Spotsylvania County, VA Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)

1A regulates massage establishments separately from the county's general business license. Sec. 1A-10 requires any fixed place of business administering massages to hold a permit issued by the county administrator, valid for two years and renewable up to sixty days before expiration, with a nonrefundable $75 application fee. Every individual massage therapist working in the county needs a separate permit under Sec. 1A-15, which costs $50, lasts two years, and is only available to therapists certified by the Virginia Board of Nursing. Applicants for either permit must submit a complete set of fingerprints taken by the sheriff's department, submit to a Central Criminal Records Exchange search at their own expense, and disclose any prior massage permits, revocations or convictions under Secs.

1A-16. Sec. 2-387 within the past ten years, that bar an applicant or force revocation of an existing permit. The county administrator must act on an establishment application within sixty days and a therapist application within twenty-one days under Sec. 1A-17. Standards for an operating establishment appear in Sec. 1A-25: a legible sign identifying the premises must be posted at the main entrance, the facility must meet Virginia Uniform Statewide Building Code lighting, ventilation and toilet requirements, clean towels and linens are required for every client, and staff must wash their hands with soap and hot water before each massage.

Off-premises massages are restricted to a client's actual residence under Sec. 1A-27 and cannot be performed at a motel, hotel or other transient lodging. Permits are nontransferable, and a change of more than ten percent of an entity's ownership automatically voids the permit under Sec. 1A-19.