Berrien County, Michigan Building Permit Guide

Berrien County does not issue building permits. The state’s Statewide Jurisdiction List marks it “no county program”, and every one of its 8 cities, 9 villages and 22 townships either enforces the state construction code itself or, for some trades, leaves enforcement to the state Bureau of Construction Codes. Twenty-five units handle all four trades locally; in the other 14, the state issues and inspects at least one trade, most often plumbing. The county’s role is in the permits around the building permit: soil erosion through the Drain Commissioner, driveways on county roads, and well and septic permits from the Berrien County Health Department.

What requires a building permit in Berrien County?

The same state construction code applies in every Berrien County community, so the work that needs a permit is set by that code and by each local unit’s own ordinances, not by the county. What changes from one community to the next is the office that takes the application, its fee schedule and whether a trade permit comes from the local unit or from the state.

What the county decides and what the state holds

Because the county runs no code program, it has no building fee schedule and no building inspectors. Each local unit decides whether to enforce each of the four codes; where it does not, the state enforces that trade. Zoning is also local: Michigan townships, villages and cities zone their own land, and a county zones only townships that have no zoning ordinance of their own.

Berrien County building department: who handles permitting

The table follows the state’s Statewide Jurisdiction List (Bureau of Construction Codes, revised November 6, 2026). “Local” means the city, village or township’s own program; “State” means the Bureau of Construction Codes issues the permit and inspects.

The Census Bureau’s 2025 estimate puts 152,444 people in the county; the largest units are Lincoln Charter Township (14,814), Niles Charter Township (14,304), Benton Charter Township (14,228) and the City of Niles (11,665).

A village sits inside a township, and the two can split the work. Lincoln Charter Township, for example, says it administers all building and trade permits for the Village of Stevensville except sign and fence permits, even though the state lists the village as its own enforcing unit. City and township of the same name are different governments: the City of Niles and Niles Charter Township, or the City of Benton Harbor and Benton Charter Township, each have their own office.

Berrien County permit types and local offices

Each local unit publishes its own forms. Four of the larger units show how differently they work; Niles Charter Township, the second largest, runs its own program too.

Residential permits

• Lincoln Charter Township (14,814 residents). The Department of Building Safety at 2055 W. John Beers Road, Stevensville (269-287-3548) reviews every plan and issues all four trade permits, including those for most work in Stevensville. Inspections are booked by phone only.
• Benton Charter Township (14,228). The Building Department at 1725 Territorial Road, Benton Harbor (269-925-7284) issues building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, water and sewer permits; fences, small sheds and detached decks need only a free zoning compliance permit. A parcel ID starting 11-03 is in the township.
• City of Niles (11,665). The Building Safety Division at 1345 E. Main Street (269-683-2374), part of the city fire department, issues building, electrical and mechanical permits; the city’s fee schedule says plumbing permits are a State of Michigan issue.
• City of St. Joseph (7,893). The Building Inspections department (269-983-5541; Trudy Wilder is the Building Official) requires a permit before any construction, remodeling, mechanical, electrical or plumbing work. It accepts only complete applications with plans, a site plan and the fee, and says complete applications are typically issued within 7 days. Applications go by mail, in person or into a 24/7 drop box at City Hall, and its fee table charges plan review at 65% of the permit fee on improvements over $50,000.

Building or remodeling a home here? Alliance handles residential permit expediting, so the crew isn't waiting on the counter.

Commercial permits

Commercial projects follow the same split, with site plan review by the local planning commission before the building permit. Lincoln’s commercial checklist shows one township’s order: township site plan review, then the Drain Commissioner, the county Road Department, MDOT where a state highway is involved, EGLE for high-risk erosion areas and the Health Department, and only then the building permit. In a unit where the state holds mechanical or plumbing, those permits go to the Bureau of Construction Codes instead of the local counter.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial permit applications through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the building permit

• Soil erosion and drainage. The Berrien County Drain Commissioner reviews site plans for drainage and issues soil and sedimentation permits (269-983-7111 ext. 8267, as listed by Lincoln Township). Benton Township’s application requires the permit before a building permit when soil is disturbed within 500 feet of a lake, river, other water body or waters of the state, including drain districts and storm culverts; the City of Niles’ application has a line for the county drain commission permit number.
• Driveways. New drive cuts on county roads need a permit from the county road agency, which Lincoln’s checklist calls the Berrien County Road Department (269-925-1196) and Benton’s form the Road Commission for Berrien County; Benton requires a copy before it issues a building permit. MDOT issues permits on state trunklines.
• Wells and septic. The Berrien County Health Department (269-926-8129) handles well and septic permits; Benton needs a copy of the well permit to verify potable water before move-in.
• Lakeshore. Lincoln’s checklist lists EGLE application forms for high-risk erosion areas, with an EGLE number of 517-281-2615.
• Zoning. Zoning compliance, site plans and variances come from the local unit.

Berrien County permit costs and fees

There is no county building fee. Each local unit sets its own schedule, and state-held trades are charged on the state’s fees. Three of the largest programs show the range:

• Lincoln Charter Township uses a valuation table effective April 1, 2022: $991 plus $6 per $1,000 between $100,000 and $500,000, so a $250,000 project costs $1,891, plus 65% of the permit fee for plan review on work over $50,000. Its trade permits carry a $75 application fee and a $75 final inspection.
• City of Niles uses a table revised July 14, 2025: $997 plus $6 per $1,000 in the same band, or $1,897 for a $250,000 project, with residential plan review of up to 65% and commercial plan review at 65%.
• Benton Charter Township bases building fees on the 1997 UBC schedule and asks applicants to call for the amount; its trade permits also start at $75 plus a $75 final inspection, and its zoning compliance permit is free.

Soil erosion, road and health department fees are charged separately by those county offices. In units where the state enforces a trade, the state’s permit fee applies to that trade instead of a local one.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Plumbing is the trade the state most often holds in Berrien County: it issues plumbing permits in 14 units, mechanical permits in 10 and electrical permits in 5, and in Weesaw Township and the Village of Galien it also handles building permits. In Weesaw the township keeps electrical while the state handles building, mechanical and plumbing.

• Where the unit enforces a trade, the permit is filed with its building office and inspected by its inspector; the posted forms in Lincoln, Benton and Niles each carry a homeowner affidavit for work an owner does personally in the home the owner lives in or is about to occupy.
• Where the state enforces a trade, the Bureau of Construction Codes issues the permit and sends its own inspector, so a single house can involve both a local and a state inspection schedule.
• Contractors give their state license numbers on the Lincoln, Benton and Niles forms, and the Lincoln and Benton plumbing forms name the master plumber.

How to get a building permit in Berrien County

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Filing in the wrong place costs time: a Benton Harbor address in Benton Charter Township, a Stevensville address handled by Lincoln Township, or a plumbing permit taken to a city counter when the state holds plumbing. Local units such as Benton require the driveway and soil erosion permits before they issue a building permit, so county approvals should be started first. Some offices also refuse incomplete packages outright: St. Joseph accepts an application only with accurately drawn plans, a site plan and the fee.

Inspections in Berrien County

Inspections are booked with whichever office issued each permit. In Lincoln Charter Township building inspections are requested by phone at least 24 hours ahead and electrical and mechanical inspections directly with the trade inspector; Benton requires the permit holder to call 24 hours ahead; Niles takes building inspection requests at 269-683-2374 ext. 5050 with 24 hours’ notice. State-held trades are inspected by the state. Certificates of occupancy come from whichever office enforces the building code: the local unit, or the state in Weesaw Township and the Village of Galien.

Michigan building code in Berrien County

No Michigan county joins the National Flood Insurance Program itself; each township, village and city participates on its own. FEMA’s Community Status Book lists, among others, Benton Charter Township and Lincoln Charter Township with maps effective April 25, 2024, and the City of Niles and Niles Charter Township with maps dated April 17, 2006. Lakeshore projects may also need EGLE review in high-risk erosion areas, as Lincoln’s checklist notes.

Michigan enforces one statewide construction code under the Stille-DeRossett-Hale Single State Construction Code Act (1972 PA 230); local units cannot amend it, and enforcement sits with the city, village or township, a county program or the state Bureau of Construction Codes, sometimes split by trade. Michigan rules

Berrien County permit search and official resources

Permit records are kept by the office that issued them. Ask the city, village or township for local permits under the Freedom of Information Act, and the state Bureau of Construction Codes for permits it issued. Benton Charter Township links a parcel search by name, address or parcel ID from its building page. Each office has its own records route: Lincoln takes FOIA requests by email to its clerk and deputy clerk, Niles through the City Clerk on its general records form, and Benton on a FOIA form returned to its Building Department.

• Michigan Statewide Jurisdiction List (Bureau of Construction Codes)
• Lincoln Charter Township Building Safety
• Lincoln Charter Township building forms (Stevensville arrangement)
• Lincoln residential construction checklist (county contacts)
• Lincoln commercial construction checklist
• Benton Charter Township Building Department
• Benton building permit application (county permits required first)
• City of Niles Building Safety Division
• City of Niles general fee schedule (plumbing by the state)
• City of Niles building permit application
• City of St. Joseph building permit information
• City of St. Joseph building permit fee schedule
• FEMA Community Status Book, Michigan

Berrien County building permit FAQs

Does Berrien County issue building permits?

No. The state lists Berrien County as having no county program; permits come from each city, village or township, or from the state where it enforces a trade.

Who issues plumbing permits in Berrien County?

The local unit in 25 communities and the State of Michigan in the other 14, including the cities of Niles, Watervliet, Benton Harbor, Bridgman and Buchanan.

Where does the state issue building permits in Berrien County?

In Weesaw Township and the Village of Galien, according to the state’s jurisdiction list.

Who issues soil erosion permits?

The Berrien County Drain Commissioner, which also reviews site plans for drainage; Benton Township requires the permit for soil work within 500 feet of water.

Who issues well and septic permits?

The Berrien County Health Department.

Who handles permits in Stevensville?

Lincoln Charter Township administers building and trade permits for the village, except sign and fence permits, which the village issues.

Is Niles city the same as Niles Township?

No. The City of Niles enforces building, electrical and mechanical with the state handling plumbing, while Niles Charter Township enforces all four codes itself.

Simplify Berrien County permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Michigan. We prepare your paperwork, file it correctly and coordinate with the permitting authority through issuance. We are not a contractor and we do not perform licensed plan review or inspections; that work stays with your licensed team and the jurisdiction.

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