Auctioneer License Requirements in Kentucky
State license required. Kentucky requires a state license — auctioneers, apprentice auctioneers, and auction house operators are all licensed by the Kentucky Board of Auctioneers.
What Online Auctioneers Need to Know
There is no online carve-out: Kentucky defines "auction" by the method of sale, not the medium, so an online-only auction is still an auction and the license applies.
The Rules in Kentucky
Kentucky licenses auctioneers, apprentice auctioneers, and auction house operators through the Kentucky Board of Auctioneers under KRS chapter 330. Because the statute defines auctions by how bidding works rather than where it happens, internet auctions fall inside the definition.
Kentucky front-loads the paperwork: a written auction listing contract is required before you advertise or offer property for sale, not just before the auction itself (KRS 330.110(1)(l)), and settlement records are kept five years. Regulation 831 KAR 1:020 requires proceeds to sit in an escrow account, and you may not take your commission until final settlement. Sellers must be paid within 30 days. Kentucky uses a recovery fund in lieu of a bond (KRS 330.192).
Requirements at a Glance
- State license: auctioneer, apprentice auctioneer, or auction house operator (KRS 330.030)
- Written auction listing contract before advertising or offering property (KRS 330.110(1)(l))
- Escrow account required; no commission until final settlement (831 KAR 1:020)
- Pay the seller within 30 days
- Settlement records kept 5 years
- Recovery fund in lieu of a bond (KRS 330.192)
Authority: Kentucky Board of Auctioneers. Statute: KRS ch. 330.
Not legal advice. Auction law changes — several states have amended their online-auction rules since 2019. Verify current requirements with the licensing authority above (or your city/county clerk) before your first sale, and have a local attorney review your consignment contract.
Licensed (or Exempt)? Here's the Rest of the Path
The license is usually the easy part. The business itself — platform affiliation, sourcing consignments, cataloging, settlement — is laid out in how to start an online auction business, and the earning math is in how much auctioneers make.