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License Online

Licensing Ordinance

All dogs and all unaltered cats over four months of age must be licensed with the City of Santa Barbara. New residents or owners of new pets have a grace period of 30 days to license their pets.

View the complete City of Santa Barbara ordinance

Instructions to License Online

Ready to purchase your license? If you would like to license online, a convenience fee of $2.00 will apply for each transaction. Any required documents, such as your pet's current rabies certificate, may be scanned and uploaded or submitted later by fax, mail or email. The license will be issued after all required documents are received.

Click here to begin.

If you prefer to pay by another method, click here to view your other payment options.

Required Paperwork

  1. A current rabies vaccination certificate is required if the rabies vaccination on file has expired. Please check your certificate for correct address and pet information.
  2. Proof of spay/neuter, such as a signed statement from a veterinarian or an invoice for services is required if the pet has been altered since the last licensing period and you are applying for the lower spayed/neutered license fee.
  3. Proof of age is required to receive the reduced-fee license for senior citizens age 65 and over.
  4. A veterinarian certificate of counseling is required in order to license an unaltered pet. The certificate must be completed by a licensed veterinarian.

Your paperwork will not be returned to you, so please retain a copy of your documents for your records.

License Fees

Effective 7/1/2019

Standard License Fees

6 Month

 

1 Year

 

2 Year*

 

3 Year*

Unaltered Dog or Cat

$47.00

 

$74.50

 

$136.50

 

$198.50

Spayed/Neutered Dog

$19.50

 

$34.50

 

$61.50

 

$88.50

Senior Discount (65+)

6 Month

 

1 Year

 

2 Year*

 

3 Year*

Unaltered Dog or Cat

$31.00

 

$44.50

 

$76.50

 

$108.50

Spayed/Neutered Dog

$12.00

 

$19.50

 

$34.00

 

$48.50

Other Fees

 

Late Fee (30 Days Late)

$28.00

Replacement Tag

$18.50

Senior (65+) Replacement Tag

$11.50

*A license cannot be valid for a longer period than the current rabies vaccination.

A veterinarian certificate of counseling is required in order to license an unaltered pet.

The cost for licensing unaltered or fertile pets is higher than that for licensing spayed or neutered pets in order to promote sterilization and to reduce pet overpopulation and starvation.

Due Date

Payment for your license is due within 30 days of the date that your current license expires. If you are licensing for the first time, you must purchase a license within 30 days of obtaining a dog or unaltered cat over the age of 4 months or within 30 days of establishing residence in the City of Santa Barbara.

A late fee of $28.00 is added if your license has not been renewed within 30 days of the expiration of your prior license.

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