Indiana Service Animal Access Card

Know your rights with confidence.

The Indiana Service Animal Access Card is a professionally designed 4" × 6" legal reference that summarizes important public-access protections under Indiana law and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Designed to fit an appropriately sized badge holder or lanyard, it provides service animal handlers, businesses, public employees, healthcare workers, security personnel and first responders with a concise overview of the standards governing service animal access.

Featuring Indiana-inspired artwork, golden farmland, a Hoosier sunset, the Indianapolis skyline and Soldiers and Sailors Monument, the Indiana state outline and torch, a custom illustrated Brittany Spaniel and ServiceAnimalAlert.com’s signature red balloon, this card is designed to educate—not certify—and promote informed, respectful interactions wherever service animals accompany their handlers.

The artwork gives special meaning to the Service Animal Alert ethos. The red balloon is shown being released directly from the service dog, symbolizing an alert made visible: clear information rising above confusion so that rights, responsibilities and respectful public access can be recognized before a misunderstanding occurs.

Many employees are expected to make immediate service animal access decisions despite receiving little or no practical training on the subject. This card places essential Indiana and federal standards into a clear, visible format that can help replace uncertainty with accurate information.

By carrying, displaying or sharing this card, you become part of a broader educational effort to make service animal law easier to recognize, understand and respectfully apply in everyday life.

Front Features

• Indiana-themed artwork with state outline and torch-and-stars motif
• Golden Hoosier farmland and warm sunset landscape
• Indianapolis skyline and monument-inspired details
• Red barn, silo, fields and rural Indiana scenery
• Custom illustrated Brittany Spaniel service animal mascot
• ServiceAnimalAlert.com’s signature glossy red balloon
• Balloon string clearly released from the dog as a visual representation of an alert
• Distinct navy, cream, red and warm-gold color palette
• Bold, high-contrast Service Animal Access identification
• Clear Indiana public-access message
• Prominent “Service Animals Welcome” banner
• Notice that an additional service-animal access fee may not be imposed
• Standard 4" × 6" vertical format
• References Indiana law alongside applicable ADA regulations

Back Features

• The two questions permitted when a service animal’s purpose is not apparent
• Enlarged, easy-to-read permissible-questions section
• Notice that staff may not ask about the nature or extent of a person’s disability
• Notice that certification, training or licensing documentation may not be demanded
• Indiana public-accommodation access protections
• Right to accompany the handler throughout areas normally open to patrons and customers
• Protection from access fees and additional requirements
• Indiana’s current definition of a service animal
• Public-access protections for qualifying service animal trainers
• Handler and trainer control requirements
• Harness, leash, tether and other effective-control standards
• Lawful control and housebreaking requirements
• Indiana penalties for refusing access or charging an access fee
• Criminal protection against interference with or mistreatment of a service animal
• Clean, dynamically organized legal-reference panels for practical use

Indiana Public-Access Protections

Under Indiana Code § 16-32-3-2, a public accommodation is an establishment that offers services, facilities or goods to the general public.

The statute provides that refusing access or charging an access fee to an individual with a disability because the individual is accompanied by a service animal is a Class C infraction.

Indiana law also protects qualifying service animal trainers. A trainer who is engaged in the training process of a service animal is entitled to access to covered public accommodations, provided the animal remains under the trainer’s control.

Indiana’s newer service-animal provisions further clarify that covered businesses must modify their policies, practices and procedures to permit the use of qualifying service animals.

Access Throughout the Public Accommodation

Under Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-10, an individual with a disability may be accompanied by a service animal in the areas of a public accommodation where members of the public, customers, clients, patrons, program participants or invitees are permitted to go.

Service animal access is not determined by an ordinary no-pets policy. A trained service animal is present because of disability-related work or tasks and is not treated as a pet for purposes of lawful public access.

Service-Animal Definition

Indiana Code § 16-32-3-1.5 defines a service animal for these provisions as a dog or miniature horse individually trained to perform work or tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability.

The work or tasks must be connected to the individual’s disability. The animal’s presence, companionship or emotional comfort alone does not satisfy the federal ADA task-training standard for public access.

Federal ADA regulations generally apply the service-animal definition to individually trained dogs and contain a separate reasonable-modification assessment for qualifying miniature horses.

Permissible Questions

Indiana law now expressly states the limited-question standard.

Under Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-9, a public accommodation may not ask about the nature or extent of an individual’s disability.

When the service animal’s purpose is not readily apparent, staff may ask only:

1. Is the animal required because of a disability?
2. What work or task has the animal been trained to perform?

A public accommodation may not require proof that the animal has been certified, trained or licensed as a service animal.

When it is readily apparent that the animal is trained to perform disability-related work or tasks, the business may not make additional inquiries about the animal’s qualifications.

No Extra Access Fee

Under Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-11, a public accommodation may not require a person accompanied by a service animal to:

• Pay a fee for access
• Follow additional requirements that do not apply to a person without a service animal

A business may not convert lawful service animal access into a paid privilege by applying an ordinary pet fee, animal deposit or access surcharge.

A handler may remain responsible for actual damage caused by the animal when the establishment ordinarily charges customers for comparable damage.

Service Animals in Training

Indiana extends public-access protection to qualifying service animals in training.

Under Indiana Code § 16-32-3-2, a service animal trainer who is actively engaged in the training process is entitled to access to the public accommodations protected by Indiana law.

The service animal must remain under the trainer’s control while on the premises.

This Indiana-specific protection is important because the federal ADA does not independently require public accommodations to admit animals that have not yet completed their training. Indiana law provides additional protection for qualifying trainers and service animals in training.

Control and Conduct

Under Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-7, a service animal must remain under the control of its handler while on the premises of a public accommodation.

The animal generally must use a harness, leash or other tether unless:

• The handler cannot use one because of a disability
• The tether would interfere with the animal’s safe and effective performance of its work or tasks

In those circumstances, the animal must remain under control through another effective method, such as voice commands or signals.

Access decisions must be based on the individual animal’s actual conduct and the governing legal standards. Breed, size, appearance or generalized fear is not a substitute for evaluating the animal that is actually present.

Interference and Mistreatment

Indiana Code § 35-46-3-11.5 provides criminal protection against certain conduct involving service animals.

The statute addresses knowingly or intentionally interfering with the actions of a service animal and striking, tormenting, injuring or otherwise mistreating a service animal.

The applicable offense and penalty can depend on the conduct involved and the resulting harm. The card presents this protection as a concise educational reference and directs users to the complete statute for its full language.

Designed For

• Service animal handlers
• Service animal trainers
• Restaurants, hotels and retail businesses
• Government offices and public facilities
• Healthcare facilities
• Educational institutions
• Transportation employees
• Security personnel
• Law enforcement officers
• Emergency personnel and first responders
• Property and facility managers
• Disability-access educators
• Public accommodations seeking employee training materials
• Organizations providing service animal access education
• Members of the public seeking a clearer understanding of service animal law

Product Includes

• One Indiana Service Animal Access Card
• Premium full-color front-and-back printing
• Rounded corners
• Standard 4" × 6" vertical format
• Compatible with appropriately sized badge holders and lanyards

Important Notice

This card is an educational legal reference designed to promote an accurate understanding of service animal access laws. It is not government-issued identification, registration, certification or proof that an animal is a service animal.

Public-access rights are established by applicable federal and state law—not by possession of this card. A handler is not required to display the card, and a business may not require service-animal certification, registration or identification as a condition of lawful access.

Many employees, managers, healthcare workers, security personnel, public employees and first responders receive little or no formal training concerning service animal access. Nevertheless, they may be expected to make an immediate decision involving a sensitive disability-access situation.

By presenting the most relevant standards in a clear and readable format, this card can help staff understand:

• Which questions may lawfully be asked
• Why the nature or extent of a disability may not be demanded
• Why certification, training and licensing documents generally cannot be required
• Why an ordinary no-pets policy does not determine service-animal access
• Why access fees and special requirements are prohibited
• How Indiana law protects qualifying service animals in training
• What control and responsibility standards remain with the handler
• Why interfering with or mistreating a service animal is a serious matter

The card is intended to support calm, informed communication. It gives handlers a practical legal reference while helping employees make decisions based on accurate information rather than uncertainty, stereotypes or incomplete training.

The card also emphasizes responsible handling. Service animals must remain under control, and handlers or trainers may remain responsible for damage caused by the animal under applicable law.

Legal References

This card summarizes selected provisions of Indiana and federal service animal law. For complete statutory and regulatory language, review the linked resources below.

Indiana

Indiana Code § 16-32-3-1.5 — Service-Animal Definition

Indiana Code § 16-32-3-2 — Public Accommodations and Trainers

Indiana Code Chapter 16-32-3.5 — Service Animals

Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-5 — Control and Housebreaking Standards

Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-7 — Handler Control and Tether Requirements

Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-9 — Permissible Questions and Documentation

Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-10 — Access Throughout Public Accommodations

Indiana Code § 16-32-3.5-11 — Fees and Additional Requirements

Indiana Code § 35-46-3-11.5 — Interference With or Mistreatment of a Service Animal

Indiana Disability Rights — Assistance Animals: Service Animals

Indiana Civil Rights Commission — Service Animals in Public Places

Service Animal Alert — 50-State Service Animal and Disability Access Laws

Federal

U.S. Department of Justice — Service Animals

ADA Service Animal Frequently Asked Questions

ADA Requirements for Service Animals

28 CFR § 36.302 — Service Animals in Public Accommodations

28 CFR § 35.136 — Service Animals in State and Local Government Services

Why ServiceAnimalAlert?

At ServiceAnimalAlert.com, our purpose is to make service animal access laws easier to understand and apply in everyday situations.

We create concise, professionally designed educational references that help promote respectful interactions among handlers, businesses, healthcare providers, public agencies, security personnel, first responders and the communities they serve.

Our store materials focus on education, legal awareness, respectful interactions and practical reference tools. Each card is intentionally designed to be informational—not identification or certification—so the focus remains on the law itself.

The purpose is not to create a new access requirement or suggest that handlers must carry documentation. The purpose is to place accurate, practical information into a format that can be quickly reviewed when questions or misunderstandings arise.

The released red balloon represents the heart of Service Animal Alert: making an alert visible, lifting accurate information into public view and giving people a clear opportunity to choose understanding over assumption.

Every card carried, displayed or shared helps make service animal education more visible. Together, these moments of clarity can support more informed businesses, more respectful communities and greater confidence for legitimate service animal teams.

Review the Service Animal Alert 50-State Service Animal and Disability Access Laws or visit ServiceAnimalAlert.com to learn more.

Know the Law. Respect Access. Guard Rights.