Business Licensing & Operations in North Charleston, SC (2026)
4 verified business licensing & operations rules for North Charleston, South Carolina, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
The City of North Charleston confines sexually oriented businesses to M-1 and M-2 industrial zones and bars them within 1,000 feet of churches, schools, parks, and residential areas.
North Charleston Sexually Oriented Business Zoning
Significant RestrictionsNorth Charleston Code of Ordinances, Appendix A (Zoning Regulations) § 4-14(e)
(e) Location of sexually oriented business. (1) All sexually oriented businesses shall be located within an M-1 or M-2 zoning district. A person commits a misdemeanor if he operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business outside of an M-1 or M-2 district. (2) A person commits a misdemeanor if he operates or causes to be operated a sexually oriented business within one thousand (1...
Tattoo & Body Modification
Tattoo parlors are a permitted use only in North Charleston's M-1 light industrial district, and Section 5-5(b)(5) keeps them 1,000 feet from churches, schools, parks and residential property, with distance measured in a straight line from the building housing the parlor to the nearest edge of the protected use.
North Charleston Tattoo Parlor Zoning Buffer
Significant RestrictionsNorth Charleston Code of Ordinances, Appendix A (Zoning Regulations) § 5-5(b)(5)
5.Tattoo parlors, provided that such uses shall not be established within one thousand (1,000) feet of:a.The property line of a lot devoted to use by a church or other place of worship;b.A boundary line of any residential district or residential use;c.The property line of a public park adjacent to any residential district or any public or private elementary or secondary school;d.The property li...
Secondhand Dealers
North Charleston requires an annual city business license for any salvage or junk business, meaning a premises where discarded or salvaged matter is bought, sold, exchanged or stored for profit. All of that material must sit behind an opaque barrier at least 8 feet high, nothing may be stored outside it, and gates stay locked whenever no operator is on site.
North Charleston Salvage and Junk Business Rules
Significant RestrictionsNorth Charleston Code of Ordinances § 9-71.1
Salvage or junk shall mean any materials consisting of waste, discarded or salvaged matter which is bought, sold, exchanged, stored, bailed, packed, or disassembled for profit, trade, or hire. ... License required. No person, firm or corporation shall engage in or operate any business defined herein as a salvage or junk business in the city without having first procured the proper annual busine...
Towing Companies
Wrecker services must hold a city towing permit and decal, carry heavy liability insurance, and follow strict rules for nonconsensual private-property tows.
North Charleston Towing Permit Rules
Significant RestrictionsNorth Charleston Code of Ordinances § 10.5-1110
No towing carrier engaged in the business of performing nonconsensual tows shall operate within the corporate limits of the city without obtaining a towing permit.(b)Every towing company shall have an insurance policy covering the operation of the towing service's business equipment and vehicles for any bodily injury or property damage in any amount of not less than one million dollars ($1,000,...
Looking for Charleston County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement North Charleston city rules.
Business Licensing & Operations in Charleston County →