Peoria, IL Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)
Key Facts
- License issued by
- City manager's office (Sec. 18-232)
- Initial fee, primary service
- $250/year (Sec. 18-232(e))
- Initial fee, ancillary service
- $100/year (Sec. 18-232(e))
- Permitted hours
- 6:00 a.m.-10:00 p.m. only (Sec. 18-233(b)(9))
- Minimum employee age
- 18 years (Sec. 18-233(d))
- Maximum penalty
- $1,000 per violation (Sec. 18-237)
- Revocation ban
- 2 years at that location (Sec. 18-235(d))
Summary
Every massage or bodywork business in Peoria needs a bodywork establishment license from the city manager's office before it can open, per Code Sec. 18-232. Fees run $250 a year when bodywork is the primary service and $100 when it is not, hours are capped at 10:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., and a licensed massage therapist must be on-site whenever the establishment is open.
No person shall advertise, offer, engage in, conduct or carry on or permit to be advertised, offered, engaged in, conducted or carried on, bodywork services in any establishment, or provide bodywork in return for compensation in any establishment in the city without having first obtained a bodywork establishment licensed issued by the city pursuant to the provisions of this article for each and every premises used for conducting or providing bodywork services for compensation... (e)(3) The initial license application fee for a bodywork establishment shall be as follows: a. Two hundred fifty dollars for establishments for which bodywork is the primary service being provided. b. One hundred dollars for establishments for which bodywork is not the primary service being provided... (9) Hours of operation. No portion of any business premises used in any way for or by a bodywork establishment shall be kept open for any purpose between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. of the following day.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 119).
Full Breakdown
Article VII of Chapter 18 (Secs. 18-230 through 18-237) licenses "bodywork establishments," defined broadly to cover any business offering massage or bodywork for compensation, with exemptions for licensed physicians, chiropractors, physical therapists, athletic trainers, cosmetology/barber services limited to face/scalp/hands/feet, hospitals and hospice programs, massage-school clinical externships, and home-based practices run by a state-licensed massage therapist that comply with the city's home-occupation zoning rules. Sec. 18-232(b)-(c) requires an application filed with the city manager's office, which routes it to community development, fire, and police for a 30-day review, plus an owner disclosure of ownership interests of five percent or more, criminal history, and a floor plan.
Sec. 18-232(e) sets the initial fee at $250 where bodywork is the primary service and $100 where it is ancillary, with $100 or $50 annual renewals respectively, plus the actual cost of fingerprinting, and licenses run July 1 to June 30. Sec. , Sec. 18-233(b)(1) requires a licensed massage therapist on the premises at all times it is open, and Sec. 18-233(c) bars anyone from employing or contracting with a massage therapist who lacks a current Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation license under the Massage Licensing Act.
Sec. 18-233(b)(3) mandates clean, nontransparent clothing covering the sexual and genital areas at all times, bars alcohol without a separate liquor license, and requires posted and printed notices warning that state law criminalizes solicitation as a Class 4 felony, with a Peoria Police Department non-emergency contact of (309) 494-8370. Sec. 18-234 requires at least annual, unannounced walk-through inspections by police, community development, and fire.
Violations & Fines
Operating without a license, or violating any provision of Article VII, is a misdemeanor under Sec. 18-237, punishable by up to $1,000 per violation, with each day of continued violation a separate offense. Sec. 18-235 lets the city manager suspend a license for up to 30 days on a first employee violation, or suspend or revoke it for a repeat violation, after at least ten days' written notice and a hearing; a revoked license bars reapplication at that location, and by that owner, for two years.
Frequently Asked Questions
What hours can a Peoria massage business stay open?
Do Peoria massage therapists need a state license in addition to the city permit?
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Peoria
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