Chesapeake, VA Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Chesapeake City Code Sec. 58-2 makes it unlawful for anyone not already licensed under Virginia insurance law to sell goods, services, subscriptions, or future-delivery items, or to solicit information about them, while going from one home to another, without a permit from the Chesapeake Police Department. A separate permit is required for every individual solicitor, even employees of the same company; an employer cannot cover a whole sales crew under one permit. The application goes to the police department and must list the applicant's name and address, the firm represented, the goods or services offered, whether payment will be collected in advance of delivery, the intended solicitation period, the applicant's criminal record with written consent for a background check, two personal references, and a $20 non-refundable fee that covers the investigation and the applicant's photograph.

Replacement ID cards cost $5. If the applicant plans to collect payment before final delivery, the application must also carry a $500 bond, or $400 per agent when one organization bonds a group of solicitors, to guarantee delivery of what was ordered. to sunset. The chief of police can refuse or revoke a permit for a felony conviction, a misdemeanor involving fraud or moral turpitude, fraudulent practice, or straying from the plan of solicitation described in the application. The permit must be secured before the city will issue the underlying business license.

Charitable organizations going door to door remain separately subject to the city's charitable solicitation registration under Sec. , and political parties conducting canvassing, opinion sampling, or poll-taking are excluded from Sec. 58-2 entirely.