Waukegan, IL Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Before knocking on doors to solicit orders, sales, subscriptions, donations or information, a canvasser or solicitor must register at the office of the city collector under § 14-371. The application must include the registrant's complete identification and signature, the name of the employer, the nature of the products or services offered, the names of the manufacturers or organization represented, the proposed method of operating in the city, and two current full-face photographs, one for the application file and one affixed to the certificate itself. Under § 14-372, the city collector cannot issue the certificate until three days after the application is filed; during that window the application is referred to the chief of police, who investigates the registrant's criminal record.

A felony conviction is an automatic bar to certificate issuance; absent one, the certificate issues at the end of the three-day wait. Once registered, § 14-373 requires the solicitor to carry the certificate at all times while working in the city and to show it to any officer or resident who asks. Section 14-374 lets the mayor or chief of police revoke the registration for violating the article, any other city ordinance, or state or federal law, and directs the chief to abate any resulting nuisance.

Section 14-375 exempts officers or employees of city, county, state or federal government from the registration requirement (§§ 14-371 through 14-373) when on official business. The requirement applies specifically to callers who have not been invited by the occupant.