Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: door-to-door solicitor permit

• The answer: It depends on what the rep carries. The Philadelphia Code has no solicitor or canvasser chapter; the tables of contents of Title 9 (businesses) and Title 10 (individual conduct) list none. But the Street Vendor section reaches house-to-house selling of goods: a street vendor is any person going "from place to place, house to house or street to street" carrying goods, wares or merchandise and offering them for sale, or taking orders and delivering later, and the term includes any "peddler" (9-203(1)(a)). That person needs a street vendor license from the Department of Licenses and Inspections (L&I), per person (9-203(2)). The section is written around goods; it does not name a rep who only signs up customers for a service. Every company also needs a Commercial Activity License, per company, including one based outside the city.
• Where it comes from: L&I issues both. Street vendor license: Philadelphia Code 9-203. Company license: L&I's Commercial Activity License page. L&I's own business license lists (other businesses, vending and street sales, activity) show no solicitor, canvasser or door-to-door license.
• Fee: Street vendor license under 9-203: a non-refundable application fee of twenty dollars ($20), credited toward the annual fee if the license issues, and an annual license fee of three hundred thirty dollars ($330) (9-203(3)(b)). Commercial Activity License: the city's page says there is no cost, and it does not need to be renewed. No separate door-to-door fee exists in the code sections read or on L&I's list.
• Hours you may knock: No residential knocking hours were found. The only general clock rule in 9-203 bars vending "between twelve midnight and seven a.m." (9-203(7)(l)); the other hours in the section are for named streets and districts. L&I's pages give no knocking hours.
• What the rep carries: A licensed street vendor carries the license on his person and wears the L&I identification badge conspicuously on the right breast of the outer garment; the license bears the vendor's photograph (9-203(2)(a), (4)). Nothing in the sections read names what a service-sales rep must carry.
• What takes the time: For the street vendor license: a physical description, proof of identity and address, two photographs, a description of what is sold and the employer's name and address (9-203(3)(a)). The license runs the calendar year, January 1 to December 31 (9-203(2)(b)). No fingerprints, background check or bond appear in the section. The Commercial Activity License needs a city tax account (Business Income and Receipts Tax ID) first and the company must be current on city taxes; online, it is issued automatically.
• Code: Philadelphia Code 9-203, Street Vendors; L&I cites 19-2602 for the Commercial Activity License. American Legal's host says the electronic code "is current through August 19, 2026."
• Worth knowing: If a rep hands out flyers or door hangers, L&I lists a separate Handbill Distribution License "to hand out flyers, circulars, or other paper advertisements." Its terms were not read.
• Read it yourself: Philadelphia Code 9-203, Street Vendors · Philadelphia Code Title 9, table of contents · Philadelphia Code Title 10, table of contents · The Philadelphia Code, currency statement · City of Philadelphia, Get a Commercial Activity License · City of Philadelphia, Other businesses (license list) · City of Philadelphia, Get a Vendor-on-Foot License · checked 19 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down: Does L&I require a 9-203 street vendor license for a rep who only signs customers up for a service at the door and carries no goods? Does the Philadelphia Code set hours for commercial door-to-door sales at homes beyond the midnight to seven a.m. vending ban? Does a team leaving door hangers need the Handbill Distribution License, and what does it cost? Does a no-soliciting sign or list have legal force in the city? Clerk’s name ______________   Direct line ______________   Date called ______________