Franklin County, NC Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)

Franklin County's Unified Development Code defines Body Art Service at section 5.3.6.E as covering procedures such as body piercing, tattooing, cosmetic tattooing, branding or scarification, expressly carving out anything the North Carolina Medical Board treats as a medical procedure, which the code says may not be performed in a body art establishment at all. The single locational standard attached to the use category states that a body art service shall not be located adjacent to any residentially used property, meaning a tattoo parlor or piercing studio cannot site next to a home, whether or not that home sits in the same zoning district.

Table 5-1 (UDC section 5.3.3) permits Body Art Service by right ('P') only in the NB (Neighborhood Business) and GB (General Business) districts, and prohibits it ('-') in every residential district (AR, R-80, R-30, R-8) as well as HI. Accessory uses to a body art establishment are limited to offices and parking. An applicant applies for a zoning compliance permit through Planning and Inspections before opening, and the Administrator confirms compliance with section 5.3.6.E and Table 5-1 before issuance. A body art business opened adjacent to a residential property, or outside NB/GB, is a UDC violation the Administrator enforces under sections 3.3.1-3.3.6, which can lead to permit denial under section 3.4.2.B, a civil penalty of up to $500.00 under section 3.4.2.C, or a Class 3 misdemeanor under section 3.4.2.D.