New Rochelle, NY Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Section 235-3(A) of Chapter 235, Peddling and Soliciting, makes it unlawful for anyone to act as a door-to-door peddler or door-to-door solicitor, as those terms are defined in § 235-1, without first obtaining a license from the Department of Development. Subsection B bars a licensed or exempt peddler or solicitor from selling or soliciting house-to-house on Sundays or holidays, and bars soliciting on any other day "from dusk to dawn," with dusk fixed at 30 minutes after sunset. The same subsection lets the City Clerk keep a do-not-solicit list of residents who have opted out, which must be provided to every licensee, and bars solicitors from approaching any address on that list.

To obtain a license, § 235-4 requires a written application to the Department of Development stating the applicant's name, address, and age, the goods or services offered, the vehicles to be used, and the method of distribution. Section 235-5 conditions issuance on filing a certificate of liability insurance of not less than $1,000,000 per occurrence naming the City as an additional insured, and § 235-6 directs that a license shall not be refused except for a specific reason and for the protection of the public safety, health, morals, or general welfare, and bars issuing any license to an applicant under 18.

Under § 235-7, a license runs for one year with an annual renewal option for up to five years total, and § 235-8 makes every license non-assignable, so a licensee who lets someone else use it, and the person who uses another's license, are each guilty of a violation. Religious, charitable, political, and public-interest solicitors are exempt from the licensing requirement under § 235-2.