Building permits in unincorporated Mohave County are issued by the Development Services Building Division, whose code regulates the use, occupancy, location and quality of material used in construction. Mohave is one of the largest counties in the country and runs its permitting from four locations.
This guide covers what requires a permit in unincorporated Mohave County, the twenty eighteen codes it enforces, the one hundred eighty day permit rule and the mechanism that keeps resetting it, how inspections are actually scheduled and what the county will not commit to, and the shed exemption that is larger here than almost anywhere in the state.
This guide covers unincorporated Mohave County. Lake Havasu City, Kingman, Bullhead City and Colorado City are separate.
Every passed inspection restarts the one hundred eighty day clock. A permit becomes invalid unless work commences within one hundred and eighty days of issuance, or if work is suspended or abandoned for one hundred and eighty days after commencing — but the county states that the date restarts with every passed inspection, or if an extension is requested before the deadline. Extensions and reinstatements must be requested by email. A permit only expires here if nobody was watching.
What requires a permit in Mohave County?
The Mohave County Development Services Building Division provides plan review and inspection services to builders, developers and homeowners doing construction within the lawfully designated, unincorporated areas of Mohave County. The Mohave County Building Code regulates the use, occupancy, location and quality of material used in construction, with the stated purpose of safeguarding life, limb, health, property and the public welfare.
The division enforces the twenty eighteen International Building Codes — building, residential, plumbing, mechanical and the rest of the family — together with the twenty seventeen National Electrical Code. The county points customers to the code body's website or the local county library reference section to review the books themselves, since it does not host the copyrighted text.
Mohave County is enormous, and the department's geography reflects that. Alongside the county seat at Kingman, planning and permitting functions operate from offices at Bullhead, Lake Havasu and the far north-western corner at Littlefield. Which office you deal with follows the parcel rather than convenience, and in a county this size that is a meaningful practical point rather than an administrative footnote.
The exemption most often relied on here is unusually generous. A freestanding shed with no utilities that does not exceed three hundred square feet does not require a permit — a threshold larger than the two hundred square feet common elsewhere in Arizona. The conditions still bind: freestanding, and no utilities. Run power or water to it and the exemption is gone.
Permit required
- New residential and commercial construction, additions and alterations
- Structural work, relocation and demolition in the unincorporated county
- Freestanding structures above the published square-footage threshold
- Any structure carrying utilities, regardless of size
- Manufactured home installation and set-up
- Septic and on-site wastewater systems
- Solar photovoltaic systems and battery storage
- Electrical, plumbing, gas and mechanical work
Typically exempt
- Freestanding sheds with no utilities within the published square-footage limit
- Purely cosmetic finish work that alters no regulated system
- Like-for-like minor repairs not affecting structure or a system
- Other work listed on the county's published exemption page
Mohave County building department: who handles permitting
Applications and permit records run through the county's electronic record centre and online permitting portal. The county publishes a step-by-step guide to logging in and requesting inspections, which is worth reading once: you can search by permit number, open the permit, scroll to inspections and request from there, or use the request button directly.
The scheduling system will offer you a time, and the county will not honour it. The county states plainly that the system defaults to the next business day for an inspection and that this can be changed — but that it does not take requests for a specific time, even though the system displays that option. What it does accept is comments, so use the comment field for access instructions rather than trying to pin a time.
Inspectors are normally in the field between the early morning and mid-afternoon, and the county warns that times are not guaranteed because each inspection takes a different amount of time and travel between inspections varies — which in Mohave County can mean a great deal. You do not normally have to be present, but your permit package and plans must be on site in an obvious place for the inspection to be signed off. Corrections appear in the online portal against the permit, and physical correction notes are still printed and stapled to the permit on site.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Authority | Building Division, Development Services, unincorporated Mohave County |
| Mailing address | P.O. Box 7000, Kingman, Arizona 86402-7000 |
| Offices | Kingman, plus planning and permitting at Bullhead, Lake Havasu and Littlefield |
| Adopted codes | The twenty eighteen International Codes with the twenty seventeen NEC |
| Portal | Electronic record centre and online permitting portal |
| Permit validity | One hundred eighty days, restarting on every passed inspection |
| Extensions | Requested by email, before the one hundred and eightieth day |
| Inspector hours | Normally early morning to mid-afternoon; times not guaranteed |
| Time requests | Not accepted, even though the system displays the option |
| Payments | Cash, cheque, cashier's cheque or money order; cards accepted with transaction fees |
Keep the permit and plans somewhere obvious on site. Mohave County does not require you to be present for an inspection, which is a real convenience on a remote parcel — but it makes the paperwork on site load-bearing. The county states that your permit package and plans must be on site in an obvious place for the inspection to be signed off. An inspector who drives an hour to a parcel and cannot find the documents has made the trip for nothing, and so have you.
Mohave County permits the unincorporated county only. Lake Havasu City, Kingman, Bullhead City and Colorado City each run their own building departments. Lake Havasu City in particular has requirements the county does not — including a city contractor registration on top of the state licence — so a contractor moving between the city and the surrounding county is dealing with two genuinely different regimes. The county health department also feeds approvals into city permits, which adds to the confusion.
Mohave County permits: record types and what each covers
The record catalog here is straightforward, and the county's published portal guide is the fastest route into it — particularly for the inspection request flow, which is not obvious on first use.
Residential permit types
| Permit type | What triggers it | Review path | Fee basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| New construction | New dwellings, additions, and accessory structures above the local size threshold | Plan review against the jurisdiction's adopted residential code and local amendments, plus zoning and setbacks | Valuation-based |
| Addition | Added conditioned or unconditioned space attached to an existing dwelling | Structural and energy review; most of Arizona sits in a hot-dry climate zone, so envelope and equipment sizing draw attention | Valuation-based |
| Renovation / alteration | Structural changes, layout changes, or added plumbing, mechanical, or electrical | Plan review scaled to scope; a change that alters egress, structure, or a system is reviewed even where the footprint does not move | Valuation-based |
| Reroof | Roof covering replacement, recover, and structural deck repair | Deck and dry-in inspection; plan review rarely required, but a change of assembly type can trigger a structural check | Valuation or squares |
| Solar photovoltaic | Rooftop or ground-mount arrays, with or without battery storage | Single local review covering both the structural attachment and the electrical scope; there is no separate state electrical record in Arizona | Flat or system-size based |
| Battery energy storage | Wall or floor-mounted storage added to a dwelling | Electrical review plus fire separation, ventilation, and location check | Flat or per-permit minimum |
| Electrical | Service changes, panel upgrades, new circuits, EV chargers, meter sets, and rewiring | Local trade review and local inspection against the National Electrical Code edition the jurisdiction has adopted | Per-permit or per-device |
| Plumbing | New piping, repipes, fixtures, gas piping, and water heater replacement | Local trade review; performed by a contractor holding the matching Registrar of Contractors specialty classification | Per-permit minimum or per-fixture |
| Mechanical / HVAC | Changeouts, new ductwork, and refrigeration | Local trade review; changeout volume is heavy in Arizona given summer design temperatures | Per-permit minimum or per-unit |
| Patio cover and shade structure | Attached and detached covers, ramadas, and carports | Structural review for wind uplift and attachment, plus zoning for setbacks and lot coverage | Valuation or flat |
| Swimming pool | In-ground and above-ground pools and spas | Barrier, bonding, and electrical review; Arizona sets a statewide minimum pool barrier standard that applies on top of local rules | Valuation or flat |
| Manufactured home set-up | Placing or re-siting a manufactured or modular home | State plan approval through the Arizona Department of Housing, with local zoning, floodplain, foundation, and utility connection review | Flat or per-unit |
| Demolition | Full or partial demolition of a dwelling or accessory structure | Utility disconnect confirmation, dust control where earthmoving is involved, and site restoration check | Flat |
| Permit extension | Any permit approaching its one hundred and eightieth day | Requested by email before the deadline; cheaper than reinstatement | Per the county's permit and service fee schedule |
| Physical address verification | Rural parcels needing an address established or confirmed | Requested through the county's published process | Per the county's permit and service fee schedule |
Commercial permit types
| Permit type | What triggers it | Review path | Fee basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| New commercial construction | Ground-up commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings | Concurrent review against the jurisdiction's adopted building code and amendments, plus fire and zoning | Valuation-based |
| Tenant improvement / upfit | Interior fit-out of an existing tenant space | Building, trade, and life-safety review; accessibility attaches on change of use | Valuation-based |
| Change of occupancy | Converting a building or space to a different use group | Occupancy classification, egress, and accessibility review | Valuation or flat |
| Commercial electrical | Service, distribution, and branch circuit work | Local trade review and local inspection; Arizona has no central state electrical permit for either residential or commercial work | Per-permit or valuation |
| Commercial plumbing | Process piping, fixtures, backflow, and grease waste | Local trade review; backflow and grease interceptor sign-off where applicable | Per-fixture or valuation |
| Commercial mechanical | Rooftop units, kitchen exhaust and hood systems, and refrigeration | Local trade review; hood and suppression systems draw fire review alongside mechanical | Per-unit or valuation |
| Commercial reroof | Roof covering replacement on a commercial structure | Deck, dry-in, and attachment inspection | Valuation or squares |
| Signage | Wall, ground, and illuminated signs | Zoning review for size and placement, plus electrical where illuminated | Flat or per-sign |
| Grading and drainage | Clearing, grading, and site work that alters drainage | Civil review of grading and drainage, separate from the building permit; monsoon-season flows drive the design | Acreage or valuation |
| Dust control permit | Earthmoving, trenching, and construction dust on a qualifying site | County air quality department, not the building department; required in the fine-particulate nonattainment areas | County air quality fee schedule |
| Commercial demolition | Full or partial demolition of a commercial structure | Utility disconnect, asbestos notification, dust control, and site restoration | Flat or valuation |
| Permit reinstatement | Permits that have already lapsed past the deadline | Requested by email; avoidable by extending in time | Per the county's permit and service fee schedule |
| Appeal to the advisory board | Disputes on alternative materials or code interpretation | Heard by the county's Building Code Advisory Board | Per the county's published process |
Residential
- Building and trade permits are issued and inspected by the same local authority
- There is no separate state electrical permit — electrical is a local record
- A Registrar of Contractors licence is required whenever a permit is required, at any job value
- Properties on septic need on-site wastewater approval before ground is broken
Commercial — multi-discipline
- Concurrent review across building, trades, fire, and zoning
- Signed and sealed plans across every affected discipline
- The licensee's classification must match the actual scope of work
- Accessibility and life-safety review attach to any change of occupancy
Records you will actually see in Mohave
| Record | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Building permit | Construction, alteration and demolition in the unincorporated county |
| Trade permit | Electrical, plumbing, gas and mechanical by the ROC-licensed contractor |
| Manufactured home permit | Installation and set-up on a private parcel or in a park |
| Septic permit | On-site wastewater on parcels without a public sewer connection |
| Solar photovoltaic permit | Arrays, inverters and battery storage |
| Physical address verification | Requested where a parcel needs an address established |
| Permit extension | Requested by email before the one hundred and eightieth day |
| Permit reinstatement | Requested by email where a permit has already lapsed |
| Appeal to the advisory board | Through the county's Building Code Advisory Board |
Solar permits in Mohave
Solar is reviewed on two tracks in Arizona, but unlike some neighbouring states both tracks belong to the same government. The structural side — attachment detail, rail spacing, and whether the existing framing carries the added dead load — and the electrical side — conductors, overcurrent protection, rapid shutdown, labelling, and the service or supply-side connection — are both permitted and inspected by the local Authority Having Jurisdiction. There is no state electrical record to buy alongside the local one, and no state inspector to book.
Solar in unincorporated Mohave County is permitted and inspected by the Building Division under the twenty eighteen codes and the twenty seventeen National Electrical Code. That electrical edition is several behind the Phoenix-area cities, so a design imported from the Valley may cite provisions the county has not adopted — check before finalising conductor sizing, labelling and rapid shutdown detail. The practical point on a remote array is the documentation: you need not attend the inspection, but the permit package and plans must be on site in an obvious place for it to be signed off.
What varies instead is the code edition. Because each Arizona city, town and county adopts its own editions on its own timetable, the National Electrical Code edition your array is judged against in one jurisdiction may not be the one enforced a few miles away. The Office of the State Fire Marshal sets a minimum electrical standard for the state, but the edition actually enforced is the local one. Confirm it with the jurisdiction before the design is finalised rather than after a correction notice.
Interconnection runs on a third clock and is not something the building department controls. Arizona properties are served by utilities including Arizona Public Service, Salt River Project, Tucson Electric Power and UniSource, alongside municipal utilities and irrigation districts, and each sets its own application, meter and witness-test sequence. Permission to operate follows the utility's process on the utility's schedule, so plan for the tracks to finish at different times.
Roofing permits in Mohave
A roof covering replacement needs a permit in most Arizona jurisdictions, and the assumption that a like-for-like replacement is exempt travels badly here. The permit is usually quick, but the inspection that matters happens before the covering goes on rather than after.
Arizona operates no statewide product-approval database, so there is no approval number to search for or cite on the application. The assembly has to comply with the edition of the code the jurisdiction has adopted and with the manufacturer's listed installation instructions, and that pairing is what the inspector checks — which makes the manufacturer's instructions a document worth having on site.
Reroofing is permitted work and follows the ordinary sequence with the deck and dry-in inspected before the covering goes on. Two Mohave specifics apply. Inspectors work a field day from early morning to mid-afternoon with times not guaranteed, and the county does not accept requests for a particular time even though the system offers one — so plan for a window. And every passed inspection restarts the permit's one hundred eighty day clock, which on a phased roof project is how you keep the permit alive.
Two Arizona-specific pressures shape the work. Sustained summer heat and ultraviolet exposure age a covering faster than the same assembly would age in a milder climate, and monsoon-season wind and driven rain test the fastening and the flashing details rather than the field of the roof. Sequencing is where reroofs go wrong regardless: the deck and dry-in condition has to be visible when the inspector arrives, so covering it first means opening it back up.
Mohave County permit cost
Permit fees vary by project and are assessed under the county's permit and service fee schedule. The county accepts a wide range of payment methods — cash, cheque, cashier's cheque and money order — and has added credit cards, with transaction fees applying.
The cost most easily avoided here is the one attached to letting a permit lapse. Because the one hundred eighty day clock restarts on every passed inspection and an extension can be requested by email before the deadline, a permit only expires in Mohave County if nobody was watching. Reinstatement is possible but it is work that need not have happened.
| Fee component | How it works |
|---|---|
| Building permit fee | Varies by project, under the county's permit and service fee schedule |
| Plan review | Assessed alongside the building permit |
| Trade permits | Electrical, plumbing, gas and mechanical charged per discipline |
| Septic and wastewater | Assessed separately |
| Extension or reinstatement | Requested by email; free of the cost of a lapse if done in time |
| Card payments | Accepted, with transaction fees applying |
| Other payment methods | Cash, cheque, cashier's cheque or money order |
Want a precise number for a specific Mohave project? Send us the scope and we will price the permit path before you file.
Mohave County trade permits
The trades are permitted and inspected by the Building Division under the twenty eighteen codes and the twenty seventeen National Electrical Code. Arizona has no state electrical permit, so nothing is filed with the state alongside.
Electrical permits
Required for service work, panel changes, photovoltaic systems, electric vehicle chargers and most wiring alterations. Mohave County is on the twenty seventeen National Electrical Code — several editions behind the Phoenix-area cities — so a design carried in from the Valley may cite provisions the county has not adopted.
Plumbing permits
Required for new piping, repipes, fixtures and water heaters. On rural parcels the plumbing scope connects to an on-site wastewater system, and the county health department's role in wastewater approvals reaches into city permitting as well as the county's own.
Mechanical permits
Required for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning installations, changeouts, ductwork and refrigeration. The county spans the low Colorado River corridor and higher ground inland, so design conditions vary more within this county than the river-town reputation suggests.
Manufactured housing
A major category in Mohave County. Installation and set-up are permitted work, reviewed against the state manufactured housing installation standards as well as the county code. On a relocated home the compliance question attaches to the home itself as well as the site.
Mohave County permit application: how to apply step by step
Here is how to get a building permit in Mohave County, from confirming the requirement through to close-out. Each step below corresponds to a real decision point where projects commonly stall.
Lake Havasu City, Kingman, Bullhead City and Colorado City permit their own work under their own rules, and Lake Havasu City's are materially different from the county's. Settle this from the parcel.
The county operates from Kingman plus offices at Bullhead, Lake Havasu and Littlefield. In a county this large the office follows the parcel, not your convenience.
The county publishes its adopted list and directs you to the code body or a library for the books themselves. Do not import a Valley design drawn to newer editions without checking.
The county publishes a log-in and inspection-steps guide. The inspection request flow in particular is worth learning before you need it rather than during.
The one hundred eighty day clock restarts on every passed inspection, or on an extension requested by email before the deadline. A permit only expires here if nobody was watching.
You do not have to attend the inspection, but the permit package and plans must be on site in an obvious place for it to be signed off. Use the comment field for access instructions.
Inspections in Mohave County
Inspections are requested through the portal, either from the request button or by searching the permit number, opening the permit and scrolling to the inspections section. The system defaults to the next business day and that can be changed, but the county does not accept requests for a particular time even though the interface offers one.
Inspectors work a field day running from early morning into mid-afternoon, with the county warning that times are not guaranteed because inspections vary in length and travel between them varies — which in a county of this size can dominate a day. Plan for a window rather than an appointment, and make access straightforward.
Corrections are handled in two places at once. They appear in the online portal against the permit — find the inspection and the correction note is attached — and physical correction notes are still printed and stapled to the permit on site. If you are managing a job remotely, the portal is your copy; if you are on site, check the permit itself.
Close-out follows the ordinary sequence to the occupancy certificate once every required inspection has passed. Because every passed inspection also restarts the permit's one hundred eighty day clock, a steady inspection rhythm is both how the work gets approved and how the permit stays valid.
Mohave County permit search and official resources
These are the primary Mohave County and Arizona sources behind this guide. Adopted editions and fee schedules change on Board action, so confirm against these pages before you file.
- Mohave County Development Services
- Mohave County Building Division
- Mohave County Building Division frequently asked questions
- Mohave County permitting
- Mohave County permits
- Arizona Registrar of Contractors
- Arizona Department of Water Resources
Frequently asked questions
Which codes does Mohave County enforce?
The Building Division currently uses the twenty eighteen International Building Codes — building, residential, plumbing, mechanical and the rest of the family — together with the twenty seventeen National Electrical Code. The county directs customers to the code body's website or a local library to review the books themselves.
How long is my permit valid?
Under the county's building code ordinance as amended, a permit becomes invalid unless the work is commenced within one hundred and eighty days of issuance, or if the work is suspended or abandoned for one hundred and eighty days after commencing. Crucially, the date restarts with every passed inspection, or if an extension is requested before the one hundred and eightieth day.
How do I extend or reinstate a permit?
By email to the Building Division. The county requires extension and reinstatement requests in email form. Doing it before the deadline is considerably simpler than reinstating afterwards, and it costs nothing to ask early.
Do I need a permit for a shed?
Not if it is freestanding, carries no utilities and does not exceed three hundred square feet. That threshold is larger than the two hundred square feet common elsewhere in Arizona. But run electricity or water to it and the exemption falls away, whatever its size.
Can I request a specific inspection time?
No. The county states that it does not take requests for a time even though the scheduling system displays that option. The system defaults to the next business day and you can change the date, but not the hour. Use the comments field for access instructions instead.
Do I have to be there for the inspection?
Normally no — but your permit package and plans must be on site in an obvious place for the inspection to be signed off. On a remote parcel that is the single most important preparation, because an inspector who cannot find the documents has made a long trip for nothing.
When will the inspector arrive?
Inspectors are normally in the field between early morning and mid-afternoon, and the county warns that times are not guaranteed: each inspection takes a different amount of time and travel between inspections varies. In a county this large, plan for a window rather than an appointment.
Where do I find my correction notes?
In two places. They appear in the online portal against your permit — find the inspection and the correction note is attached — and physical correction notes are still printed and stapled to the permit on site.
How can I pay?
Development Services accepts cash, cheque, cashier's cheque and money order, and credit cards are now accepted with transaction fees applying. That range of options reflects a rural county where not every applicant is filing from an office.
Does the county permit inside Lake Havasu City or Kingman?
No. Lake Havasu City, Kingman, Bullhead City and Colorado City each run their own building departments. Lake Havasu City in particular has requirements the county does not, including a city contractor registration on top of the state licence, so moving between the city and the surrounding county means two different regimes.
Do the state accessory dwelling unit rules apply here?
No. Arizona's twenty twenty-four accessory dwelling unit statute sits in the state's cities and towns title and binds municipalities above a population threshold. It does not reach counties. Accessory dwelling units in unincorporated Mohave County are governed by the county's own zoning provisions.
Where is the county's building office?
The county seat is Kingman, with the mailing address there, and planning and permitting functions also operate from offices at Bullhead, Lake Havasu and Littlefield in the far north-west. Which office handles your file follows the parcel.
Simplify Mohave County permitting with Alliance Permitting
Mohave County is a large, rural jurisdiction with generous exemptions, older code editions and a permit clock that is easy to keep alive if you know how it works. The failures here are almost all administrative rather than technical. Alliance Permitting prepares, files and tracks Mohave County permits through issuance.
Trusted by leading builders, developers, and national contractors — 21 years of filing in the jurisdictions we write about.
Contractors and builders choose Alliance for Mohave because the work is done by people who have stood at the counter:
- We keep the one hundred eighty day clock alive through inspections and timely email extensions.
- We design to the county's actual adopted editions, which sit behind the Valley cities.
- We make sure the permit package and plans are on site and findable before an inspector travels.
- We route the file to the office that covers the parcel rather than the nearest one.
Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and expediting service in Arizona. We are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice, and we are not the permitting authority.
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More Arizona permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Mohave County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.