St. Tammany Parish, LA Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)
Key Facts
- Minimum pawnbroker license tax
- $300.00 (Sec. 22-41(c))
- Tax base
- Gross retail sales plus total loans made
- First-year basis
- Follows R.S. 47:344 and 47:348
- Application authority
- Parish tax collector, Sec. 22-35
- License transferability
- Not transferable on ownership change
Summary
St. Tammany Parish taxes pawnbrokers under its occupational license tax article, basing the fee on gross retail sales plus the total amount of loans made, with a $300.00 minimum license tax regardless of volume.
For every pawnbroker, or person keeping a loan office and engaged in lending money on articles pawned or pledged and for each and every money broker, money lender or person lending money on, or purchasing time, wages or salaries of laborers, clerks or other wage earners or other persons, whether the same be earned or unearned, and whether the business is conducted in an office or otherwise, the license tax shall be based on the amount of gross sales and receipts from any retail sales plus the amount of loans made by the business. However, the minimum license tax paid by pawnbrokers licensed under the provisions of this subsection shall be $300.00.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 12 Update 2).
Full Breakdown
Sec. 22-41(c) puts pawnbrokers, along with any person keeping a loan office and lending money on articles pawned or pledged, and money brokers or lenders advancing funds against wages or salaries, into their own license category. 00. The section defines 'amount of loans made' broadly to mean the total of all funds or goods advanced to borrowers plus amounts paid to purchase or otherwise acquire notes or similar evidence of indebtedness from others. For a pawnbroker's first year in business, Sec. S. ' This sits within the parish's general occupational license scheme in Ch.
22, Art. II: a pawnbroker must apply to the tax collector for the license before it becomes delinquent (Sec. 22-35), and, as with every other occupational license class, the license is tied to the specific location and business and is not transferable if ownership or the lessee changes (Sec. 22-30). Annual license taxes are due January 1, with delinquency after the last day of February triggering 18 percent annual interest plus a 5 percent per-30-day penalty capped at 25 percent of the tax owed, under Sec. 22-28.
Violations & Fines
An intentionally false statement of material fact on a pawnbroker license application is a misdemeanor under Sec. 22-35(d), fined up to $200.00 or up to six months imprisonment, or both. Nonpayment triggers immediate delinquency of the tax, interest, penalties and costs under Sec. 22-36, and the parish tax collector can pursue a court rule compelling payment.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum license tax for a pawnbroker in St. Tammany Parish?
How is the pawnbroker license tax calculated?
Does a new pawnbroker business get a different first-year calculation?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in St. Tammany Parish
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