Decatur, GA Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- Permit issuer
- City of Decatur / chief of police
- ID check
- Fingerprinting and photographing required
- Valid hours
- 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
- Permit expires
- 90 days after issuance
- Fee waiver
- Registered charities (O.C.G.A. § 43-17-2)
- Disqualifying record
- Violent/theft/drug felony within 5 years
- Penalty
- Up to $1,000 fine / 6 months (§ 1-12)
Summary
Anyone going residence to residence in the City of Decatur, DeKalb County, Georgia to sell merchandise, solicit orders, offer services, or collect charitable donations must first get a permit from the city under Code § 22-2, which involves police fingerprinting and a criminal-history check before it issues.
(a)It shall be unlawful for any person to go from residence to residence and offer for sale, solicit orders for, or sell any merchandise, or to solicit to perform services, or to engage in charitable solicitation within the city without first obtaining a permit to do so from the City of Decatur.(b)The chief of police, or the chief of police's designee, shall cause each person requesting such a permit to be photographed and fingerprinted and shall take such other steps as are necessary to ensure proper identification of the person. ... (d)A fee as set forth in the schedule of fees and charges shall be charged for each permit, except that the permit fee shall be waived for persons officially representing charitable organizations, as that term is defined by O.C.G.A. § 43-17-2. ... (f)Permits issued pursuant to subsection (b) shall be valid from 9:00 a.m. until 8:00 p.m. and will expire 90 days after date of issuance.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 28).
Full Breakdown
Code § 22-2 makes unsolicited residence-to-residence sales, service solicitation, and charitable solicitation unlawful in the City of Decatur without a permit. The chief of police or a designee must photograph and fingerprint every applicant and take whatever other steps are needed to confirm identity, then issue the permit unless the applicant is disqualified. Section 22-2(c) lists the disqualifying record: a conviction, probation, parole, or imprisonment within the preceding five years for homicide, rape, aggravated battery, burglary, aggravated assault, kidnapping, robbery, child molestation, any attempt or criminal solicitation to commit those crimes, any other crime of violence or theft, distribution of controlled substances, or violation of any law involving improper residential solicitation. § 43-17-2. , expiring automatically 90 days after the date it was issued.
Violations & Fines
Section 22-2 does not carry its own fine schedule, so operating without the required permit, or soliciting outside the 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. window the permit allows, falls back to the Code's general penalty in § 1-12: a fine of up to $1,000, imprisonment of up to six months, or both, with each day of a continuing violation treated as a separate offense.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a permit to sell door-to-door in Decatur, GA?
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Sources & Official References
Other rules in Decatur
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