Ventura, CA Local Taxes & Fees: Business Tax Classification (2026)
Key Facts
- Classifications defined
- 18 categories under § 4.155.810
- Classification challenge
- Written protest under § 4.155.710
- Group I rate
- $45 + $0.11/$1,000 up to $5M receipts
- Group II rate
- $45 + $0.34/$1,000 up to $5M receipts
- Group III example
- $25/day + $1/booth, itinerant merchants
- Late payment penalty
- 10% or $10, whichever greater, per month
Summary
Every business in Ventura is sorted into one of 18 defined classifications, from retailing to services to solicitors, and each classification falls into one of three tax rate groups that set the license tax formula. The collector's classification is final unless challenged by written protest.
Each business in the city shall be classified into one of the following business classifications: ... F. ... Miscellaneous. Any person engaged in a business not specifically classified by other provisions of this chapter and not otherwise exempt. ... M. ... Services. ... Any person providing services, repairs or improvements to or on real and personal property; renting or leasing personal property to business or persons; leasing agents and property managers for real property; the operation of a hotel or motel; providing services such as, but not limited to, laundries, cleaning, repair, barber and beauty shops, photographic studios, telephone solicitors with a fixed place of business, day care, consultants, employment agency, graphic artist/design, advertising, yard care, travel agency, bookkeeping/secretarial and massage.
Official source re-checked September 8, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: current through Ordinance 2026-008, passed May 12, 2026).
Full Breakdown
810 lists the classifications a business can fall into, covering administrative headquarters, contractors, film/TV production, itinerant merchants and swap meet operators, manufacturing, miscellaneous, professions, public utilities, recreation and entertainment, rental of nonresidential property, rental of four or more residential units, retailing, services (which expressly includes operating a hotel or motel), solicitors/peddlers/canvassers, special events, transportation of persons and goods, warehousing, and wholesaling. 710. 860. 06 per $1,000 above that. 05 per customer meter in the city) and for transportation operators who cannot calculate in-city gross receipts ($50 to $100 per vehicle per year depending on trip volume). 005 per square foot for warehousing. 00 base tax prorated monthly through June 30th of that first year.
Violations & Fines
A business that fails to pay its license tax when due owes a penalty of 10 percent of the tax or $10.00, whichever is greater, for each month or part of a month the payment is overdue, capped at 100 percent of the tax due, under § 4.155.280. The collector will not issue, renew or reinstate a business tax certificate for any person who is delinquent on business license tax or penalties until arrangements are made to pay the delinquent amount. An audit that turns up underreported gross receipts requires payment of the unpaid tax, the audit cost and the § 4.155.280 penalty within 10 days of notice, per § 4.155.710.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Ventura decide which tax rate a business pays?
Can a business dispute its assigned classification?
What does a retailer pay under tax rate group I?
What happens if a business misses its tax deadline?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Ventura
California rules heatmap·Compare Ventura to another location·View the California local taxes & fees overview
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Business Tax Classification in Nearby Cities
How other cities in Ventura County handle business tax classification.