Daly City, California: door-to-door solicitor permit

• The answer: Yes — two documents. The city's business license page says any person soliciting in the city must obtain a Business License Tax Certificate for the company being represented, and a Solicitor's Permit for each solicitor. The code defines a solicitor as anyone going house to house selling or taking orders for goods or for services to be performed in the future (5.04.010(G)), and makes it unlawful to carry on any business in the city without first procuring a license and paying the tax (5.04.030).
• Where it comes from: The Finance Department's Business License Division, 333 90th Street. The city's application form says soliciting permits are cleared by the police department and issued by the finance department, and that no soliciting is permitted until the clearance and issuance process is completed.
• Fee: The code's license tax table for peddlers lists "Peddler, solicitor, per day 25.00" — the table prints that line without a dollar sign, under a line that prints $125.00 per year for regular-route truck peddlers (5.16.055). No separate fee for the Solicitor's Permit itself is published on the pages read. The application form mentions a fee waiver for a business claiming an interstate commerce exemption, and a bond, without giving an amount for either.
• Hours you may knock: No clock times are published. The city's application form says, in capitals, that no soliciting is allowed after dark. The code chapters read set no door-to-door hours.
• What the rep carries: Not published. The code requires a business license to be produced or posted in general terms; nothing read says what a solicitor must carry or wear at the door.
• What takes the time: Police clearance. The form has a police action line and a warrant file check line, and asks for a physical description, date of birth and driver's license. A conviction for a felony or a misdemeanor involving moral turpitude is prima facie disqualification for a solicitor's license or permit (5.12.170). No processing time is published.
• Code: Daly City Municipal Code, Title 5, Part I — Business Licenses: 5.04.010, 5.04.030, 5.12.170, 5.16.055. Municode shows the code as codified through Ordinance No. 1488, passed March 9, 2026 (Supp. No. 38). There is no standalone peddlers and solicitors chapter.
• Worth knowing: Chapter 9.25, Limits on Solicitation, bans soliciting "in an aggressive manner" in any public place and covers selling goods or services as well as asking for money (9.25.010(K), 9.25.020). The city's page also says using a public sidewalk as a place of business for the sale of merchandise is prohibited (5.88.020).
• Read it yourself: Daly City — Business License Requirements & Application · Daly City Business License Application / Solicitors Permit form (PDF) · Daly City Municipal Code, Title 5, Part I — Business Licenses · Daly City Municipal Code, Chapter 9.25 — Limits on Solicitation · checked 19 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down:

• The fee for the Solicitor's Permit itself, and whether the 25.00 per day license tax in 5.16.055 applies to each rep or to the company
• The bond amount the application form refers to, and who must post it
• What "after dark" means in clock terms, and whether any start time applies
• How long police clearance takes and how long a permit lasts

Clerk’s name ______________ Direct line ______________ Date called ______________