Danvers dog license: fee, deadline and where to get it

Chapter 140, Section 137 of the Massachusetts General Laws says licensing is done in the office of the licensing authority in the city or town where the dog is kept, which in Danvers means the Town Clerk. A dog that lives in Danvers is licensed there, even if it was adopted, bought or licensed before somewhere else. Applications go through the town's online portal; if you pay by cash or check instead, the application waits until the payment reaches the Clerk's Office at 1 Sylvan Street, Danvers, MA 01923, marked with your application number.

Do not borrow a figure from a neighbor's notice, since a number on a Beverly or Peabody form tells you nothing about Danvers. Chapter XXI of the Danvers bylaws, revised through May 2026, sets the fee at $20 for a spayed or neutered dog and $25 for an intact one, and the clerk's online application and the January 2026 notice give the same two figures. Dog questions go to dogs@danversma.gov or to Town Hall on 978-777-0001.

Massachusetts has no single statewide renewal date, and Danvers is changing its own. The Town Clerk's notice of January 28, 2026 says that, to keep in compliance with Ollie's Law, licenses will follow the calendar year from January 2027 instead of renewing in spring, with 2027 registration opening in November and December 2026. Neither that notice, the bylaw nor the clerk's portal names a due date or a late charge for the new calendar, so we print neither. Ask the Town Clerk, then set a reminder next to your dog's rabies booster.

What state law does fix is the shape of the fee. Under Chapter 140, Section 139, the town decides the amount, but the license for a spayed or neutered dog must cost less than the license for an intact dog, and a service animal is licensed free. A town may also waive the fee for a dog owned by someone aged 70 or over, but only if it has accepted that provision, so ask the clerk whether Danvers has.