Houston County, GA Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- License required
- Before any sale, § 19-2(a)
- Background check
- Sheriff GCIC/NCIC + GBI/FBI fingerprint check
- Felony bar
- 3-year lookback on felony convictions
- Minimum age
- 18 years old to solicit
- Location limit
- C-2 zoning only (§ 19-4)
- Fee
- Same as permanent-location business license
Summary
Before selling anything door-to-door or in person in unincorporated Houston County, a transient vendor, solicitor or peddler must get a license under Sec. 19-2, which requires a sheriff's office criminal history consent form, bars anyone with a felony conviction in the last three years, and sets an 18-year-old minimum age to solicit.
(a)No transient vendor, solicitor or peddler shall sell any article in the county without having first made application for a license to do business.(b)Said application shall include a copy of a consent form obtained from the sheriff's office authorizing a GCIC/NCIC criminal history check of the applicant. The applicant is responsible for the cost of the criminal history check. No person shall receive any transient vendor, solicitor or peddlers license in unincorporated Houston County who has been convicted, pled guilty or nolo contendere to any felony for three years immediately prior to the filing of the application.(c)All persons must be at least 18 years of age to provide solicitation service in unincorporated Houston County.
Full Breakdown
Chapter 19, Article I of the Houston County, Georgia General Code defines a "solicitor" as anyone who acts as an agent that solicits house to house or makes personal phone calls displaying samples of products, under Sec. 19-1. Sec. 19-2(a) bars selling any article in the county without "first ma[king] application for a license," and Sec. " Sec. 19-2(c) sets a floor of 18 years old to solicit. Sec. 19-2(g)-(k) lays out the fingerprint process behind that check: the sheriff's department takes two sets of prints, the county forwards them and the required fee to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, which can escalate to an FBI nationwide comparison, and the county then issues a written "fitness determination" based on the results.
Sec. 19-3 sets the license fee at the same rate charged to businesses with a permanent location, while Sec. 19-4 confines where a vendor or peddler can operate: only on property zoned C-2. Sec. 19-5 additionally requires a written lease from the property owner before operating, and Sec. 19-6 requires any sample or merchandise display to be arranged on a structure, not directly on pavement.
Violations & Fines
Sec. 19-2(d) makes it an offense to operate as a transient vendor, solicitor or peddler without complying with Article I, or to make a false statement on the license application. Because Chapter 19 sets no separate fine for that offense, a conviction falls back to the Code's general penalty clause, Sec. 1-11, a fine up to $1,000.00 for the first two offenses and up to $1,000.00 plus 60 days in jail for a third.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do door-to-door solicitors need a license in Houston County, Georgia?
Can a felony conviction disqualify someone from a Houston County solicitor's license?
Where are peddlers and transient vendors allowed to set up in the county?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Houston County
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