The skin is cleaned and degreased, the solution is applied, and then it stays on. That last part is the detail most people are not expecting. A VI Peel is not applied and rinsed off before you leave. You go home wearing it, and the manufacturer's instruction is that no makeup and no other topical products go on for the first 4 hours.
That means chair time and treatment time are two different things. The time you spend in the clinic is the application. The peel keeps working after you get home.
How long the application takes is not published. The manufacturer's FAQ does not state an appointment length, and no study reports one. Clinic pages commonly quote around 30 minutes. That number may well be accurate, but it comes from clinics rather than from any source that can be checked, so the right move is to ask your provider what to book out.
Peels are applied in coats — thin passes of solution, one after another, with the operator watching how the skin responds between them.
The number of coats is one of the things that determines how deep a peel goes. So is the concentration of the acid, how the skin was prepared beforehand, how thick your skin is at that spot, and how firmly the applicator is pressed. This is why "a TCA peel" is not one fixed depth. The same bottle in different hands, with a different number of passes, produces a different result.
In published practice, depth is judged by watching the skin frost white during application rather than by counting anything: light patchy frosting is a superficial endpoint, a solid white enamel appearance is a deep one.
VI does not publish how many coats its protocol uses, and it does not publish concentrations for any of its products. Professional-use-only products are exempt from the consumer ingredient-labeling rules, so this is permitted. The practical effect is that neither the depth nor the application time can be worked out from public information. Your provider is the only person who can tell you what they actually do.
The peel comes with post-care products, and their timing is the second half of the answer to how long this takes.
The first 4 hours: nothing. No makeup, no other topical products.
From day 2 onward: the post-care products only. The manufacturer's instruction is to use only the kit products for the full exfoliation week, applying the post-treatment repair cream and SPF 50 evenly. Your usual retinoids, acids, vitamin C and scrubs wait until the week is over.
Throughout: sun protection. This is the best-supported instruction in the whole aftercare list. The FDA has documented that alpha hydroxy acid exposure increases sensitivity to sun-induced skin reddening by about 18% and roughly doubles sensitivity to sun-induced cell damage, with the effect reversing once exposure stops. Its own recommendation is sun protection during use and for a week afterward.
For body peels, the kit also includes a retinoic serum, and the manufacturer's instruction is to trim loose skin with cuticle scissors rather than pulling it.
One peel: about a week. Peeling starts on or around day 3, and is generally complete by day 7.
There is a wrinkle in that number worth knowing. Published work on true medium-depth peels describes the skin surface taking 7 to 10 days to close over completely, which is longer than the advertised day 3 to day 7 course. Either this product sits at the lighter end of medium-depth, or the manufacturer's timeline is describing visible shedding rather than full healing underneath. That cannot be resolved from outside the company. Practically: your skin may look finished on day 7 and still be more fragile than normal for another week.
One body peel: about ten days. Peeling starts on day 5 to 7 and lasts about 4 to 5 days.
A full course: three to seven months. The manufacturer recommends 3 to 6 peels at 4 to 6 week intervals, followed by about 4 peels a year for maintenance. Those are company instructions rather than trial findings — no study has compared different numbers of VI Peels or different intervals.
Restrictions that shape your calendar. No exercise for 72 to 96 hours, or a full 7 days if you are prone to hyperpigmentation. No swimming for 7 to 10 days. No direct sun for 7 days. If you have a holiday, a wedding or a long-haul flight coming up, work backward from those windows.