Business Licensing & Operations in Middletown, OH (2026)
7 verified business licensing & operations rules for Middletown, Ohio, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Middletown requires a Police Chief-issued permit, with a $500 nonrefundable fee and background investigation, before anyone may operate an adult entertainment establishment. Chapter 805 also imposes strict spacing buffers, 500 feet from residential zoning, 1,000 feet from churches, schools, and parks, and 250 feet from another such business, plus a midnight-to-noon closing window.
Adult Entertainment Establishment Permit in Middletown, Ohio
Significant RestrictionsMiddletown Code of Ordinances § 805.05(a); § 805.13(a)-(c), (e)(1)
§ 805.05 PERMIT REQUIRED. ... (a) No person shall own, operate or participate in the operation of an adult entertainment establishment ... unless the owner or person in control of the premises where such establishment shall be located first obtains a valid and current permit for the operation of an adult entertainment establishment. ... § 805.13 RESTRICTIONS ON OPERATION. ... (a) ... Adult e...
Massage Establishments
Middletown requires separate Police Chief-issued licenses for massage practitioners and for the establishments that employ them: a $100.00 practitioner license and a $500.00 establishment permit, each backed by a fingerprint background check. Chapter 832 also bars any massage establishment from opening between 10:00 p.m. and 8:00 a.m.
Massage Establishment License in Middletown, Ohio
Some RestrictionsMiddletown Code of Ordinances § 832.03(a), (b), (e)
§ 832.03 LICENSING OF MASSAGE PRACTITIONERS AND MASSAGE ESTABLISHMENTS; PERMITS REQUIRED; PROHIBITIONS. ... (a) It shall be unlawful for any person to practice, administer, to offer, agree to practice any subject or method of treatment listed in § 832.01(b) in the City, whether for a fee, income or consideration of any kind, without first obtaining and maintaining in effect a valid and curren...
Tattoo & Body Modification
Middletown, Ohio requires anyone operating a tattooing or body piercing business to pay a $250.00 application approval fee and a $250.00 annual renewal fee under City of Middletown Code of Ordinances § 1860.01, with a $50.00 per-event fee for time-limited approvals. Approvals, reviews and revocations follow Ohio's statewide body-art regulations.
Middletown Tattoo & Body Piercing License Fees
Some RestrictionsMiddletown Code of Ordinances §§ 1860.01, 1860.02
Each person or other entity operating a tattooing and/or body piercing business shall pay an application approval fee, at the time of applying for approval to operate the following categories: tattooing services; body piercing services; combined body art services; time-limited approval for specific event. The amount shall be two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00), and an annual renewal fee of two ...
Tobacco Retail License
Middletown, Ohio requires every tobacco retailer, including sellers of e-cigarettes and other electronic smoking devices, to hold a $250.00 annual license from the Board of Health under City of Middletown Code of Ordinances § 1864.02. Mobile tobacco retailers are banned outright, and civil penalties start at $500.00 for a first violation.
Middletown Tobacco and Vape Retail License
Significant RestrictionsMiddletown Code of Ordinances §§ 1864.01, 1864.02, 1864.03
(c) ELECTRONIC SMOKING DEVICE. Any device that can be used to deliver aerosolized or vaporized nicotine to the person inhaling from the device, including, but not limited to, an e-cigarette, e-cigar, e-pipe, vape pen or e-hookah. ... (a) Beginning January 1, 2024: No person shall sell or offer to sell any tobacco product without first having obtained a license to do so from the Board of Health....
Secondhand Dealers
In the City of Middletown, Ohio, anyone buying, trading or selling second-hand articles must hold a swap shop/secondhand dealer's license from the Middletown Division of Police. The license costs $200, renews each January, and comes with strict recordkeeping, video surveillance and purchase restrictions.
Secondhand Dealer License in Middletown, OH
Significant RestrictionsMiddletown Code of Ordinances § 835.02
No person shall purchase, exchange, trade, sell or receive second-hand articles or engage in the business of purchasing, exchanging, trading, selling or receiving second-hand articles without first obtaining a swap shop/second-hand dealer's license from the Division of Police. The fees for such license shall be two hundred dollars ($200.00). The license shall be renewed in January of each year....
Auto Repair on Residential Property
Middletown prohibits automotive and other vehicle repair or service as a home occupation, except when the work is performed on a vehicle owned by the property owner or tenant, under Section 1206.01(e)(8)D.2 of the Development Code.
Middletown Bars Home-Based Auto Repair Businesses
Heavy RestrictionsMiddletown Code of Ordinances § 1206.01(e)(8)D.2
D. Prohibited home occupations. The following are business activities that are prohibited as home occupations: ... ... 2. Automotive and other vehicle repair and service, except when such repair or service is on a vehicle owned by the property owner or tenant of such property;
Towing Companies
In the City of Middletown, Ohio, § 452.055 lets police order a car towed off private residential or agricultural property after four hours without permission. Owners who arrive before removal can pay half the PUCO tow fee to stop the tow.
Middletown Non-Consent Towing Rules
Some RestrictionsMiddletown Code of Ordinances § 452.055
The chief of a law enforcement agency of the municipal corporation, upon complaint of any person adversely affected, may order into storage any motor vehicle, other than an abandoned junk motor vehicle as defined in R.C. § 4513.63, that has been left on private residential or private agricultural property for at least four hours without the permission of the person having the right to the posse...
Looking for Butler County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Middletown city rules.
Business Licensing & Operations in Butler County →