Alpharetta, Georgia Building Permit Guide

Alpharetta building permits come from the Inspections and Codes Enforcement Division of Community Development at 2 Park Plaza, which publishes separate written residential and commercial permitting procedures as plain-language compilations of the laws it enforces.

The review clock has a pause in it. Applicants receive notice within 10 working days where more information is needed, and plan review stops until the information is resubmitted — with a letter describing the revisions.

Applies inside the Alpharetta city limits. Roswell, Milton, Johns Creek, and Forsyth County each permit their own work and publish different procedures.

What requires a permit in Alpharetta?

An Alpharetta building permit is required before most construction inside the city limits. Permitting sits in the Community Development Department, through its Inspections and Codes Enforcement Division, which publishes separate written procedures for residential and commercial construction — plain language compilations of the federal, state, county, and city laws it enforces.

Alpharetta moved its submissions. The city no longer uses ePlan Solution; all plans are submitted through the Alpharetta Permitting Portal instead. Permit Technicians are reached on 678-297-6080 or 678-297-6070, or by email at PermitTech@alpharetta.ga.us.

The review clock is stated and it has a stop built into it. Applicants receive notice within 10 working days where additional information is required — and plan review stops until the required information is resubmitted. Resubmittals go back through the portal accompanied by a letter describing the revisions, which is a small discipline that materially shortens the second review.

Georgia moved to the 2024 editions of its State Minimum Standard Codes, with Georgia Amendments, on January 1, 2026. Two things did not move with the rest. The energy code is still the 2015 International Energy Conservation Code with Georgia supplements and amendments, so an envelope or mechanical package built to a newer IECC is being checked against an older one. And the International Existing Building Code (2018) is permissive, not mandatory — it governs your renovation only if that particular city or county adopted it. Two jurisdictions an hour apart can treat the same existing-building alteration under different rulebooks, and neither is doing anything wrong.

Alpharetta building department: who handles permitting

The division works from 2 Park Plaza in Alpharetta, and its published procedures are worth reading before a first project: they are building-official interpreted compilations covering the codes and laws in effect in the city and the policies the city has developed to enforce them.

That energy code detail deserves emphasis because it confirms something people get wrong statewide. Georgia's energy code did not move to a 2024 edition with the rest — it remains the 2015 International Energy Conservation Code with Georgia amendments, which is exactly why Alpharetta specifies REScheck keyed to the 2015 IECC and rejects other versions. The energy code copy itself is not viewable online but is available to view in the city's offices.

Stamped plans are part of the site kit. One set of building plans is submitted through the portal with each residential application, must be reviewed for codes compliance and signature date stamped by building officials before any permit is issued, and those stamped plans must be on site and available to inspectors during all inspections. On the commercial side, a stamped copy marked Reviewed For Codes Compliance is handed back at permit issue and must be on the construction site.

Alpharetta borders Roswell, Milton, Johns Creek, and Forsyth County, and each publishes its own procedures. Work from the city’s own published residential and commercial procedures rather than a summary written for a neighbouring jurisdiction.

In 2025, building permits issued in Alpharetta authorized 340 new privately owned housing units, all of them single-family homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.

Alpharetta permits: record types and what each covers

Alpharetta publishes separate residential and commercial procedures, and the documents each requires differ. These are the records you will file:

Residential permit types

Commercial permit types

Records you will actually see in Alpharetta

Solar permits in Alpharetta

Solar in Alpharetta is an electrical-led record, and the inspection follows the same one-hour rule as everything else: call between 7:30 and 8:30 in the morning for a visit that day. Keep the signature date stamped plans on site — the city requires them available during all inspections.

Roofing permits in Alpharetta

Reroofs inside Alpharetta are city permits. The energy compliance affidavit requirement attaches to building permit applications generally rather than only to new construction, so check whether your scope triggers it before assuming a roofing permit is exempt.

Solar and roofing work are built to the statewide codes, permit rules are set locally, and utilities run interconnection on their own timeline. Georgia rules

Alpharetta permit cost

Alpharetta prices from the city's adopted fee schedule, with trade permits and plan review carried according to the published residential and commercial procedures. Fee questions go to the Permit Technicians directly.

The cost worth planning for is the review stop. Where additional information is required, you get notice within 10 working days and plan review stops until you resubmit — so an incomplete first submittal does not slow the clock, it pauses it. Resubmitting through the portal with a letter describing the revisions is what restarts it cleanly.

Encroachment is the expensive surprise. A survey showing encroachment that has not been approved by governing officials will result in a denial to issue any type of certificate of occupancy until the building official's written authorisation is obtained. Written easement authorisations must be presented at the time of original permit application, not later.

Alpharetta trade permits

Alpharetta's trade rhythm is set by one phone call in the morning and one document in the plan set — the inspection window and the energy affidavit.

Georgia licenses residential contractors through a state board once a job passes $2,500, licenses commercial general contractors at any job value, and licenses electrical, plumbing and conditioned air contractors separately at any job value. Georgia rules

Alpharetta permit application: how to apply step by step

Here is how to get a building permit in Alpharetta, from confirming the requirement through to close-out. Each step below corresponds to a real decision point where projects commonly stall.

Inspections in Alpharetta

Alpharetta runs a same-day inspection service on a one-hour request window. All requests are called in to the City Inspections Division between 7:30 and 8:30am on the same day the inspection is wanted. There is no portal queue substituting for that call, and no later window.

The site kit matters as much as the call. Signature date stamped building plans must be on site and available to inspectors during all inspections, and on commercial work the copy stamped Reviewed For Codes Compliance that is handed back at permit issue must be on the construction site — the city retains the other copy in its permit records.

Keep the stamped plans and the permit on site throughout. A Georgia building permit generally becomes invalid if work does not begin within 180 days of issuance, or if work is suspended or abandoned for 180 days after commencing, under the administrative provisions of the adopted International Building and Residential Codes — local ordinance may set a different period, and extensions are usually available in writing on request.

Georgia law lets an applicant use a private professional provider for plan review, with set deadlines for the building official. Georgia rules

Alpharetta permit search and official resources

Alpharetta publishes its residential and commercial permitting procedures, applications, and forms through Community Development, with the portal handling submissions.

• Alpharetta construction and inspections
• Community Development applications and forms
• Alpharetta open data — residential permits
• DCA — current Georgia State Minimum Standard Codes
• DCA — administration and enforcement of the state minimum codes
• Georgia Secretary of State — verify a contractor licence

Frequently asked questions

Who issues building permits in Alpharetta, GA?

The City of Alpharetta Community Development Department, through its Inspections and Codes Enforcement Division at 2 Park Plaza. The city permits its own construction independently of Fulton County.

How do I schedule an inspection in Alpharetta?

All inspection requests are called in to the City Inspections Division on 678-297-6080 between 7:30 and 8:30am, on the same day the inspection is desired.

Does Alpharetta still use ePlan?

No. The city no longer uses ePlan Solution. All plans must be submitted through the Alpharetta Permitting Portal.

How long does plan review take in Alpharetta?

Where additional information is required to complete the review, applicants receive notice within 10 working days — and plan review stops until the required information is resubmitted. Resubmittals go through the portal with a letter describing the revisions.

What energy documentation does Alpharetta require?

The building division requires every building permit applicant to submit an energy code compliance affidavit or a city-approved software report showing compliance, with all applications for building permits.

Which REScheck version does Alpharetta accept?

Only REScheck keyed to the 2015 energy code is approved for one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses of not more than three storeys. Other REScheck versions and other city or county selections are invalid for Alpharetta.

Why is the energy code still 2015 when everything else moved to 2024?

Because Georgia's energy code did not move with the rest. The state adopted the 2024 editions of the building, residential, plumbing, mechanical, fuel gas, and pool codes effective January 1, 2026, but the energy code remains the 2015 International Energy Conservation Code with Georgia supplements and amendments.

Do basement finishes need to meet the energy code?

If a permit is issued to finish a basement, then only the basement must meet the energy code — the rest of the existing dwelling is not brought into scope by that permit.

What happens if my survey shows an encroachment?

Surveys showing encroachment not approved by governing officials will result in a denial to issue any type of certificate of occupancy, until the building official's written authorisation is obtained.

Do I need permission to build over an easement?

You cannot proceed without first obtaining written authorisation from the holder of that easement, and written authorisations must be presented to city building officials for review at the time of original permit application.

Do stamped plans need to be on site?

Yes. Signature date stamped building plans must be on site and available to inspectors during all inspections. On commercial work, the copy stamped Reviewed For Codes Compliance handed back at permit issue must be on the construction site.

When is a Georgia contractor licence required?

For residential work, once the total value of the work, or the contractor's compensation if higher, exceeds $2,500; commercial general contractors need a licence at any value. Trade licences under Title 43, Chapter 14 are required regardless of job value.

Simplify Alpharetta permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alpharetta publishes detailed residential and commercial procedures, and inspections are normally performed the same day — if you can hit a one-hour phone window and produce the right energy report. The failure modes are specific and repeatable: the wrong REScheck version, a missing affidavit, an easement authorisation produced after application instead of with it, or a nine o’clock call. A permit expediter for Alpharetta clears all four.

Trusted by leading builders, developers, and national contractors — 21+ years of filing in the jurisdictions we write about.

Contractors and builders choose Alliance for Alpharetta because the work is done by people who have stood at the counter:

• Right documents first time — energy affidavit and correctly keyed compliance report with the application, easement authorisations included.
• Review restarted cleanly — resubmittals through the portal with a revisions letter, so the 10-day clock is not spent twice.
• Complete oversight — every Alpharetta permit, trade record, and inspection tracked across your jobs in one place.

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and expediting service. We are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice, and we are not the permitting authority.

This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Alpharetta permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.