Omaha, NE Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)
Key Facts
- Permit issuer
- Permits and inspections division
- Bond required
- $5,000 continuing surety bond
- Disqualifying record
- Felony, theft, or moral-turpitude conviction
- Holding period
- 14 days before resale, 6 months if pawned
- Permit expiration
- June 30 or December 31 yearly
- Minimum customer age
- 18 years old
Summary
Every pawnbroker or chattel loan broker operating in Omaha must hold a permit from the permits and inspections division, post a $5,000 surety bond, and pass a background check that bars felons and theft offenders. Omaha Municipal Code §§ 30-111 through 30-136 also require fingerprinting every customer and a daily transaction log sent to police.
For the purposes of this article, any person engaged in the business of loaning money on deposit or pledge or personal property or other valuable thing, or any person engaged in the business of loaning money upon chattel property for security and requiring possession of the property so mortgaged, on condition of returning same upon payment of a stipulated amount of money, is hereby declared to be a pawnbroker, or chattel loan broker. Any person engaged in the business of pawnbroker or chattel loan broker shall first obtain a permit from the permits and inspections division. No permit shall be issued to an individual applicant or corporation if the applicant or a corporate officer has been convicted and not pardoned for a felony, a crime of moral turpitude, shoplifting, theft or receiving stolen property. Before any pawnbroker permit shall be issued, the applicant therefor shall execute a continuing bond to the city in the sum of $5,000.00 with good and sufficient corporate surety, approved and filed as required by this Code, and conditioned for the faithful compliance with the provisions of this article.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 30, Article IV of the Omaha Municipal Code defines a pawnbroker or chattel loan broker as anyone in the business of loaning money on deposit or pledge of personal property, or loaning money on chattel property held as security pending repayment (§ 30-111). Anyone in that business must first get a permit from the permits and inspections division (§ 30-112) by filing an application listing the owner and managing agent, the exact business location and any separate storage location, and a business e-mail address (§ 30-113).
The division must deny the permit to an individual applicant, or a corporation whose officer, has been convicted and not pardoned of a felony, a crime of moral turpitude, shoplifting, theft, or receiving stolen property (§ 30-114). 00 bond with corporate surety guaranteeing compliance with the article (§ 30-115), and pay the fee set in section 19-71. Permits are personal and non-transferable, restricted to the licensed address, and expire on June 30 or December 31 of the year issued (§§ 30-119 through 30-121). Every loan or purchase must be logged in a city-furnished book or card recording the date, the customer's name, date of birth and driver's license or other ID, a full description of the property including serial number, the loan or purchase amount, and the clerk who handled it, with a copy sent to the chief of police by noon the next day (§ 30-122).
Pawnbrokers must also fingerprint every person pawning or selling an item (§ 30-123) and may not deal with anyone under 18, anyone visibly intoxicated or incompetent, or property with altered serial numbers (§ 30-124). Pawned or purchased goods must sit for 14 days before resale (§ 30-126), be segregated for the first 48 hours (§ 30-127), and cannot be resold at all for six months if actually pawned (§ 30-128). A permit can be suspended or revoked after a chief-of-police show-cause hearing, with an appeal to the city council within ten days (§§ 30-132 through 30-135), and record-keeping violations are misdemeanors under section 1-10 (§ 30-136).
Violations & Fines
Falsifying an application, skipping a required entry, or refusing to produce records for police inspection is a misdemeanor under § 30-136, punished as provided in Omaha Municipal Code § 1-10. Selling pawned merchandise before the required 14-day or six-month holding period passes, or violating any permit condition, is grounds for the chief of police to suspend or revoke the permit after a show-cause hearing under § 30-132.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Omaha require a special license to open a pawn shop?
Can a felony conviction keep someone from getting an Omaha pawnbroker permit?
How long must an Omaha pawnbroker hold an item before reselling it?
Do Omaha pawnbrokers have to fingerprint customers?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Omaha
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