Common Questions

Please choose the option that best describes the notice you received:

There may be several reasons why you received a bill when you have a current license. We're happy to help with your account information - please fill out this form to begin the process.

The metal license tag is permanently assigned to your pet, and you will not receive a new tag during the renewal process unless requested. If you have lost your tag or it has become unreadable, please pay the replacement tag fee when you mail your renewal, and a new tag will be mailed with your license registration. Otherwise, a receipt only will be mailed.

We will mail your tag and/or license receipt within 10 business days from the day we receive your completed license application and payment. Please allow an additional 3-5 business days to receive your tag and/or receipt in the mail. If we have not received correct payment or proper documentation you will be notified via mail and the processing of your license will be delayed.

You may obtain a replacement tag by sending a check or money order payable to "Montgomery County, MD" in the amount of $1.00 to the mailing address below. Please do not send cash or make check payable to any other name. You may include either a copy of your prior license number or a note to designate the pet for which you are purchasing a replacement tag. If you need assistance, you may call customer service toll-free at 1-855-223-1678.

Montgomery County, MD Animal Licensing
c/o PetData
PO Box 141929
Irving, TX 75014-1929

Only one license tag can be active at one time. Requests for multiple tags for the same animal cannot be fulfilled.

An owner that rehomes their animal may transfer the license to a new owner at no charge, and the license expiration date will remain the same. Please call customer service toll-free at 1-855-223-1678 with the tag number and the new owner’s information or send the request to us in writing at the following address:

Montgomery County, MD Animal Licensing
c/o PetData
PO Box 141929
Irving, TX 75014-1929

Licenses may not be transferred from one pet to another pet. A new license must be purchased. Click here to view your other licensing options.

A refund may be available for the following reasons:

1. If a duplicate payment was made for the same pet and the same license term. Be sure to include the pet’s current license tag number if it is available, and as much information as possible regarding your payments.
2. If a previously spayed or neutered pet was licensed at the unaltered rate. Be sure to include proof of alteration dated prior to the licensing date.
3. If the pet owner lived outside the Montgomery County limits at the time of licensing.

Refunds are not available if there was unused time on the license because you rehomed the animal, you moved, the animal passed away, or the animal was altered during the licensing period and the unaltered fee was paid.

To request a refund, please send your request in writing or via email to Customer Service.

Licenses are valid for 1, 2, or 3 years until the next anniversary of the pet’s rabies vaccination, but not beyond the expiration of the pet’s vaccination. A free juvenile pet license is only valid for 1 year. Please note that a rabies vaccination must be valid for at least two months to issue a pet license.

The animal shelter for Montgomery County, Maryland is located at the following address:

Montgomery County Animal Services & Adoption Center
7315 Muncaster Mill Rd
Derwood, MD 20855

To report stray animals or for questions unrelated to licensing, please call Animal Services at 240-773-5900.

A found pet report should be filed on 24PetConnect.com and NextDoor.com. If the pet that you have found is wearing a Montgomery County license tag, please call our office at 1-855-223-1678 for assistance.

If an Animal Services Officer finds your pet, and your pet is wearing a current license tag on its collar, Animal Control will contact you. If another citizen finds your pet with its license tag, they may call the phone number on the license tag and you will be put in touch with the person who found the pet.

If your pet has been lost, Animal Services recommends that you visit its website Montgomery County Animal Services and Adoption Center - Adoption to look for your pet at least every two hours. Please also file a lost report on on 24PetConnect.com and NextDoor.com. Sheltering of strays for the County is provided by Montgomery County Animal Services & Adoption Center. You may also contact the shelter at 240-773-5900 during hours of operation.

Licensing helps Animal Services identify family pets, should an animal become lost. The fees from licensing are used to care for animals and investigate complaints about stray animals, among other services. Animal licensing increases rabies control, promotes responsible pet ownership, reduces the tragedies associated with lost pets and pet overpopulation. The fee paid for a pet license is an application fee. Montgomery County, MD requires all cats and dogs to be licensed by law. Read more about Chapter 5 of Montgomery County Law.

Licensing Ordinance

All dogs and cats 4 months of age and older must be licensed with Montgomery County and continuously vaccinated against rabies. Residents of the City of Rockville and City of Gaithersburg are required to license their pet through their respective Department of Animal Control instead of through Montgomery County.

View the complete Montgomery County ordinance

Due Date

Payment for your license is due within 30 days of the expiration of your current license. If you are licensing for the first time, you must purchase a license within 30 days of obtaining a pet over the age of 4 months.

License Term

Licenses are valid for 1, 2, or 3 years until the next anniversary of the pet’s rabies vaccination, but not beyond the expiration of the pet’s vaccination. A free juvenile pet license is only valid for 1 year. Please note that a rabies vaccination must be valid for at least two months to issue a pet license.

The County chose to privatize animal licensing beginning in 2024 to promote animal licensing, to increase rabies control and the cost-effectiveness of the program, and to provide additional services to its citizens.

PetData, Inc., headquartered in Dallas, Texas, provides animal licensing services for municipalities and animal welfare agencies throughout the United States. The company, a member of the National Animal Control Association, has been in business since 1994. PetData’s goals are to increase animal licensing, to reduce animal euthanasia, to educate the community, and to help solve animal control problems.

We at PetData consider the privacy of our clients to be of paramount importance. PetData has never sold information or data to any third-party. PetData does not use any personally identifiable data collected for any purpose other than for those purposes as required by client contracts.

We do not respond to requests for information from non-client individuals or corporations, nor do we release information without the express written consent of our clients. PetData does not and will not share or sell client data with any other parties or make client data publicly available unless authorized by the client or required under a legal subpoena. All data belongs to our clients, and PetData serves only as a custodian for client-owned data.

Groups or individuals requesting data should contact their City or County directly as PetData will only release data to our contracted clients.