Business Licensing & Operations in Gilroy, CA (2026)
7 verified business licensing & operations rules for Gilroy, California, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
In the City of Gilroy, adult businesses cannot open by right. Chapter 2A of the Gilroy City Code requires a permit from the chief of police and bars any adult business within 1,000 feet of another one, a school, a park, a religious institution, or a residential zone.
Gilroy Adult Business Permit & Spacing Rules
Significant RestrictionsGilroy City Code §§ 2A.3, 2A.8, 2A.24
§ 2A.3. Locational regulations. (a) No person shall establish or cause or permit to be established an adult business premises within one thousand (1,000) feet of another adult business premises, within one thousand (1,000) feet of any school, public park or recreation area, or public building with programs for minors, or within one thousand (1,000) feet of any residential zone or religious inst...
Massage Establishments
Massage businesses, managing employees and individual practitioners in Gilroy each need a separate police-chief-issued permit under City Code § 13.50, on top of any CAMTC state certification. The chief runs full background and education checks, and a violation carries up to a $1,000 fine or six months in jail under § 13.62.
Gilroy Massage Establishment Permit
Significant RestrictionsGilroy City Code §§ 13.50, 13.62
§ 13.50. Permit requirements for massage establishments, managing employees and massage practitioners. (a) Massage Establishment Permits. No person shall establish, operate or maintain a massage establishment within city limits without first obtaining from the police chief, and maintaining in effect, a massage establishment permit. It is unlawful to operate, establish or maintain a massage esta...
Tattoo & Body Modification
In the City of Gilroy, tattoo and piercing parlors fall under the zoning code's personal-services use category, but footnote 8 of the commercial use table bars any business whose primary personal service is massage, tattoo, or piercing in the districts flagged with that footnote. Community Development staff apply the commercial use table, Gilroy City Code § 30.19.10, when reviewing a business license or building permit for a studio.
Gilroy Tattoo and Piercing Parlor Zoning Rules
Significant RestrictionsGilroy City Code § 30.19.10
7 Commercial uses providing needed services of a personal nature. Personal services generally include barber and beauty shops, nail salons, tanning and spa salons, seamstresses, tailors, shoe repair shops, dry cleaning (except bulk processing plants), self service laundries, massage parlors, and tattoo and piercing parlors, except where expressly prohibited (see footnote 8). 8 Uses offering the...
Tobacco Retail License
Every tobacco and vape retailer in Gilroy needs a city permit under City Code § 13.68, on top of the state Board of Equalization permit, and new permits can't authorize sales within 1,000 feet of a school. Selling to a minor triggers escalating civil penalties starting at $1,000 and a 30-day suspension.
Gilroy Tobacco Retailer Permit Rules
Significant RestrictionsGilroy City Code §§ 13.68, 13.78
§ 13.68. General regulations. Every person within the city who operates as a tobacco retailer is required to obtain and maintain a valid tobacco retailer’s permit. ... (i) Tobacco retailing is prohibited near schools as follows: (1) Except as provided in this section, no new tobacco retailer permit may be issued to authorize tobacco retailing within one thousand (1,000) feet of a school as meas...
Secondhand Dealers
Anyone who buys, sells or trades used goods, scrap metal or junk in Gilroy needs a permit from the police chief before opening, per City Code § 12B.2. The chief runs every applicant through the California Department of Justice, and a prior stolen-property conviction is an automatic denial under § 12B.4(a).
Gilroy Secondhand and Junk Dealer Permit
Significant RestrictionsGilroy City Code §§ 12B.2, 12B.10
§ 12B.2. Permit – Required. ... It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in, conduct, manage or carry on the business of secondhand dealer or junk dealer without first applying for and receiving a permit therefor in writing from the chief of police in the manner provided in this chapter. The conduct of such businesses shall comply with the requirements of this chapter and the California Bu...
Auto Repair on Residential Property
In the City of Gilroy, home-based businesses cannot include motor vehicle repair or reconditioning. City Code § 30.40.40(b) flatly excludes "the repair or reconditioning on the residential site for commercial purposes of motor vehicles or equipment, boats, or recreation vehicles, or display for sale of any vehicle" from the home occupation category.
Gilroy Bars Home-Based Auto Repair
Heavy RestrictionsGilroy City Code § 30.40.40
(b) The repair or reconditioning on the residential site for commercial purposes of motor vehicles or equipment, boats, or recreation vehicles, or display for sale of any vehicle.
Towing Companies
In the City of Gilroy, only towing services approved for the Gilroy Police Department's towing list may respond to police-requested tows under City Code Chapter 24A. Operators must carry a $100,000 garage keeper's liability policy, file a fixed price schedule with police, and rotate calls; towing a vehicle from private property without following those sections is a separate infraction.
Gilroy Non-Consent Towing and Wrecker Rules
Significant RestrictionsGilroy City Code §§ 24A.5, 24A.6, 24A.12
All towing services on the towing list shall maintain with the chief of police evidence of a garage keeper’s legal liability policy with minimum coverage of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00), ... The current price schedule for all services to be rendered by the towing service shall be maintained with the police department and no other price shall be charged. ... It shall be unlawful an...
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County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Gilroy city rules.
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