Garland, Texas: door-to-door solicitor permit

• The answer: Yes. A commercial home solicitation permit from the Chief of Police, in the rep's own name: "No person shall engage in a commercial home solicitation without having a valid, current written permit" (26.51(A)). The code defines commercial home solicitation as "a solicitation at a residence for the purpose of selling or offering to sell goods, services or realty," in person or by door-to-door advertisements (26.50). The city's application lists every rep, each with a photo.
• Where it comes from: The Police Records Unit, 1891 Forest Lane. The city's Solicitation Permits page has the application.
• Fee: $20 including the first person; people 2 to 9 are $15 per person; 10 or more are $10 per person, per the city's Solicitation Permits page and application. The code's Master Fee and Rate Schedule (10.85) lists $20.00 for "Commercial home solicitations and distributions" and ties the $15.00/person and $10.00/person group rates to commercial home distribution groups (26.54(C)); the city page applies the same group rates to solicitation permits. The fee is nonrefundable (26.51(C)).
• Hours you may knock: Tied to the sun, not the clock. It is unlawful to solicit "at an unreasonable time," and the code's words are that a time is presumptively unreasonable "if it occurs more than thirty minutes before sunrise and more than thirty minutes before sunset" (26.53(D)). That is the code's own wording; ask the police how they read the evening limit. The clock hours in the same subsection, 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., apply to door-to-door flyer distribution, not in-person sales.
• What the rep carries: The permit, on the rep's person. It is unlawful to solicit "without carrying the permit required by this article on his or her person while so engaged or to display a permit issued in the name of another person" (26.51(F)). To apply, each rep needs a driver's license or official ID and a recent passport-size photo.
• What takes the time: The Chief of Police has ten working days from receipt to issue the permit or say why the application falls short (26.51(D)); the city's page says up to 10 business days. Each rep fills out a sworn, notarized page with criminal history questions. Registered sex offenders and people with certain recent burglary, theft, trespass or criminal mischief convictions are ineligible (26.53(F)).
• Code: Garland Code of Ordinances, Chapter 26, Article V, Home Solicitations (26.50 to 26.54); fee at Chapter 10, Article VII, 10.85. The host says the code includes legislation through Ord. No. 7697, adopted August 17, 2026.
• Worth knowing: A weatherproof card at least three by four inches reading "No Solicitors", "No Solicitation" or "No Solicitations" at or near the main entrance makes it unlawful to knock unless the occupant asked for the visit in advance (26.53(A), (B)). If the person at the door clearly does not want to listen, the rep must end the pitch and leave promptly (26.53(E)). A permit lasts for the solicitation period on it or one year, whichever is less (26.51(G)); a revocation lasts 18 months (26.52). Juveniles under 16 must be actively supervised by an adult who holds a current solicitor's permit, per the application.
• Read it yourself: City of Garland, Solicitation Permits · City of Garland, Solicitation Permit Application · Garland Code Chapter 26, Article V (26.50 to 26.54) · Garland Code 10.85, Master Fee and Rate Schedule · Garland code table of contents (currency statement) · checked 19 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down: How do the police read the evening limit in 26.53(D): thirty minutes before sunset, or after? Do the $15 and $10 group rates apply to a sales crew, or only to flyer distribution groups? Is a separate permit card issued to each rep on a group application? Clerk’s name ______________   Direct line ______________   Date called ______________