Louisiana’s 25% front-side tint minimum took effect in August 2025
In force · 2025 changeAct 143 lowered the ordinary front-side light-transmission minimum from 40% to 25%. The change has been in force since August 1, 2025; other window and installation conditions remain.
Law took effect: Published: Sources checked: (UTC)
By Window Tint Laws · Status reflects the sources checked on the date above.
Historical development. The event below predates this report’s publication. This is not a newly enacted change.
Measure: Act 143 / HB 119 ↗ · 2025 Regular Session
Law enacted:
Law effective:
A 2025 change that older charts may miss
Louisiana Act 143 replaced the 40% front-side light-transmission minimum in R.S. 32:361.1(C)(1) with 25%. The Legislature records that HB 119 became law without the governor’s signature on June 10, 2025 and took effect on August 1, 2025.
This article documents that earlier change. October 14, 2026 is our publication and source-review date, not the date Louisiana first allowed the lower front-side minimum. The current legislative text contains the 25% figure, and a targeted review of the 2026 Title 32 enacted-law index found no later amendment to sections 361.1–361.3.
Sources: Louisiana Legislature: Act 143 (HB 119), 2025 ↗ · Louisiana Legislature: HB 119 history ↗ · Louisiana Legislature: R.S. 32:361.1 ↗ · Louisiana Legislature: 2026 Title 32 enacted-law index ↗
The rule concerns the glass and film together
The statute defines light transmission to include the glazing material. For an ordinary front-side installation, the 25% minimum therefore concerns the completed glass-and-film combination. Buying film advertised as 25% does not establish that the installed window will transmit 25%.
The minimum already includes tolerances. Act 143 did not introduce a new allowance to go below that figure. Have the installer measure the existing glass and check the finished window rather than relying only on a film package or an old tint chart.
Sources: Louisiana Legislature: R.S. 32:361.1 ↗ · Louisiana Legislature: Act 143 (HB 119), 2025 ↗
Other conditions did not disappear
Act 143 retained the same paragraph’s ordinary 25% rear-side and 12% rearmost figures, along with its 20% luminous-reflectance cap. Separate statutory exceptions apply to windows behind the driver in listed vehicle classes, so the ordinary rear figures are not a universal rule for every truck or multipurpose vehicle.
The current statute also has windshield-strip and installer-label requirements. Use the full Louisiana guide for those conditions and the separate medical-exemption process. The front-side amendment alone is not permission for full-windshield tint or a guarantee that a particular vehicle will pass inspection.
Sources: Louisiana Legislature: Act 143 (HB 119), 2025 ↗ · Louisiana Legislature: R.S. 32:361.1 ↗
Before relying on this report
- Historical coverage of a change effective August 1, 2025, not a new October 2026 allowance.
- Vehicle classification, exceptional circumstances and inspection requirements still need checking. General information, not legal advice.
This report is general information, not legal advice or a vehicle-specific compliance decision. A news item does not authorize a film installation or add a rule to our calculator.
Sources and references
- Louisiana Legislature: Act 143 (HB 119), 2025 ↗
Enrolled Act changes the front-side figure from 40% to 25% in R.S. 32:361.1(C)(1), retaining the other figures in that paragraph.
- Louisiana Legislature: HB 119 history ↗
June 10, 2025 entry records enactment without the governor’s signature and the August 1, 2025 effective date.
- Louisiana Legislature: R.S. 32:361.1 ↗
Current displayed statute includes Act 143, the light-transmission definition, ordinary figures and listed exceptions.
- Louisiana Legislature: 2026 Title 32 enacted-law index ↗
Targeted October 14, 2026 check found no amendments listed for R.S. 32:361.1–361.3; this does not establish that all of Title 32 has been consolidated.