Westchester County, New York Building Permit Guide

Westchester County has no building department of its own and does not appear on the Department of State’s list of twelve counties that have opted out of the enforcement of the Uniform and Energy codes. Permits come from the city, the village, or the town for land outside its villages. The county’s role is still large: its Department of Consumer Protection licenses home improvement contractors, plumbers, electricians and electrical inspectors; the Health Department permits every new septic system and subdivision; Public Works approves work on county roads, county property and near county streams; and the County Planning Board reviews about 700 referred land use actions a year.

What requires a building permit in Westchester County?

Each of the 48 municipalities sets its own list. Bedford and Greenburgh require permits for sheds of any size, while Yorktown repealed its fence exemption in 2023. The Village of Ossining issues driveway permits, Peekskill has rules for generators and exterior work, and Mount Pleasant changed how heat pumps are permitted from January 1, 2026.

What the municipalities decide and what the state holds

All 48 municipalities enforce the state’s 2025 Uniform Code and Energy Code; none can make it stricter without state approval. The Town of Mamaroneck, for example, also enforces the NYStretch 2020 energy code in its unincorporated area under Local Law 10 of 2021. The larger differences are local: zoning, architectural review boards, wetland and steep slope laws, tree ordinances, fee schedules and filing systems, from CitySquared and OpenGov portals to paper-only counters.

Westchester County building department: who handles permitting

The table lists every city, town and village the Census Bureau counts and the office that issues its building permits. A town’s office never covers its villages.

Several places need care. Harrison, Mount Kisco and Scarsdale are each a town and a village with one boundary and one office. The Towns of Pelham and Rye contain no land outside their villages, so every permit there is a village permit. Two villages cross town lines: Briarcliff Manor lies mostly in Ossining with about 700 residents in Mount Pleasant, and the Village of Mamaroneck is split between the Towns of Mamaroneck and Rye; each village’s own office covers all of it. The county list shows one line for “Ossining Town/Village”, but the town and village run separate departments in the same Route 9A building.

What Westchester County itself does

• Consumer Protection, 148 Martine Avenue, Room 407, White Plains ((914) 995-2155): licenses home improvement contractors, plumbers and electricians, keeps a public license search and a list of renegade renovators, and licenses private electrical inspectors.
• Health Department: environmental engineers review and permit every subdivision plan and every new subsurface sewage treatment system, visit sites during construction, and handle wells, remediation of failing systems and changes of use under the county Sanitary Code.
• Public Works: building approvals for construction on or next to county property, road permits for any pipe, conduit, drain or other work on or under a county road, stream permits within 100 feet of a listed county stream, and stormwater connection permits.
• Planning Board: reviews referred zoning and planning actions and posts its responses, from 2024 on, in an online dashboard.

Westchester County permit types and applications

Residential permits

Each department uses its own filing system. Bedford, Ossining village and Yorktown file through CitySquared, Mount Pleasant went paperless on OpenGov on July 1, 2026, Port Chester uses Accela, and Harrison takes paper only, using eTRAKiT for payments and inspections. A homeowner hiring a contractor can confirm the contractor’s county home improvement license in the county’s online license search before signing.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial projects add site plan approval, often architectural review, and county referral where the site is near a county road, a municipal line or other listed features. Work that ties into a county storm sewer needs a stormwater connection permit, filed with three original forms and three plan sets.

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

• Local boards: zoning board of appeals, planning board, architectural review and, in many towns, wetland, steep slope and tree permits.
• County referral: the local board refers the action; the County Planning Board answers with a recommendation.
• Septic and wells: a county Health construction approval for a new system, a site evaluation and open works inspections, and a certificate of construction compliance before the house is used.
• County roads and streams: notarized Public Works road or stream permits, mailed with original signatures, before work starts.

Building permit fees in Westchester County

There is no county building permit fee; each municipality adopts its own schedule. The rules below come from the finished guides for those places, which give each full table.

Worked comparison for a $50,000 residential renovation: the Town of Ossining charges $100 for the first $1,000, $735 for the other 49 thousands and $100 for the certificate, or $935; Bedford charges $100 plus $750 plus $100, or $950; Harrison charges $150 plus $750 plus $200, or $1,100; Port Chester charges $200 plus $1,000, or $1,200; Peekskill charges $395 plus $850, or $1,245. The county’s own charges, such as the $750 home improvement license application, are separate.

Trade permits and who may pull them

Plumbers and electricians must hold a Westchester County trade license to work in the county, after passing the county examination, and consumers can ask to see the license card or search the county list. Home improvement contractors also need a county license; the application fee rose to $750 on January 1, 2026, with $100 for expedited processing. Anyone performing electrical inspections must be licensed by the county unless employed by the state or a municipality; the county lists the White Plains and Yonkers building departments and five private agencies as compliant. Local codes add their own rules, such as Port Chester’s requirement that only licensed contractors file electrical work and the Town of Mamaroneck’s limited exception for owner-occupants.

How to get a building permit in Westchester County

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Review times are local: North Castle aims for a first review in two to four weeks, the Village of Ossining quotes four to six, and Peekskill up to two weeks for processing. Files stall most often on a missing county license number, insurance certificates that do not meet the department’s form rules, an unfinished board approval or a septic approval still at the Health Department.

Inspections and certificates

Inspections are scheduled with the office that issued the permit, often through its portal; Harrison books them in eTRAKiT within 24 to 48 hours. Electrical work is inspected by the municipality or a county-licensed agency on the local list. A septic system has its own county inspections and a certificate of construction compliance from the Health Department, separate from the building department’s certificate of occupancy or compliance.

New York building code

New York builds on one statewide code, the Uniform Code, outside New York City; the 2025 edition and 2025 Energy Code took effect on 31 December 2025 (the all-electric provisions remain suspended by court order). Cities, towns and villages administer it, and local standards stricter than the code need Code Council approval. The Uniform Code in New York

In Westchester that code is applied by 43 separate building offices, with the county licensing the people who do the work.

Westchester County permit FAQ

Does Westchester County issue building permits?

No. Cities, villages and towns (for land outside their villages) issue them. The county licenses contractors and trades, approves septic systems and permits work on county roads and streams.

Does my contractor need a Westchester license?

Yes. Home improvement contractors need a county license, and plumbers and electricians need a county trade license to work in the county.

How much is a home improvement license?

The application fee has been $750 since January 1, 2026, with $100 extra for expedited processing.

Who issues permits in Tarrytown or Dobbs Ferry?

The village building office, not the Town of Greenburgh, which covers only its unincorporated area.

Who approves a septic system?

The Westchester County Health Department, which permits every new subsurface sewage treatment system and inspects it during construction.

How do I find old septic records?

Send the Health Department’s sketch request form by fax to (914) 864-7341 for a search of approved systems on a property.

Do I need a county permit to work near a stream?

Yes, within 100 feet of a listed county stream channel, such as Blind Brook, the Sheldrake River or stretches of the Saw Mill River in Greenburgh, Elmsford and Yonkers, Public Works requires a stream permit.

Is my community in the flood insurance program?

Yes. All 43 Westchester entries in FEMA’s Community Status Book are participating; Harrison, the Village of Mamaroneck and Scarsdale also earn Community Rating System discounts.

Westchester County permit search and official resources

Permit files are kept by the municipality that issued them; ask its building department or file a Freedom of Information Law request with its clerk. License status is searchable through Consumer Protection, and septic records come from the Health Department.

• Westchester local building department contacts
• County plumbing and electrical licenses
• County home improvement contractor licensing
• Home improvement license fees, January 1, 2026
• County-licensed electrical inspection agencies
• Department of Consumer Protection contacts
• Health Department septic, well and subdivision permits
• Public Works building approvals and road permits
• Public Works stream and stormwater permits
• County Planning Board zoning referrals
• NYS Department of State Code Inspection Unit (opted-out counties)
• FEMA Community Status Book, New York

Simplify Westchester County permitting with Alliance Permitting

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