Portland, ME Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)

Portland regulates massage businesses under City Code Chapter 16, Article II, Licenses. Anyone operating a massage establishment needs a therapeutic massage establishment license, and anyone working as a massage therapist needs a separate massage therapist license, unless a sole practitioner who employs no other therapist opts for a combined establishment/therapist license under Sec. 16-11(c). A conditional massage therapist license is available under Sec. 16-11(d) for an applicant who has not yet met the basic-proficiency standard, so long as a licensed supervisor oversees no more than two conditional trainees at a time and the conditional license is never renewed.

Physicians, chiropractors, nurses, physical therapists, barbers, cosmetologists and massage therapists who belong to the American Massage Therapy Association or the Associated Bodywork & Massage Professionals are exempt under Sec. 16-3 while practicing under their own state license. Applicants for a therapist or combined license must show basic proficiency under Sec. 16-16: completion of a recognized school's training course, 100 hours of on-the-job training under a licensed therapist, one year of continuous practice backed by five written references, or a certifying exam from another jurisdiction or AMTA.

The Permitting and Inspections Department must deny an application under Sec. 16-13 if the applicant, or any owner or manager of a corporate applicant, has a disqualifying criminal conviction within the preceding five years, or if the therapist applicant is under eighteen. A valid establishment license must be displayed in an open, conspicuous place under Sec. 16-12, and licenses may be suspended or revoked under Sec. §§ 851-855, Maine's prostitution statutes.