West Covina, CA Business Licensing & Operations: Massage Establishments (2026)
Key Facts
- License authority
- Police chief or designee
- License/permit term
- One year, renewable
- Application decision window
- Within 90 days
- Business hours limit
- Closed 10:30 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
- Outcall massage
- Prohibited citywide
- Revocation hearing notice
- At least 10 days
- Appeal deadline
- 10 days to city clerk
Summary
West Covina requires a police chief-issued license before anyone opens a massage parlor or bathhouse, plus a separate permit for every massage technician and on-site employee. Municipal Code Section 14-117 makes operating without either a misdemeanor-triggering violation, and Section 14-118 bans outcall massage service anywhere in the city.
(a)It is unlawful for any person, as owner, to engage in, conduct, or carry on or to permit to be engaged in, conducted, or carried on, the operation of a massage parlor or bathhouse, without a valid massage parlor or bathhouse license issued by the license authority pursuant to this article.(b)It is unlawful for any person to engage in, conduct or carry on the practice of massage for any compensation whatsoever, without a valid massage technician permit issued by the license authority pursuant to this article.(c)It is unlawful for any person who does not hold a valid massage technician permit or a valid massage parlor license to work on the premises of a massage parlor during business hours, or for a person who does not hold a valid bathhouse license to work on the premises of a bathhouse during business hours, without a valid employee permit issued by the license authority pursuant to this article.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 94).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 14, Article V of the West Covina Municipal Code puts the police chief, acting as "license authority," in charge of every massage parlor and bathhouse license and permit (Sec. 14-116(e)). Applicants file with the license authority, pay a nonrefundable filing fee set by council resolution, and submit fingerprints, a driver's license number, a portrait photo, weight/height/hair/eye color, five years of residential and employment history, and proof of being at least 18 (Sec. 14-120). Massage technicians must also show they graduated from a recognized school of massage.
Section 14-122 disqualifies anyone convicted within the prior five years of an offense tied to operating a massage business, felony drug-sale offenses under Health and Safety Code Sections 11054-11058, or violations of Penal Code Sections 266i, 315, 316, 318 or 647(b), and bars anyone currently required to register under Penal Code Section 290. The license authority must grant or deny within 90 days of a complete application; a granted license or permit runs one year and can be renewed (Sec. 14-121, 14-125). Outcall massage service, performed anywhere other than a licensed parlor or bathhouse, is flatly prohibited under Section 14-118, even for a licensed operator.
Facilities cannot have locking doors on service rooms, must post prices and service times in letters at least a half-inch tall, and must provide hot and cold water, secure valuables storage, and disinfected instruments (Sec. 14-123, 14-124(c)). m. (Sec. 14-124(d), (e)).
Violations & Fines
The license authority may inspect a licensed premises during business hours to check compliance and gives written notice of any violation with a deadline to correct it (Sec. 14-126). Grounds for suspension or revocation, decided at a hearing on clear and convincing evidence, include violating any article provision, operating as a nuisance, misrepresenting facts on the application, or continuing to operate after suspension (Sec. 14-127). The license authority must give at least ten days' written notice of the hearing before revoking or suspending (Sec. 14-128), and the operator can appeal that decision to the city council in writing within ten days of service of the decision (Sec. 14-129).
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every massage technician need their own permit in West Covina?
Can a West Covina massage business offer outcall or mobile massage?
What criminal history disqualifies a massage license applicant?
How late can a licensed massage parlor stay open in West Covina?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in West Covina
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