Stockton, CA Local Taxes & Fees: Business Tax Classification (2026)
Key Facts
- Retail/fixed-location rate
- 0.9 mill per $1 of gross receipts
- Manufacturers/public utilities rate
- 0.25 mill per $1
- Wholesalers/petroleum delivery rate
- 0.4 mill per $1
- Licensed professionals rate
- 2 mills per $1 (top bracket)
- Flat registration tax
- $24 per year, every business
- Unlicensed operation penalty
- 25% of fee + daily violation
- Late payment penalty
- 15%/month, capped at 60%
Summary
Stockton taxes every business on a sliding mill-rate scale under SMC §§5.08.030-5.08.070: retailers and most fixed-location businesses pay nine-tenths of a mill per dollar of gross receipts, manufacturers and public utilities pay one-quarter mill, wholesalers and petroleum haulers pay four-tenths of a mill, and licensed professionals pay two mills, the code's top rate. A flat $24 annual registration tax applies to everyone.
§ 5.08.020. Annual registration tax. Any person engaged in or carrying on any profession, trade, calling, occupation or business hereinafter designated shall pay an annual registration tax of 24 dollars. All license taxes provided for herein ... are imposed in addition to the annual registration tax. § 5.08.030. Businesses subject to tax of nine/tenths of one mill per dollar. The following businesses shall pay an annual license tax of nine-tenths of one mill for each dollar of gross receipts derived therefrom: 1. Retail Sales and Miscellaneous. Every person conducting or carrying on the business consisting of selling at retail any goods, wares and merchandise or commodities ... § 5.08.060. Businesses, professions or occupations subject to tax of two mills per dollar. The following businesses shall pay an annual license tax of two mills for each dollar of gross receipts derived therefrom: Every person conducting, managing, carrying on or engaging in any business, profession or occupation hereinafter enumerated. Accountant ... Attorney-at-law ... Physician ... Veterinarian
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4970744; v11 updated 2026-07-07).
Full Breakdown
Chapter 5.08 divides Stockton businesses into rate tiers instead of one flat license tax. Under §5.08.030, retail sellers, transporters of persons for hire, coupon/stamp distributors, amusement operators (bowling alleys, pinball, skating rinks, jukeboxes, shooting galleries, public pools), golf courses, riding academies, outdoor advertisers, ambulance services and parking lots owe nine-tenths of one mill for every dollar of gross receipts. §5.08.040 drops wholesalers, newspaper publishers and petroleum-product delivery businesses to four-tenths of a mill. §5.08.050 taxes manufacturing, packing, processing and non-franchised public utility businesses at one-quarter mill on the value of the manufactured product, net of raw-material cost. §5.08.060 sets the highest bracket, two mills per dollar, for a named list of licensed professions and skilled trades: accountants, architects, attorneys, chiropractors, dentists, engineers, morticians, optometrists, physicians, real estate brokers, surveyors and veterinarians among them. §5.08.070 sends everything else (contractors, dance halls, card rooms, itinerant merchants, peddlers, solicitors, pawnbrokers, junk dealers, photographers and more) to flat or per-unit rates set out through §5.08.310.
On top of whichever mill rate or flat fee applies, §5.08.020 layers a separate $24 annual registration tax on every business, prorated for partial periods but non-refundable, and waived for branch locations of an already-licensed business. The Director of Finance administers billing and issues the license.
Violations & Fines
Operating any Stockton business without first obtaining the required license is a separate violation for each day it continues, and carries an added penalty of 25 percent of the license fee owed under §5.04.040. Late payment adds a 15 percent penalty plus another 15 percent per month delinquent, capped at 60 percent, per §5.04.070. Violations are otherwise prosecutable as misdemeanors under §1.08.010, punishable by up to a $1,000 fine, six months in County Jail, or both.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much is Stockton's business license tax?
Do I owe Stockton's $24 registration tax on top of the license tax?
Which Stockton businesses pay the top two-mill tax rate?
What happens if I run a Stockton business without a license?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Stockton
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