North Charleston, South Carolina: 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. The city's business license code has its own NAICS classification for "Peddlers, Solicitors, Canvassers, Door-To-Door Sales," so a company doing this kind of selling must hold a business license under that classification (§ 10.5-40, item 9.4).
• Where it comes from: The City of North Charleston's business license office issues it, under Code of Ordinances, ch. 10.5, art. II (§§ 10.5-16, 10.5-40).
• Fee: Under the "Regular activities" tier of NAICS 454390 (Peddlers, Solicitors, Canvassers, Door-To-Door Sales), the minimum on the first $2,000.00 of gross receipts is $55.00, plus $1.60 per $1,000.00 (or fraction) over $2,000.00 -- and non-resident rates apply since a door-to-door company has no permanent location in the city (§ 10.5-40, item 9.4).
• Hours you may knock: Not published. No clock-time restriction on door-to-door canvassing hours was found in the business license chapter, the offenses chapter, or the streets/sidewalks chapter.
• What the rep carries: Not published for this classification specifically. A separate section (§ 10.5-22) requires anyone peddling goods to hold the state hawkers-and-peddlers license under S.C. Code § 40-41-10, which is carried per state law, but no city-issued rep ID or badge requirement was found.
• What takes the time: Not published: no background-check, fingerprinting, or processing-time language appears in the sections read.
• Code: Code of Ordinances, City of North Charleston, ch. 10.5, art. II, § 10.5-16 (license required) and § 10.5-40 (NAICS 454390 rate schedule, item 9.4).
• Worth knowing: Applicants selling on private property must provide the property owner's written authorization for that location (§ 10.5-40, item 9.4). A separate, unrelated "Transient Merchant" permit process exists for vendors selling from a fixed site/stand, not for door-to-door reps (§ 10.5-23).
• Read it yourself: North Charleston Code of Ordinances, ch. 10.5, art. II - Business Licenses · checked 19 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down: Are there city-set knocking hours for door-to-door commercial sales, even though none appear in the code? Is a background check or individual solicitor ID required for reps working under a company's business license? Does the NAICS 454390 business license need to be renewed annually, and is it per company or does each rep need one too? Clerk’s name ______________   Direct line ______________   Date called ______________