Business Licensing & Operations in Ventura, CA (2026)
6 verified business licensing & operations rules for Ventura, California, sourced directly from the municipal code and official government pages.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Any adult business in the City of Ventura, from adult arcades to adult cabarets, must hold an adult business regulatory license before opening. Municipal Code Chapter 6.900 sets licensing, background-check, and operating standards that the Community Development Director enforces on top of the zoning rules in Section 24.492.
Ventura Adult Business License Rules
Significant RestrictionsSan Buenaventura Municipal Code §§ 6.900.010, 6.900.020(A)
It is the purpose and intent of this chapter to regulate the operations of adult businesses, which tend to have judicially recognized adverse secondary effects on the community, including, but not limited to, increases in crime in the vicinity of adult businesses; increases in vacancies in residential and commercial areas in the vicinity of adult businesses; interference with residential proper...
Massage Establishments
Operating a massage establishment in the City of Ventura requires a certificate of registration under San Buenaventura Municipal Code Section 8.300.060, separate from the business tax certificate every massage business must also hold. Certificates expire each June 30th, and the license authority can suspend or revoke one for background disqualifications, fraud, or chapter violations.
Massage Establishment License in Ventura
Significant RestrictionsSan Buenaventura Municipal Code § 8.300.060
No person shall engage in, conduct, carry on, or permit to be engaged in, conducted, or carried on, in or upon any premises within the city, the operation of a massage establishment without a certificate of registration issued pursuant to this chapter. ... A separate certificate of registration shall be obtained for each and every massage establishment owned or operated by such person, and no c...
Tobacco Retail License
Every tobacco and vape retailer in the City of Ventura, including sellers of e-cigarettes and vaping devices, must hold a city tobacco retailer license for each fixed location under San Buenaventura Municipal Code Section 6.410.030. The ordinance bans itinerant and vehicle-based tobacco sales, forbids licensing any bar or restaurant that serves alcohol for on-site consumption, and keeps new tobacco retailers 1,000 feet from any school.
Tobacco and Vape Retailer License in Ventura
Significant RestrictionsSan Buenaventura Municipal Code § 6.410.020, § 6.410.030(A), (B), (D)
“Electronic smoking device” means an electronic or battery-operated device that delivers vapors of nicotine and/or other substances for inhalation. This term includes every variation and type of such device, whether manufactured, distributed, marketed, or sold as an electronic cigarette, an electronic cigar, an electronic cigarillo, an electronic pipe, a vapor cigarette, an electronic hookah, a...
Secondhand Dealers
Secondhand dealers doing business in the City of Ventura need the same police-issued permit as pawnbrokers and junk dealers under San Buenaventura Municipal Code Section 6.200.030(B), and every item they buy or take in trade must sit unsold for 30 days unless resold to another permitted dealer. The police chief can deny, suspend or revoke the permit for fraud or repeat violations.
Secondhand Dealer Licensing in Ventura
Significant RestrictionsSan Buenaventura Municipal Code § 6.200.030(B), (F)(1)
“Secondhand dealer” means any person who in the course of business buys, sells or deals in secondhand goods, wares or merchandise other than motor vehicles or junk as herein defined, and whether such person is engaged solely in such purchase, sale or dealing, or buys, sells or deals therein, in connection with engaging in, conducting, managing or carrying on another business similar or dissimil...
Pawnbrokers
Any pawnbroker doing business in the City of Ventura must hold a written permit from the police chief, separate from the standard city business license, under San Buenaventura Municipal Code Section 6.200.030. The police chief investigates each applicant, can deny or revoke the permit for cause, and the ordinance bars resale of pawned merchandise for 30 days after it is taken in.
Pawnbroker Permits in the City of Ventura
Significant RestrictionsSan Buenaventura Municipal Code § 6.200.030(A), (B), (F)(1)
It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in, conduct, manage or carry on the business of pawnbroker, secondhand dealer, junk dealer or junk collector unless the person is the holder of an unexpired and unrevoked written permit therefor, issued in the manner hereinafter provided. ... “Pawnbroker” means any person engaged in, conducting, managing or carrying on the business of loaning money,...
Auto Repair on Residential Property
In the City of Ventura, you may repair a vehicle at a residential property only if you own the vehicle, keep proof of registration on site, work only between 7:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m., finish within 30 days, and never store the vehicle or its parts on the street or an unpaved yard. Body work and painting are banned outright.
Home Vehicle Repair Rules in Ventura, CA
Some RestrictionsSan Buenaventura Municipal Code § 24.210.130(G)
G. Vehicle Repair. No vehicles may be repaired on sites occupied by residential land uses unless all the following conditions are met: 1. The vehicle under repair must be owned by the current resident of the property upon which the repairs are being made. 2. Registration or proof of current ownership of the vehicle being repaired shall be available for inspection on the premises at all times wh...
Looking for Ventura County county-wide rules?
County ordinances apply to unincorporated areas and may supplement Ventura city rules.
Business Licensing & Operations in Ventura County →