San Juan County's Community Development Department at 209 South Oliver Drive in Aztec permits and inspects construction in the unincorporated county, in the far north-west corner of New Mexico. The office works a compressed week — long days Monday to Thursday and closed on Friday — which is worth planning around, because a Thursday afternoon question becomes a Monday morning one.
A large part of the county is Navajo Nation land, sovereign territory outside county and state building jurisdiction with its own governing authorities and processes; the Ute Mountain Ute reservation reaches the county's northern edge. The San Juan Basin's oil and gas field covers much of the remainder, leaving wells, pipelines and easements across rural parcels that constrain siting before any code question arises. Farmington is a separate jurisdiction with its own Building Inspection Division; the county’s Building Department also issues the building permits and carries out the inspections inside Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland, once the city or town has given its planning and zoning approval.
This guide covers unincorporated San Juan County in New Mexico, together with Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland, whose building permits and inspections the county Building Department handles. Farmington is a separate jurisdiction; Navajo Nation and Ute Mountain Ute lands are sovereign territory outside county jurisdiction; and the San Juan Counties in the states to the north and west are unrelated jurisdictions.
Four days, and a great deal the county does not permit. The department is open Monday to Thursday and closed on Friday. And across the county, Navajo Nation land is sovereign territory outside county and state building jurisdiction — a project there follows the Nation's own process, not the county's. Both facts change how a project here is scheduled and where it is filed.
What requires a building permit in San Juan County?
In San Juan County the practical questions are which authority issues the permit, whether local amendments apply, whether a city or town must give zoning approval first, and the jurisdictions the county does not hold.
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- Construction, alteration, relocation, enlargement, replacement, repair, change of occupancy or demolition in unincorporated territory and inside Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland
- Planning and zoning approval from the city or town ahead of the building permit in Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland; the County’s permit checklists state that rural areas of the county have no zoning requirements
- Well and on-site liquid waste approval where the parcel is unserved
- New buildings, additions and structural work, under the commercial or residential code as applicable
- Alteration, relocation, enlargement, replacement and repair of a building or structure
- Any change of use or occupancy, which brings the existing building code into the analysis
Often exempt
- Minor repairs, and the small items the state permit rule (14.5.2 NMAC) lists as exempt
- Minor repairs, such as replacing a lamp or fixing a faucet
- Swings and other playground equipment at a house
- Small accessory structures below the threshold — zoning and any local amendment still apply
Local building departments and what they change
San Juan County's layer is therefore its status, any amendments it has adopted, its subdivision and floodplain review, its fee schedule, and the tribal land outside county jurisdiction and the energy field's wells and easements.
New Mexico adopts its building codes statewide; a city or county with its own certified building official issues its own permits, and elsewhere the state Construction Industries Division does. New Mexico rules
Who handles permitting in San Juan County?
Community Development is the permitting authority for unincorporated San Juan County, administering the state code alongside subdivision review, rural addressing and floodplain permits. Its Building Department (505-334-4313) issues building permits and its own electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits, and the County states that this service also covers the City of Aztec, the City of Bloomfield and the Town of Kirtland. In those three places the city or town’s planning and zoning approval comes first, and the County asks for the municipality’s address verification on permits at non-county addresses. Farmington is separate: its Building Inspection Division permits and inspects building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical work inside the city. Navajo Nation and Ute Mountain Ute lands are governed by their own authorities outside county jurisdiction, and the Construction Industries Division licenses contractors statewide.
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Get a free quote →| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Department | San Juan County Community Development |
| Office | 209 South Oliver Drive, Aztec, NM 87410 |
| Phone | (505) 334-4550; building inspector (505) 334-4313 |
| Hours | Monday to Thursday, 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; closed Friday |
| Aztec | County Building Department issues the building permit and inspects; the City’s Community Development Department, 201 W. Chaco Street, 505-334-7605, issues its land use or development approval first |
| Bloomfield | County Building Department issues the building permit; City Planning and Zoning, 915 N. 1st Street, 505-632-6300, is the first point of contact |
| Kirtland | County Building Department issues the building permit; Town Hall, 47 Road 6500, 505-598-4160, takes the Town’s Development Application first |
| Farmington | City of Farmington Building Inspection Division, 805 Municipal Drive (Annex Building, 2nd floor), 505-599-1304; permits are applied for in person |
| Outside jurisdiction | Navajo Nation and Ute Mountain Ute lands |
| Contractor licensing | Construction Industries Division, statewide |
In 2025, building permits issued in unincorporated San Juan County authorized 40 new privately owned housing units, all of them single-family homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau Building Permits Survey.
Permit types
Residential permits
A house in unincorporated San Juan County is permitted by the county against the New Mexico Residential Building Code as amended, with a verified E-911 physical address before the permit can issue, and well and liquid waste approvals where the parcel is unserved. On rural land the oil and gas easements and any legacy wells should be identified from the title before siting, since they constrain the buildable envelope.
Commercial permits
Commercial and industrial work in unincorporated San Juan County is dominated by the energy sector — gas processing, service yards and the infrastructure supporting the San Juan Basin — alongside the retail and service development around Farmington. Each clears floodplain review where it applies, then plan review against the New Mexico Commercial Building Code.
Which authority issues the permit
In unincorporated San Juan County the Navajo Nation and Ute Mountain Ute lands sit outside county jurisdiction, the San Juan and Animas river corridors bring floodplain review into the file, and oil and gas wells, pipelines and easements cross a great many rural parcels.
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →New Mexico licenses contractors at state level through the Construction Industries Division, in classifications tied to a qualifying party. New Mexico rules
San Juan County permit costs and fees
Fees follow the county Building Department’s schedule, with well and liquid waste approvals charged separately and contractor licensing charged by the state.
| Item | Fee or rule |
|---|---|
| Building permit | Project valuation × 0.005; buildings that need sealed plans also pay plan review at valuation × 0.0012 (County Building Department page) |
| Zoning and subdivision | City or town planning and zoning approval first in Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland; no zoning in the rural county, where the County reviews subdivisions and land divisions |
| Well and liquid waste | Separate approvals where the parcel is unserved |
| Trade permits | Electrical, mechanical and plumbing, by state-licensed contractors |
| Contractor licence | Issued by the Construction Industries Division, valid statewide |
| City permits | Farmington issues its own; Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland use the county Building Department |
Energy easements bind the building envelope. The San Juan Basin leaves wells, gathering lines and easements across a great many rural parcels, with setback and access obligations that reduce the buildable area before the building is sited. They are title and survey matters rather than code matters, and they are cheapest to identify before the parcel is committed to.
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Get a free quote →Trade permits and who may pull them
Permit required
- Any parcel — establish whether it is county, municipal or tribal jurisdiction from the record
- Electrical — state-licensed electrical contractor; separate permit and inspection
- Mechanical — state-licensed mechanical contractor; separate permit, covering heating, cooling and refrigeration
- Plumbing — state-licensed plumbing contractor; separate permit under the New Mexico Plumbing Code. Natural gas piping needs a gas-fitting licence and follows the New Mexico Mechanical Code
- Liquefied petroleum gas work, which the division regulates separately
Typically exempt
- Building, plumbing or electrical work a homeowner does on their own primary residence under a homeowner permit; heating, cooling and gas work need a licensed contractor
Electrical, mechanical and plumbing work is permitted separately and done by contractors holding the matching state licence. New Mexico rules
How to apply for a San Juan County building permit
A city or county with its own certified building official issues its own permits; elsewhere the Construction Industries Division does it directly.
Zoning and platting are always handled by the city or county, not by the division.
A city or county with its own building department may adopt local rules stricter than the state codes, which are the minimum.
The division licenses contractors statewide in the classification matching the work.
The commercial code, the residential code or the existing building code, depending on the building and the work.
Footing to final with the authority that issued the permit, then the certificate of occupancy.
Review, corrections and what actually causes delay
San Juan County reviews unincorporated work against the state code, on a four-day week. What delays a file here is a Friday assumption, a parcel whose jurisdiction was not established, and an energy easement discovered after siting.
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Inspections follow the adopted codes' sequence — footing, foundation, framing, rough trades, insulation and final — and are requested from whichever authority issued the permit, with the trades inspected on their own permits. Work that passes final receives a certificate of occupancy for new buildings and changes of occupancy. San Juan County inspects the work it permits in the adopted codes' sequence within its four-day week, including inside Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland, with the trades inspected on their own permits; inside Farmington, inspection is the city’s. County inspections are requested a day ahead by calling 505-334-4313.
San Juan County permit search and official resources
- San Juan County — the county government and Community Development
- San Juan County Building Department — permit applications, checklists, fees and inspections for the county, Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland
- City of Aztec Community Development — land use and development applications
- City of Bloomfield Planning and Zoning — the first point of contact for building permits in Bloomfield
- Town of Kirtland — the Town’s Development Application
- City of Farmington Building Inspection — permits inside Farmington
- New Mexico Construction Industries Division — the statewide codes and contractor licensing
- 14.7.3 NMAC — New Mexico Residential Building Code — the 2021 International Residential Code as amended by the state
- New Mexico Construction Industries Division — the statewide codes, contractor licensing and the division's own permitting
- 14.7.2 NMAC — New Mexico Commercial Building Code — the 2021 International Building Code as amended by the state
- 14.7.3 NMAC — New Mexico Residential Building Code — the 2021 International Residential Code as amended by the state
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Frequently asked questions
When is the county office open?
Monday to Thursday, 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.; the office is closed on Fridays.
Does the county permit on Navajo Nation land?
No. It is sovereign territory outside county and state building jurisdiction, with its own governing authorities and process.
Which San Juan County is this?
San Juan County in the far north-west of New Mexico, with Aztec as its seat. The San Juan Counties in the states to the north and west are unrelated jurisdictions.
Who issues building permits in Aztec, Bloomfield, Kirtland and Farmington?
The County Building Department (505-334-4313) issues building permits in Aztec, Bloomfield and Kirtland as well as in the unincorporated county, after the city or town has given its planning and zoning approval. Farmington issues its own through the Building Inspection Division at 805 Municipal Drive (505-599-1304).
What should I check on a rural parcel?
Oil and gas wells, gathering lines and easements, which cross many parcels and reduce the buildable area.
Which code applies?
The state code adopted by the Construction Industries Division, on the 2021 International Codes as amended.
Do I need a well approval?
On unserved parcels, yes — well and on-site liquid waste approvals run alongside the building permit.
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San Juan County has a short week and a complicated map. We establish the jurisdiction and the easements from the record, and work the four days the office actually keeps.
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More New Mexico permitting guides
More New Mexico permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about San Juan County permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.