Business Licensing & Operations in New Braunfels, TX (2026)
5 verified business licensing & operations rules for New Braunfels, Texas, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Sexually oriented businesses in New Braunfels need a $500 annual police-issued license and must sit at least 1,000 feet from churches, schools, parks, homes, and other adult businesses.
New Braunfels Sexually Oriented Business Permit
Significant RestrictionsNew Braunfels City Code § 18-235
A person commits an offense if he operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business within 1,000 feet of: (1) A church; (2) A public or private elementary or secondary school, or a day care center; ... (4) A public park; or (5) The property line of a lot having any residential use... A person commits an offense if he causes or permits the operation, establishment, substantial enlar...
Massage Establishments
Operating a massage parlor in New Braunfels requires a license from the local health authority under City Code § 18-211, backed by a $24 annual fee, a physician's health certificate, and police fingerprinting and photographing, and the license can be revoked for anything from a false statement to letting an unfingerprinted employee work.
New Braunfels Massage Parlor License Rules
Significant RestrictionsNew Braunfels Code of Ordinances § 18-211; § 18-214
(a)It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a massage parlor in the city without first obtaining from the local health authority a license to operate such massage parlor as required by this article... A license to operate a massage parlor shall be issued by the local health authority if he finds that the applicant meets the requirements of this article. A license shall be valid only for t...
Tattoo & Body Modification
New Braunfels treats tattoo and body piercing studios as a commercial and industrial land use, not a citywide by-right business. The Code of Ordinances lists "Tattoo and body piercing studio" among uses permitted by right in the C-3 commercial district, with the identical listing repeated for the C-4 resort commercial, M-1 light industrial and M-2 heavy industrial districts. It is absent from every residential, C-1 and C-2 district list.
New Braunfels Tattoo Studio Zoning Rule
Some RestrictionsNew Braunfels Code of Ordinances § 144-3.3-9(a)(1)
(a)Authorized uses. Uses permitted by right shall be those set forth in the land use matrix in section 144-4.2. The allowed uses in the district, which are intended to be identical with those listed in the land use matrix, are as follows:(1)Uses permitted by right. ... Tattoo and body piercing studio.
Auto Repair on Residential Property
New Braunfels flatly bars auto repair as a home business. Section 144-5.5-5(c) lists 'automobile, boat or trailer paint or repair shop' among the uses that can never qualify as a home occupation, and subsection (h) backs it up by excluding any repair shop for items with an internal combustion engine, no matter how small the operation.
New Braunfels Home Auto Repair Ban
Heavy RestrictionsNew Braunfels City Code § 144-5.5-5(c)
5.5-5. Uses prohibited as home occupations. Home occupations shall not, in any event, be deemed to include the following uses:(a)Animal hospitals or clinics, commercial stables having more than two horses per acre or kennels;...(c)Automobile, boat or trailer paint or repair shop; small engine or motorcycle repair shop; welding shop; large household appliance repair shop; or other similar type o...
Towing Companies
New Braunfels requires all tow operators to hold a Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation permit and follow the city's police rotation-list system before removing a vehicle without the owner's consent.
New Braunfels Non-Consent Towing Rules
Some RestrictionsNew Braunfels Code of Ordinances § 138-123
A police officer of the city is hereby authorized to order removal of a vehicle, require the driver or other person in charge of a vehicle to move the same or have the vehicle removed by the towing operator on the rotation list to the nearest place of safety or to the premises of the towing operator that meets the criteria in this article, or as otherwise directed by the city police department,...