Oxnard, CA Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Sec. 11-46 of the Oxnard Code of Ordinances requires anyone who peddles, solicits or canvasses in residential areas, as shown on a map kept by the planning department, whether an independent contractor or an employee of a certificant, to obtain an annual vendor permit from the city collector and pay the council-set vendor permit fee, renewed every year, in addition to any required business tax certificate. Applicants also pay an annual fee for a Department of Justice fingerprint report and must present valid ID, such as a driver's license, passport or foreign national ID, to the collector and be fingerprinted by the police department.

The police department reports back whether the applicant was convicted of or pled no contest to any of a list of disqualifying crimes within the past seven years, including murder, robbery, assault, burglary, theft-related Penal Code offenses (Sections 484b, 484e, 496(a), 503), controlled-substance crimes under Health and Safety Code Sections 11054, 11055, 11057 or 11058, or any offense requiring sex-offender registration under Penal Code Section 290; a hit on that list means the collector must deny the certificate and/or permit and mail written notice of denial and the reasons for it.

If the DOJ report is not back within 30 days, the collector issues a temporary permit on request pending the result. While working, permittees and their crews must carry the business tax certificate (or a copy), the vendor permit, and their identification. Certificants must also make sure that anyone selling their goods or operating a pushcart or wagon on their behalf separately holds a valid vendor permit. Denials of the business tax certificate are appealable to the collector under Sec. 11-26 within 15 days; denials of the vendor permit itself are appealable under Sec. 11-49.