Work with or without permit
| Permit required | No permit |
|---|---|
| Roof (redo, replacement) | Interior / exterior paint |
| Electrical (panel, circuits) | Floating floor |
| Plumbing (drains, water heater) | Furniture |
| HVAC (replacement, ducts) | Wall decor |
| Room addition, expansion | Small cosmetic repairs |
| Pool (construction) | Existing maintenance |
| Load-bearing wall removal | Cabinets without plumb / elec |
| Impact shutters (sometimes) | Curtain rods |
Issuance process
- Plans by FL-licensed architect or engineer if needed (≥ structural project).
- Application to the building department with plans, scope of work, contractor info.
- Fees calculated on work value (% or table).
- Review by building department: 1-6 weeks.
- Permit issued with conditions and inspection schedule.
- Inspections at milestones (foundation, framing, electrical rough, plumbing rough, mechanical, final).
- Certificate of Occupancy (CO) issued at completion.
Licensed contractor required
- For most work ≥ $2,500 or structural, a licensed contractor must sign the permit.
- Verify license: DBPR Construction Industry Licensing Board (CILB) via myfloridalicense.com.
- Contractor must carry workers comp and liability insurance.
- Work by an unlicensed contractor = contracts may be voided, no warranty, criminal risk for contractor (F.S. §489.127).
Risks of unpermitted work
- Building department fines: often $250 to $5,000 per violation.
- Order to demolish or order to remediate if non-code-compliant.
- At sale: open permits block closing. Buyer can demand resolution ("after-the-fact permit" 2-4× normal fee).
- Insurance inspections (4-point, wind mit) may reject unpermitted work.
- Claim: insurer may refuse coverage for damage portion linked to unpermitted work.
For Canadians
- Always verify the contractor's work is permitted before paying a deposit.
- Request a copy of the issued permit (in your owner name) and the building department contact.
- No final payment until certificate of completion is issued.
- Keep copies for future sale (buyer will demand).
- Never accept "we don't need a permit for this" without confirming directly with the building department.
Official forms and reference pages
Reader responsibility
Verified fact: before commencing to improve real property, the owner or the owner's agent must record a notice of commencement in the clerk's office under s. 713.13, Florida Statutes, except for improvements exempt under s. 713.02(5); the 2,500 USD figure appears in that exemption framework of the 2025 text, and the lien chain (notice to owner, 90-day claim of lien, 1-year enforcement) hangs on the same chapter. Permits themselves run through the county or municipal building department under the Florida Building Code, with licensed-contractor rules in chapter 489. Sources: Florida Statutes ss. 713.13 and 713.02, 2025 texts, flsenate.gov, consulted June 10, 2026; ch. 489 and DBPR licensing pages, consulted June 9, 2026.
Always use the latest version available on the official site cited below. Thresholds, rates and deadlines change. CanadaFlorida is not a substitute for a licensed professional.
A worked example: a 32,000 USD kitchen in Cape Coral, 2026
Linda of Brossard renovates her Cape Coral kitchen for 32,000 USD: cabinets, electrical, plumbing moves. Her file, in order: a licensed contractor verified on DBPR (the verification walkthrough has its own guide), the building permit pulled by the contractor with the city's plan review, the notice of commencement recorded before work starts and posted on site, releases of lien collected at each draw, inspections passed at rough-in and final, and the permit closed before the last cheque. Typical range: permit fees for a job this size commonly run a few hundred USD by county fee schedule, and plan review adds days to a few weeks by season, June 2026 observation. The two expensive mistakes she avoided: unpermitted work surfacing at resale (title and insurance consequences for years) and the open permit that blocks closings long after the renovation is forgotten.
Opinion: for an absentee Canadian owner, the permit file IS the renovation: who pulls it, who meets inspectors, who closes it. A contractor unwilling to pull the permit in their own name is volunteering you for owner-builder responsibilities the statute reserves for residents supervising their own work; treat that as the conversation-ending signal it is.
Common mistakes
- Skipping the permit for interior work. Electrical, plumbing, and structural changes need permits regardless of visibility; unpermitted work surfaces at appraisal, insurance, and resale.
- Letting the contractor talk you into owner-builder. The exemption is built for occupants supervising their own job, with personal liability attached; absentee owners fail its premise.
- Forgetting the notice of commencement. Recorded before work starts, posted on site: it anchors the payment protections of the lien chapter.
- Paying without releases. The lien rights of subs and suppliers survive your payment to the contractor; releases are what extinguish them.
- Leaving the permit open. Final inspection and closure are part of the job; open permits resurface at every future closing.
The owner's permit checklist
- Verify the contractor's license on DBPR before signing.
- Contractor pulls the permit in the contractor's name; you keep the permit number.
- Record the notice of commencement before work commences; post it on site.
- Pay against partial releases at each draw; final affidavit before final payment.
- Track inspections to final; confirm the permit shows closed in the county portal.
- Archive the whole file with the property records for resale day.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a permit for a bathroom or kitchen renovation?
Yes, whenever electrical, plumbing, or structural work is involved; cosmetic-only refreshes (paint, flooring without structural change) are generally exempt. The county building department's published lists decide the line.
Can I pull the permit myself as owner?
Florida's owner-builder path exists for owners supervising their own work with statutory conditions and personal responsibility; for an absentee Canadian it is almost never the right answer. The licensed contractor pulls the permit.
What is the notice of commencement for?
It opens the lien framework of chapter 713: recorded before work starts, it anchors who can claim what and protects proper payments. Skipping it weakens your defenses against liens.
What happens if previous owners did unpermitted work?
It becomes your problem at inspection, insurance, or resale: legalization through after-the-fact permits costs more than doing it right. Your pre-purchase inspection should flag it; your contract can price it.
How long do permits take?
Simple residential permits commonly issue in days; plan-review jobs run longer by county and season. The contractor's local experience is the real schedule estimate.
Every figure, rate, threshold, and deadline in this guide is drawn from a verifiable primary source listed at the bottom of the page. The article is updated whenever the underlying rules change, with a fresh review date stamped at the top.
Sources and references
Public sources verified as of the last review date (Florida Statutes, Florida Department of Revenue, Citizens, FEMA, DBPR).
- Florida Statutes s. 713.13: notice of commencement, 2025 text, consulted June 10, 2026
- Florida Statutes s. 713.02: exemptions (2,500 USD framework), 2025 text, consulted June 10, 2026
- Florida Statutes ch. 489: contracting licensure, consulted June 9, 2026
- DBPR: license verification portal, consulted June 9, 2026