Knoxville, TN Business Licensing & Operations: Tattoo & Body Modification (2026)
Key Facts
- Zoning term
- Body Modification Establishment
- By-right zones
- C-G, C-H, C-R, DK, I-MU
- Special use zone
- C-N (Neighborhood Commercial)
- Excludes
- Ear-piercing-only businesses
- Parking
- 3–5 spaces per 1,000 sf GFA
Summary
Knoxville's zoning code classifies tattoo parlors, piercing studios, and non-medical body modification shops as Body Modification Establishments: permitted outright in general, highway, and regional commercial districts, downtown, and mixed-use industrial zones, but requiring special use approval in neighborhood commercial areas.
Body Modification Establishment. An establishment that offers tattooing services, body piercing, and/or non-medical body modification. Body modification establishment does not include an establishment that offers only ear piercing.
Blank Wall. Defined in Section 2.4.
Block. Defined in Section 2.4.
Blockface. Defined in Section 2.4.
Broadcasting Facility. Commercial and public communications facilities, including radio, internet, television broadcasting and receiving stations, and studios.
Buffer Yard. Land area with landscape plantings and other components used to separate one use from another and to shield or block noise, lights, or other nuisances.
Build-To Line (BTL). Defined in Section 2.4.
Build-To Zone (BTZ). Defined in Section 2.4.
Build-To Percentage. Defined in Section 2.4.
Buildable Area. The portion of a lot, excluding required setbacks, where a structure or building improvements may be erected.
Building. Any structure used or intended for supporting or sheltering any use or occupancy which has a roof and enclosing wall for at least half of its perimeter.
Building Envelope. The three-dimensional space within which a structure is permitted to be built on a lot and which is defined by regulations governing building setbacks, maximum height, and bulk, by other regulations, and/or by any combination thereof.
Building Coverage. Defined in Section 2.4.
Building Height. Defined in Section 2.4.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 80).
Full Breakdown
Table 9-1's Use Matrix lists Body Modification Establishment as a permitted (P) principal use in the C-G (General Commercial), C-H (Highway Commercial), C-R (Regional Commercial), DK (Downtown), and I-MU (Mixed-Use Industrial) Districts. In the C-N (Neighborhood Commercial) District it is only allowed as a special use, requiring special use approval from the Planning Commission. The use is not listed, and therefore not permitted, in any residential (EN, RN-1 through RN-7), office, agricultural, or other industrial district. Table 11-2's parking standard sets a minimum of 3 spaces and a maximum of 5 spaces per 1,000 square feet of gross floor area for these establishments.
Violations & Fines
Opening a body modification establishment outside its permitted or special-use districts, or without special use approval in C-N, blocks permitting; general Code violations carry up to a $50 fine plus admin costs under Sec. 1-9.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I open a tattoo shop in a Knoxville neighborhood commercial zone?
Does Knoxville's zoning code cover ear-piercing kiosks?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Knoxville
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