Iowa Building Permit Guides

Iowa splits its building code into a part that applies everywhere and a part that does not. The State of Iowa Building Code sits at 481 Iowa Administrative Code chapters 300 and 301. It is adopted under Iowa Code chapter 103A by the state building code commissioner and run by the Building Code Bureau in the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL). Under chapter 103A a city or county can adopt the state code, adopt a different code, or adopt no building code at all; the exception is a city of more than 15,000 people, which must enforce the state code if it has not adopted a code based on a national model code. Some parts apply statewide regardless: the energy conservation rules in 481 IAC chapter 301, Part 3, and the accessibility rules in Part 2. The state fire code and the state plumbing, mechanical and electrical codes also apply statewide, each under its own rules and authority.

Where a city or county has adopted a building code, its own ordinance sets which work needs a permit. A jurisdiction with its own code can amend it; one that has adopted the state code cannot make it stricter. Under the model codes most Iowa cities adopt, building, altering, moving, demolishing or changing the use of a building needs a permit, while ordinary repairs do not. The statewide rules apply either way: an application for a building permit, other than one to renovate or remodel a residential building of one or two units, must include a statement that the construction will comply with all applicable energy conservation requirements.

Establishing what applies to the site

The first step on an Iowa project is finding out whether the jurisdiction has adopted a building code and, if so, which. A city or county that has adopted the state code enforces it locally; one that has adopted a different code enforces that. One that has adopted nothing has no general building permit, but the statewide energy, accessibility, fire, plumbing, mechanical and electrical rules still apply: the state inspects electrical work there, and DIAL enforces the state fire code. State-owned and state-funded buildings, and some facility types such as assisted living and health care, still go to the state Building Code Bureau for plan review. Ask the jurisdiction rather than assume from its size; the only size rule is that a city of more than 15,000 people must enforce at least the state code.

Iowa registers contractors with the Department of Inspections, Appeals, and Licensing (DIAL) and licenses the trades separately at state level. Electricians are licensed through the Electrical Examining Board, and plumbers and mechanical and HVAC contractors through the Plumbing and Mechanical Systems Board; each licence is valid across the state. A contractor earning $2,000 or more a year from construction in Iowa registers with DIAL, and an out-of-state contractor must also file a $25,000 surety bond. A permit cannot be issued to a contractor who needs state registration and does not have it. A city or county cannot add its own plumbing, mechanical or electrical licence on top of the state one, though it may ask for a copy of the state licence; some cities also register general contractors locally, so check before a permit is pulled.

Trade work is permitted separately under state codes that apply across Iowa. A city or county that inspects trade work can add local amendments; where no local electrical inspection exists, DIAL issues the electrical permit and inspects.