year-round operations.
Operator requirements
Trained supervisors must be present during commercial use.
What an operator should know
Minnesota’s definition is precise and unmistakably a bounce house: an amusement device, used to bounce or otherwise play on, that incorporates a structural and mechanical system and employs a high-strength fabric or film that achieves its strength, shape, and stability by tensioning from internal air pressure. Two operational details are worth pinning to a calendar. The registration term is two years, which is unusual and easy to let lapse because it does not line up with anything else you renew. And the 30-day pre-season insurance filing is the deadline most likely to catch a new operator, because it falls before the season rather than during it.
Frequently asked questions
Does Minnesota require inflatable registration?
Yes. Inflatable Amusement Equipment Registration with the Commissioner of Labor and Industry, for owners providing inflatables for commercial use. The fee is $100 for a two-year period.
How much insurance does Minnesota require?
Not less than $1,000,000 per occurrence and $2,000,000 aggregate, from an insurer authorized in Minnesota.
When is the Minnesota insurance filing due?
No later than 30 days before your first Minnesota operation in a calendar year for seasonal rides, or within 10 days of the insurance effective date for year-round operations.
Does Minnesota require staff at the unit?
Trained supervisors must be present during commercial use.
Sources
Every claim above traces to one of these. Where a source is marked as one we could not open, nothing on this page rests on it: it is listed so you can try it yourself.
What to do with this
Knowing the rule is the first half. These four pages are the second half: registering the business, buying the coverage the rule assumes you carry, running a setup that would survive an inspection, and putting the terms in writing before a unit leaves the truck.
Keep the paperwork with the unit
Permits, inspection dates and certificates belong next to the unit they cover, not in a folder. BounceDay keeps each unit’s record with its bookings, so the certificate a venue asks for is one tap away on the delivery. Your checklists are your own templates; the safety standards in them are yours, not ours.
Rules change between sessions. Confirm the current position with the Department of Labor and Industry before you set up.