Flint, MI Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Flint's commercial peddler/solicitor framework is administered by the City Clerk's Licensing Division. Applicants must appear in person at the Licensing Division (Flint City Hall, 1101 S Saginaw St) and file an initial application identifying the applicant, the business, and the goods or services to be offered. Application is followed by a background check coordinated with the Flint Police Department. Constitutional ceiling: the U.S. Supreme Court in Watchtower Bible & Tract Society of New York v. Village of Stratton, 536 U.S. 150 (2002), struck down permit-required regimes for door-to-door religious, political, or charitable canvassing as facially violating the First Amendment. Flint therefore cannot require a permit for noncommercial canvassing. Noncommercial canvassers must still observe posted 'No Soliciting' / 'No Trespassing' signs to avoid a criminal trespass charge under MCL 750.552 (entry on land after notice forbidding entry, 30-day misdemeanor or $250 fine). Flint has not adopted a city-wide do-not-knock registry of the type maintained by Troy, Novi, or Bloomfield Township. The home-rule authority for the licensing scheme runs from the Michigan Home Rule City Act, MCL 117.4i, which authorizes a home-rule city to license trades and occupations carried on within its limits.