San Jose Building Permit Office
San Jose
City of San José
408-535-3555
Phone assistance Monday-Friday, 7:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
200 E Santa Clara St, Tower, 2nd Floor, San Jose, California, 95113
San José handles building permits through the City of San José Building Division, part of the Planning, Building and Code Enforcement Department. The city uses an integrated development-services system: Building, Planning, Fire Prevention and Public Works may each participate in a project review, while SJPermits serves as the main public portal for permit records, many applications, payments and inspection scheduling.
How Building Permitting Is Organized in San José
The Building Division conducts building plan review, issues building permits and inspects permitted work for compliance with applicable building codes. The Development Services Permit Center brings the Building Division together with the Planning Division, Fire Prevention and Public Works for projects that require more than one city review.
Handles building-code plan review, building permits and construction inspections. Building permit applications can also include electrical, plumbing and mechanical subtrade permits when those approvals are part of the project.
Handles zoning and land-use matters, including development permits, zoning verification, certain sign and tree permits, adjustments, variances and other planning approvals. A project may need Planning clearance before or during building review.
Fire-related permits and reviews are handled separately where required. The city’s online permit system includes Fire services such as fire sprinkler and fire alarm permitting.
Public Works handles approvals involving matters such as grading, utilities, sewer laterals, geologic clearance and work affecting the public right-of-way.
Start With the Project Type, Not a Generic Permit Form
San José routes building projects according to the type of property, scope of work and level of plan review required. The city’s Start Your Project system provides project-specific instructions and directs the application to the appropriate permit service.
Identify the project and required approvals
Confirm whether the work needs a building permit and whether zoning, Fire Prevention, Public Works or another approval affects the project. Building permits are required for work such as new construction, additions, structural changes, many electrical, plumbing and mechanical projects, changes of occupancy and building demolition unless a stated exemption applies.
Use the permit service assigned to the project
Eligible simple projects may qualify for a permit directly through SJPermits. Other projects can be routed to services such as Simple Projects, Over-the-Counter review, Residential Express, ADU review, Standard Plan Review or a specialized commercial program.
Submit plans when plan review is required
Projects using Standard Plan Review begin through SJPermits and use SJePlans for electronic plans and supporting documents. Review does not begin until the applicable review fees have been paid and complete plan files have been submitted.
Resolve review comments and obtain permit issuance
Depending on the project, review tasks can involve Building, Planning, Fire or Public Works. Required review processes must be completed before the building permit can be issued. For Standard Plan Review, an application may be started by a designer, engineer, contractor, owner or another project participant, but permit issuance is limited to the property owner or an appropriately licensed contractor.
Schedule required construction inspections
After permit issuance, required inspections are scheduled through SJPermits. Inspection records can also be located through the property or permit record. The permit remains under inspection until required inspection processes are completed and the project is finaled.
SJPermits and SJePlans Serve Different Functions
SJPermits is the public-facing permit portal. It can be used to search San José property permit history and zoning information, check permit status, pay eligible permit invoices, schedule inspections and apply for qualifying online permits.
The city currently lists 56 types of simple building projects that can obtain an online building permit. Many do not require conventional plan review, although certain categories require plans that are checked during inspection.
SJePlans is the city’s electronic plan-review system for applicants whose projects require that workflow. It is used to submit plans and supporting documents for review by participating Building, Planning, Fire and Public Works staff.
Access to project files in SJePlans is restricted to authorized applicants rather than functioning as a public permit-history search.
Only property owners and qualified contractors may obtain the city’s self-service online building permits. Contractors must hold the required California contractor license and a valid City of San José Tax Certificate, and the permit work must correspond to the contractor’s license classification.
Building Permit Applications and Plan Review
San José uses Form 310 – Building Permit Application for building permits and subtrade permits such as electrical, plumbing and mechanical work. More than one subtrade may be identified on the same application when appropriate. The actual submission method depends on the project pathway assigned through Start Your Project.
Projects requiring Standard Plan Review are submitted electronically. Commercial and residential projects can use this service when plan review is necessary and the project does not qualify for another permit service. Some specialized services use separate electronic upload procedures instead of SJePlans, so project-specific instructions should be followed rather than sending plans through an assumed portal.
A kitchen remodel, commercial tenant improvement, new building and ADU may follow different intake and review routes even though all involve the same Building Division. The city’s project pages determine the applicable service from the property and proposed work.
A Building Permit Does Not Replace Separate Development Approvals
Building-code approval and land-use approval are separate functions. Projects that affect use, site development or other zoning matters may require Planning Division action in addition to the building permit. For example, the city states that plans for a new commercial or industrial building are reviewed for zoning, building and fire-code compliance before building permit issuance.
- Planning: development and land-use permits, zoning matters and other planning approvals.
- Fire Prevention: applicable fire-system, hazardous-material and related fire permits or reviews.
- Public Works: grading, utilities, certain sewer work, geologic matters and public right-of-way permits.
- Building: building-code review, permit issuance and construction inspection.
SJPermits may show processes from several city divisions within the same project record. An open review process can therefore represent a Planning, Building, Fire or Public Works task rather than a separate building-permit application.
Checking Permit Progress and Scheduling Inspections
Public permit information can be searched in SJPermits by address, Assessor’s Parcel Number, permit number, project reference number or tract number. Permit records show the permit status and related process information. Signed-in applicants can access additional application details associated with their own submissions.
The permit is still moving through review processes and has not reached issuance.
The permit has been issued and required construction inspections remain to be scheduled or completed.
Construction has reached final inspection and the project has received the applicable final approval.
Building inspections are scheduled through the Schedule an Inspection function at SJPermits. The same system can be used to search inspection records associated with a property or permit.
Permit Fees Depend on the Project and Reviewing Departments
San José publishes a Building and Structure Permits Fee Schedule covering fees collected by the Building Division, Fire Protection Bureau and Public Works Department. The current city fee page identifies a schedule effective August 11, 2026. Planning fees and certain development-related charges are maintained separately.
A city permit fee estimator is available for selected project categories, including ADUs, commercial tenant improvements and new single-family construction. Other projects can require a project-specific estimate rather than a single flat building-permit price.
The 2025 California Building Codes took effect in San José on January 1, 2026. Projects are reviewed under the codes and local requirements applicable to their submission and permit circumstances.
San José Building Permit Resources
City Building Division
Building Division
Department information, permits, codes and inspections
Project Instructions
Start Your Project
Find the permit pathway for a specific project
Permit Portal
SJPermits
Applications, permit records, payments and inspections
Online Permits
Online Building Permits
Check which projects qualify for self-service permitting
Electronic Plan Review
SJePlans
Electronic plan-submittal and review information
Inspections
Building Inspections
Scheduling and inspection-record information
Permit Tracking
Check Permit Status
Search permit status and review-process information
Fees
Building Permit Fees
Fee schedules, estimator and payment information