Clinton Township, MI Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)
Key Facts
- Permitted districts
- B-2 Community Business and B-3 General Business
- Governing definition
- §1110.11(21): indelible mark or scarring business
- Approval needed
- None beyond standard building permit; use is by right
- Operating condition
- Must be inside a completely enclosed building
- Max penalty
- $500 fine or 90 days jail per day, §1112.99
Summary
Clinton Township's Zoning Code defines a "body art studio" as any business that inserts pigment under the skin or produces scars to make a permanent mark, covering both tattoo and piercing shops. The Code lists body art studios as a permitted principal use by right in the B-2 Community Business District and the B-3 General Business District, so no special land-use hearing is required there.
(21) “Body art studio” means a business engaged in the practice of providing an indelible mark or figure fixed upon the human body by insertion of pigment on or under the skin or by the production of scars. ... 1136.02 PRINCIPAL USES PERMITTED. In the B-2 Community Business District, no building or land shall be used and no building shall be erected except for one or more of the following specified uses, unless otherwise provided in this Zoning Code... (z) Body art studios. (aa) Other uses similar to the above.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: 2026 S-25: Local legislation current through May 26, 2026).
Full Breakdown
11(21) of the Zoning Code defines "body art studio" as a business providing an indelible mark or figure fixed upon the human body by insertion of pigment under the skin or by the production of scars, language broad enough to reach both tattoo parlors and body-piercing studios. 02(x) as a permitted use in the B-3 General Business District. Because the use is "permitted," an operator sites a shop there through the Township's ordinary building-permit and certificate-of-occupancy process rather than a special land-use hearing before the Planning Commission and Township Board.
03(b) requires that all business, servicing and processing be conducted within a completely enclosed building, so a studio cannot run its service floor outdoors or from a temporary structure. The Zoning Code does not list body art studios among the permitted or special-approval uses in the B-1 Neighborhood Business District, the Office/Service District, or any residential district, so a studio proposed for one of those districts falls outside the by-right list and needs a rezoning or a use variance from the Board of Appeals under Chapter 1114 before the Building Department can issue a permit.
Violations & Fines
Operating a body art studio in a district where it is not a listed permitted use, or without the required building permit and certificate of occupancy, is a Zoning Code violation. Section 1112.99 makes any violation of the Zoning Code a misdemeanor carrying a fine of up to $500.00 or 90 days in jail, or both, with each day the violation continues charged as a separate offense; Section 1112.06 additionally lets a court order the use abated as a nuisance per se.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I open a tattoo shop anywhere in Clinton Township?
Does Clinton Township require a special land-use permit for a body art studio?
What happens if a body art studio operates in the wrong district?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Clinton Township
Compare Clinton Township to another location·View the Michigan business licensing & operations overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.
Tattoo & Body Modification in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Macomb County handle tattoo & body modification.