Pittsburgh Building Permit Office

PLI is the city department responsible for building, electrical, mechanical, occupancy and several other construction-related permits within the City of Pittsburgh. Its Construction Division reviews permit applications and plans and performs inspections on issued permits.

Pittsburgh’s permit system involves several city departments when a project crosses regulatory areas. The Department of City Planning (DCP) handles zoning and development review, while the Department of Mobility and Infrastructure (DOMI) handles work affecting the public right-of-way. The Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire administers certain fire-related permits.

The Department of City Planning’s Zoning and Development Review Division administers Pittsburgh’s Zoning Code. Zoning review addresses matters such as land use, additions, new construction and other development regulated by the zoning code.

For many projects, the BDA allows PLI and zoning review to occur through the same application. A BDA can also be used when a scope requires only zoning review or only PLI review.

Some planning matters remain separate from the standard BDA workflow, including certain subdivision or consolidation requests, zoning changes, zoning appeals and historic-review processes.

Not every construction approval at a Pittsburgh property comes from PLI. Project scope determines whether another city department or Allegheny County agency must be involved.

The permit holder is responsible for requesting PLI inspections through the OneStopPGH portal. The city’s current inspection guidance requires the requested inspection date to be at least five business days after the request is submitted. An earlier preferred date may be entered in the comments, but availability is not guaranteed. PLI does not provide same-day inspections.

• Keep the PLI permit posted visibly at the job site.
• Keep approved permit documents available for the inspector.
• Request each required inspection when the corresponding work is ready.
• Do not conceal work until the required inspection has passed.
• Complete applicable sub-permit inspections before later inspection stages that depend on them.
• Obtain the required final inspections before permit completion.

OneStopPGH identifies the inspections associated with the permit. After an inspection is recorded, an inspection report is available with the inspected items and the recorded outcome.

OneStopPGH can be used to submit and manage applications, request inspections and search public permit records. Pittsburgh also launched an updated Permit Tracker in July 2026 to give applicants a clearer view of an application’s position in the permitting process.

Public permit records, pending-review information and other PLI records are also available through the city’s online permit resources. This makes it possible to check many applications without contacting the permit counter for a routine status inquiry.

PLI permit costs are generally calculated using the project’s total construction value, with the applicable amount determined under the city’s current fee schedule. The city also provides a permit fee calculator for estimating charges before an application is filed.

Zoning fees can apply separately when a project requires City Planning review. Other departments or agencies can also assess their own fees when additional permits are needed. The applicable fee structure should therefore be checked against the actual project scope rather than treating a building-permit estimate as the total cost of all approvals.