Business Licensing & Operations in Richland County, SC (2026)
3 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 1 city in Richland County, South Carolina.
Verified from official government sources
Adult Entertainment
Richland County requires a business license specific to sexually oriented businesses, with a mandatory pre-application check by zoning, fire, building and health officials and automatic disqualification for operators under 18 or convicted of specified sex crimes within five years. The License Official must approve or deny the application within 30 calendar days.
Sexually Oriented Business License in Richland County
Significant RestrictionsRichland County Code § 16-17(6)-(7)
(6) The License Official shall approve or deny an application for a license for a Sexually Oriented Business within thirty calendar days (30) from the date of receipt of the application. If the License Official fails to either approve or deny the application within thirty calendar days, then the application shall be deemed approved and business activity may begin or continue immediately, notwit...
Massage Establishments
Richland County bans massage and bodywork establishments from staying open between 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m., requires every therapist to hold the state license and post it on-site, and bars operators from knowingly employing anyone with a prior sexual-misconduct-with-a-child conviction. Violations are a misdemeanor with a $500 fine and 30 days in jail.
Massage Establishment Rules in Richland County
Significant RestrictionsRichland County Code § 16-23(9), (13)
(9) Hours of operation. No bodywork, health massage or massage establishment shall be kept open for any purpose between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. on any day. ... (13) Penalties. Failure to comply with any of the requirements of this section shall constitute a violation punishable by a fine not exceeding five hundred dollars ($500.00) and imprisonment not exceeding thirty (30) days. ...
Towing Companies
Unincorporated Richland County dispatches non-consent tows off a sheriff's-office rotation list, not driver choice. Wrecker services must apply to the county administrator, meet equipment and insurance standards, and follow set tow and storage fees before they can take rotation calls.
Non-Consent Tow Rules for Richland County Wreckers
Significant RestrictionsRichland County Code § 25-14
All wrecker services doing business within the unincorporated areas of the county meeting the requirements of this article will be dispatched from the sheriff's dispatcher's office which will have a list of participating wrecker services. The wrecker services will be set up on a rotation basis for the zones... If no particular wrecker operator or service is requested by the owner or driver, the...
Business Licensing & Operations by City in Richland County
1 cities in Richland County have their own business licensing & operations rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
All Richland County ordinances
See every category we cover for Richland County: parking, noise, fences, fires, animals, pools, and more.
Richland County Ordinance Hub →