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Franklin County

Franklin County Auditor, Licensing Section

In short

Franklin County Auditor, Licensing Section issues 6 permits we publish for Franklin County, last verified 2026-09-28. Each carries the fee as the agency publishes it, with a link to the schedule it was read from.

What this agency issues

Permits required, with issuing agency, fee, renewal term and the date each record was last verified against its source
Vendor's License (County Vendor's License)Franklin County Auditor, Licensing Section$50 one-time, per fixed place of business ($25 to the state Organized Crime Commission Fund, $25 to the Franklin County general fund)standing registration, no renewal required — the Franklin County Auditor's own page states 'There is no annual renewal fee for either license'2026-09-28
Junk Yard / Secondhand Dealer Licenseonly if it applies to youFranklin County Auditor, Licensing Section$25 per year, for a junk yard operating in incorporated or unincorporated Franklin County outside the City of Columbusannual; the license expires January 1 following issuance and is renewable annually2026-09-28
Auto Repair Shop Licensing — State Registration for Collision and Glass Shops (Franklin County)only if it applies to youFranklin County Auditor, Licensing SectionNo feenot applicable — the Franklin County Auditor's Licensing Types page lists no auto-repair license2026-09-28
Salon / Cosmetology Licensing — State Board License Applies (Franklin County)only if it applies to youFranklin County Auditor, Licensing SectionNo feenot applicable — salons are licensed by the Ohio State Cosmetology and Barber Board2026-09-28
General Business License — Franklin County Auditor positiononly if it applies to youFranklin County Auditor, Licensing SectionNo feenot applicable — the Auditor's Licensing Types page lists no general business license2026-09-28
Kennel Licenseonly if it applies to youFranklin County Auditor, Licensing SectionORC 955.04 sets a statutory base kennel-registration fee of $10, 'unless a greater fee has been established under section 955.14,' and ORC 955.14 gives Franklin County's board of county commissioners authority to raise that fee by resolution. The county's current adopted kennel fee is not published on the Auditor's Licensing Types page; contact the Auditor's Dog License Section (614-525-3260 / Consumer@franklincountyohio.gov) for the amount currently in effect.annual; must be filed and paid by January 31 of each year, after which ORC 955.04 imposes a penalty equal to the registration fee2026-09-28

Fees shown as a range or formula are set that way by the issuing agency — we do not average them into a single number.

About each permit

Vendor's License (County Vendor's License)

Any business with a fixed Franklin County location that is the situs of taxable retail sales of goods or many services — restaurants, coffee shops, food trucks with a base location, retail stores, salons selling retail product, auto-repair shops selling parts, and fitness studios selling merchandise or supplements — must register for this license before making sales. It is a state-mandated sales-tax registration administered locally by the county auditor, not a county-invented requirement: Ohio Revised Code 5739.17 sets the $50 fee (effective April 9, 2025, up from $25), split $25 to the state Organized Crime Commission Fund and $25 to Franklin County's general fund. It is a standing registration rather than an annually renewed license — the Auditor's own Licensing Types page states plainly that there is no annual renewal fee for either the county vendor's license or the transient vendor's license, and a relocation within the county transfers the license for no additional fee. Only a change in the business's ownership structure requires a brand-new license. Apply using Form ST-1 (Application for Vendor's License to Make Taxable Sales) online through the county's jotform portal, in person at the Auditor's office, or through the Ohio Business Gateway.

Junk Yard / Secondhand Dealer License

This license reaches only a business that buys, sells or dismantles scrap or junk motor vehicles and parts as a junk yard — it is NOT a general requirement for ordinary auto-repair shops performing mechanical repairs. Ohio Revised Code 4737.07 sets the $25 annual fee, and Chapter 4737 as a whole governs junk yards and secondhand dealers as a state-created licensing category administered locally by the county auditor. The Franklin County Auditor issues it for incorporated and unincorporated areas of the county EXCLUDING the City of Columbus, which issues its own junkyard licenses through its own process. An auto-repair business does not need this license unless it is also operating as a salvage or junk yard on the same premises. Separately, a business selling salvage vehicles or parts at retail may need a state motor vehicle salvage dealer's license from the Ohio BMV (ORC Chapter 4738) — also a state function, and also inapplicable to a standard repair shop that is not dealing in salvage vehicles.

Auto Repair Shop Licensing — State Registration for Collision and Glass Shops (Franklin County)

The Franklin County Auditor's Licensing Types page lists no general automotive-mechanic or repair-shop license among the county's licenses, and this record carries no fee. The state credential that touches this industry is narrower than 'auto repair': the Ohio Board of Motor Vehicle Repair's own Registration page describes a mandatory statewide registration for independent collision repair facilities (since 1997), auto glass, paintless dent repair and air bag businesses (since 2003) and window tint installation (since 2013), with a $228.50 annual registration fee, and that page does not extend registration to general mechanical repair shops. A standard auto-repair shop in Franklin County has only the cross-cutting county touchpoints listed separately: the Vendor's License if it sells parts or accessories at retail, applicable zoning/building compliance for its location, and the Junk Yard/Salvage Dealer License only if it also operates as a salvage yard rather than performing ordinary mechanical repairs.

Salon / Cosmetology Licensing — State Board License Applies (Franklin County)

Salon, barbering and cosmetology licensure in Ohio is issued by the Ohio State Cosmetology and Barber Board under ORC Chapter 4713; the Board's own site describes it as ensuring that 'businesses and individuals offering these services are compliant with the licensing requirements', and this record carries no fee. The Franklin County Auditor's Licensing Types page lists no salon or cosmetology license among the county's licenses. A salon operating in Franklin County still needs the county Vendor's License if it sells retail product, appropriate zoning/building compliance for its location, and a Body Art Establishment License (listed separately) only if it also offers tattooing or piercing services; none of those is a substitute for, or a form of, salon licensure itself.

General Business License — Franklin County Auditor position

The Franklin County Auditor's Licensing Types page — the county's licensing page — lists four licenses (kennel, junk yard, retail cigarette dealer and vendor's) and names no general or occupational business license, so this record carries no fee. Article XVIII, Section 3 of the Ohio Constitution, in the article on municipal corporations, gives municipalities 'all powers of local self-government', which is the basis on which Ohio cities license local businesses; a business inside a city or village should check that municipality's own requirements. What Franklin County licenses instead is a short, specifically-named list: the state-mandated vendor's license administered by the Auditor, the junk yard/salvage dealer license, the kennel license, and Franklin County Public Health's food, body-art and pool/spa programs — each listed separately, each backed by its own statute or state delegation rather than a general county ordinance. A business's universal Ohio-level registration and any state professional licenses are recorded at the state layer.

Kennel License

This license reaches only a business or individual professionally breeding dogs for sale as a commercial kennel — the Auditor's Licensing Types page describes it as 'available for individuals or companies professionally breeding dogs for sale' — and it is not a standard veterinary-clinic requirement. A veterinary clinic providing medical care or ordinary boarding does not need a kennel license unless it is also operating a commercial dog-breeding kennel on the same site. Ohio Revised Code 955.04 sets the statutory base fee at $10 per kennel and gives county commissioners, under ORC 955.14, authority to set a higher fee by resolution; the current Franklin-County-specific dollar amount is not published on the Auditor's Licensing Types page, so contact the Auditor's Dog License Section for it. The registration must be filed and the fee paid by January 31 of each year, after which ORC 955.04 imposes a penalty equal to the registration fee itself, and a paid kennel registration entitles the holder to no more than five individual dog tags, issued the same way as tags for individually registered pet dogs. The Auditor's page also advises checking local zoning first, since some communities do not allow dog breeding businesses in residential neighborhoods.

Contact

Jurisdiction
Franklin County
Phone
614-525-3260

Contact details are taken from the agency’s own site or its published fee schedule. Where we have not verified a phone number we leave it blank rather than guess.

Sources

Every fee and term above was read from one of these government pages on the date shown.

  1. Following the Law — the county's Food Business Portal page describing FCPH's licensing role and the state Uniform Food Safety Code (ORC Chapter 3717, OAC Chapter 3701-21) it administersFranklin County, Ohio · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
  2. Franklin County Auditor — vendor's license, $50 filing feeFranklin County Auditor · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-04
  3. Franklin County Dog Licensing — the Auditor's Dog License Section online portal for dog and kennel registrationFranklin County Auditor's Office · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
  4. Ohio State Cosmetology and Barber Board — the exclusive state licensor of salons under ORC Chapter 4713Ohio State Cosmetology and Barber Board · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
  5. ORC 4737.07 — junk yard/secondhand dealer license issuance and the $25 license feeOhio Legislative Service Commission · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
  6. ORC 5739.17, Vendor's License — $50 fee ($25 to the state Organized Crime Commission Fund, $25 to the county general fund), effective April 9, 2025Ohio Legislative Service Commission · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
  7. ORC 955.04 — kennel registration, $10 base fee 'unless a greater fee has been established under section 955.14,' January 31 filing deadline and penaltyOhio Legislative Service Commission · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
  8. ORC 955.14 — authority of a county's board of county commissioners to increase dog and kennel registration fees by resolutionOhio Legislative Service Commission · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29
  9. Registration — the state Board of Motor Vehicle Repair's own page: state registration for collision repair, auto glass, paintless dent repair, airbag replacement and window tint installation businessesOhio Board of Motor Vehicle Repair · primary source · retrieved 2026-09-29

Other offices serving Franklin County

The full permit list for this jurisdiction

Industry permit lists that include this agency

Ohio jurisdictions

Commercial Compliance Hub publishes information, not legal advice. Requirements change — confirm anything you rely on with the issuing agency before you file.