Personal Services & Wellness · 7 min read · Last updated
Hair salons, barbershops, nail studios, tattoo and piercing shops, electrolysis and waxing clinics — Toronto puts them all under one licence category: Personal Service Settings. If your business touches hair or skin, this is almost certainly your licence, and it comes with public-facing health inspections under the BodySafe program. Here's how the category works from application to renewal.
The City of Toronto lists this under its “Business” category: “Businesses that provide personal services are required to obtain a "Personal Service Settings" licence.”
Who needs this licence?
The Personal Service Settings category covers businesses that provide personal services to the body. The City's list is wide: hairstyling and barbering, manicures and pedicures, tattooing, body and ear piercing, electrolysis, waxing and other aesthetic services all fall inside it, whether you run a full-service spa or a single chair.
The category is about the service, not the size — a home-based lash studio and a multi-floor salon both need the licence. What it does not cover are holistic services (holistic centres and practitioners have their own licence categories) and regulated health professions such as registered massage therapy, which are provincially governed.
What documents do you need?
A complete application package includes:
- Two pieces of government-issued identification for the applicant, at least one with a photo
- Corporate documents or business name registration if you operate through a company
- Proof of the premises — the full signed lease or the deed
- Items on the City's supporting-documents checklist for personal service settings
If you are building out the space — plumbing for wash stations, new partitions — remember that construction permits run on a separate track from the licence.
Zoning and premises requirements
The premises must be in a zone that permits a personal service shop use. Most commercial main streets qualify, but confirm it for the exact unit before signing a lease, and be especially careful with live-work spaces and residential conversions. Home-based operators need to fit within the City's home occupation rules, which limit how much of a dwelling a business can occupy and how clients visit.
Inspections and approvals
This is the category BodySafe was built for. Toronto Public Health inspects personal service settings under the BodySafe program, focusing on infection prevention and control: instrument sterilization, single-use items, hand hygiene and safe handling of anything that touches skin. Inspection results are public, so a clean record is marketing as much as compliance.
Municipal Licensing & Standards can also inspect the premises as part of licensing and in response to complaints.
How much does it cost?
The City charges an application fee when you first apply and an annual fee at renewal, both set in its licensing fee schedule and confirmed during the application. They are paid directly to the City.
How to apply
Applications go to Municipal Licensing & Standards, which issues Toronto's business licences under Chapter 545 of the Municipal Code. Since January 2026 you can file through the City's online Business Licence & Permit portal, or in person at the licence office if you prefer a counter.
Assemble the identification, business registration, premises proof and checklist items before you start — Permits2Go's workspace builds that package with you so the file is complete on day one.
Renewals and staying compliant
Renew annually before expiry, and keep the licence details current: ownership changes, corporate changes and moves all need to be reported, and a new location means a new application for that address.
Between renewals, the standing obligation is BodySafe readiness — inspectors can arrive during business hours, and the public results follow the premises.
Quick quiz: test what you learned
Three questions, all answered in this guide. Click an answer to check it.
1. Which Toronto businesses fall under the Personal Service Settings licence?
The category spans hair and aesthetics through tattooing; holistic services and provincially regulated professions like registered massage therapy sit in other frameworks.
2. What is BodySafe?
BodySafe is the public-health inspection program for these premises, and its results are posted for the public.
3. Who issues the Personal Service Settings licence?
MLS issues the licence; Toronto Public Health's role is inspecting the premises under BodySafe.
Skip the paperwork
Tell Permits2Go about your business and it assembles the licence application for you — document checklists, e-signatures and a guided workspace for Toronto, with more cities on the way.
This guide is general information, not legal or professional advice. Licensing requirements, by-laws and fees change and vary by municipality — always confirm the current rules with the City before you apply.