Novato, CA Local Taxes & Fees: Business Tax Classification (2026)
Key Facts
- General base fee
- $75.00 beginning January 1, 1994 ($50.00 in 1993)
- Multiple rentals
- $50.00 minimum plus $15.00 per unit over three (1994)
- Due date
- In advance on January 1 of each year
- Late penalty cap
- 120 percent of the fee due in a calendar year
- Rate adjustment
- Each one tenth percent change in the Bay Area wage earner CPI
- Administrator
- Finance director or authorized representative
Summary
In the City of Novato, California, section 8-1.6 sorts businesses into classifications for the annual business license fee: a general rate built on employee count, a per-unit rate for multiple rentals, and special rates for listed businesses such as contractors, professionals and real estate brokers. The finance director administers and enforces it.
a.License Fees Required. Every person having a fixed place of business within the city shall pay license fees as follows:1.In General. Any business not otherwise particularly described in subsections 8-1.6a.2. or 8-1.6a.3. below shall pay an annual basic license fee of fifty ($50.00) dollars beginning January 1, 1993, seventy-five ($75.00) dollars beginning January 1, 1994 and an additional annual license fee of eight ($8.00) dollars beginning January 1, 1993, twelve ($12.00) dollars beginning January 1, 1994 for each employee in excess of one for the first ten employees; ... 2.Multiple Rentals. (Including rentals of business offices, mobile home parks, trailer parks and apartments.) Every person owning, operating, leasing, or otherwise in the business of multiple housing rental, ... where there are three or more units or locations shall pay beginning January 1, 1993 a minimum annual license fee of fifty ($50.00) dollars, and shall pay, beginning January 1, 1993 an additional license fee of ten ($10.00) dollars per annum, and beginning January 1, 1994 an additional license fee of fifteen ($15.00) dollars per annum, per unit in excess of three units.
Full Breakdown
Section 8-1.6 of the Novato Municipal Code requires every person with a fixed place of business in the city to pay license fees under one of three classifications. The first is the general classification in section 8-1.6a.1, which covers any business not otherwise described. It pays an annual basic fee of $50.00 beginning January 1, 1993 and $75.00 beginning January 1, 1994, plus $8.00 (1993) or $12.00 (1994) for each employee in excess of one for the first ten employees, $6.00 or $9.00 for each employee 11 through 50, and $4.00 or $6.00 for each employee over 50. The employee count adds together the persons employed on the 15th day of each of the 12 months in the preceding year and divides by 12.
The second classification is multiple rentals, which includes rentals of business offices, mobile home parks, trailer parks and apartments where there are three or more units or locations. It pays a minimum annual fee of $50.00 plus $10.00 (1993) or $15.00 (1994) per unit in excess of three, and where owner occupancy reduces the total number of rentals to less than three, a special exempt license is issued.
The third is the special rate table, which applies in lieu of the general rates. Printed entries include amusement arcades at $150.00 a year beginning 1993 and $200.00 beginning 1994, contractors at $80.00 then $120.00, professionals at $80.00 then $120.00 per professional, pool and billiard halls at $100.00 a year, coin-operated vending machines, music devices and amusement machines at one percent of total annual gross receipts in the previous calendar year of each machine, and real estate brokers on a gross receipts schedule that starts at $100.00 below $50,000.00.
Section 8-1.6d adjusts all rates after January 1, 1994, except those based on gross receipts, upward or downward for each one tenth percent change in the San Francisco/Oakland All Urban Wage Earner Consumer Price Index for the year ending in November. Section 8-1.6c exempts, among others, insurance agents and companies, banks, charitable and nonprofit organizations, and businesses grossing less than the IRS minimum for filing a vendor 1099.
Violations & Fines
Fees are due in advance on January 1 each year. Under section 8-1.4d, a late fee draws a penalty of $10.00 plus ten percent of the license fee on the last day of the month it is due and ten percent on the last day of each month after, capped at 120 percent of the fee due in a calendar year. Violating the section or knowingly misrepresenting a material fact to get a license is an infraction punishable under section 1-5.1. The finance director enforces the section and can enter a place of business to demand the license.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is the basic Novato business license fee calculated?
How are landlords classified for the Novato license?
Which businesses are exempt from the Novato license fee?
Can I challenge the amount of fee the city assesses?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Novato
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