Kent, Washington: door-to-door solicitor permit

• The answer: Yes. Anyone who sells or offers to sell services, goods or merchandise at retail by going house to house, place to place, or by indiscriminately approaching individuals is a "solicitor" and needs a license before working (5.07.010, 5.07.020).
• Where it comes from: Kent City Code Chapter 5.07, Solicitors. The application goes to the finance director; the chief of police investigates and approves (5.07.040, 5.07.060, 5.07.070).
• Fee: $10 per calendar year for the company's master solicitor license, plus $2 per calendar year for each individual solicitor listed and certified under that master license — or $5 per calendar year for a solicitor who is not certified under a master license (5.07.030).
• Hours you may knock: Not published. Chapter 5.07 sets no clock-time or sunset limit on when a licensed solicitor may work.
• What the rep carries: The solicitor's license, at all times while soliciting or canvassing, and must show it on request to any police officer or person solicited (5.07.080).
• What takes the time: The chief of police reviews each application for a criminal record, verifies the employer and the applicant's credentials, and confirms the enterprise is lawful before the license issues; no license is issued until that investigation is complete (5.07.060, 5.07.070).
• Code: Kent City Code 5.07.010 through 5.07.130 (Chapter 5.07, Solicitors).
• Worth knowing: The license expires December 31 of the year it was issued, regardless of issue date, so a license bought late in the year still expires that December (5.07.070). Orders must be written up in duplicate, showing the solicitor's name and license number as it appears on the license, with a copy given to the purchaser (5.07.100). A retail installment sale solicited away from the seller's business address can be canceled by the buyer up to midnight of the third day after signing (5.07.120).
• Read it yourself: Kent City Code Chapter 5.07, Solicitors · checked 19 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down: Are there set knocking hours in practice even though none are written in Chapter 5.07? How long does the chief of police's investigation typically take before a license is issued? Can one master solicitor's license application cover a whole sales crew, with agents added or removed during the year? Clerk’s name ______________   Direct line ______________   Date called ______________