Davidson County, NC Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)
Key Facts
- License required
- annual privilege license, § 111.11
- License fee
- $100 upon Board approval
- Application reviewers
- Sheriff, Inspections, Fire Department
- Reviewer response time
- up to 45 days
- Hours of operation
- 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 midnight
- Revocation lookback
- no revocation in prior 3 years
Summary
Davidson County requires anyone operating a massage business to hold a $100 annual privilege license under § 111.11 before opening. The County Clerk routes every application through the Sheriff's Department, Inspections, and the Fire Department for background and code checks, and the Board of Commissioners can deny or revoke it for sexual-misconduct convictions or code violations.
(A) No person, partnership, corporation, or association shall operate a massage business as herein defined unless such person, partnership, corporation or association shall have first applied for and received the privilege license provided by this section. ... (E) Upon approval of the application by the Board, and upon the receipt of a $100 license fee, the Tax Collector shall issue a privilege license to applicant.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2024 S-15: Supplement contains: Local legislation current through Ordinance passed 4-22-2024; and State legislation through 2023 North Carolina Legislative Service, Pamphlet No. 6).
Full Breakdown
11(A) bars any person, partnership, corporation, or association from operating a massage business without first applying for and receiving the privilege license the section creates. 11(B). 11(C). S. 11(D). 11(E) sets the license fee at $100, collected by the Tax Collector. 11(F) lists grounds for revocation, including any chapter violation, employing an unlicensed massagist, or a licensee's sexual-misconduct conviction. or after midnight.
Violations & Fines
Operating a massage business without the § 111.11 privilege license, or employing a massagist who lacks the § 111.12 license, is grounds for license revocation under § 111.11(F) and is punished under § 111.99 by a fine or imprisonment as authorized by G.S. § 14-4. Operating outside the 8:00 a.m. to midnight window set by § 111.20 carries the same § 111.99 penalty.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does a Davidson County massage business license cost?
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Davidson County
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