If you are selling gold in Georgia, the transaction may look simple: a buyer tests your jewelry, weighs it and makes an offer.
Legally, however, buying precious metals from the public is a regulated business.
Georgia law requires qualifying precious-metals dealers to register with the appropriate law-enforcement authority before doing business. Dealers must also keep transaction records, obtain identifying information from sellers, report purchases and follow holding-period requirements. Cities and counties can impose additional rules beyond state law.
That becomes especially important when you see advertisements such as:
- “We buy gold near me”
- “Cash for gold”
- “We come to you”
- “Mobile gold buyer”
- “We buy gold at your home”
- “Same-day gold pickup”
Convenience does not eliminate Georgia’s precious-metals laws.
Before selling valuable gold, jewelry, silver or other precious metals, make sure you understand who you are dealing with, where the transaction is legally being conducted and whether the buyer is properly registered and licensed for that jurisdiction.
At Gold Kings, qualifying transactions are conducted through our physical Georgia locations, where items can be tested, weighed and evaluated in a transparent setting. You can learn more about Gold Kings of Snellville or Gold Kings of Commerce.
Quick Answer: Do Gold Buyers Need to Be Licensed in Georgia?
A person who regularly buys gold, silver, platinum or qualifying gems from the public for resale, scrap, refining or similar commercial purposes generally falls within Georgia’s definition of a dealer in precious metals or gems.
More precisely, Georgia requires the dealer to register with the appropriate law-enforcement authority for each separate place of business.
If the business is inside a municipality, registration is generally with the municipality’s chief of police. If it is outside a municipality, registration is generally handled by the sheriff or, where applicable, the county police department.
The registration must identify the premises where the business operates and its zoning and planning classification.
A local business license or occupation tax certificate may also be required.
A Regular Business License May Not Be Enough
This is an important distinction.
Having:
- An LLC
- A tax ID number
- A website
- A business card
- A Google Business Profile
- A general business license
does not automatically mean someone has satisfied Georgia’s requirements for operating as a precious-metals dealer.
The dealer needs to determine which state and local precious-metals rules apply to the business and the location where it operates.
Georgia also specifically allows counties and municipalities to establish additional licensing requirements and qualifications for precious-metals dealers.
What Information Must a Georgia Gold Buyer Record?
Georgia’s state law requires precious-metals dealers to maintain permanent transaction records.
For each applicable purchase, the record includes information such as:
- Date and time of purchase
- Name of the person making the purchase for the dealer
- Seller’s name
- Seller’s age
- Seller’s address
- Driver’s license or similar photo-identification number
- Description of the property
- Serial, model or other identifying numbers when applicable
- Identifying marks on the property
- Price paid
- Check number when payment is made by check
- Seller’s signature
The state record must generally be retained for at least two years and be available for inspection by authorized law enforcement.
This is one reason a legitimate gold transaction may involve more paperwork than simply handing someone jewelry and receiving cash.
Gold Buyers Must Report Purchases
Recordkeeping is only part of the requirement.
Georgia Code § 43-37-4 requires a dealer to report qualifying purchases to the appropriate law-enforcement officer in the jurisdiction where the dealer is registered.
The state statute requires information concerning purchases from the previous day to be delivered or mailed within the required 24-hour period.
Local governments can require substantially more.
Some Areas Have Additional Requirements
For example, the many cities have their own precious-metals-dealer regulations.
Some jurisdictions require an annual precious-metals dealer permit, an occupation tax certificate and a physical street address for the proposed business.
Its local transaction rules also require extensive seller and property information. Depending on the transaction, those requirements include government-issued identification, a seller photograph, a fingerprint, detailed property records and electronic submission of transactions to the reporting system designated by the local police department.
That is much different from somebody simply arriving in a parking lot with a scale and cash.
Why Does Georgia Regulate Gold Buyers?
Gold jewelry is small, portable and valuable.
A stolen ring, chain, bracelet or coin can be sold quickly and may become extremely difficult to identify after it has been melted or refined.
Recordkeeping and reporting requirements give law enforcement an opportunity to connect reported stolen property with items entering the resale and precious-metals market.
This is also why holding periods exist.
Gold Buyers Cannot Immediately Melt Everything They Purchase
Under Georgia state law, a dealer generally may not sell, exchange, remove from legal possession or alter qualifying purchased precious metals or gems for at least seven calendar days after acquisition.
Law enforcement can impose an additional hold when there is probable cause to believe property was stolen.
Local rules can be stricter.
For example, Gwinnett, Dekalb, & Fulton Counties require property received through precious-metals transactions to be held for at least 30 days, and the property generally must remain on the dealer’s premises unless another location has received prior approval.
These rules matter to both customers and dealers.
A legitimate dealer must account for reporting requirements, secure storage, law-enforcement holds and the market risk of holding precious metals while gold and silver prices continue to move.
What About Mobile Gold Buyers Who Say “We Come to You”?
This is where both sellers and dealers should be particularly careful.
There is a major difference between providing information or an estimate at someone’s home and actually conducting a regulated purchase there.
Georgia’s statewide statute requires precious-metals dealers to register for each separate place of business, and the registration identifies the premises where the business is conducted along with the property’s zoning classification.
State law also makes it unlawful to advertise or transact business as a precious-metals or gems dealer without first completing the required registration.
Georgia law does not contain one simple statewide sentence saying that every off-site gold transaction is automatically illegal.
But that does not mean a dealer can assume that a license or registration for one location gives permission to purchase gold anywhere in Georgia.
Local regulations matter.
Some Georgia Jurisdictions Specifically Restrict Nonpermanent Gold-Buying Locations
Unincorporated Gwinnett County provides a particularly clear example.
Its ordinance defines a nonpermanent location to include locations such as:
- Movable vehicles
- Vans
- Mobile homes
- Trailers
- Hotels
- Motels
- Lodges
- Similar temporary or movable locations
The county ordinance then states that no occupation tax certificate will be granted to an applicant for a nonpermanent location.
That is extremely important for anyone advertising a “mobile gold buyer” service in the Gwinnett area.
A professional gold buyer should not simply assume:
“I have a business license somewhere, so I can buy gold anywhere.”
The correct question is:
Is this particular type of precious-metals transaction permitted at this particular location, and am I properly registered and licensed to conduct it there?
A Warning for “We Come to You” Gold Buyers
If you are operating or considering a mobile gold-buying business in Georgia, take the legal requirements seriously.
Before advertising that you will purchase gold at customers’ homes, hotels, parking lots, temporary offices or other locations, determine:
- Where your precious-metals business is registered.
- Whether you have the required business license or occupation tax certificate.
- Whether the jurisdiction permits transactions at nonpermanent locations.
- Whether a separate permit or registration is required.
- What seller identification must be collected.
- Whether photographs or fingerprints are required.
- How transactions must be reported to law enforcement.
- When those reports must be submitted.
- Where purchased property must be stored.
- How long the property must be held before it can be transferred, shipped or melted.
Do this before conducting the transaction—not after a problem occurs.
Georgia makes it unlawful to transact or advertise as a precious-metals dealer without the required registration. Failure to maintain required records, failure to submit required reports and violations of holding-period requirements are also prohibited.
Violations of the state statute can constitute a misdemeanor.
Local consequences may exist as well.
For example, a violation of Gwinnett County’s precious-metals-dealer ordinance can result in a fine of up to $1,000, up to 60 days of imprisonment, or both.
This is not an area where a buyer should simply copy another company’s “we come to you” advertisement and assume the business model is legal.
What Should a Seller Ask a Mobile Gold Buyer?
If someone offers to come to your house and purchase thousands of dollars of gold or jewelry, asking questions is reasonable.
Consider asking:
Where is your licensed or registered business location?
A legitimate dealer should be able to identify the business behind the transaction.
Which police department, sheriff or county authority is your precious-metals business registered with?
Georgia requires registration through the applicable local law-enforcement authority.
Is this transaction legal at my location?
This becomes particularly important when the transaction is taking place outside the dealer’s normal licensed premises.
Will you need my identification?
For applicable transactions, seller-identification information is part of Georgia’s required transaction record.
A buyer purchasing expensive jewelry anonymously with no identification, documentation or transaction record should raise questions.
How is the transaction reported?
Professional dealers should know the reporting requirements of the jurisdiction in which they operate.
Where will my property be held?
Holding and storage requirements are another part of precious-metals regulation.
Red Flags When Selling Gold
Be cautious when a buyer:
- Refuses to identify the actual business
- Has no verifiable physical business location
- Will not explain where the business is registered
- Wants to conduct a large transaction in an unusual location
- Says identification is never necessary
- Claims precious-metals reporting laws do not apply to them
- Immediately melts, ships or alters regulated property despite an applicable holding requirement
- Cannot explain the local rules governing the transaction
- Pressures you to sell immediately
- Will not explain the weight, purity or price used to calculate the offer
Not every mobile buyer is operating illegally.
The point is that “mobile” is not an exemption from the law.
Why Selling at a Physical Gold-Buying Location Can Be Safer
A permanent business location gives a seller something very important: accountability.
You know:
- Who you are dealing with
- Where the business operates
- Where your items are being evaluated
- Where you can return if there is a question
- Where the transaction records are maintained
- Where the purchased property is supposed to be held
It also gives the dealer a controlled environment for professional precious-metals testing, weighing, identification, documentation, photography and reporting.
Gold Kings operates two physical Georgia locations.
Gold Kings of Snellville
3635 Stone Mountain Hwy
Snellville, GA 30039
770-771-4650
Customers throughout Gwinnett County can learn more about selling gold at Gold Kings of Snellville.
Gold, silver, jewelry, coins, bullion and other qualifying valuables can be tested and weighed at the location. Gold Kings uses professional testing methods, including XRF when appropriate, to help determine what an item actually contains.
Gold Kings of Commerce
480 Banks Crossing Dr
Commerce, GA 30529
706-336-0043
Customers in Commerce, Banks Crossing and Northeast Georgia can learn more about Gold Kings of Commerce.
Both Gold Kings locations provide in-person evaluations rather than asking customers to hand valuables to an unknown buyer at an unverified temporary location.
You can also review the types of gold, silver, coins, bullion, jewelry and other valuables Gold Kings buys before visiting.
Why Does Gold Kings Ask for Identification?
If a precious-metals dealer asks for identification and transaction information, that should not automatically be viewed as an inconvenience.
In many cases, it is evidence that the dealer is following the rules.
Georgia’s recordkeeping law requires seller-identification information for covered transactions, while local jurisdictions can require even more information.
At the Snellville location, local rules governing precious-metals transactions include additional identification, photograph, fingerprint and reporting requirements.
The rules are designed in part to make it harder for stolen jewelry and precious metals to disappear anonymously into the marketplace.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to buy gold from the public in Georgia?
No. Buying gold from the public is legal when the buyer follows the applicable state and local requirements.
Commercial precious-metals dealers generally must complete the required registration and comply with recordkeeping, reporting and holding requirements.
Does a gold buyer need a license in Georgia?
Georgia’s state statute specifically requires qualifying precious-metals dealers to register with the appropriate law-enforcement authority for each separate place of business. Local governments may additionally require business licenses, occupation tax certificates, dealer permits or other qualifications.
Can a gold buyer come to my house in Georgia?
Do not assume that every in-home gold purchase is automatically legal or automatically illegal.
The dealer must comply with Georgia law and the rules of the local jurisdiction where the business and transaction are taking place.
Some Georgia jurisdictions specifically restrict nonpermanent precious-metals businesses. Unincorporated Gwinnett County, for example, does not issue an occupation tax certificate for a precious-metals dealer operating from a defined nonpermanent location.
Can a mobile gold buyer operate from a van?
That depends on the applicable jurisdiction.
In unincorporated Gwinnett County, a van is specifically included within the definition of a nonpermanent location, and the ordinance prohibits issuing an occupation tax certificate for such a location.
Other Georgia cities and counties may have different requirements.
Does a gold buyer have to report purchases?
For transactions covered by Georgia Chapter 37, dealers must provide required purchase reports to the appropriate law-enforcement authority. Local rules may require additional or electronic reporting.
Can a gold buyer immediately melt jewelry?
Generally not for transactions covered by Georgia’s holding requirement.
State law imposes at least a seven-calendar-day restriction before covered property can be sold, transferred or altered. Local jurisdictions can require longer periods.
Snellville and unincorporated Gwinnett County, for example, impose 30-day requirements on applicable precious-metals transactions.
Can I verify whether a gold buyer is registered?
Georgia law provides that the county sheriff maintains records of dealer registrations and that those registration records are available for public inspection.
For local permits and business-license questions, contact the appropriate city, county police department, sheriff or licensing authority.
Sell Your Gold Where You Can See the Process
Selling gold should not require guessing who you are dealing with.
A professional transaction should give you an opportunity to understand your item’s weight, tested purity, current gold value and the offer being made—while the buyer follows the identification, documentation and reporting rules that apply to the transaction.
At Gold Kings, customers can bring qualifying valuables to either of our physical Georgia locations for testing and evaluation.
Visit Gold Kings of Snellville for customers in Gwinnett County and surrounding communities, or visit Gold Kings of Commerce for Commerce, Banks Crossing and Northeast Georgia.
We test it. We weigh it. We explain what you have. You decide whether to sell.
Legal Notice
This article provides general educational information about Georgia precious-metals laws and is not legal advice. Regulations can vary by city and county and can change over time. Precious-metals dealers—especially mobile, temporary or “we come to you” operators—should verify the current requirements with the appropriate local law-enforcement agency, licensing authority and qualified Georgia attorney before conducting transactions.
Georgia Law Referenced
- Georgia Code § 43-37-1 — definition of dealers in precious metals and gems.
- Georgia Code § 43-37-2 — dealer registration and separate places of business.
- Georgia Code § 43-37-3 — transaction records.
- Georgia Code § 43-37-4 — purchase reports.
- Georgia Code § 43-37-5 — authority for additional local requirements.
- Georgia Code § 43-37-6 — unlawful acts, holding periods and misdemeanor penalties.
- City of Snellville precious-metals dealer regulations.
- Gwinnett County precious-metals dealer regulations, including nonpermanent locations.
