Kristen Brill said despite having no criminal convictions, she had been deemed unfit by police on Friday and given a week to close Wizards of Ink.

Ms Brill said she had applied for the licence four years ago.

The decision has led to the closure of the central Albury business, with five tattooists moving across the border to High on Ink in Wodonga.

Four other staff have lost their jobs, and the long term future of the five artists remains unclear.

“They have given me seven days to shut the shop doors,” she told The Border Mail on social media.

“I have five tattooist(s), a body piercer, cleaner and a manager, all who have their own bills to pay and I feel it’s my responsibility to make sure they are OK.

“We have donated money to countless charities in Albury.

“I am at a loss and just shattered.”

The decision is believed to relate to close association laws.

Operators are assessed based on a range of criteria, including police checks and security assessments of those closely linked to them.

Manager Chris McFarlane said many people were offering support to the business.

“It’s a shock for a lot of people,” he said.

“Every second person has been tattooed there or had a family member tattooed there.”

Mr McFarlane said an appeal would likely be a “lengthy and costly process”, but still hopes to re-open in another location.

A NSW Fair Trading spokesman said the agency and police had to consider if applicants were fit and proper people to be granted licences, and if a licence was against the public interest.

“Fair Trading cannot grant a licence if an adverse security determination has been made by the Commissioner of Police,” they said. 

Police said “due to privacy reasons, we cannot make comment on security determinations for licence applications”.​