Upland, CA Local Taxes & Fees: Business Tax Classification (2026)

Under Upland Municipal Code Section 5.04.350, every person engaged in business in the city, whether or not at a fixed location, must pay a business license fee calculated under one of three tracks. Classification A covers retail, wholesale, contracting, servicing and rental-of-nonresidential-property activity, billed on a gross receipts schedule set out in Section 5.04.360, ranging from $54.00 for gross annual receipts up to $20,000 up to $864.00 for receipts of $1,400,001 and above, with an added $75.60 surcharge for businesses with liquor sales. Classification B covers professionals and semiprofessionals such as accountants, architects, attorneys, physicians, engineers and real estate agents under Section 5.04.370, billed at $54.00 per year for each practicing member of the firm plus $4.50 per year for each additional employee.

Classification C is a flat-rate schedule under Section 5.04.400 or under the specific chapters governing certain trades (Chapters 5.08 through 5.72), which includes businesses like taxicab companies, solicitors, and closing-out sales that carry their own fee structure. Fees are due January 1 or July 1 depending on when the license issues, and monthly, weekly or daily licenses are due on the first of the period. A business that fails to obtain a license within 30 days of opening, or fails to renew within 30 days of the due date, owes a 10 percent penalty on the tax due, plus an additional 20 percent for each month or partial month the tax remains unpaid, capped at 100 percent of the original tax (Section 5.04.310).

The license official enforces the title and may inspect any place of business to confirm licensing compliance (Section 5.04.320), and unpaid license fees and penalties are treated as a debt collectible by the city in court (Section 5.04.330).