Davenport, Iowa: door-to-door solicitor permit

Partly read: the permit answer is sourced, but the fee or the hours could not be read from the city’s own pages. The clerk questions below cover the gap.

• The answer: Yes, per the city's own licensing page — door-to-door sellers fall under the Transient Merchant license, which the Revenue Division lists with the note that a minimum $5,000 bond is required for door-to-door sales and blanket licenses. The code chapter itself (Chapter 5.17) could not be read, so whether the license is per rep or per company is not confirmed from the code.
• Where it comes from: The City of Davenport Revenue Division (Business Licensing), City Hall, 226 West 4th Street. The license needs approval of Zoning/Land Development, the Fire Department and the Police Department, per the city's Business Licenses page.
• Fee: Transient Merchant: $300 annual fee on the city's Business Licenses page. The Transient Merchant Application form lists Transient Merchant License $300, Annual TM Blanket License $500, Single Event $100 and Duplicate License $10. The Business Licenses page adds: minimum $5,000 bond required for door-to-door sales and/or blanket licenses, and door-to-door sales may require duplicate copies of the license.
• Hours you may knock: Not read. The hours section is in Chapter 5.17 on eCode360, which blocked the reader; no city page restates it.
• What the rep carries: Not read from the code. The city's licensing page says door-to-door sales may require duplicate copies of the license.
• What takes the time: Approval by Zoning/Land Development, the Fire Department and the Police Department. The application asks for the names and home addresses of every salesperson working in Davenport and whether any was convicted of a felony in the last 5 years. No processing time is published.
• Code: Davenport Municipal Code, Title 5, Chapter 5.17 — Retail Sales and Transient Merchants (named on the application form as City Ordinance 5.17). The chapter text on eCode360 could not be read.
• Read it yourself: City of Davenport — Business Licenses · City of Davenport — Transient Merchant Application · Davenport Code, Chapter 5.17 — Retail Sales and Transient Merchants (not read, host blocked) · checked 21 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down:

• Whether a door-to-door company buys one Transient Merchant or Blanket license, or one per rep
• The permitted knocking hours and whether Sunday is allowed (Chapter 5.17)
• Whether the $5,000 bond is per company or per rep, and how long approval takes

Clerk’s name ______________ Direct line ______________ Date called ______________