Kitsap County, WA Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- KCC Chapter 6.40
- Licensing authority
- Board of county commissioners
- Application fee
- $100, nonrefundable
- Review agencies
- Sheriff, health, community development
- Public hearing
- Required before license issues
- License expires
- Every December 31
- Jurisdiction
- Unincorporated Kitsap County only
Summary
Operating a massage business in unincorporated Kitsap County requires a license from the board of county commissioners under Chapter 6.40. Applicants pay a $100 fee, undergo sheriff, health and zoning review, and must clear a public hearing before the license issues, valid only through December 31.
§ 6.40.040. Massage business license. No person, firm, partnership, corporation or other entity shall operate, conduct or finance a massage business without a valid massage business license issued by the commissioners. ... (c) Applications shall be accompanied by a nonrefundable fee of one hundred dollars.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4864424; v0 updated 2025-12-08; through 12-08-2025).
Full Breakdown
040 for "any person, firm, partnership, corporation or other entity" to "operate, conduct or finance a massage business" without a valid massage business license from the board of county commissioners. 108. Each application carries a nonrefundable $100 fee. Within five days the auditor forwards the application to the sheriff, the department of community development, the department of public health and the prosecuting attorney; within twenty days those agencies investigate the applicant's background, zoning conformity, building and fire code compliance, and sanitation, and report back to the commissioners.
The commissioners then hold a public hearing, noticed at the applicant's expense five to ten days ahead, and must find the applicant of good moral character, properly state-licensed, zoning-compliant and code-compliant before issuing the license. 88. 070. This licensing scheme reaches unincorporated Kitsap County only; a massage business inside Bremerton, Port Orchard, Poulsbo or Bainbridge Island is licensed under that city's own code.
Violations & Fines
Operating, conducting or financing a massage business in unincorporated Kitsap County without the § 6.40.040 license violates Chapter 6.40. The chapter has no stand-alone fine, so enforcement falls under Kitsap County's general penalty, KCC § 1.12.010: a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, up to ninety days in jail, or both, with each day of continued unlicensed operation prosecuted separately. A license can also be revoked under § 6.40.060 if a masseur there is later convicted under the chapter or RCW 18.108.
Frequently Asked Questions
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How much does a Kitsap County massage business license cost?
Does a Kitsap County massage business license apply inside Bremerton?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Kitsap County
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