South Bend, Indiana: door-to-door solicitor permit

• The answer: Yes — a peddler's or canvasser's license from the City Controller before doing business (4-43(c)). A canvasser or solicitor is anyone taking orders for future deliveries of goods or services from house to house; a peddler sells goods on hand from house to house, including on foot as a "pack peddler" (4-43(a), (b)).
• Where it comes from: The Office of the City Controller. The application goes to the Controller and is referred to the Police Department, which investigates each applicant and recommends to the Controller whether to grant it (4-43(d), (e)).
• Fee: Fifty dollars ($50.00) per year for pack peddlers or canvassers, and the same for those using a vehicle (4-43(f)(1), (2)); the city's business license page lists the Peddlers and Canvassers License at Fee: $50.00. The Controller may require a personal or surety bond with a maximum limit of fifteen hundred dollars ($1,500.00) (4-43(f)(3)). Every application for an entirely new business also carries a nonrefundable five dollars ($5.00) application fee (4-4(d)).
• Hours you may knock: Section 4-43 sets no knocking hours, and none were found in the rest of Chapter 4 or the section list of Chapter 13 (Offenses).
• What the rep carries: A city badge or tag, worn on the coat when doing business; its number is written on the license (4-43(g)(1)).
• What takes the time: The police investigation: criminal history, traffic and police record, and a recommendation to the Controller (4-43(e)). No processing time is published.
• Code: South Bend Municipal Code Chapter 4, Licenses, Sec. 4-43 — Peddlers and canvassers. Municode shows the code codified through Ordinance No. 11254-26, enacted February 9, 2026 (Supp. No. 65).
• Worth knowing: Licenses run February 1 to January 31 unless otherwise specified (4-4(f)).
• Read it yourself: South Bend Municipal Code Chapter 4 — Licenses (Sec. 4-4, 4-43) · South Bend Code of Ordinances — Municode landing page · South Bend Code Chapter 13 — Offenses and Miscellaneous Provisions (section list) · City of South Bend — Types of Business Licenses · checked 21 September 2026

Ask the clerk, and write the answer down:

• Whether each rep needs his own $50.00 license, or one license covers a company's crew
• Whether the Controller requires the bond for door-to-door sales, and in what amount
• How long the police review takes, and whether any knocking hours apply

Clerk’s name ______________ Direct line ______________ Date called ______________