Island County, WA Business Licensing & Operations: Secondhand Dealers (2026)
Key Facts
- License required
- pawnbroker's/secondhand dealer's license
- Triggered by
- flea market sales 3+ times/yr
- Resale hold
- 30 days for consigned goods
- Exempt
- 501(c)(3) donation-only nonprofits
- Register required
- kept on-site, every transaction
- Reports go to
- Island County Sheriff
Summary
Buying, selling, or trading used goods for value in unincorporated Island County, including running a booth at flea markets or swap meets more than three times a year, makes a person a secondhand dealer who needs the same county license as pawnbrokers under Chapter 5.20, but with a longer 30-day resale hold on consigned goods.
Secondhand dealer means every person engaged in whole or in part in the business of purchasing, selling, trading, consignment selling, or otherwise transferring for value, secondhand property including metal junk, melted metals, precious metals, whether or not the person maintains a fixed place of business within the county. Secondhand dealer also includes persons or entities conducting business, more than three (3) times per year, at flea markets or swap meets. ... 1.Property bought or received on consignment by any secondhand dealer or secondhand precious metal dealer with a permanent place of business in the state shall not be removed from that place of business, except consigned property returned to the owner, within thirty (30) days after the receipt of the property. Property shall at all times during the ordinary hours of business be open to inspection to any commissioned law enforcement officer of the state or the Sheriff.
Full Breakdown
010 defines a secondhand dealer as anyone engaged, in whole or part, in purchasing, selling, trading, consignment selling, or otherwise transferring for value secondhand property, including metal junk and melted or precious metals, whether or not the business keeps a fixed location in the county; conducting business more than three times a year at a flea market or swap meet is enough on its own to trigger the definition. A secondhand dealer must hold the county's pawnbroker's and secondhand dealer's license from the Island County Auditor, though nonprofit organizations certified under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3) that only accept donated goods for resale, rather than purchasing them, do not need one.
Every licensed dealer keeps a permanent transaction register recording the seller's signature, ID, and a description of the goods, and reports those transactions to the Island County Sheriff. 100 gives secondhand dealers with a permanent Washington place of business a longer hold than pawnbrokers get: consigned property cannot leave that place of business for thirty days after it's received, except when it is returned to its owner, and it must stay open to inspection by the Sheriff or any commissioned law enforcement officer for that entire period.
Violations & Fines
Operating as an unlicensed secondhand dealer, moving consigned goods out of the shop before the 30-day hold in section 5.20.100 runs, or falsifying the transaction register required by section 5.20.070 exposes a dealer to chapter 5.20's misdemeanor penalties and to license revocation by the Board of County Commissioners. Knowingly buying from a minor, an intoxicated person, or someone with a recent theft-related conviction is also a prohibited transaction under section 5.20.110.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a license to sell used items at a Camano Island flea market?
How long must a secondhand dealer hold consigned merchandise?
Are charity thrift stores exempt from the secondhand dealer license?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Island County
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