Mobile County, AL Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing act
- Act 81-445 (1981), Ala. Code § 45-49-43 et seq.
- Annual license tax
- $500, no half-year
- Application fee
- $10 investigation fee
- Property hold period
- 86 hours before sale/alteration
- Daily transcript deadline
- Before 10:00 a.m.
- Max penalty
- $500 fine / 6 months jail
Summary
Buying secondhand gold or silver items, jewelry, flatware, or bric-a-brac in Mobile County requires a $500 annual license from the license commission, plus fingerprints, a photo, and a background check. Buyers must log every purchase and hold the property untouched for 86 hours so police can inspect it.
Section 45-49-43. License Required. It shall be unlawful for anyone to conduct, pursue, or carry on the business of purchasing second-hand gold or silver, whether in the form of jewelry, household articles or furnishings, personal effects, bric-a-brac, settings for gems, watches, flatware, service sets, or other articles of like kind within Mobile County without first paying to the license commission the license tax hereinafter prescribed, and procuring a license from the officer. Section 45-49-43.01. License Tax. The license tax levied against buyers as described in Section 45-49-43 shall be five hundred dollars ($500) per calendar year. There shall be no half-year license.
Full Breakdown
Alabama Code § 45-49-43 makes it unlawful to conduct the business of purchasing secondhand gold or silver, whether jewelry, household articles, personal effects, bric-a-brac, gem settings, watches, flatware, or service sets, within Mobile County without paying the license tax and procuring a license from the license commission. 01 sets that tax at $500 per calendar year, with no half-year license available. 03. 04 and can disapprove the application; a disapproved applicant may appeal to the judge of probate within 14 days. each day. 11 requires purchased property to be held unaltered for 86 hours after the purchase is reported, open to police inspection, unless written permission to change its form or sell it is obtained first. 14.
Violations & Fines
Section 45-49-43.13 makes it unlawful and an offense against the county for a licensee, agent, servant, officer, or employee to fail to carry out the part's requirements, and makes operating without the required license or permit punishable by a fine of not more than $500, imprisonment of not more than six months, or both, at the court's discretion. Revenue collected under the license goes to the county general fund under § 45-49-43.15.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this license apply to a general pawn shop or secondhand store in Mobile County?
Who investigates a Mobile County gold-buyer license application?
How long must a licensed buyer hold purchased gold or silver before reselling it?
What records must a licensed buyer keep?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Mobile County
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