What needs a permit in San Francisco, what doesn't, and who files it

You want to swap the drafty aluminum sliders in a 1930s Sunset row house, or replace the water heater wedged onto the back porch of a Mission flat, and somebody at a barbecue swears you don't need a permit for that. In San Francisco you almost certainly do. The city's list of work that needs no permit is short and specific, and the line between a repair and a permit job rarely falls where people expect. What follows goes project by project, with the code section behind each answer, then covers how permits are filed and what happens to work done without one.

#What you can do without a permit

The Department of Building Inspection works from three lists: Building Code section 106A.2 for the structure, Plumbing Code 104.2 for pipes and Electrical Code 89.121 for wiring, with a plain-language summary on SF.gov. Outside those lists, section 106A.1 is blunt: no building may be built, altered, repaired, moved, improved or demolished without a permit. The electrical and plumbing codes treat their own exempt lists the same way.

• Paint, wallpaper and finish work

  Inside or out, no building permit (106A.2 item 8). Changing a street-facing façade from one material to another, stucco to wood siding for example, is a different job and needs plans.

• Small plaster and drywall repairs

  Minor repairs to existing interior plaster or wallboard, unless the wall is part of a fire-resistive assembly (item 10).

• Floor coverings outside bathrooms

  New carpet, wood or vinyl anywhere but bathrooms and toilet rooms, as long as no required flooring comes out (item 16).

• Glass and interior doors

  Repairing or replacing broken glass to code (item 17), and replacing an interior door that isn't fire-rated. The code's door exemption reads broadly, but DBI files same-size exterior door swaps as PermitSF permits, so ask before skipping one.

• Plumbing that leaves the pipe alone

  Fixing leaks and clearing stoppages without cutting pipe; replacing faucets, angle stops and hose bibbs; and replacing a toilet, except in buildings with alternate water piping.

• Like-for-like electrical swaps

  A broken light fixture under 50 pounds with no wiring change, switches and receptacles up to 20 amps, and breakers of the same type and rating up to 100 amps. The main service disconnect always needs a permit.

• Low fences, short walls, ground-level platforms

  Fences up to 6 feet along the side and rear lot lines at the back and up to 3 feet anywhere; retaining walls up to 4 feet from the bottom of the footing, unless they carry a surcharge such as a slope or driveway above; walks and platforms no more than 30 inches above grade, not over a story below and not part of an exit.

• Partial re-roofs

  Re-roofing up to 25 percent of the roof surface in any 12 months, as long as no sheathing is installed, repaired or removed (item 13).

#Project by project: permit, path and who does the work

Three filing paths appear below. PermitSF is the City's online portal for simple permits that need no plans. Over the counter, or OTC, means review in person at the Permit Center, with or without plans. In-house review is full plan review for larger or more complex work. The 'who' column follows state law: work that needs a permit falls outside California's minor work exemption, so it goes to a licensed contractor or to an owner under their own permit. 'A handyman' below means someone without a contractor's license working alone on a job under $1,000.

#Online, over the counter or plan review

1. Look the property up first

   Confirm the address and the historic resource category on the City's Property Information Map. Both decide which path the project takes, and nothing can be filed against an address the City doesn't recognize.

2. Decide whether it needs plans

   Same-size replacements usually don't. Moving walls, changing a layout, new openings, structural repairs and new mechanical equipment do. If you can't tell, DBI answers that question by email at techq@sfgov.org.

3. File in the right place

   PermitSF, with a free account, takes electrical and plumbing permits without plans, in-kind kitchen and bath work in eligible homes, no-plan re-roofs, and same-size door, window, skylight and siding replacements. OTC review happens in person; DBI's interior-remodel page budgets 2 to 8 hours to submit, and a second visit may be needed. Bigger or riskier work goes to in-house review.

4. Get the job card before work starts

   After review and fees, DBI issues the permit and a job card. Construction doesn't start without the job card, and the permit document is posted at the site.

5. Inspections, then the final

   Inspectors check the work against the permit. A window permit isn't complete until a DBI inspector does a final onsite inspection, and most window permits stay valid for a year.

Planning is the second gate. SF Planning checks many exterior projects against the Planning Code, and projects that trigger neighborhood notification aren't among the over-the-counter ones (DBI's list). Historic status matters most: on a City Landmark, or in a landmark or conservation district, even a window swap or a re-roof needs Planning's sign-off before the building permit.

#Windows: a permit every time, fewer limits on materials

SF Planning doesn't hedge: every window replacement in San Francisco needs a building permit, wherever the window sits on the building. What changed in May 2025 is the material. Planning Code section 136.2 now bars Planning from restricting the material of a replacement frame or sash, except on historic Category A and A* buildings, and except where an opening is enlarged or a new one is cut.

#Who can pull the permit

A building permit application is signed by the owner or the owner's authorized agent (106A.3.1), and contractors register with the City before applying. Electrical and plumbing permits are narrower. DBI issues them to licensed contractors, or to the owner of a single-family dwelling who does the work personally; for plumbing the home must be owner-occupied, and an LLC can't get a homeowner's electrical permit (89.120, 104.1.1). In a condo or a flat, that work goes to a licensed contractor.

#Work done without a permit

Unpermitted work tends to surface at the worst moment: a sale, a complaint, a remodel that opens the wall. Building Code 107A.5 requires a special investigation before DBI issues a permit for work started without one, plus an investigation fee on top of the permit fee, and says the owner bears the cost. If the work predates your ownership and you can document that, the fee can be reduced. The electrical and plumbing codes carry investigation fees of their own.

When you sell, the buyer must receive a 3R report, the Report of Residential Building Record, listing the building's authorized use and building permit history. It leaves out plumbing and electrical permits, so it can look clean while the wiring tells another story. DBI issues it in seven to ten business days. The selling guide covers what else a sale brings up.

Legalizing old work

• An unpermitted kitchen or bath: an over-the-counter permit with plans (DBI).
• Windows installed without a permit: Planning reviews them case by case and may involve its Enforcement Division.
• An unpermitted unit: in-house plan review.
• Wiring or plumbing: a permit from a licensed contractor, or from a single-family owner, plus the investigation fee.