Winter Haven, FL Soliciting & Door-to-Door: Solicitor Permits (2026)

Section 9-187 makes it unlawful for a transient merchant or vendor, peddler or itinerant merchant to engage in business within the city without first obtaining a license under Chapter 9, Article VII. Section 9-188 requires the applicant to complete a city-furnished form disclosing name and date of birth, permanent home and full local address, a brief description of the business and goods to be sold, the name and address of the employer supplying the goods, and the length of time the license is sought, capped at a maximum of three months.

Section 9-190 sets the business-tax rule: except for those in interstate commerce, transient merchants, vendors, peddlers and itinerant merchants pay the standard business tax under Section 9-35 and cannot be licensed under Section 9-188 without first holding a business tax receipt, while canvassers and solicitors as separately defined pay no business tax at all for their registration. Section 9-191 requires every licensee or registrant to carry the license or registration on their person and exhibit it on request by valid authority. Section 9-192 requires every license and registration to print the applicable provisions of Florida Statutes chapter 501 governing home solicitation sales.

Section 9-193 exempts persons soliciting for charitable or nonprofit organizations that have complied with Florida Statutes chapter 496 and can prove it. Section 9-194 allows the city to revoke a license or registration after notice and hearing for fraud, misrepresentation, any violation of the article, conviction of a crime of moral turpitude, or conducting the business in a manner that breaches the peace or menaces public health, safety or welfare, with written notice mailed at least five days before the hearing.