Business Licensing & Operations in Champaign, IL (2026)
6 verified business licensing & operations rules for Champaign, Illinois, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Champaign only allows nude or semi-nude adult entertainment at premises already holding a liquor license, and bans serving any alcohol at all on a day such entertainment is provided. Performers must stay on a raised cabaret stage set back five feet from patrons behind a two-foot barrier, and no one under 19 may be on the premises during a show.
Champaign Adult Entertainment Establishment Rules
Significant RestrictionsChampaign, IL Code of Ordinances §§ 5-104, 5-105(a)
No licensee shall serve or otherwise provide alcoholic liquor within the licensed premises on any calendar day on which adult entertainment is provided at the licensed establishment. ... The performance area of an adult entertainment establishment shall be limited to one (1) or more stages or platforms permanently anchored to the floor (a "cabaret stage"). Each cabaret stage shall be elevated a...
Tattoo & Body Modification
Champaign doesn't write its own tattoo parlor standards: Chapter 31.5 adopts by reference the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District Tattoo Parlor Regulations and assigns enforcement to the City Health Officer, so studios must meet CUPHD's sanitation rules rather than a separate city licensing scheme.
Champaign Tattoo Parlor Health Rules
Some RestrictionsChampaign, IL Code of Ordinances §§ 31.5-26, 31.5-27
Sec. 31.5-26. - Adoption. There is hereby adopted by reference the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District Tattoo Parlor Regulations. (C.B. No. 86-105, § 1, 5-20-86) Sec. 31.5-27. - Enforcement and interpretation. This article shall be enforced by the Health Officer in accordance with administrative rules and regulations adopted by the Champaign-Urbana Public Health District, as amended from ti...
Secondhand Dealers
Champaign licenses secondhand and used-goods dealers as junk dealers under Chapter 28, Article II of its Code, a chapter formerly titled Secondhand Goods Dealers. Operating a junkyard without a license from the City Clerk is prohibited, and the annual license costs $50.00 under Section 19-8.11 for each separate, noncontiguous location.
Champaign Junk and Secondhand Dealer License
Some RestrictionsChampaign Municipal Code §§ 28-16, 28-31
Junk dealer shall mean and include every person that shall engage in the business of buying, selling, bartering or exchanging, or that shall collect, receive, store or hold in possession for sale, barter or exchange, any of the things defined as junk....Sec. 28-31. - Required; separate places of business. (a)No person shall keep, maintain, conduct or operate a junkyard within the corporate limi...
Pawnbrokers
No one may run a pawnshop in Champaign without a City Clerk license under Sec. 28-56, which requires background checks and bars anyone with a felony or theft conviction, and licensees must keep detailed daily transaction records for police inspection.
Champaign Pawnbroker License Requirements
Significant RestrictionsChampaign City Code Sec. 28-56(a)
No person shall conduct or operate the business of pawnbroker within the corporate limits of the City without first obtaining a license from the City Clerk, or in violation of the terms of the license.
Auto Repair on Residential Property
Champaign allows a home-based repair business only as an accessory home occupation under Sec. 37-167, and the rule bans keeping tools, parts, or vehicles outdoors, caps the operation at 25% of the home's floor area, bars non-resident employees, and limits business vehicle traffic to two vehicles on the property at once.
Champaign Home Business Limits Cover Auto Repair
Significant RestrictionsChampaign, IL Code of Ordinances § 37-167
(a)There shall be no on-site employment or employment of persons not residing at the residence.(b)A home occupation shall be conducted wholly within the principal building or an accessory structure...(d)The total gross floor area which is used primarily for the operation of the home occupation shall not exceed twenty-five (25) percent of the gross floor area of the home...(f)No display of goods...
Towing Companies
Champaign requires any towing or vehicle-relocation service to hold a City Clerk license before removing a single trespassing vehicle. Sec. 33-162 sets the licensing mandate, Sec. 33-163 sets a $25 application fee and an April 30 annual expiration, and towers must carry set minimum insurance and post a signed notice before towing from private property.
Champaign Towing Company License Rules
Significant RestrictionsChampaign, IL Code of Ordinances §§ 33-162, 33-163(a)-(c)
Sec. 33-162. - License required. No person shall operate as or provide relocation services upon private or public property or towing services within the City without first having obtained a license from the City Clerk. Sec. 33-163. - Application for license.(a)An applicant for a license under the provisions of this Chapter shall submit a written application on forms provided by the City Clerk. ...
Looking for Champaign County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Champaign city rules.
Business Licensing & Operations in Champaign County →