History Main / MustBeInvited

* In ''Literature/DiaryOfAWimpyKidDogDays'', Greg thinks of this trope, and wonders if the same thing works for his weird neighbor kid (accompanied by an illustration of a vampire trying to trick its way into Greg's house by asking to borrow a cup of sugar).

* ''Film/Renfield2023'': Dracula is able to enter Renfield's apartment because Renfield laid out a matt that says "Welcome! Come on in!" right outside it. Later on, Dracula goes to the support group Renfield's been attending, and Mark, the leader, tells him to come on in, despite Renfield's attempt to stop him.

* Given a modern twist in the ''WebOriginal/{{Momo}}'' creepypasta series. Momo is only able to torment those who contact her on [=WhatsApp=].

* In ''Manga/{{Shiki}}'', vampires are subjected to this limitation. Unfortunately, they can MindControl a victim they have already bitten once.

** In the episode "[[Recap/AdventureTimeS7E10MayIComeIn May I Come In?]]", the gang deals with a vampire called Hierophant, who is beholden to the old ways, which includes needing an invitation. Peppermint Butler knows this and taunts him from the door. Later, Jake uses his shapeshifting powers to turn into a house for the others to hide in, and again Hierophant can't go in. [[spoiler:Hierophant is finally defeated when a random character accidentally bumps into him and knocks him inside House Jake. He freaks out about entering without an invitation and turns to dust.]] Curiously, none of the other vampires have this problem - the Hierophant seemed to be holding ''himself'' to a certain standard, as a self-proclaimed "old-school vampire".

* This applies to a ''ghost'' in ''[[Manga/JojosBizarreAdventure Dead Man's Questions]]''. After becoming a ghost, [[spoiler:Yoshikage Kira]] must receive some sort of permission in order to enter the homes of living people. Even opening the mail slot counts, however.
This applies to the cabin in ''[[Literature/IGotACheatAbilityBecomeExtraordinaryEvenInTheRealWorld I Got A Cheat Ability in Another World and became Extraordinary In the Real World]]'' that Yuuya becomes the new owner of; where the cabin and the outdoor yard is protected by an impenetrable barrier that keeps monsters out and even prevents thrown weapons from being tossed inside as was shown by a Bloody Ogre on Yuuyas' first night that had tried to attack him. For the first few weeks, Yuuya patrolled the perimeter of his yard using the barrier to keep out the Monsters in order to nab him some easy kills without getting hurt himself.

* Referenced in ''VideoGame/ConkersBadFurDay''. During the [[BigBoosHaunt Spooky chapter]], Conker comes across a large mansion on a hill. When entering the building, he's welcomed by the owner, a count modeled after Creator/GaryOldman's character in ''Film/BramStokersDracula''. After being invited to pass, the red squirrel comments while crossing the manor's threshold that there must be something of significant on this act but he can't think of anything.

* In ''[[Fanfic/AColdWintersNight A Cold Winter's Night]]'', another Film/LetMeIn fanfic, the trope is a fairly minor inconvenience for Owen and Abby who find ways to get invited in with little difficulty.

* In [[Fanfic/AColdWintersNight A Cold Winter's Night]], another Film/LetMeIn fanfic, the trope is a fairly minor inconvenience for Owen and Abby who find ways to get invited in with little difficulty.

* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Bunnicula}}'', the title character has no such problem, but one episode focused on Bunnicula's former vampire master going through great lengths to get invited into Bunnicula's current home in order to enslave him.

* ''Manga/MyMonsterSecret'' uses this, but downplayed for comedy value like all the other traditional vampire weaknesses. [[{{Dhampyr}} Half-vampire]] Youko can enter buildings without being invited, but feels really guilty about it. For full-blooded vampires like her father Genjirou, however, the trope is played straight. In one story arc, Genjirou goes on an OverprotectiveDad rampage against Youko's friend Asahi, and Youko protects him by taking him into her bedroom and dis-inviting Genjirou, which causes him to be blocked by SomeKindOfForceField; the fact that Genjirou owns the house that ''contains'' said bedroom doesn't matter.

* This usually ''[[AvertedTrope doesn't]]'' apply to vampires in ''Literature/NightWorld''; however witches can cast magical wards around a property that prevent a vampire from entering without the occupant's permission.

** Vampires have this limitation. The Buffyverse established an elaborate sense of MagicAIsMagicA with the invite: it must be an actual residence (house, apartment, dormitory) and not merely a "public accommodation" (a motel room), only a resident can give the invitation (when Buffy was sleeping on Dawn and Xander's couch and had no other residence, she still was officially a guest and couldn't invite Spike in), the invitation must be clear (just saying "come in" is enough, "I guess" is not) and verbal (head nods and hand waves do not count), the invite requirement is voided when the occupant is dead (Angel once watched a man get killed by vampires when the man had invited them in earlier and refused to invite him), the invite is only needed once unless a certain "uninvite" spell is cast (this was done for Angel, Spike and Harmony) - the invitation can only be rescinded magically, not verbally, and [[Recap/AngelS01E05RmWAVu once]] Cordelia lost a special "Invite Angel into Her New Apartment" moment because earlier while she was apartment-shopping she said he could visit once she found a new place. The Buffyverse treats it as an actual mystical barrier that acts similar to a wall.

** Vampires have this limitation. The Buffyverse established an elaborate sense of MagicAIsMagicA with the invite: it must be an actual residence (house, apartment, dormitory) and not merely a "public accommodation" (a motel room), only a resident can give the invitation (when Buffy was sleeping on Dawn and Xander's couch and had no other residence, she still was officially a guest and couldn't invite Spike in), the invitation must be clear (just saying "come in" is enough, "I guess" is not) and verbal (head nods and hand waves do not count), the invite requirement is voided when the occupant is dead (Angel once watched a man get killed by vampires when the man had invited them in earlier and refused to invite him), the invite is only needed once unless a certain "uninvite" spell is cast (this was done for Angel, Spike and Harmony) and [[Recap/AngelS01E05RmWAVu once]] Cordelia lost a special "Invite Angel into Her New Apartment" moment because long ago she said he could visit once she found a new place while she was apartment-shopping. The Buffyverse treats it as an actual mystical barrier, that acts similar to a wall.

** In "[[Recap/{{BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E15IWasMadeToLoveYou}} I Was Made To Love You]]", Spike arrives at the Magic Box after the Scoobies find out about his [[StalkerWithACrush obsession with Buffy]]. The Scoobies make no secret about how they don't want him there, and Willow claims they're trying to find a way to "un-invite" him from the Magic Box, even though it's a public place, meaning Spike can enter and exist at his leisure. Xander, however, says they might as well let him in... so they can toss him right back out.

** Also when Angelus and Spike are trying to gate-crash the party of their ArchNemesis, only they can't get in because they're NotOnTheList.
** It's also played for laughs in a ''Buffy'' episode where [[AlphaBitch Harmony]] and her vampire gang confront the Scoobies at Buffy's house. In reaction to Harmony's taunting, Dawn yells at her, "Why don't you just come in here and-" before she is muffled by Xander. Too late. Also, since Dawn yelled that at ''her'' specifically only Harmony can get in. Her lackeys are stuck outside.
** Xander uses it against her moments earlier. He, while standing in the doorway, goads Harmony into attacking him, and then laughs when she hits the invitation barrier.

** And after he was first made a vampire, he tricked his own baby sister into inviting him in on the pretense that he was an angel taking the form of her beloved dead brother. Cue DeathOfAChild.
** In "[[Recap/{{AngelS02E05DearBoy}} Dear Boy]]", this actually got Angel off the hook for a murder accusation. When he's accused of the murder of Mr. Kramer, Kate storms the Hyperion with a SWAT team to arrest him, but is forced to acknowledge he's innocent when they point out a hole in his wife's[[note]]actually a BackFromTheDead Darla[[/note]] story; Angel, being a vampire, couldn't possibly have just stormed in and killed someone in their own home unless he was explicitly invited or the residents were ''already'' dead.
** Angel did once get into a home despite the invite...Kate didn't want to invite him in when she attempted suicide, but Angel was able to get in the moment her heart stopped and revived her. Either that or the Powers That Be broke the rules to let him save her.
** The only time the rule was ever completely broken was in "[[Recap/{{BuffyTheVampireSlayerS2E6Halloween}} Halloween]]", where a boy who had [[BecomingTheCostume become his vampire costume]] somehow broke into Buffy's house on his own. No explanation for how he was able to do this is given, though it was probably due to him not being a true vampire.

** Also the answer to how [[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS5E1BuffyVsDracula Dracula]] was able to enter Buffy's home: Turns out he ran into Buffy's mom, and Drac being [[VampiresAreSexGods who he is]], she gave him an open invitation to drop by sometime.

** Vampires have this limitation. The Buffyverse established an elaborate sense of MagicAIsMagicA with the invite: it must be an actual residence (house, apartment, dormitory) and not merely a "public accommodation" (a motel room), only a resident can give the invitation (when Buffy was sleeping on Dawn and Xander's couch and had no other residence, she still was officially a guest and couldn't invite Spike in), the invitation must be clear (just saying "come in" is enough) and verbal (head nods and hand waves do not count), the invite requirement is voided when the occupant is dead (Angel once watched a man get killed by vampires when the man had invited them in earlier and refused to invite him), the invite is only needed once unless a certain "uninvite" spell is cast (this was done for Angel, Spike and Harmony) and [[Recap/AngelS01E05RmWAVu once]] Cordelia lost a special "Invite Angel into Her New Apartment" moment because long ago she said he could visit once she found a new place while she was apartment-shopping. The Buffyverse treats it as an actual mystical barrier, that acts similar to a wall.

* This turns out to be a moot point in ''Literature/TheRhesusChart'' by Creator/CharlesStross, as the vampires can simply hypnotize people into inviting them inside, the difficulty lying in combination locks and swipe cards, not mythical barriers.