City of Orlando Permits: A Homeowner's Remodel Guide

If your home is inside Orlando city limits, your remodel permit comes from the City of Orlando Permitting Services Division, not from Orange County. Most remodels that touch plumbing, electrical, gas, HVAC, walls, windows or doors need a permit, and the application, plan review, fee payment and inspections all run through the city’s online tools. The first step is to confirm your address is actually in the city, because many homes with an Orlando mailing address are not.

Step 1: Confirm you are inside Orlando city limits

This is the most common mistake we see. A ZIP code or mailing address that says “Orlando” covers a large area, and much of it is unincorporated Orange County or another city such as Winter Park. The City of Orlando says this directly on its Check Your Address page: your address may say Orlando, but you might be in unincorporated Orange County or a nearby city.

How to check:

1. Open the city’s address lookup map (linked from the Check Your Address page) and type your street address.
2. Read the jurisdiction result. If it shows City of Orlando, the city is your building department.
3. If it does not, you are most likely in unincorporated Orange County, which permits through the county’s Division of Building Safety. See our Orange County building permits guide for that process.

If your home is near Winter Park, Maitland, Ocoee or another city boundary, check even if you are sure. Boundaries can change through annexation, and the right office matters because a permit from the wrong jurisdiction is not valid.

What needs a permit in the City of Orlando

The city’s position is simple: state law requires a permit for most construction projects, even small ones. For a typical remodel, plan on a permit when the work includes any of the following:

• Plumbing: moving or adding a sink, toilet, shower or tub, replacing a water heater, re-piping.
• Electrical: new circuits, moving or adding outlets and lights, panel changes, a new range or dryer circuit.
• Mechanical: replacing or relocating HVAC equipment, adding ductwork, new exhaust fans vented outside.
• Gas: a new gas range location, gas water heater or any gas line work.
• Structural or wall changes: removing or moving walls, new openings, beams, additions.
• Windows and exterior doors: replacements need a permit, and the city treats them as structural for the new exemption rules.
• Roofing, fences, sheds, pools and driveways: each has its own permit type.

A kitchen remodel that keeps the layout but adds a new circuit for an appliance still needs an electrical permit. A bathroom where the shower valve or drain moves needs a plumbing permit. These sub-trade permits are separate from the main building permit, and on a contractor-led job each licensed trade pulls its own.

What usually does not need a permit

Pure cosmetic work generally does not: painting, new flooring, replacing countertops on existing cabinets, swapping cabinets in the same location, new cabinet doors or hardware, and replacing a faucet or light fixture like for like with no new wiring or piping. Rules can change, so confirm with Permitting Services if your scope is close to the line.

The $7,500 exemption in Orlando (HB 803)

Since July 1, 2026, Florida law requires cities and counties to exempt some small jobs on single-family homes from a building permit. Orlando has a page for it, Apply for a Residential Building Permit Exemption, and the rules are narrower than many people expect.

Requirement	What it means
Single-family home	Applies to the owner of a single-family dwelling or the owner’s contractor
Under $7,500	The total value of the work must be less than $7,500
No trade or structural work	Electrical, plumbing, mechanical, gas and structural work are excluded, and the city lists windows, doors, railings, siding, soffits, roofing and elevated decks as structural
No flood hazard area	Property partly or fully in a flood hazard area does not qualify
No splitting	A project cannot be broken into smaller jobs to stay under the limit
Written request	You must submit an exemption request to the city first

In practice this covers limited non-structural work. Almost any kitchen or bathroom remodel that involves plumbing or electrical still needs a permit. Licensing, zoning and HOA rules also still apply.

How to apply for a City of Orlando permit

If you hire a licensed contractor, the contractor handles this. If you are acting as an owner-builder, here is the path the city describes.

1. Figure out which permits you need. The city’s Figure Out What Permits You Need tool has a Residential Portal for homeowners and contractors.
2. Complete the application. Applications come from the city’s permitting forms page and are submitted digitally. The Get a Permit page explains the current submittal method.
3. Submit plans. Projects that need plan review are submitted digitally through the city’s online plan review system.
4. Pay fees. Fees are set by the city’s fee schedule and are paid through the city’s project lookup tool. A contractor’s estimate normally includes them.
5. Record a Notice of Commencement if needed. If the project value is over $5,000, you file a Notice of Commencement with the Orange County Comptroller before work starts, post a certified copy at the job site and give a copy to the city.
6. Post the permit and start work. The permit should be visible from the street and accessible to the inspector.

Owner-builder permits in Orlando

Florida Statutes 489.103(7) lets a homeowner pull a permit for their own home if they do the work themselves or directly supervise it. The home cannot be built or improved for sale or lease, and selling or leasing within one year of completion creates a presumption that it was. The City of Orlando requires the Owner-Builder Declaration to be completed in person at City Hall, and the owner signs a disclosure explaining these responsibilities. If you hire a contractor, the contractor should pull the permit, not you. A contractor who asks you to pull it as an owner-builder is a red flag.

How to search City of Orlando permits by address

The city’s permit lookup tool lets anyone search by permit number, address, project name or parcel ID. It shows permit status, plan review progress, related permits and fees due. This is useful when:

• You are buying a home and want to see what work was permitted and closed.
• You want to confirm a contractor actually pulled the permit for your job.
• You suspect an old permit at your address was never closed.

Scheduling inspections

Different permits need inspections at different stages, such as rough plumbing and electrical before walls close, then final. The city offers three ways to schedule:

• Online: through the city’s inspection scheduling portal using your permit number.
• Text: text INSPECTION to 866.205.3881 and follow the prompts.
• Phone: call 407.246.4444 and follow the menu for construction inspections.

Before an inspection, have the approved plans, the issued permit, the recorded Notice of Commencement and any engineering documents on site. Same-day cancellations cannot be done through the online or text tools.

Do not let the permit expire

The city states that a permit open for six months without an inspection will expire. Once final inspections pass, close the permit out. An open permit can cause problems when you sell the property, and it is one of the most common surprises at closing.

Typical Orlando remodels and the permits they need

• Kitchen with the same layout: often an electrical permit for new circuits or lighting, and plumbing if the sink or dishwasher lines change. See our kitchen remodeling process.
• Kitchen with a wall removed: building permit, plus electrical and plumbing for anything in the wall. Load-bearing walls need engineering.
• Tub-to-shower conversion: plumbing permit for the new valve and drain, and a building permit when walls or framing change.
• Window or door replacement: building permit with the product approvals for the openings.
• Addition or garage conversion: building permit with full plans, plus every trade permit.

Planning a remodel inside Orlando city limits?

Prime Construction is a licensed general contractor (CGC1535686) and plumbing contractor (CFC1433952), and we pull the permits and schedule the inspections on every job that needs them. Before we price your project, we confirm which jurisdiction your address falls in so the permit goes to the right office. If you live in Orlando or nearby, see how our general contracting works, call (407) 404-3944 or request an estimate. Homeowners in Seminole County can read our Seminole County permits guide, and Kissimmee and St. Cloud homeowners can start with the Osceola County guide.