Glendale, AZ Business Licensing & Operations: Adult Entertainment (2026)
Key Facts
- License required
- Operator's license before opening, Sec. 21.2-21
- Background check
- Fingerprint and criminal history check required
- Felony bar
- Sex-crime felony bars licensing for 5 years
- Decision timeline
- 60 days to approve or deny application
- Temporary license
- 60-day temporary license issued within 15 days
- Annual renewal
- Expires Dec. 31, renew by Jan. 31
Summary
Glendale requires a separate City license for every adult business operator, manager and performer under Chapter 21.2, with background checks, fingerprinting, and disqualification for recent sex-crime or prostitution convictions before the Tax and License Division can approve an application.
Sec. 21.2-21. - Licenses required.(a)Subject to subsections (b) and (c) of this section, it shall be unlawful for any person to:(1)Operate an adult business without first having obtained an operator's license issued under this chapter;(2)Operate an adult business at any time without the presence on the adult business premises of a manager who possesses a manager's license and identification card issued under this chapter;(3)Employ a manager, adult cabaret performer, escort, nude model, semi-nude business performer or topless bar performer who does not possess a manager's, adult cabaret performer's, escort's, nude model's, semi-nude performer's or topless bar performer's license and identification card issued under this chapter; or(4)Work in an adult business as a manager, adult cabaret performer, escort, nude model, semi-nude business performer or topless bar performer without having first obtained a manager's, adult cabaret performer's, escort's, nude model's, semi-nude performer's or topless bar performer's license and identification card under this chapter.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 115).
Full Breakdown
2-21. 2-22. 2-23 disqualifies anyone convicted of specified sex offenses or prostitution-related crimes: a single misdemeanor conviction bars licensing for 2 years, two or more misdemeanors within 5 years bar licensing for 5 years, and any felony conviction bars licensing for 5 years, all measured from the later of the conviction date or release from confinement. 2-27. 2-30. Annual licenses expire December 31 and must be renewed by January 31 of the following year.
Violations & Fines
Operating an adult business, or working as a manager or performer, without the required license is declared a public nuisance under Section 21.2-8 and exposes the operator to a suit for injunctive relief; recklessly or knowingly violating any duty under Chapter 21.2 is a separate offense under Section 21.2-7, on top of the Code's general Class 1 misdemeanor penalty in Section 1-7.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do adult business employees need their own license in Glendale?
What disqualifies someone from getting an adult business license?
How long does the City take to approve an adult business license?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Glendale
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