What's specific to New York City

New York City is the strictest jurisdiction covered on this site, and for a watch dealer it is also the most consequential: the licence is required to buy or sell used goods, not merely to run a shop. The state-level items — sales tax registration, the gold and silver marking rules, LLC publication — are in the New York guide.

The licence, and the exemption worth reading twice

A person or business that buys or sells used goods other than automobiles in New York City must hold a Secondhand Dealer General licence from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection. DCWP's inspection checklist names jewelry as an example of the goods it covers, and none of the listed exempt categories — pianos, books, magazines, rugs, tapestries, artists' burlaps, paintings, sculptures, drawings, etchings, engravings, clothing, shoes, footwear and other apparel — includes watches.

The exemption that matters to a modern dealer is different: the purchase or sale of goods conducted exclusively online. A dealer who buys and sells only through marketplaces and ships everything is outside the licence. The load is carried by the word exclusively, and a single in-person purchase at a show, an office, or a coffee shop in the city is the kind of fact that undoes it. That's the question to put to an attorney before relying on it.

What it costs

The licence runs in a two-year cycle expiring July 31 in odd years, and the fee depends on when you apply within that cycle:

• $340 — applying between August 1 of an odd year and January 31 of an even year, valid up to 24 months.
• $255 — between February 1 and July 31 of an even year, up to 18 months.
• $170 — between August 1 of an even year and January 31 of an odd year, up to 12 months.
• $85 — between February 1 and July 31 of an odd year.

To apply you need the basic licence application, a sales tax identification number or application confirmation number, the Granting Authority to Act Affirmation, and the fee. DCWP will deny an application that is missing required documents, and may ask for your business certificate under § 20-104.

Records: two sets, two retention periods

Written records, in English, of every purchase and sale (§ 20-273(a)):

• A detailed description of the item — for jewelry, the metal (gold, silver, platinum or other) and the gemstone, with type, size and colour.
• Identifying marks such as monograms or inscriptions.
• The name and address of the person who bought or sold it, and a general description of them.
• The date and time of the transaction.

Each customer selling you a used item must show ID, and the type, description and number of that ID goes in the record (6 RCNY § 2-101). The seller signs in front of you. Keep these records three years.

Electronic records on LeadsOnline are required on top of that for goods including secondhand manufactured items made wholly or partly of gold, silver, platinum or other precious metals — which catches a large share of the watch market. They carry the date, time and location of each transaction, an accurate description including type, manufacturer, make, model or serial number, inscriptions or distinguishing marks, and digital photographs of each item. Keep these six years (§ 20-273(b); 38 RCNY §§ 21-04(c), 21-07(b)).

All records must be available for inspection by a DCWP inspector or an NYPD officer (§ 20-273(e)).

The 15-day hold

Secondhand items, including jewelry, cannot be sold within 15 days of purchase (§ 20-268(d)). New York State sets no competing period, so this is the hold that governs, and it applies from the purchase date rather than from any filing.

For a dealer, that is a real constraint on turn: a watch bought on the first of the month cannot be sold until the sixteenth, however quickly a buyer appears. Price the wait in — the carrying cost article covers what a forced hold costs.

Other duties worth knowing

• No purchases from a minor (§ 20-268(b)).
• Post DCWP's combined licence and complaint sign where all customers can see it (6 RCNY § 1-03(a)).
• If you sell both new and used items, post a sign saying so — at least 216 square inches, letters at least 2 inches high (§ 20-270) — and label used items as used (§ 20-271(a)).
• Pawnbroking needs its own DCWP licence if you advance money against goods.