Richmond, VA Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)
Key Facts
- License cap
- 12 locations citywide
- Per-person limit
- 2 locations maximum
- Base tax
- $750 plus $0.36/$100 over $100,000
- Indemnity bond
- $500 corporate surety
- Judgment bond
- $50,000 minimum
- Approval required
- Chief of Police and Circuit Court certificate
Summary
Richmond caps pawnbroker licenses at 12 citywide and requires a Chief of Police and Circuit Court certificate before one issues. Licensees pay $750 plus $0.36 per $100 of gross receipts above $100,000 and must post a $500 indemnity bond and a $50,000 judgment bond.
Every natural person lending or advancing money or other things for profit on the pledge and possession of tangible personal property or other valuable things...shall pay a license tax equal to $750.00 and $0.36 per $100.00 of the gross receipts of the business in excess of $100,000.00. Not more than 12 places in the City shall be licensed where the business of a pawnbroker, including a pawnbroker's sales store, may be conducted, and no license shall be granted to conduct a pawnshop or pawnbroker's sales store in the City, except to a natural person who is a qualified voter of the Commonwealth. No such license shall be granted to any such voter except upon a certificate of the Chief of Police and of the Circuit Court of the City or a judge thereof in vacation, which shall explicitly state whether the natural person applying therefor is a proper person to conduct such business and whether the place where the business is proposed to be conducted is a proper and suitable place.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Recodification).
Full Breakdown
1, codified as Sec. 00. The City caps the number of licensed pawnshop or pawnbroker sales-store locations at 12 and limits any one person to operating no more than two locations, with a grandfather exception preserved from January 1, 1948. No license issues except to a natural person who is a qualified voter of the Commonwealth, and only after the Chief of Police and the Circuit Court certify the applicant is a proper person and the location a proper and suitable place, based on the applicant's date of birth, sworn disclosure of criminal history, and a records check with the Department of Police.
Anyone convicted of a felony or a crime of moral turpitude within the prior ten years is disqualified. 00 bond to secure judgments recovered by defrauded customers. ' A sold pawnshop can transfer to a new owner at the same location only with Circuit Court authorization and a clean criminal-history check.
Violations & Fines
Operating without the required license, bond, or Chief of Police certificate is a licensing violation enforced by the Director of Finance and the Police Department; the City can deny, revoke, or decline to renew a pawnbroker license for noncompliance with the reporting, bonding, or eligibility requirements in Sec. 26-983. Failure to make the daily report to the Chief of Police or falsifying required seller information exposes the licensee to license revocation and potential prosecution under the recordkeeping duties tied to the permit.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many pawnshops can operate in Richmond?
Who approves a Richmond pawnbroker license?
What does a Richmond pawnbroker have to report daily?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Richmond
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