Corinth, Mississippi Building Permit Guide

In Corinth, the City’s Department of Community Development and Planning issues building permits for work inside the city limits, and licensed electricians and plumbers pull their own permits for their part of the job. Applications are paper forms from the City’s Permits page, a residential application takes about 1–2 days to review, and the City enforces the 2018 International codes with the 2011 National Electrical Code.

What needs a permit in Corinth?

The City asks anyone planning construction or remodeling to check with the building inspector first, because work started without a permit can bring penalties or an order to remove what has been built. Its permit forms and codes cover:

Exterior work in a historic district or on a designated landmark also needs a Certificate of Appropriateness, and rezonings, planned unit developments, special exceptions, variances and subdivisions have their own City applications.

Who issues building permits in Corinth?

The Department of Community Development and Planning handles building permits, inspections, zoning and the City’s land development code. Greg Tyson is the Building Official and Director of Community Development and Planning. Under the City’s flood ordinance the same director is the floodplain administrator, so floodplain development permits come from this office too.

The City permits only property inside its corporate limits: the 2022 Land Development Code governs land “within the corporate limits of the City of Corinth.” Land outside the city is unincorporated Alcorn County.

Corinth applications for houses and commercial projects

Houses. Fill in both sides of the Residential Building Application, add a site layout for new construction or an addition showing the lot dimensions and the distances from the work to the property lines, and attach plans with dimensions. Return the package to Community Development and Planning. The City reviews it, usually within 1–2 days, and either approves it or explains why it cannot be approved. The permit is issued once the fee is paid.

Commercial and industrial buildings. Section 7-21.2 of the City Code sets a two-stage process. First submit an original and five copies of a site map (lot sketch, building location, adjoining streets, address or short description, owner, title, north arrow and date) with the City’s commercial/industrial customer questionnaire package and the Alcorn County Electric Power Association (ACE Power) service questionnaire. Within 10 working days the City says in writing whether a dirt work permit will be issued. You then have 60 calendar days to submit plans prepared by a licensed engineer or architect, or the application is void; the City answers on the building permit within another 10 working days.

Corinth permit fees

The building permit fee is worked out from the information on the application: the building valuation (the cost of all construction or remodeling), the electrical amperage, plumbing fixtures, sewer and water connections, mechanical equipment and gas appliances. The City’s Permits page does not post the building valuation rate, so ask Community Development and Planning for the figure before you apply. The fee sheet it links, titled “Permit Fee Changes,” sets the trade fees:

For example, the electrical permit for a new house with a 400-amp service is $100, and a bathroom with a toilet, lavatory and tub adds $30 in plumbing fees. The sheet also lists $100 application fees for PUDs, rezonings, special exceptions and subdivisions, labelled as proposed. The electrical fee table still printed in Section 10-117 of the City Code dates from 1987 and is lower than the fee sheet.

Contractor licences are separate annual City fees under Section 7-23: $50 for a general contractor and $30 for a residential builder or remodeler.

Electrical, plumbing and gas work in Corinth

When a job includes electrical or plumbing work, the licensed electrician or plumber must be listed on the building application and must pull a separate permit before starting. The City adds its own local requirements:

• Electricians file a $1,000 surety bond with the City, and their qualifications are tested and approved by the City’s electricians review board before a permit is issued to them. Aluminum wiring and conductors smaller than #12 AWG are not allowed under the City’s amendments to the 2011 National Electrical Code.
• Plumbers apply to the city clerk, pass an examination given by the building inspector and post a $1,000 bond. The plumbing amendments require UL-approved materials and do not allow sanitary crosses or double Ys installed on their backs.
• Gas installers need a City privilege licence, a $15,000 bond and an examination by the Corinth Utilities Commission. Corinth Gas & Water inspects all natural gas installations and requires the installing contractor to get its permit before laying gas service lines.
• General contractors, residential builders and remodelers need a City licence with a $10,000 bond. Holders of a valid state licence skip the City test and fee but still file the bond.

What to submit with a Corinth application

Section 7-21.3 of the City Code requires soil tests or engineered foundations on all new construction. For houses, Section 7-21.4 allows the City’s alternative footing table when a licensed engineer’s soil test shows at least 2,000 pounds per square foot; below 1,500 psf an engineered foundation is required.

How to get a Corinth building permit: 6 steps

Inspections and appeals in Corinth

The building inspector works from Community Development and Planning (662-287-2401) and inspects the work under each permit; an electrical inspection before power is reconnected costs $25. In a flood hazard area, the permit holder must submit a surveyor’s or engineer’s certification of the lowest floor elevation as soon as the floor is set and before framing continues, and a final FEMA elevation certificate when the building is finished; the application form makes the elevation certificate a condition of occupying new buildings and additions in the floodplain.

The City has made its Board of Adjustment the board of appeals for the building, residential, mechanical and plumbing codes.

Local rules that matter in Corinth

Flood zone: Chapter 12 of the City Code requires the lowest floor of new and substantially improved houses and other buildings to be at least 18 inches above the base flood elevation, with heating, cooling, electrical and plumbing equipment also 18 inches above it. Non-residential buildings may instead be floodproofed to 18 inches above the base flood elevation where flood velocities are 5 feet per second or less. A floodplain development permit is needed before any building, filling or grading in the flood hazard area, and no residence, building or facility can get one until the owner has a notice of intent from the Mississippi State Department of Health for a septic system or proof of compliance from the sewer and water district. The City’s older building application still says only “at or above” the base flood elevation; the ordinance’s 18-inch rule is the one in force.

Historic districts and landmarks: exterior changes to a designated landmark, demolition or moving of a building in a historic district, and signs in a historic district need a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Corinth Preservation Commission.

Downtown Residential Overlay District: alterations and additions need the Building Official’s approval against the district’s design standards, and new construction or a front façade renovation needs the Design Review Board, which meets within 30 days of a complete application.

Site plans and landscaping: the Site Plan Review Committee has up to 45 calendar days to act on a complete site plan. When an exterior renovation adds less than 30% to a building, 5% of the permitted cost of projects valued at $10,000 or more must go to landscaping that meets the code.

Code editions: the City’s Compliance page still mentions the 2006 International Building and Residential Codes, but the City Code adopts the 2018 editions of the building, residential, existing building, mechanical, plumbing, fuel gas, swimming pool and fire codes, by ordinance of October 19, 2021, with the 2011 National Electrical Code. The City’s amendment makes fire sprinklers optional in one- and two-family dwellings.

Mississippi building code

Some work is exempt statewide: farm structures once the owner files an affidavit (Mississippi Code §17-2-7), and manufactured housing built to federal standards, certain industrial and utility facilities, buildings on non-public fairgrounds and hunting or fishing camps with an owner’s affidavit (§17-2-9). None of these exemptions reaches floodplain rules. The state minimum codes are the Mississippi Building Code and Mississippi Residential Code, the residential code drawn from the 2021 International Residential Code. How building codes apply in Mississippi

Corinth permit FAQs

Who issues building permits in Corinth?

The City’s Department of Community Development and Planning (662-287-2401), for property inside the city limits. Outside the city, ask Alcorn County.

Which building code does Corinth use?

The 2018 International Building, Residential, Existing Building, Mechanical, Plumbing, Fuel Gas, Swimming Pool and Fire Codes, adopted on October 19, 2021, and the 2011 National Electrical Code.

How much is an electrical permit in Corinth?

For a house, $50 for the first 200 amps plus $50 for each additional 200 amps; for commercial work, $100 for the first 200 amps plus $50 for each additional 200 amps.

How long does a residential permit take?

The City asks applicants to allow 1–2 days for review of a residential application. Commercial projects take longer: up to 10 working days for the dirt work decision and another 10 working days after the sealed plans arrive.

Can I apply online?

No online portal is listed. Download the application from the City’s Permits page and return it to Community Development and Planning.

How high must a new house be built in a Corinth flood zone?

The lowest floor must be at least 18 inches above the base flood elevation, confirmed by elevation certificates during and after construction.

Do contractors need a Corinth licence?

Yes. General contractors, builders and remodelers need a City licence and a $10,000 bond (state licence holders skip the test and fee), electricians and plumbers post $1,000 bonds and are examined locally, and gas installers are examined by the Corinth Utilities Commission.

Official Corinth permit resources

• City of Corinth Permits page (applications)
• Corinth “Permit Fee Changes” sheet
• Corinth Residential Building Application and instructions
• Corinth Commercial Building Application and instructions
• Corinth Floodplain Development Permit application
• Corinth Preservation Commission Certificate of Appropriateness
• City of Corinth Compliance page (building, flood and code contacts)
• Corinth Land Development Code (adopted January 4, 2022)
• Corinth City Code Chapter 7, Buildings (2018 codes, licensing)
• Corinth City Code Chapter 12, Flood Damage Prevention
• Mississippi Insurance Department: Mississippi uniform building codes

Simplify Corinth permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Mississippi. 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 Corinth permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.