Scottsdale, AZ Business Licensing & Operations: Pawnbrokers (2026)
Key Facts
- License required
- Before acting as pawnbroker, § 16-331
- First-year license fee
- $200, then $100/year
- Pawn holding period
- 20 days (§ 16-339)
- Fingerprint fee cap
- $40 (§ 16-334)
- Thumbprint required
- On pawn transaction reports only
Summary
Scottsdale requires pawnbrokers to hold a city license under § 16-331 and imposes a pawn-specific 20-day holding period on pledged goods, longer than the 10 days required of other reportable dealers, before the property can be sold or returned to circulation.
(a)It is unlawful for any auction house, junk dealer, pawnbroker or secondhand dealer, or scrap metal dealer to sell, transfer, exchange or otherwise dispose of any goods or articles required to be reported to the police department under the provisions of this article, except as provided herein.(b)Property reported as a result of transactions described in this section shall not be sold, transferred, exchanged or otherwise disposed of until the property has been in the custody of the reporting licensee and in Maricopa County for a period of at least ten (10) days and at least ten (10) days have passed since the property was reported to the police department, pursuant to section 16-338, above ("holding period"). Notwithstanding the foregoing, the holding period for articles received in reportable transactions of a pawnbroker shall be twenty (20) days.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 80).
Full Breakdown
Section 16-331 makes it unlawful to act as a pawnbroker in Scottsdale without a city license, which is nontransferable between persons or locations and is issued in addition to any other required city, county, state or federal license. Section 16-333 sets the fee at $200 for the first year and $100 annually thereafter, plus fingerprinting costs capped at $40 under § 16-334, which also requires a police department background investigation before a license issues. 1(a)(8) requires the pawnbroker to take the right thumbprint of the person pawning, selling, consigning or trading the property on the hard-copy report, a requirement that applies only to pawn transactions among the licensed dealer types.
Section 16-339 bars a pawnbroker from selling, transferring or otherwise disposing of reported property until it has been in Maricopa County in the licensee's custody for a 'holding period' that runs twenty days for pawn transactions, compared to ten days for auction house, junk dealer and secondhand dealer transactions, and requires the item preserved unaltered during that window except for redemption. 2.
Violations & Fines
Operating as a pawnbroker without the required license, disposing of pledged property before the 20-day holding period runs, or accepting an item with a removed or altered serial number under § 16-340.1 are each unlawful acts under Article IX. Section 16-334.1 requires the director to deny or refuse an application for unpaid city debts, an incomplete application, or a controlling person's disqualifying conviction or outstanding warrant, and licenses may be revoked under the article's cumulative-remedies provision at § 16-337.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Scottsdale require pawnbrokers to be licensed?
How long must a Scottsdale pawnbroker hold pledged property?
What does a Scottsdale pawnbroker have to record on each transaction?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Scottsdale
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