Georgia · state guide
Watch dealing in Georgia: what's confirmed, and what isn't
At a glance
State secondhand-dealer license
Sales tax
Statewide holding period
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Build my Georgia plan →Georgia is worth reading carefully for one reason that has nothing to do with how big Atlanta is: the state has a chapter of statute devoted entirely to dealers in used watches. O.C.G.A. Title 43, Chapter 49 is titled Dealers in Used Watches. Only two other states covered on this site, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, have a law naming second-hand watches, and both are single acts rather than a whole chapter.
An unusual disclosure about this particular guide
Every other state guide here was written by reading the statute. This one was not, and you should know that before you rely on it.
Georgia's official code is published under contract by LexisNexis on behalf of the Georgia Code Revision Commission. The public-access site will show you the table of contents — titles, chapters, section numbers, section headings — but opening a section returns a CAPTCHA, and there are no stable per-section links. Third-party sites carry the text. We did not use them, because "verified" on this site means checked against the primary source, and a mirror marked current as of March 2024 is not the primary source.
So this guide does something the others don't: it tells you which chapters exist and what their sections are called, sourced from the official table of contents, and then says Not confirmed wherever the operative wording would be needed. That is less useful than a full guide. It is more useful than a confident guess.
The Atlanta guide has no such problem — the city code is public and current to 25 August 2026, and that is where the practical detail lives.
The two chapters you need to know exist
Title 43, Chapter 49 — Dealers in Used Watches (§§ 43-49-1 to 43-49-5). The section headings are:
- 43-49-1. Purpose of chapter
- 43-49-2. "Secondhand watch" defined
- 43-49-3. Identifying tags affixed to secondhand watches; advertisements and displays as to secondhand watches
- 43-49-4. Invoice of sale for secondhand watch; filing of duplicate invoice by vendor; inspection by prosecuting attorney
- 43-49-5. Penalty
Read those headings as a checklist of things Georgia has an opinion about: what counts as secondhand, whether you have to tag it, what your advertising can say, and what has to be on the invoice. Atlanta's § 122-37 cites this chapter as its own state-law reference and mirrors all four — which is the best available indication of what the state chapter contains, though it is an indication, not the text.
Title 43, Chapter 37 — Dealers in Precious Metals and Gems (§§ 43-37-1 to 43-37-7), with sections headed Definitions, Registration procedure; felony conviction; fee; renewal, Permanent records required; content, Written reports of purchases required; time of report, Local requirements, Unlawful acts; penalty, and Exemptions.
A registration exists. It has a fee and a renewal. A felony conviction bears on it. There are records, reports with a deadline, and exemptions. What none of that tells you is the numbers — and we are not going to invent them.
One thing we can rule out: the Secretary of State's published list of licensing boards covers everything from auctioneers to used motor vehicle parts dealers, and contains no board for secondhand dealers, precious metals or gem dealers, jewellers, or watch dealers. Whatever § 43-37-2 registration is, it is not a Secretary of State licence.
Tax, which is fully confirmed
The state sales and use tax rate is 4%, and Georgia is destination-sourced — the local rate is the one in the county where the buyer receives the goods, which the Department of Revenue attributes to O.C.G.A. § 48-8-77. For the quarter beginning 1 July 2026:
- Atlanta — 8.9%, in both the Fulton and the DeKalb portion of the city
- Fulton County outside Atlanta — 7.75%
- DeKalb County outside Atlanta — 8%
Atlanta sits in two counties and the rate happens to match in both, but the county codes are separate (060A and 044A) and you file against the right one.
You need a sales and use tax number if you meet the "dealer" definition in O.C.G.A. § 48-8-2 — and the DOR publishes no dollar or transaction threshold of its own, pointing instead at the statute. A marketplace facilitator has to collect once its Georgia sales reach $100,000 across all its sellers and itself, in the previous or current calendar year.
Your own remote-seller threshold is in § 48-8-2, and so is Not confirmed here.
Registering the business
The entity goes to the Secretary of State, and the annual registration is due by April 1 every year — $60 for an LLC or profit corporation, the same price online or on paper, with a $25 penalty if you are late. You can file from 1 January, and up to three years ahead. Your registered agent must be a physical Georgia street address where a person can actually be found; a mailbox will not do.
The trade name does not go to the Secretary of State. Georgia files DBAs at county level, with the superior court clerk for wherever the business is chiefly carried on, within 30 days of starting to trade. Fulton County charges $175 and takes about four weeks.
If you are in Atlanta, check which county you are actually in first — the city spans Fulton and DeKalb, and you file with the clerk of the county you are in.
Where to go next
Atlanta is the jurisdiction that will actually govern your day: the Atlanta guide covers the record book you have to write within an hour of buying, the daily report to police, the two different holding periods depending on what the case is made of, and a city section written specifically about secondhand watches.
For the federal layer that applies wherever you are, see cash reporting.
How to get compliant
- 1
Form your entity with the Secretary of State, then file an annual registration by April 1 every year — $60 for an LLC or profit corporation, online or on paper, with a $25 penalty for filing late. Your registered agent must be a physical Georgia street address where a person can actually be found.
- 2
File your trade name at county level rather than with the state — the superior court clerk for whichever county your business is chiefly carried on in, within 30 days of starting. Fulton charges $175 and takes about four weeks.
- 3
Get a sales and use tax number before you make taxable sales. Georgia requires it of anyone meeting the 'dealer' definition in O.C.G.A. § 48-8-2 — the Department of Revenue publishes no dollar or transaction threshold of its own.
- 4
- 5
If you sell through a marketplace, check whether the platform is collecting Georgia tax for you — a facilitator must collect once its Georgia sales reach $100,000 across all its sellers. Your own remote-seller threshold is a separate question this guide cannot answer.
- 6
Assume Georgia has watch-specific statutory duties and find out what they are before you advertise stock. Title 43 Chapter 49 is 'Dealers in Used Watches', and its sections cover tagging, advertisements and displays, and an invoice of sale with a duplicate the prosecuting attorney can inspect.
- 7
Does this apply to you?
Some of these rules turn on how you actually operate. Answer a question and we’ll show what the rule says for that answer — with the citation. This is general information, not a legal determination about your business.
Do you ever let a seller buy their watch back?
Georgia separates pawnbroking from secondhand dealing, and the separation matters at city level. Atlanta's secondhand-dealer definition expressly excludes pawnbrokers (§ 122-26), and pawnbrokers get their own article with their own permit and a 30-day hold on everything, including goods bought outright (§§ 122-65, 122-81).
Are the watches you buy from the public made of precious metal?
Atlanta's § 122-106 turns on the material, not the trade: it reaches a dealer who buys precious metal — or anything manufactured out of it — from a source that is not an industrial producer, a manufacturer or a licensed dealer. Solid gold cases are caught by that wording. Steel is not.
Things to confirm
Confidence: LikelyOpen items a professional should verify before you rely on this page.
- What does O.C.G.A. § 43-37-2 registration require of a used-watch dealer — with which office is it filed, what is the fee, and does the felony bar reach employees?
- Is a dealer in used watches a 'dealer in precious metals or gems' under O.C.G.A. § 43-37-1, and does the answer change between a steel watch and a gold one?
- What do O.C.G.A. §§ 43-49-2 to 43-49-4 require, and do they bind a dealer trading outside a city that has its own watch ordinance?
- What is Georgia's remote-seller economic nexus threshold under O.C.G.A. § 48-8-2, and does inventory held by a marketplace in Georgia create nexus on its own?
Turn this guide into your plan
Answer a few questions about how you buy and sell. The compliance checker puts Georgia's rules together with the rest — federal, state and city — in one checklist, every step with its official source. It's free, and your plan is emailed to you.
Build my Georgia plan →Tell me when Georgia changes
Permits, fees and holding periods change without notice. We'll email you when this guide is re-verified, and what changed.
Cities in Georgia
Each city page covers only its local permit, office, reporting, and fees. The rules above apply across the state.
Sources
- Official Code of Georgia Annotated Title 43 Chapter 37 - Dealers in Precious Metals and Gems (§§ 43-37-1 - 43-37-7) - CHAPTER STRUCTURE ONLY. The official public-access code was read at the table-of-contents level on the retrieval date; the chapter exists and contains 43-37-1 Definitions; 43-37-2 Registration procedure - felony conviction - fee - renewal; 43-37-3 Permanent records required - content; 43-37-4 Written reports of purchases required - time of report; 43-37-5 Local requirements; 43-37-6 Unlawful acts - penalty; and 43-37-7 Exemptions. The operative text of these sections was NOT retrieved: opening any section on the official site returns a CAPTCHA and the site publishes no stable per-section URL. Nothing beyond the section headings listed here is sourced by this row. — retrieved 2026-09-23 · current as displayed on the official public-access site
- Official Code of Georgia Annotated Title 43 Chapter 49 - Dealers in Used Watches (§§ 43-49-1 - 43-49-5) - CHAPTER STRUCTURE ONLY. Read at the table-of-contents level on the retrieval date; the chapter exists and contains 43-49-1 Purpose of chapter; 43-49-2 Secondhand watch defined; 43-49-3 Identifying tags affixed to secondhand watches - advertisements and displays as to secondhand watches; 43-49-4 Invoice of sale for secondhand watch - filing of duplicate invoice by vendor - inspection by prosecuting attorney; and 43-49-5 Penalty. The operative text was NOT retrieved for the reason recorded in GA1. Nothing beyond these section headings is sourced by this row. — retrieved 2026-09-23 · current as displayed on the official public-access site
- Georgia Department of Revenue - GEORGIA SALES AND USE TAX RATE CHART - General Rate Chart effective July 1 2026 through September 30 2026 - the chart states that the state sales and use tax rate is 4% and that other than code 803 Fulton (Cent. Yards) the state tax is included in the jurisdiction rates listed; code 060 Fulton (outside Atlanta; Hapeville; College Park and East Point) 7.75%; code 060A Fulton (Atlanta) 8.9%; code 044 DeKalb (Not Atlanta) 8%; code 044A DeKalb (Atlanta) 8.9%; the legend gives M = MARTA; L = LOST; E = Educational; H = HOST or EHOST; S = SPLOST; O = Other (MOST; 2nd LOST; constitutional; Coliseum SPLOST); T = TSPLOST 1; m = Local MARTA (Atlanta MARTA); T2 = TSPLOST 2; Tf = Fulton TSPLOST; Ta = Atlanta TSPLOST; P = PTRLOST — retrieved 2026-09-23 · effective 2026-07-01 through 2026-09-30
- Georgia Department of Revenue - What is Subject to Sales and Use Tax? - the page states that the published sales tax rates for counties include the State of Georgia's sales tax rate and that the applicable local sales tax rate is the rate imposed in the county where the buyer receives the goods; citing O.C.G.A. § 48-8-77 - Georgia is therefore a destination-sourced state for local rate purposes — retrieved 2026-09-23 · current as displayed
- Georgia Department of Revenue - Sales and Use Tax Registration FAQ - any individual or entity meeting the definition of a dealer in O.C.G.A. § 48-8-2 must obtain a sales and use tax number regardless of the type of sales or the location of the business; the page cites O.C.G.A. § 48-8-59 and directs the reader to the statutory definition rather than stating any dollar or transaction threshold of its own — retrieved 2026-09-23 · current as displayed
- Georgia Department of Revenue - Marketplace Facilitators - a marketplace facilitator must collect and remit Georgia state and local sales taxes on its facilitated retail sales where the total value of the sales price of its taxable retail sales sourced to Georgia; combined across all its marketplace sellers and the marketplace facilitator itself; equals or exceeds $100000.00 in the previous or current calendar year; facilitated sales are reported on the Georgia Tax Center return under a marketplace facilitator sales and use tax account number; the page refers to Policy Bulletin SUT-2020-01 for the statutory detail and states no O.C.G.A. citation of its own — retrieved 2026-09-23 · current as displayed
- Georgia Secretary of State Corporations Division - How to Guide: File Annual Registration - each business entity registered or filed with the Office of Secretary of State is required to file an annual registration; annual registrations are due by April 1 of each year they are due and may be filed as early as January 1; an entity may file in advance for up to and including 3 calendar years; the fee schedule gives Annual Registration (Profit Corp.; Professional Corp.; Benefit Corp.; LLC; LP; LLLP; Trust Estate) $60.00 online and $60.00 paper; Annual Registration (Nonprofit Corporation) $40.00; Annual Registration (Foreign LLP) $35.00; Amended Annual Registration $30.00; and Penalty for Late Filing of Annual Registration $25.00; the registered agent's address must be a physical street address in Georgia where an individual can be located in person — retrieved 2026-09-23 · current as displayed
- Georgia Secretary of State Corporations Division - Filing Fees and Expedited Processing of Document Filings - online filings are generally processed within 7 to 10 business days of receipt by the Division and paper filings submitted by mail or hand-delivery are generally processed within 15 business days; expedited service for any domestic or foreign corporation; limited partnership or LLC filing is $120.00 for two business days; $275.00 same day (requests must be received by noon of a business day) and $1200.00 for one hour (reviewed on business days between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.); the expedited fee is in addition to the regular filing fee; expedited service is not available on trademark; service of process or other special services filings; annual registrations filed online are processed immediately with no expedite fee — retrieved 2026-09-23 · current as displayed
- Georgia Secretary of State - site-wide Search by Board listing for the Licensing Division - the complete list of boards the Secretary of State licenses includes Used Motor Vehicle and Used Motor Vehicle Parts Dealers and Used Motor Vehicle Parts Dealers; it contains no board for secondhand dealers; precious metals or gem dealers; jewellers or watch dealers - recorded as a negative finding from the official source that the Secretary of State operates no state licensing board for these trades — retrieved 2026-09-23 · list as displayed
- Fulton County Clerk of Superior Court - Register a Trade Name / DBA (Doing Business As) - the cost to record a trade name is $175.00; the page cites O.C.G.A. § 10-1-490 for the requirement that a person carrying on a trade or business under a trade name file in the office of the clerk of the superior court of the county in which the business is chiefly carried on within 30 days from commencing to do business; trade name applications are processed within four weeks; the Recording Division is at 136 Pryor St. SW Suite J2-G25 Atlanta GA 30303 — retrieved 2026-09-23 · current as displayed
- Atlanta Code of Ordinances Ch. 122 (Secondhand Goods) Art. II - Secondhand Dealers - § 122-26 every person; except licensed junk dealers and pawnbrokers; who exclusively or as incidental to or in connection with other business purchases; sells or acquires in trade used or secondhand jewelry of any kind or description; including watches and clocks or articles of that kind or description made in whole or in part of gold; silver; platinum or other precious metals; diamonds; emeralds; rubies or other precious stones; pistols or guns; bicycles or accessories; shall be a secondhand dealer; and any person who purchases such an article from any person other than a bona fide dealer in those articles is also a secondhand dealer for the purpose of the reports required by the article; § 122-28 all secondhand dealers shall keep a book entering an accurate description of all property of the kinds specified in § 122-26 acquired by purchase or trade and the name; address; estimated age; weight and height of the person from whom purchased and the date and hour of the purchase; entries to be made as soon as possible after the transaction and in no case more than one hour thereafter; the record is at all times subject to inspection by the department of police; § 122-29 every entry shall be numbered serially and the property described shall have attached to it a tag bearing the same serial number; § 122-30 it is unlawful for a secondhand dealer to purchase or acquire in trade any watch; clock; pistol; gun; automobile tire or battery or any other article commonly branded with a serial number upon which the number has been mutilated or altered; § 122-31 every secondhand dealer shall make a daily report in writing to the department of police in such form as may be prescribed by the police chief of all property purchased or acquired during the 24 hours ending at 8:00 p.m. on the date of the report; § 122-32 all property is subject to examination and inspection by the department of police and where an officer has reasonable cause to believe property is stolen the officer shall segregate it; after which it is unlawful to dispose of; mutilate; melt or disfigure it until 15 days have elapsed from the date of the inspection; § 122-33 all property purchased or acquired by a secondhand dealer shall be held for not less than 15 days; § 122-34 it is unlawful to buy or receive property of the kinds described in § 122-26 from any person under the age of 18 years; subject to a written statement of age defence where the seller's appearance makes it uncertain. Article II contains no city permit or licence for secondhand dealers; §§ 122-38 through 122-60 are reserved — retrieved 2026-09-23 · version Aug 25 2026 (current); Art. II sections from Code 1977 §§ 14-6391 to 14-6399
- Atlanta Code of Ordinances § 122-37 - Dealers in secondhand watches - (a) a watch is deemed secondhand if (1) it as a whole; or the case thereof or the movement thereof; has been previously sold to or acquired by any person for that person's use or the use of another but not for resale - provided that a watch so sold or acquired and thereafter returned through exchange or for credit to the original vendor is not secondhand if the vendor keeps a written or printed record setting forth the name of the purchaser; the date of the sale or transfer and the serial number if any on the case and movement and any other distinguishing number or identification mark; which record shall be kept five years from the date of the sale or transfer and shall be open for inspection during all business hours by the police or prosecutor for the city; (2) its case or movement serial numbers or other distinguishing numbers or identification marks are erased; defaced; removed; altered or covered; or (3) its movement is more than five years old and has been repaired by any person including the vendor; notwithstanding that it may have been returned through exchange or for credit to the original vendor - cleaning and oiling a watch movement or recasing the movement in a new case is not a watch repair for this purpose; (b) TAGGING - any person engaged in the business of buying or selling watches who may sell or exchange or offer for sale or exchange; expose for sale or exchange; possess with the intent to sell or exchange or display with the intent to sell or exchange any secondhand watch shall affix and keep affixed thereto a tag with the term secondhand clearly and legibly written or printed thereon; affixed or placed so that the term is plainly visible at all times; (c) INVOICE - any person who sells a secondhand watch or in any other way passes title to it shall deliver to the vendee a written invoice bearing the term secondhand in bold letters larger than any other written matter upon the invoice; setting forth the name and address of the vendor; the name and address of the vendee; the date of the sale; the name of the watch or its maker and the serial number if any and any other distinguishing numbers or identification marks upon its case and movement; and where those numbers or marks have been erased; defaced; removed; altered or covered the invoice shall so state; the vendor shall keep on file a duplicate of the invoice five years from the sale; open to inspection during all business hours by the police or prosecutor for the city; (d) ADVERTISING - any person who advertises or displays in any manner a secondhand watch for sale or exchange shall state clearly in the advertisement or display that the watch is secondhand. The section's own State Law reference is to O.C.G.A. § 43-49-1 et seq. — retrieved 2026-09-23 · version Aug 25 2026 (current); from Code 1977 § 14-6402
- Atlanta Code of Ordinances Ch. 122 Art. IV - Precious Metals Dealers - § 122-106 precious metals means any metals including but not limited to; in whole or in part; silver; gold; platinum; and a precious metals dealer means any person who exclusively or as incidental to or in connection with any other business is engaged in the business of purchasing precious metals or goods made from precious metals from persons or sources other than industrial producers; manufacturers or licensed dealers; the term also means any such person who engages in the business for a period not exceeding 180 days; § 122-108 every precious metals dealer shall maintain a book in permanent form entering in legible English at the time of each purchase the date of the transaction; the name of the person making the purchase from the seller; the name; age and address of the seller and a description of the seller's general appearance or a photograph plus the number from the seller's driver's licence or other similar identification; an identification and description of the purchased goods including serial numbers; model numbers or other numbers and any identifying marks inscribed therein; and the signature of the seller; the record book shall be maintained for each purchase for a period of four years; entries shall appear in chronological order in ink with no blank lines between entries and no obliterations; alterations or erasures; corrections being made by drawing a line of ink through the entry without destroying its legibility; the book and all goods shall be open to the inspection of any duly authorized law enforcement officer at all times; § 122-109 every precious metals dealer shall make a daily report in writing to the department of police of all precious metals or goods containing precious metals purchased during the 24 hours ending at 8:00 p.m. on the date of the report; on forms or duplicate invoices prescribed or approved by the department; typewritten and mailed or delivered to the department of police prior to 10:00 a.m. on the day following the date of the report; § 122-110 for a period of 30 days excluding Sundays and legal holidays after the purchase or receipt every precious metals dealer shall retain upon the licensed premises or in a sealed vault off the premises all such goods and shall not alter the original form; shape or condition until that time has elapsed; § 122-111(a) §§ 122-108 through 122-110 do not apply to goods from industrial producers; manufacturers; licensed dealers or distributors and (b) Division 2 of the article does not apply to licensed pawnbrokers; scrap metal processors or secondhand dealers; who are however not relieved from compliance with §§ 122-108 through 122-110 when the purchase is from persons or sources other than industrial producers; manufacturers or licensed dealers or distributors; § 122-112 failure to maintain the record book; false entries; falsifying or removing it; failure to submit daily reports or refusing inspection is a misdemeanour; § 122-126 no person shall engage in business as a precious metals dealer without first obtaining a permit; application is made to the police department accompanied by an application fee of $100.00; § 122-127 the department of police determines whether the applicant has been convicted of larceny; burglary or theft of any description; forwards the application and its report to the license review board within 20 days of initial filing; the board holds a public hearing and reports to the mayor; who may within 60 calendar days deny or grant the application or remand it; and if the mayor fails to act within the 60-day period the board's recommendation becomes the final decision; upon issuance the permit holder shall submit an annual permit fee in the amount of $750.00; § 122-129 no permit is suspended or revoked until after a hearing on at least five days' notice; § 122-130 all persons or businesses licensed by the city to deal in precious metals shall perform criminal background checks on all employees hired after the date of passage of the ordinance; maintain those records at least five years after the employee leaves; and provide all relevant information to the Atlanta Police Department Licenses and Permits Unit within 30 days of the date of hire — retrieved 2026-09-23 · version Aug 25 2026 (current); amended by Ord. No. 1999-12; Ord. No. 1999-35; Ord. No. 2004-45 and Ord. No. 2008-79(08-O-1677)
- Atlanta Code of Ordinances Ch. 122 Art. III - Pawnbrokers - § 122-65 any pawnbroker or person operating under a pawnbroker's licence who takes goods on pawn or buys goods taking full title thereto shall hold the goods for 30 days before disposing of them by sale; transfer; shipment or otherwise; the term goods is used in the broadest sense and includes all kinds of personal property; § 122-81 every person before beginning the business of operating a pawnshop shall first file an application with the department of police for a permit; § 122-82 the application is filed with the licenses and permits unit of the Atlanta Police Department with a nonrefundable application fee of $100.00 and must disclose ownership; bank accounts; any conviction within the preceding five years for violation of any statute of the several states or the United States or any city ordinance (conviction including an adjudication of guilt; a plea of guilty; a plea of nolo contendere or the forfeiture of a bond); leased real property; and a certified financial statement; § 122-85 licences to operate a pawnshop shall be renewed annually as of the date of original issuance for a fee of $750.00; § 122-88 no pawnshop shall be located within 1000 feet of any other pawnshop measured by the most direct route of travel on the ground; nor within 1000 feet measured in a straight line between closest property lines of any structure in residential use; public or private school; public or private park or recreation facility; public library branch; church or similar place of religious worship; public or private hospital or mental health care facility; or child care or day care facility; applicants must submit a plat of survey sealed by a surveyor registered in the state certifying compliance; with a grandfather provision for locations licensed on or before July 1 2010 that are not expanded or enlarged — retrieved 2026-09-23 · version Aug 25 2026 (current); amended by Ord. No. 1999-11; Ord. No. 1999-36; Ord. No. 2004-45 and Ord. No. 2010-09(10-O-0388)
Not legal advice. Confirm with your city or state office and a qualified professional.
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