How to License Your Dog in L.A. County, and What Skipping It Costs

A spayed or neutered dog costs $20 a year in unincorporated L.A. County, and a late renewal doubles that bill.

Yes, your dog needs a license. In unincorporated L.A. County, it costs $20 a year if the dog is spayed or neutered, according to the fee schedule from L.A. County Animal Care and Control.

That schedule took effect July 1, 2026, and $20 is the cheap version. An unaltered dog costs $60 on the same county schedule. If you renew late, you pay a penalty equal to the license fee. If a county officer has to bring the dog into compliance, there's an extra $40 field enforcement fee, according to the department's licensing page.

1. Make sure the county is your licensing office. The department, known as DACC, covers unincorporated areas and 45 contract cities, its contact page says. It doesn't serve the City of Los Angeles, apart from small unincorporated pockets inside or next to the city. Azusa and Baldwin Park are now served by the Inland Valley Humane Society.
2. If you live in the City of Los Angeles, use the city's table. LA Animal Services lists an altered dog at $20 for one year or $55 for three, on a fee table dated October 2010. It also licenses dogs for Beverly Hills residents. In the city, every dog over four months old has to be licensed and spayed or neutered.
3. Get the paperwork before you pay. The county requires a rabies shot for every dog older than four months. Boosters come due annually, unless your vet used a vaccine approved to last three years. A mailed application needs proof of that shot and proof of spaying or neutering. The county also requires dogs to be microchipped.
4. Find your price. In unincorporated areas, the county's fee schedule lists $7.50 for an altered dog owned by someone 60 or older, or by a military veteran with a disability. Most contract cities charge the standard $60 and $20, but check your row: Bell charges $80 and $30, and Westlake Village charges $30 and $15. A three-year license costs exactly three times the yearly fee, so it saves you two renewals, not money.
5. Bring proof for the discount. For seniors, a copy of a driver's license or passport works as proof of age, and so does other official ID from a government agency. A veteran proves the disability with a disability award letter from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, or with a Veterans Health Administration health care card stating it's service-connected. You can upload either one online.
6. Pay. The county says the easiest way to get a new license is online, through its licensing page. You can also mail the application with your payment and both proofs, or go to any of the county's seven care centers during business hours. They're in Agoura, Baldwin Park, Gardena, Downey, Castaic, Lancaster and Palmdale. Don't drive to the licensing division at 5898 Cherry Ave. in Long Beach, because it doesn't take walk-ins.
7. Renew from the notice. The county's online renewal portal handles licenses you've gotten a notice for, and it takes payment only for licenses due within 14 days of expiration. Any late fees that apply are added automatically. The phone line, (877) 872-9738, works only if you have that mailed notice in hand.

Here's what happens if you're late. Say a $20 license lapses. The county adds a $20 penalty, and if an officer from its field licensing program has to bring the dog into compliance, another $40 goes on top. That's $80 for a $20 license.

Those officers usually work Wednesday through Saturday, carrying records of licenses that have expired, and they try to reach each owner in person. Some cities set their own penalty. Whittier charges a flat $60 on the county schedule, which is double its $30 fee for an altered dog.

A lost tag costs $5 to replace. Mail a check to the licensing division with the dog's license number written on it, or call (562) 345-0400 if you don't know the number.

The next step comes by mail. Each year's renewal notice goes to the address on file, including after an officer licenses a dog in the field. Pay it before the license expires and the bill stays at $20.

Source: Los Angeles County, retrieved November 2, 2026. Other sources: Los Angeles County (2), Los Angeles County (3), laanimalservices.com, Los Angeles County (4).