Sep 3, 2026

The Los Angeles Dog Licence: $20, and No Price for an Unaltered Dog

Cheap, tied to sterilisation, and not for sale to an intact dog. Plus the DWP test that tells you whether any of it applies, and a fee schedule labelled 2010.

Luis ZamoraCo-founder of PetCompass; Dog Dad to Banzo and Tuck

Los Angeles, California9 min readPet Care & Services

A one year dog licence in the City of Los Angeles costs $20 for a sterilised dog and $55 for three years. A low income owner aged 62 or over, or a low income disabled owner, pays $10.

An unaltered dog has no price. The row exists in the department's fee table and where a figure should be it says "See Spay Neuter Law Information".

That is the licence in one line: cheap, tied to sterilisation, and not for sale to an intact dog.

The fee schedule

From LA Animal Services' licensing page, under a heading reading "License Fee Schedule (as of October 2010)":

Term	1 Year	3 Year
Dogs, altered	$20	$55
Dogs, unaltered	See Spay Neuter Law Information
Low income Seniors (62 +)/Disabled	$10	N/A
Replacement Tag	$5	$5

The department's footnote, which its page marks with two asterisks, reads: "Altered means female animals are spayed, male animals are neutered". The asterisks are the page's own footnote marker and are not reproduced here.

Note the date on that heading. October 2010. We are reproducing what the department publishes, and a schedule labelled with a date sixteen years old is worth confirming before you post a cheque. The same page's equine schedule is labelled March 1, 2013.

The three year licence is the better deal at $55 against $60, and the discounted rate has no three year option.

The discounts, and their conditions

Both are one per household, and both require proof. Verbatim:

"If you're 62 years and older and low-income, you qualify for a $10 dog license. You must provide proof that your dog is spayed/neutered and has a valid rabies vaccination certificate. This discounted license is limited to one per household."

"A low-income disabled individual may qualify for one $10 dog license. You must provide proof that your dog is spayed/neutered and has a valid rabies vaccination certificate. This discounted license is limited to one per household."

"One per household" is the limit that catches people, because the three dog allowance and the one discounted licence do not line up. Two more dogs in a discounted household still cost $20 each.

The department points to an income qualification process, verbatim: "For information on qualifying income amounts, and to apply, please complete the" followed by a form link on the page.

What the licence requires

Three conditions, and all three are stated as requirements rather than preferences.

Sterilisation. Verbatim: "All dogs over four months of age and kept within the City of Los Angeles must be licensed (LAMC 53.28) and must be spayed or neutered (LAMC 53.15.2(b))." Our Los Angeles mandatory spay and neuter law guide covers the exemptions and the intact dog licence category, which exists without a published fee.

A current rabies vaccination, and the licence expires with it. Verbatim, from the same sentence: "A dog license is valid only when the required rabies vaccination certificate, issued by a licensed veterinarian, is provided to the Department and only as long as the rabies vaccination is effective. (LAMC 53.51)"

Read that carefully. The licence is not valid for a fixed year regardless. It is valid only as long as the rabies vaccination is effective. A lapsed vaccination lapses the licence, whatever the term you paid for. That is a stricter link than most cities publish.

And paperwork you will not get back. Verbatim: "The dog guardian must provide a copy of Rabies Vaccination and Surgical Sterilization (if available). Original certificates will not be returned. PLEASE SEND A COPY."

The department's capitals, not ours. Our pet health and vaccination tracker is built for keeping originals where you can find them.

The tag, and where it has to be

Verbatim:

"Dog license tags shall be affixed to a collar or harness, and must be worn by the dog at all times when off the guardian premises."

"At all times when off the guardian premises" is the operative phrase. The tag can come off at home; it cannot come off on the pavement.

And the reason the department gives, verbatim:

"If a licensed animal is lost or taken to a shelter, LA Department of Animal Services can identify the guardian by the tag number and contact the registered animal guardian. Animals with licensing information are held in the shelters while the guardians are contacted."

"Each license tag has a unique number assigned to your animal only."

Read the second sentence of that first quote again: "Animals with licensing information are held in the shelters while the guardians are contacted." That is the department telling you the licence buys your dog time. Our lost dog in Los Angeles guide covers the rest of that process.

Replacement, verbatim: "Dog's rabies certificate and license must be current. You can obtain a replacement tag for $5.00 at your local Shelter or by mailing your check to the:" with the address given as Attn: Licensing, Department of Animal Services, 221 N. Figueroa Street, 6th Floor, Suite 600, Los Angeles, CA 90012.

And if you find a tagged dog, verbatim: "If you find a dog with a City of Los Angeles License Tag, please telephone your local Animal Shelter (888-452-7381) for information on reuniting the lost companion animal with the guardian."

Three dogs, and the drafting is airtight

Verbatim from the licensing page:

"No person shall keep or maintain more than three (3) dogs over four (4) months of age at any premises, including any Dwelling Unit as defined in Section 12.03, or at any lot, building, structure, enclosure, or premises that does not constitute a Dwelling Unit. (LAMC 53.06.1)."

Look at how that is built. It names a dwelling unit with a cross-reference to the zoning definition, and then it names everything that is not a dwelling unit: a lot, a building, a structure, an enclosure, a premises. There is no category left over.

Three dogs over four months. Puppies under four months are outside the count, which is the only flexibility in the sentence.

Compare Huntington Beach, where the county requires a permit above three dogs and does not offer that permit in the city, reaching the same ceiling by a different route, in our Orange County dog licence guide. And compare Yarmouth on Cape Cod, which allows up to six with a $60 permit, in our Cape Cod dog licence guide.

Two jurisdictional quirks

Los Angeles licenses Beverly Hills dogs. Verbatim: "Effective February 1, 2009, the City of Los Angeles also licenses dogs for residents of the City of Beverly Hills."

And it licenses horses. Verbatim: "Dogs and horses (any equine) are required to be licensed in the City of Los Angeles." The fee, verbatim: "Section 53.15.1 of the Municipal code provides for an equine license fee of $14.00 per year for each horse, pony, burro, mule, donkey or other equine 12 months or older."

Its schedule, labelled as of March 1, 2013, runs $14.00 for one year, $22.40 for two, $29.40 for three, $33.60 for four and $35.00 for five.

Five years of equine licence for $35 is cheaper than two years of dog licence. Los Angeles is a city with horses in it, and its fee structure knows that.

What to send, and what not to send

The department is specific about the paperwork, and getting it wrong means a returned application rather than a licence.

Send copies. Verbatim: "The dog guardian must provide a copy of Rabies Vaccination and Surgical Sterilization (if available). Original certificates will not be returned. PLEASE SEND A COPY." The capitals are the department's.

Note "(if available)" against the sterilisation certificate. The rabies certificate is unqualified; the sterilisation paperwork carries that parenthetical. If your dog was altered years ago by a practice you no longer use, that qualifier is worth asking about rather than assuming a missing certificate blocks the licence.

And send it to the licensing desk, not a shelter, if you are posting: Attn: Licensing, Department of Animal Services, 221 N. Figueroa Street, 6th Floor, Suite 600, Los Angeles, CA 90012. The department offers online renewal too, and its own spay and neuter page is where the sterilisation side of the requirement is set out.

Keep your own originals somewhere findable, because you will need the rabies certificate again when the licence lapses with the vaccination.

Am I even in the city?

This matters more here than anywhere else in the series, because Los Angeles County contains dozens of separate cities with interlocking boundaries. The department gives a test, verbatim:

"NOTE: Before proceeding to download the License Application form below, please locate your zip code below. If you can't locate your zip code below then please do not submit application because you are not regulated by the City of Los Angeles, Department of Animal Services.*These zip codes are partially covered by the City of Los Angeles, Department of Animal Services and other regulatory Agencies. If you pay your Water and Power bill to DWP you are regulated by the City of Los Angeles, Department of Animal Services."

"If you pay your Water and Power bill to DWP you are regulated by the City of Los Angeles, Department of Animal Services." That is the single most useful sentence on the department's site, and it settles a question a zip code list cannot, because the page itself flags that some zip codes are only partially covered.

Our Los Angeles dog rules guide covers the wider structure, and moving to Los Angeles with a dog guide sequences licensing against everything else on a move.

Frequently asked questions

How much is a dog licence in Los Angeles? $20 for one year and $55 for three years for a sterilised dog, per a schedule the department labels as of October 2010. A low income owner aged 62 or over, or a low income disabled owner, pays $10 for one year, limited to one per household.

What does an unaltered dog licence cost? No price is published. The department's fee table replaces the figure with a pointer to its spay and neuter law information, and its breeders page separately states that all intact dogs must have an intact dog licence from the City.

At what age must my dog be licensed? Four months, and the same age triggers the city's sterilisation requirement.

Does my licence expire? It is valid only as long as the rabies vaccination is effective, per the department, citing LAMC 53.51. A lapsed vaccination lapses the licence regardless of the term you paid for.

Does my dog have to wear the tag? Yes, affixed to a collar or harness and worn at all times when off the guardian's premises. A replacement tag is $5.

How many dogs can I keep in Los Angeles? Three over four months of age, citing LAMC 53.06.1. The wording covers a dwelling unit and anything that is not a dwelling unit, including a lot, building, structure, enclosure or premises.

Sources

Fee schedules are reproduced with the dates the department prints on them, October 2010 for dogs and March 2013 for equines. Confirm before paying.