Boise Building Permit Office
Boise
City of Boise
208-608-7070
Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m.
150 N Capitol Boulevard, Boise, Idaho, 83702
Building permits for property inside the incorporated City of Boise are handled through the Building Division of Boise Planning and Development Services (PDS). The city uses its Permitting and Licensing system for building applications, electrical, plumbing and mechanical trade permits, permit searches, inspection requests, payments and record status.
Jurisdiction should be confirmed before an application is started. A Boise mailing address does not by itself establish that the property is within Boise city limits, and Ada County maintains a separate permitting operation for property outside incorporated city boundaries.
Boise City permits and Ada County permits are not interchangeable
Building applications are processed by City of Boise Planning and Development Services. Building, planning, fire and several related city records can be accessed through the Boise Permitting and Licensing system.
Ada County Development Services states that the county Building Department issues building permits only for property located outside all city limits. Unincorporated property therefore should not be filed automatically with Boise merely because the postal address uses “Boise.”
The City of Boise permitting portal currently warns that a technical location issue can cause some Boise addresses to be incorrectly identified as outside city limits during a new application. The city directs applicants who encounter that message to report the issue rather than assuming the project belongs to another permitting authority.
How a Boise building application moves from submittal to final inspection
Submit the building record
The building application is entered through the City of Boise Permitting and Licensing system. Electronic plans and supporting documents are handled through the city’s ePlanReview process. Additional project contacts can also be associated with the record.
Prescreen for completeness
Permit intake staff review the application and plans before formal review begins. Missing or incomplete information can be returned for correction. For projects subject to plan review, the applicable plan-check fee is assessed as the application advances from prescreen.
Complete building and related reviews
Plans move through the required review cycle. Corrections or requests for additional documents are communicated to the applicant, and revised material is submitted through the electronic review system. Planning, Public Works, Fire or other approvals may be associated with the project when its location or scope requires them.
Permit issuance
After required reviews have passed, remaining permit fees are assessed and approved plans are prepared for issuance. Boise’s commercial building workflow specifies that related electrical, plumbing and mechanical trade permits are obtained separately rather than being treated as part of the building permit itself.
Inspections and final approval
Building inspections are requested from the permit record in the online system. Corrections can require another inspection. Trade permits connected to the building permit must be finaled before the final building inspection can be completed.
Projects Boise identifies as requiring a building permit
Boise’s residential permitting material identifies a range of work that requires building approval. The requirement is not limited to construction of a new house.
- Construction of a new one- or two-family dwelling.
- Finishing an attic, basement or garage to create living space.
- Room additions and attached garages, carports, sheds or other attached structures.
- Construction, demolition or relocation of a detached garage or shed exceeding 200 square feet.
- Creating new window or door openings or changing the size of existing openings.
- Adding, moving or removing walls.
- Re-roofing an existing structure.
- Certain retaining walls, including walls measured four feet or more from the bottom of the footing to the top of the wall.
- Decks more than 12 inches above grade and fences more than seven feet high.
- Patio covers, porches and carports, including enclosure of covered areas.
Project details can change which application type or supporting plans are required. Structural changes, grading, hillside conditions and work connected with another planning approval can add review requirements beyond the basic building application.
Some Boise projects need land-use approval before the building permit
Building review and planning review are separate functions within Boise PDS. The city’s residential submittal instructions identify several situations in which Planning and Zoning approval may be needed before the building permit application is filed.
- Properties within a historic district
- Development within the floodplain
- Projects on substandard lots
- Projects affected by Boise’s Hillside overlay where grading is substantively altered
- Accessory dwelling units
- Projects tied to an existing planning entitlement
- Work requiring zoning or site-plan verification before structural review can proceed
For projects with a planning case, the building record can remain dependent on planning conditions and required zoning inspections. A passed structural inspection does not replace a separate planning approval when one is attached to the project.
Electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits use separate Boise records
Boise accepts electrical, mechanical and plumbing applications through the same Permitting and Licensing system, but they are separate permit records. A trade permit can be related to its parent building record so that the city can track the work as one project while retaining separate inspection and final status for each permit.
Boise’s trade-permit workflow states that a homeowner performing their own electrical work must complete a Conference Inspection before beginning the work. Electrical permits also require a rough-in inspection before the final electrical inspection.
Once trade-permit fees have been assessed and paid, qualifying trade permits are issued through the online process. Inspections are then scheduled from the permit record. When a trade permit is attached to a building permit, it must reach final status before the final building inspection can be completed.
Building inspections can be requested from the Boise permit record
The online permit record includes an Inspections area where the applicant or contractor can select the required inspection and submit the request. Boise’s current permit system states that the cutoff for both morning and afternoon building inspection requests is 7:30 a.m.
City permit records identify the morning inspection period as 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
The afternoon inspection period is listed as 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Planning Approval and Public Works inspections do not follow the same online scheduling route as standard building inspections. Boise’s permit system directs those inspections to be scheduled by phone and advises allowing five business days for scheduling.
Boise does not permit inspection of areas that have not yet been approved or that are being reviewed under a plan modification. Design changes made after permit issuance may therefore need approval before inspection of the altered work can proceed.
A Boise building permit can involve agencies outside the Building Division
Fire permits and fire-related records are available through the city’s Permitting and Licensing system. Fire review can be associated with projects involving regulated fire-protection or life-safety systems.
Grading, drainage, sewer connections and other Public Works requirements can become part of the development review depending on the project. These reviews remain distinct from the structural building review.
Commercial project guidance from Boise identifies the Ada County Highway District as a separate reviewing authority for matters such as site vehicle access, changes in use and construction proposed within highway-district right-of-way.
Boise permit fees were adjusted effective October 1, 2026
The City of Boise Permitting and Licensing system announces an adjustment to Planning and Development Services permit fees effective October 1, 2026. Because older Boise fee schedules remain available online, current project costs should be taken from the city’s active fee information and the fees calculated on the permit record rather than from an older PDF.
Building permit charges can depend on project valuation, while a project may also generate separate plan-review, trade-permit, planning, Public Works, fire or impact fees. The amounts therefore vary with the scope and approvals attached to the record.
City and county permit resources
City of Boise Permitting and Licensing
Apply for Boise permits, search building and planning records, view permit status, access fees and request building inspections.
Boise Online Inspection Request Guide
City instructions for opening a permit record, locating the inspection section and submitting an online inspection request.
Boise Commercial Building Permit Workflow
Official PDS workflow covering submittal, prescreen, review, permit issuance, trade permits, corrections and inspections.
Boise Residential Construction Permit Information
City material identifying residential work that requires building, planning and related approvals.
Ada County Development Services Permitting Division
Use the county permitting office for building-permit questions involving unincorporated property outside municipal city limits.