Business Licensing & Operations in Doña Ana County, NM (2026)
5 rules for unincorporated Doña Ana County, New Mexico.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Adult bookstores and adult entertainment uses in unincorporated Doña Ana County must sit at least 1,000 feet from any church, school, public park or recreational facility, residential zone, or residential use, and every such use requires a public hearing before the Planning and Zoning Commission.
Doña Ana County Adult Business Spacing Rule
Significant RestrictionsDoña Ana County Code § 350-502B(9)
Adult bookstores and adult entertainment. Adult bookstores and adult entertainment uses shall be located 1,000 feet from the property line of any church, school, public park or recreational facility, residential zone, or residential use and shall require a public hearing by the P&Z.
Massage Establishments
Doña Ana County has no standalone massage establishment license; it regulates massage therapy only as a home occupation under UDC § 350-510K(2), requiring state licensure and limiting each residential property to one customer station for a state-licensed massage therapist working from home.
Doña Ana County Home Massage Therapy Rule
Some RestrictionsDoña Ana County Code § 350-510K(2)
Professional service includes home occupations involving computer programming and internet/website development, beautician/hairdresser/barber services, direct distribution, maid services, mail order, massage therapy, ironing, pet grooming, telephone/fax answering, word processing and similar service uses. Beauticians/hairdressers/barbers and massage therapists licensed by the State of New Mexic...
Tattoo & Body Modification
In unincorporated Doña Ana County, tattoo and body-piercing parlors cannot operate as a home occupation. Unified Development Code § 350-510.L flatly bars them alongside auto repair and adult businesses, so a tattoo studio has to locate on commercially zoned property and go through the County's standard business permitting process instead of the lighter home occupation track.
Doña Ana County Bars Tattoo Parlors From Homes
Some RestrictionsDoña Ana County Code § 350-510.L
The following activities shall be prohibited as home occupations: cannabis establishments, cannabis consumption areas, adult bookstores/video stores, adult amusement establishments, health and exercise facilities, motor vehicle repair services, tattoo/body piercing parlors, auto or truck repair, motorcycle repair, lawn mower repair, large appliance repair, internal combustion engine repair and ...
Secondhand Dealers
Secondhand dealers in unincorporated Doña Ana County are certificate holders under Chapter 268: they must file a daily report of goods received to the Sheriff and LeadsOnline, tag every item, and hold secondhand goods 15 days before resale.
Doña Ana County Secondhand Dealer Rules
Significant RestrictionsDoña Ana County Code §§ 268-3, 268-9(B)
SECONDHAND DEALER: A person engaged in the business of purchasing, trading, bartering or exchanging secondhand goods. ... Secondhand goods shall not be sold or disposed of by a secondhand dealer within 15 days from the date said item was received by the certificate holder.
Pawnbrokers
Pawnbrokers in unincorporated Doña Ana County must register under the Business Registration Fee Ordinance, post a $5,000 corporate surety bond, and report every transaction daily to the Sheriff and to LeadsOnline. Pawned property cannot be sold for at least 90 days.
Doña Ana County Pawnbroker Licensing
Significant RestrictionsDoña Ana County Code § 268-6
No person shall engage in the business of being a pawnbroker without having executed and delivered a bond to the County, in the sum of $5,000, with a corporate surety qualified to do business in the state. The bond shall be in a form approved by the County's community development department and shall be conditioned upon the conduct of such pawnbroker's business according to the provisions of th...
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