Cincinnati, OH Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)

Chapter 897 requires two distinct licenses, a massage establishment license for the business and a massage practitioner license for each individual performing services, and § 897-5 makes it unlawful to operate, be employed, or advertise under an unlicensed name without both in hand. , regardless of any other business hours the operator keeps. Applications go through the City Treasurer, who refers every filing to the Cincinnati Police Department for investigation under § 897-7. The nonrefundable fee is $300 for an initial establishment license ($150 to renew) and $200 for an initial practitioner license ($50 to renew), and an applicant must be at least 21 (establishment) or 18 (practitioner), submit two 2-inch photographs, a full set of police fingerprints, and a 10-year history of any felony or misdemeanor conviction.

Practitioner applicants must also document at least 160 hours of anatomy, physiology and massage-technique instruction from a school approved by the State Medical Board of Ohio or an equivalent accrediting body. Section 897-11 sets physical minimums the site must pass inspection on before a license issues: a current certificate of occupancy, a posted identification sign, at least one 40-watt light operating in every treatment room during services, adequate sterilizing equipment, hot-and-cold running water at a mixing-valve faucet, closed linen storage, and one toilet and wash basin for every three treatment rooms.

Renewal under § 897-17 is annual and due by January 1, $25 for an establishment, $15 for a practitioner. A change of ownership under § 897-19 voids the existing license outright and triggers a fresh application. Section 897-21 separately bars operating a massage establishment on the same premises as a liquor establishment, photography studio, model studio, or bookstore.