Santa Barbara County, CA Local Taxes & Fees: Business Tax Classification (2026)
Key Facts
- Catch-all license fee
- $25 per quarter (Sec. 22-73)
- Fee schedule scope
- 30+ classified business types (Sec. 22-74)
- Late payment penalty
- 50% of fee due (Sec. 22-43)
- Separate license rule
- One license per distinct activity (Sec. 22-12)
- Geographic reach
- Unincorporated county only (Sec. 22-5)
- Administering officer
- County tax collector
Summary
Santa Barbara County taxes businesses in the unincorporated area through a classified license-fee scheme, not gross receipts. Chapter 22 sets a $25-per-quarter catch-all license for businesses without a fixed county location, plus a separate fee schedule pricing over thirty specific business types individually, from $3 shooting matches to $100 towel-supply operations.
Sec. 22-73. - General business license. Every person conducting or carrying on a business of any kind or description anywhere in the county outside of the municipalities therein, a license for which is not otherwise provided for in this chapter or any other provision of this Code or other ordinance of the county, and who does not maintain a fixed place of business in the county, shall obtain a general business license and shall pay a quarterly fee of twenty-five dollars therefor.
Sec. 22-74. - Fee schedule. The following fees shall be charged: Amusement parlor ..... $25.00 per year Carnival ..... 25.00 per day Circus ..... 50.00 per day Games of skill when prize given: Resident ..... 50.00 per year; Nonresident ..... 100.00 per year Video arcade (more than six games) ..... 25.00 per year
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 44 Update 1).
Full Breakdown
Every business or activity operating in the unincorporated county must hold a license from the tax collector before starting operations (Sec. 22-11), and a separate license is required for each distinct activity a person conducts, even at the same location (Sec. 22-12). Chapter 22's definitions section treats "business" and "activity" identically for licensing purposes: any activity the chapter requires a license for counts (Sec. 22-1). For businesses with no fixed place of business in the county and not otherwise covered elsewhere in the code, Sec.
22-73 sets a flat general license of $25 per quarter. Beyond that catch-all, Sec. 22-74's fee schedule classifies dozens of specific business types with their own rates: amusement parlors and video arcades pay $25 per year, a circus pays $50 per day, resident games-of-skill operators pay $50 per year against $100 for nonresidents, and coin-operated machine operators pay per-machine and per-operator fees. Licenses run for terms up to one year and may be prorated to six months at half the annual rate for seasonal businesses showing cause to the tax collector (Sec.
22-26). Quarterly licenses begin on the first of January, April, July or October (Sec. 22-28). The tax collector cannot issue a license until zoning compliance is confirmed for the specific location (Sec. 22-10), and holding a license never authorizes an otherwise-prohibited activity (Sec. 22-9). Because Sec. 22-5 exempts wholesale travelers and expressly states the chapter does not regulate business "carried on within the boundaries of any incorporated city or town," this classification scheme reaches only the unincorporated county, not Santa Barbara, Santa Maria, Lompoc, Goleta, Carpinteria or Buellton, which license businesses under their own separate municipal codes.
Violations & Fines
Fees not paid by the delinquency date draw a penalty equal to one-half the fee due (Sec. 22-43); for annual, semi-annual or quarterly renewals that penalty does not attach until thirty days past the delinquency date, or ten days for monthly licenses. A newly established business becomes delinquent thirty-one days after it begins operating without a license (Sec. 22-42). Operating without the required license, or continuing an activity a revoked or suspended license once covered, exposes the operator to the tax collector's enforcement and board hearing process under Article I, Division 4.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Santa Barbara County tax businesses on gross receipts or by business type?
What if I run two different businesses at the same unincorporated location?
What happens if I pay my business license fee late?
Does this county fee schedule apply inside the City of Santa Barbara?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Santa Barbara County
California rules heatmap·Compare Santa Barbara County to another location·View the California local taxes & fees overview
See something wrong?
Help us keep this page accurate. If you notice an error or outdated information, let us know.