Greenville, Mississippi Building Permit Guide

Inside Greenville, permits come from the City’s Planning Department, which collects the fees, issues building and trade permits and schedules inspections. Fees are set in section 2606 of the zoning ordinance: a building permit for a $200,000 job costs $969, and a permit lapses if work has not started within 3 months.

Who issues building permits in Greenville?

The City of Greenville Planning Department, headed by Planning/Zoning Director Carlon Williams, is the permit office for work inside the city limits. It issues building, electrical, plumbing and gas, mechanical, fence and sign permits, schedules inspections and handles zoning. The City’s building inspectors carry out the inspections, and the Planning Director also acts as the floodplain administrator.

Outside the corporate limits, section 2601 of the zoning ordinance makes the Washington County Board of Supervisors responsible for enforcing these codes. The plumbing, mechanical and electrical licensing boards are joint Greenville–Washington County boards.

What needs a permit in Greenville

The zoning ordinance makes it unlawful to start excavation or filling of a lot, construction, reconstruction, renovation or demolition, or to develop land for a use, until the building inspector has issued a permit. The notice on the City’s building application spells out that this includes siding, windows, new roofs (including re-shingling), minor repairs, driveways and parking lots, and that any electrical, gas, mechanical or plumbing installation or replacement needs its own permit.

A fence may not be built on City property, easements or rights of way, and the fence application asks for the MS One Call ticket number.

Greenville permit fees

All building permit fees are based on the total value of the project, using the table in section 2606 of the zoning ordinance (amended October 15, 2013 and June 3, 2014), which matches the City’s “New Permit Fees” sheet effective November 14, 2013. No permit is issued until the fee is paid.

For example, a $200,000 project pays $569 plus 100 × $4, or $969. The bands do not run on from one another (the $100,001–$250,000 band reaches $1,169 at $250,000, while the next band starts at $1,019), so price a project from the band its value falls in. Commercial and industrial plans for projects worth more than $1,000,000 must go to the International Code Council for review before they are submitted to the City; for houses the building inspector decides.

Electrical, plumbing, gas and mechanical work in Greenville

Trade permits are separate from the building permit. Plumbers and mechanical contractors are licensed by the Greenville–Washington County Plumbing and Mechanical Board, and electrical contractors by the Greenville–Washington County Electrical Board, both by written examination. A contractor already licensed by exam in another Mississippi city or county can be licensed without retesting after at least two years in business and one year holding that licence. Electricians with a place of business in the city also need a City privilege licence, and no electrical contractor’s privilege licence is issued or renewed without proof of at least $100,000 of public liability insurance.

The mechanical fee covers new systems, replacements and significant repairs to heating, ventilation, ductwork, air conditioning, refrigeration, fire alarm, extinguishing, sprinkler and exhaust hood systems.

Documents for a Greenville building permit

Every building permit application needs two copies of a plat, dimensioned sketch or scaled plan, signed by the owner or agent, showing the lot, the proposed work and the buildings around it. The Planning Department accepts hand-drawn sketches for new work if they are drawn to scale. The City’s plan set requirements are:

• A plot plan with lot dimensions, the existing building, additions, pools, accessory buildings, fences, driveways, walks and a north arrow
• A foundation plan with footing details and wall sections
• A floor plan with doors, electrical outlets, switches, lights, bathroom fans, a window and door schedule and the total square footage under roof
• Elevations of every side with grade, ceiling height and roof pitch (not needed under 500 sq ft unless the site is in a special flood hazard area)
• A heating and air plan with equipment locations, vent sizes and tonnage

The application lists the general contractor’s Material Purchase Certificate number and the plumbing, electrical and mechanical subcontractors. A demolition permit needs a bond or insurance binder of at least $100,000 per person, $300,000 per accident and $100,000 for property damage.

How to apply in Greenville: 6 steps

Inspections and occupancy in Greenville

All inspections are called in to the Planning Department. A failed inspection, or a scheduled inspection the contractor misses, costs $50 before the next inspection is done. A demolition permit lapses unless work starts within 2 weeks and is valid for 1 month.

Except for residential use, no new or structurally altered building may be occupied until a certificate of occupancy is issued, and one is also needed for any change in the use of a building or land. Before it is issued, the Greenville Fire Department must inspect and approve the premises, the Washington County health department must issue any health permit, and the applicant must hold the privilege licences for the business. The certificate costs $5.

Greenville rules that shape a project

Historic preservation: under Article IX of Chapter 3, no exterior feature of a designated landmark or a resource in a historic district may be altered, relocated or demolished, and no construction affecting it may start, until the Historic Preservation Commission approves a Certificate of Appropriateness. The building official issues no building permit for such work without the certificate, and it is required even where no building permit is needed. Ordinary maintenance and repair is exempt. Applications must reach the Clerk’s office at least 10 days before the meeting; the Commission meets on the second Tuesday of each month, and its approvals are valid for six months.

Flood zones: Greenville rewrote its flood damage prevention rules in Ordinance 24-006, adopted August 6, 2024. A development permit from the Director of Planning & Zoning is required before work in a special flood hazard area, and new or substantially improved homes and commercial buildings must have the lowest floor at or above the base flood elevation.

Fire limits: the C-3 Central Business District is the City’s fire limits.

Codes Greenville enforces

Ordinances adopted on September 6, 2022 put Greenville on the 2018 International Building, Existing Building, Residential, Plumbing, Mechanical and Fire Codes and the 2017 National Electrical Code (Chapter 3 of the Code of Ordinances). The fuel gas section still names the 2003 International Fuel Gas Code, and the City’s 2014 building permit form still refers to the 2003 codes; the 2022 ordinances are the adopted text.

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

Greenville permit FAQs

How much does a building permit cost in Greenville, MS?

It is based on project value: $25 up to $1,000, $319 at $50,000, $569 at $100,000 and $969 at $200,000. Trade permits are charged separately.

Do I need a permit to replace my roof in Greenville?

Yes. The City’s permit notice lists new roofs, including replacing shingles, as well as siding, windows and driveways.

How long is a Greenville building permit valid?

Work must begin within 3 months of approval, and the permit is valid for 6 months; the building official can extend it without a fee.

What if work starts without a permit?

The permit fee is doubled, with a minimum of $100.

Who licenses electricians and plumbers in Greenville?

The Greenville–Washington County Electrical Board and the Greenville–Washington County Plumbing and Mechanical Board, after a written examination or reciprocity.

How high must a new house be in a Greenville flood zone?

The 2024 flood ordinance requires the lowest floor to be at or above the base flood elevation.

Official Greenville permit resources

• Mississippi Insurance Department: Mississippi Uniform Building Codes
• Greenville Planning Department: fees and permit forms
• Greenville zoning ordinance, Article XXVI: permits, fees and certificates of occupancy (Municode)
• Greenville Code of Ordinances (Municode)
• Greenville Certificate of Appropriateness application
• Greenville boards and commissions
• City of Greenville

Simplify Greenville 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 Greenville permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.