Miami Beach, FL Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)
Key Facts
- Licensing agency
- Florida Dept. of Agriculture & Consumer Services
- License term
- 1 year, renewed annually
- License fee
- $300 per pawnshop location
- Net worth or bond
- $50,000 net worth or $10,000 bond
- Unlicensed operation penalty
- Third-degree felony, Fla. Stat. § 539.001(17)
- City ordinance
- Sec. 18-721 adopts Fla. Stat. ch. 539
Summary
Miami Beach requires every pawnshop to hold a state pawnbroker license before the city will issue a business tax receipt. City Code Sec. 18-721 adopts the Florida Pawnbroking Act, Fla. Stat. ch. 539, in full, so state licensing, bonding and record rules control pawn transactions citywide rather than a separate municipal ordinance.
(4) LICENSE REQUIRED.—(a) A person may not engage in business as a pawnbroker unless the person has a valid license issued by the agency. A separate license is required for each pawnshop. The agency must issue more than one license to a person if that person complies with the requirements for each license... (c) Each license is valid for a period of 1 year unless it is earlier relinquished, suspended, or revoked. Each license shall be renewed annually, and each licensee shall, initially and annually thereafter, pay to the agency a license fee of $300 for each license held... (f) Any person applying for or renewing a local occupational license to engage in business as a pawnbroker must exhibit a current license from the agency before the local business tax receipt may be issued or reissued.
Full Breakdown
Miami Beach abolished its own pawnbroker ordinance in 2013. Ordinance No. 2013-3791, adopted February 6, 2013, deleted the former Division 3 of Chapter 18, Article XII (old Secs. 18-721 to 18-760) and replaced it with a single adoption clause. Sec. 3, as amended from time to time, is adopted by the city. That means the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, not a city licensing board, controls entry into the pawn business. Under Fla. 001(4)(a), a person may not operate as a pawnbroker without a valid agency license, and a separate license is required for every pawnshop location.
001(4)(c). 001(6). 001(4)(f). 001(17)(a), punishable under Fla. 084. Because the city folded its licensing scheme into the state act wholesale, disputes over pawn tickets, hold periods and record inspections are resolved under Chapter 539 rather than any Miami Beach-specific chapter.
Violations & Fines
Operating a pawnshop in Miami Beach without a current Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services license is a third-degree felony under Fla. Stat. § 539.001(17)(a), prosecuted under §§ 775.082 through 775.084 rather than through city code enforcement. The city's business tax receipt office will also refuse or pull the local occupational license for any pawnshop that cannot produce its current state license, since Sec. 18-721 makes that state license a precondition to the local receipt.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Miami Beach have its own pawnbroker ordinance?
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Miami Beach
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Pawnbrokers in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Miami-Dade County handle pawnbrokers.