Business Licensing & Operations in Sandy, UT (2026)
7 verified business licensing & operations rules for Sandy, Utah, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Sandy City requires a sexually oriented business license before any adult bookstore, adult cabaret, adult motel, adult theater, or semi-nude model studio can open, plus a separate employee license for every worker there. The Business License Authority must issue or deny within 20 days. Zoning then layers on strict distance buffers keeping the use away from schools, parks, homes, and the freeway.
Sandy Sexually Oriented Business License
Significant RestrictionsSandy City Code §§ 16-2-4, 21-8-2
It shall be unlawful for any person to operate a sexually oriented business in the City of Sandy City without a valid sexually oriented business license... This use is not permitted if any part of the proposed/existing building containing the use is within 1,000 feet from any school, public park, library, or religious or cultural activity; within 500 feet of any other sexually oriented business...
Massage Establishments
Sandy requires a business license before anyone operates a massage establishment or works as a masseur, and every such business must be a subsidiary use inside an approved health, spa, or exercise facility, not a standalone shop.
Sandy Massage Establishment License
Significant RestrictionsSandy City Code §§ 16-1-2, 16-1-4
It shall be unlawful for any person to operate, conduct, or maintain a massage establishment or engage in the business of a masseur in Sandy City without first obtaining a business license to do so. ... No massage establishment shall be maintained within the limits of Sandy City as an independent business establishment, but any such massage establishment shall only be maintained and a license i...
Tattoo & Body Modification
Sandy's zoning code defines a tattoo parlor as any business that operates tattoo equipment to inject ink or otherwise modify skin for decoration (Sec. 21-37-21). The city's land use matrix marks tattoo parlors "N" (Not Permitted) in every residential, commercial, office, and institutional district, and allows them only as a conditional use in the Industrial (ID) zone, subject to a 500-foot buffer from housing or farmland (Sec. 21-8-2).
Sandy Tattoo Parlor Zoning Rules
Significant RestrictionsSandy City Code SS 21-8-2 (incl. Footnote 4), 21-37-21
21-37-21: "Tattoo parlor means any business establishment which operates tattoo equipment to inject ink or otherwise modify human skin for the purposes of decoration." 21-8-2: "The letters 'P,' 'C,' 'S,' or 'N' shall mean 'Permitted,' 'Conditional,' 'Special Use,' or 'Not Permitted,' respectively." Footnote 4: "The use is not permitted if any part of the proposed/existing building containing th...
Tobacco Retail License
Sandy's Land Development Code treats a vape shop as an "alcohol or tobacco specialty store" once it hits set sales or floor-space thresholds, and the definition of tobacco product expressly names electronic cigarettes. That triggers strict siting buffers: 1,000 feet from schools and parks, 600 feet from another such store or residential/agricultural zoning, and 150 feet from the 9000 South Street gateway corridor.
Sandy Vape and Tobacco Store Zoning Rules
Significant RestrictionsSandy City Code §§ 21-37-2, 21-8-2
The term "alcohol or tobacco specialty store" means a commercial establishment that, through signage, floor space allocation and sales revenue, demonstrates it is substantially engaged in the offer and sale of alcohol and/or tobacco products... Any cigar, cigarette, chewing tobacco, or electronic cigarette as defined in Utah State Code... This use is not permitted if any part of the proposed/ex...
Secondhand Dealers
Sandy requires a City license, backed by a Sandy Police Department background check, before anyone deals in used or secondhand merchandise under Chapter 15-7, with garage sales, antique shops, and online personal-property sales carved out as exemptions.
Sandy Secondhand Merchandise Dealer License
Significant RestrictionsSandy City Code §§ 15-7-1, 15-7-2
Secondhand merchandise dealer means an owner or operator of a business that: Deals in the purchase, exchange, or sale of used or secondhand merchandise or personal property; and Does not function as a pawnbroker... It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to carry on the business or carry on a transaction of antique dealer, coin dealer, junk dealer, junk collector, pawnbroker, s...
Pawnbrokers
Sandy requires every pawnbroker to hold a City license before operating, with a mandatory Sandy Police Department background investigation on the individual applicant and business allowed only from a fixed, permanent location under Chapter 15-7.
Sandy Pawnbroker License Requirement
Significant RestrictionsSandy City Code § 15-7-2
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm or corporation to carry on the business or carry on a transaction of antique dealer, coin dealer, junk dealer, junk collector, pawnbroker, scrap metal processor, secondary metals dealer or recycler, secondhand merchandise dealer without previously having obtained a license to operate in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. A separate license ...
Auto Repair on Residential Property
Sandy City Code § 21-11-5 flatly prohibits auto body repair, motor vehicle repair, and the storage, service, or sale of automobiles, tow trucks, ATVs, or other motorized vehicles as a home occupation, because the City has found these uses impair the value of residential neighborhoods.
Sandy Bans Home-Based Auto Repair Businesses
Heavy RestrictionsSandy City Code § 21-11-5
Prohibited Home Occupations. The following uses, by nature of the occupation, substantially impair the use and value of residentially zoned areas for residential purposes and are, therefore, prohibited: ... Storage, service, repair, or sales of ambulances, tow trucks, recreational vehicles, water craft, automobiles, ATVs, or other motorized vehicles. ... Auto body repair or motor vehicle repair.
Looking for Salt Lake County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Sandy city rules.
Business Licensing & Operations in Salt Lake County →