Grand Forks, ND Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

City Code § 21-1203 makes it unlawful for any person, or an agent, servant, or employee of any person, to engage in door-to-door sales of goods, wares, merchandise, magazines, periodicals, or personal services without first obtaining a license. Section 21-1205 requires a written application to the city auditor listing the applicant's name, residence and business addresses for the past two years, a description of what is being sold, employer information, felony or misdemeanor history, prior transient-merchant or solicitor licensing history, and a copy of the applicant's state sales tax license.

Section 21-1204 exempts newspaper, fuel, dairy, grocery, and bakery delivery to regular customers, agricultural product sales, prior-customer transactions, and solicitation by charitable, civic, educational, fraternal, religious, and veterans organizations. Under § 21-1206, the city can deny a license for false or misleading application information, an arrest or conviction within five years bearing on honest business conduct, a license refusal, suspension, or revocation within the past five years, or a documented bad business reputation, with a right to a city council hearing on denial. Section 21-1207 sets the license fee by council resolution, chargeable daily or annually through December 31.

Section 21-1208 requires a $5,000 surety bond or cash deposit conditioned on compliance with the article and on the applicant's representations to buyers, running at least two years past the license's expiration, with an injured buyer given a right of action on the bond. Licenses are non-transferable under § 21-1209, and § 21-1211 lets the mayor suspend or revoke a license for fraud, misrepresentation, dishonesty convictions, or unlawful conduct, with an appeal to the city council available within ten business days.