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<law><site_title>Virginia Decoded</site_title><site_url>https://vacode.org</site_url><law_id>69325</law_id><section_number>3.2-6528</section_number><catch_line>Amount of license tax</catch_line><edition url="https://vacode.org/2025/" slug="2025" current="TRUE" last_updated="">2025</edition><referred_to_by><reference>3.2-6530</reference></referred_to_by><structure><unit label="title" level="1" order_by="1" identifier="3.2">Agriculture, Animal Care, and Food</unit><unit label="subtitle" level="2" order_by="1" identifier="V">Domestic Animals</unit><unit label="chapter" level="3" order_by="1" identifier="65">Comprehensive Animal Care</unit><unit label="article" level="4" order_by="1" identifier="5">Rabies Control and Licensing of Dogs and Cats</unit></structure><text>
						<section id="A"><p><span class="prefix-number">A.</span> The governing body of each county or city shall impose by <span class="dictionary">ordinance</span> a license tax on the ownership of dogs within its <span class="dictionary">jurisdiction</span>. The governing body of any locality that has adopted an <span class="dictionary">ordinance</span> pursuant to subsection B of &#xA7; <a class="law" title="Unlicensed dogs prohibited; ordinances for licensing cats" href="/3.2-6524/">3.2-6524</a> shall impose by <span class="dictionary">ordinance</span> a license tax on the ownership of cats within its <span class="dictionary">jurisdiction</span>. The governing body may establish different rates of taxation for ownership of female dogs, male dogs, spayed or neutered dogs, female cats, male cats, and spayed or neutered cats. The tax for each dog or cat shall not be more than $10 for each year or $50 for a lifetime license issued pursuant to subsection B of &#xA7; <a class="law" title="When license tax payable" href="/3.2-6530/">3.2-6530</a>. If the dog or cat has been spayed, the tax shall not exceed the tax provided for a male dog or cat. Any <span class="dictionary">ordinance</span> may provide for an annual license tax for <span class="dictionary">kennels</span> of 10, 20, 30, 40, or 50 dogs or cats not to exceed $50 for any one such block of <span class="dictionary">kennels</span>.
			No license tax shall be levied on any dog that is trained and serves as (i) a guide dog for a blind person, (ii) a <span class="dictionary">hearing</span> dog for a person who is deaf or hard of <span class="dictionary">hearing</span>, or (iii) a service dog for a mobility-impaired or otherwise disabled person.
			As used in this subsection, &#x201C;<span class="dictionary">hearing</span> dog,&#x201D; &#x201C;mobility-impaired person,&#x201D; &#x201C;otherwise disabled person,&#x201D; and &#x201C;service dog&#x201D; have the same meanings as assigned in &#xA7; <a class="law" title="Definitions" href="/51.5-40.1/">51.5-40.1</a>. <a id="paragraph-250768" class="section-permalink" href="https://vacode.org/3.2-6528/#A"><i class="fa fa-link"/></a></p></section>
						<section id="B"><p><span class="prefix-number">B.</span> A locality may by <span class="dictionary">ordinance</span> exempt any dog that served as a police or <span class="dictionary">law</span>-enforcement dog or military working dog from the license tax provided in subsection A. Such <span class="dictionary">ordinance</span> shall include a verification process for vaccination records of such dog. <a id="paragraph-250769" class="section-permalink" href="https://vacode.org/3.2-6528/#B"><i class="fa fa-link"/></a></p></section></text><history>1984, cc. 248, 492, &#xA7; 29-213.57; 1986, c. 169; 1987, c. 488, &#xA7; 3.1-796.87; 1993, c. 817; 1994, c. 108; 2006, c. 836; 2008, c. 860; 2014, c. 616; 2017, cc. 559, 567; 2019, c. 288; 2024, c. 187.</history><metadata></metadata></law>
