Decatur, AL Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Chapter 16.5 of the Code of Decatur, Alabama, regulates every form of solicitation that physically happens at a residence, whether it is called soliciting, peddling, hawking or canvassing (§ 16.5-1). A commercial solicitor is anyone engaged in residential selling, or anyone soliciting for taxable compensation as an employee, agent or contractor. A company that fields several solicitors applies as a master solicitor for a master permit, and each individual permit depends on the master permit staying valid (§ 16.5-21(b)).

Applications go on forms from the city clerk-treasurer, signed under oath. The applicant lists true name plus any names used in the last ten years, date of birth, Social Security number, contact information with no post office box, a copy of a state driver's license or state-approved identification, vehicle details, two head-and-shoulders photographs at least one and one-half inches square taken within the preceding 60 days, the nature of the solicitation, and projected start and completion dates. The fee is non-refundable and set by the clerk-treasurer. The chief of police and clerk-treasurer can investigate the application.

The clerk-treasurer must issue the permit unless the application is incomplete or false, a disqualifying factor exists, a permit was revoked or denied in the prior 12 months, the applicant was convicted of or charged under this article in the prior 12 months, the fee is unpaid, or the business license is missing or revoked (§ 16.5-22). Disqualifying factors include a felony conviction in the last ten years and confinement in a state or federal prison in the last ten years. A permit runs for the dates on the application, never beyond twelve consecutive months, and cannot be transferred.

A solicitor under 16 must work under direct supervision of someone at least 19 who stays within 100 feet (§ 16.5-6). Solicitors cannot enter a home without invitation, must leave when asked, and must use their real name (§§ 16.5-4, 16.5-7). A posted No Solicitation sign bars all solicitation at that residence (§ 16.5-3).