Short answer
Yes. Tattoos are no barrier to Islam, and tattoos you got before becoming Muslim are not held against you. You do not have to remove them, especially if removal is painful, costly or risky. Your wudu, ghusl and prayer are valid with them. Just avoid getting new tattoos after Islam.
Getting a tattoo is haram, but a tattoo made before Islam carries no sin, since Islam wipes out what came before it. Hanafi muftis do not require removal when it causes harm or real hardship, and wudu and ghusl are valid because the ink is under the skin. Tattoos showing other religions' symbols or indecent images should be kept covered.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
Many people put off taking the shahada because they think their tattoos make them unwelcome. They do not. The Prophet ﷺ told a man who had done far worse before Islam that Islam wipes out what came before it. The Quran says that if people stop, what is past is forgiven, and tells everyone not to despair of Allah's mercy.
Tattooing is forbidden in Islam: the Prophet ﷺ cursed the one who tattoos and the one who asks for it. That applies to Muslims from now on. It does not reach back to what you did before you knew. See why tattoos are haram.
- Removal: not required. Laser removal is optional if you want it and it is safe.
- Wudu and ghusl: valid, because water reaches the skin's surface and the ink is beneath it. See wudu with a tattoo.
- Prayer: valid. Cover what is part of your awrah as usual.
- Religious symbols or indecent images: keep them covered, especially at the mosque. If one can be removed or covered with a simple design safely, that is better.
Many of the Companions had done things before Islam that they later regretted, and none of it lessened them after Islam. Do not let anyone shame you, and do not let tattoos delay your shahada. See are past sins forgiven when you convert.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Az-Zumar 39:53
۞ قُلْ يَٰعِبَادِىَ ٱلَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا۟ عَلَىٰٓ أَنفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا۟ مِن رَّحْمَةِ ٱللَّهِ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ ٱلذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا ۚ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلْغَفُورُ ٱلرَّحِيمُ ﴿٥٣﴾
Say, "O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful."
No past action closes the door of Islam.
Quran, Surah Al-Anfaal 8:38
قُل لِّلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوٓا۟ إِن يَنتَهُوا۟ يُغْفَرْ لَهُم مَّا قَدْ سَلَفَ وَإِن يَعُودُوا۟ فَقَدْ مَضَتْ سُنَّتُ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ ﴿٣٨﴾
Say to those who have disbelieved [that] if they cease, what has previously occurred will be forgiven for them. But if they return [to hostility] - then the precedent of the former [rebellious] peoples has already taken place.
What a person did before Islam is forgiven.
Sahih Muslim 121
Sahih... أن الإسلام يهدم ما كان قبله ...
"Islam wipes out what came before it."
Tattoos made before Islam carry no sin.
Sahih al-Bukhari 5933
Sahih... الواصلة والمستوصلة والواشمة والمستوشمة ...
"He cursed the woman who adds hair extensions and the one who asks for it, and the woman who tattoos and the one who asks to be tattooed."
Tattooing is forbidden from now on.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Taharah, Bab al-Anjas, the discussion of tattoos. A tattoo that cannot be removed without harm is excused.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.