Joliet, IL Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)

Article XI of Chapter 18 requires two distinct permits: a massage business permit for each office or place of business, and a masseur's permit for each individual who practices massage, both issued by the police chief (§ 18-222). Applicants for either permit must submit fingerprints, two 2-by-2-inch portrait photographs, proof of age, prior addresses, criminal history, and character references, and must show a diploma or certificate from a "recognized school" requiring at least 70 hours of resident study (§ 18-223, § 18-224, incorporating the school definition in § 18-221).

Masseur applicants additionally need a licensed physician's written statement that they're free of communicable disease (§ 18-224). The police chief investigates the applicant's moral character and criminal history, and for a business permit also inspects the premises for sanitation compliance, before approving an application (§ 18-225); a business permit must issue within 45 days unless specific disqualifying grounds apply, including a felony-level dishonesty conviction within the past five years or the operator being under 18 (§ 18-226). 00 for each masseur or masseuse under the citywide fee schedule (§ 18-228, § 18-20).

No one under 18 may be on the premises as masseur, employee, or patron unless there on lawful business (§ 18-234), alcohol is banned on the premises entirely (§ 18-235), and a permittee must keep the business supervised at all times with a qualified masseur present whenever open (§ 18-233). Section 18-238 sets the core conduct rule: touching or massaging the genitals, female breasts, or areolas of any client is unlawful, and out-call massage outside a licensed establishment is banned except for documented physical incapacity, with any violation grounds for permit revocation.