St. Louis County, MO Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)

County Code Chapter 626, the Massage Establishment Code, applies only outside incorporated cities, towns and villages (§626.020) and does not reach hospitals, nursing homes, licensed healers, barbers or beauticians (§626.030). Before opening, an applicant files with the Director of Licenses, Department of Revenue, listing every masseur, masseuse and employee's name, address, photograph, employment history for the past three years, and any criminal convictions, along with two 2-inch by 2-inch photos of the applicant (§626.041). The application carries a flat $500 fee, none of it refundable, and the Director routes it to Zoning Enforcement, the Police Department and the Department of Community Health and Medical Care, each of which has 30 days to inspect and report back (§626.041).

Renewal applications cost $355 and must be filed within 30 days of expiration (§626.046). No permit may issue for a site within 1,000 feet of an elementary, junior high or high school, a church or synagogue, or another massage establishment (§626.035). Once licensed, a massage establishment or outcall service cannot operate between 1:30 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. (§626.105), alcohol is banned on the premises entirely (§626.076), and a permit is void the moment ownership, a partner, or 10 percent or more of corporate stock changes hands without Director approval (§626.101).

The Director can suspend a permit for up to 90 days or revoke it for any conviction of the permittee, a masseur, masseuse, employee or customer under this chapter, or for a prostitution-related conviction (§626.061).