Oregon Building Permit Guides

Oregon has one building code. The state building code — the Oregon Specialty Codes, adopted by the Building Codes Division of the Department of Consumer and Business Services — is applicable and uniform throughout the state, and no municipality may enforce different requirements on the same matters unless the department’s director authorises it (ORS §455.040). The Oregon Residential Specialty Code covers one- and two-family dwellings and townhouses; the Oregon Structural Specialty Code covers other buildings; mechanical, plumbing, electrical and energy specialty codes sit alongside them.

Administration is local. The Building Codes Division counts 131 municipalities that administer the state building code; the city or county sets the fee schedule, the submittal list, the inspection booking method and the land-use rules, but not the technical requirements.

The exemptions are statewide too. Under the residential code, no building permit is needed for, among other things, a nonhabitable one-storey detached accessory building of up to 200 square feet and 15 feet high (400 square feet on a parcel of two acres or more, 20 feet from property lines); decks no more than 30 inches above grade; replacement or repair of siding that is not required to be fire rated; door and window replacements, unless a structural member changes or the unit must be fire rated; and reroofing within 30 percent of the roof’s live-load capacity, except in wildfire hazard zones, on townhouses and for building-integrated solar. Fences of wood, wire mesh or chain link are exempt statewide, except swimming pool barriers, and a local ordinance may not require a permit for such a fence 7 feet high or less. An exemption from the building permit is never an exemption from zoning, land use or a separate electrical, plumbing or mechanical permit.

Site design values come from the state’s Oregon Design Criteria Hub, which gives ground snow load, design wind speed and seismic values for a location. A residential permit expires if work does not start within 180 days of issue, or stops for 180 days once started; the building official can extend it in writing, up to 180 days at a time.

Contractors are licensed by the Construction Contractors Board. Anyone who works, offers or bids as a contractor needs a current CCB licence with the right residential or commercial endorsement (ORS §701.021), and there is no minimum job value. The exemptions in ORS §701.010 are narrow: work on one structure totalling less than $1,000 that is casual, minor or inconsequential, by someone who does not advertise as a contractor; a person working on property they own, occupied or not, or on their own residence; and an owner who hires licensed contractors. Neither owner exemption applies to someone building or remodelling with the intent of selling, and not living in the finished building is evidence of that intent.

The trades are licensed by the state on top of the CCB licence: electricians and electrical contractors under ORS chapter 479, and plumbers and plumbing contractors under ORS chapters 447 and 693. An owner may do electrical work on their own residential or farm property that is not for sale or rent without a licence (ORS §479.540), and plumbing licensing does not apply to plumbing work not done for hire (ORS §447.060); the work still needs its permit and must meet the code.

The state fixes the fee method, not the price. For new one- and two-family dwellings and additions the valuation is the ICC Building Valuation Data figure in force on 1 April multiplied by the floor area, and for commercial work it is the greater of that figure and the value the applicant states (OAR 918-050-0100); and the local fee schedule turns that valuation into the permit fee. Plan review is charged as the municipality sets it.

A 12 percent state surcharge is added to every permit fee — building, electrical, plumbing, mechanical and manufactured dwelling installation permits alike — and the municipality collects it and passes it to the state (ORS §§455.210 and 455.220).

• Electrical: a permit is required before new or altered electrical work starts. According to the Building Codes Division, none is needed for like-for-like replacement of broken or damaged outlets, light fixtures and switches (outlets with ground-fault protection excepted), for replacing fuses, defective breakers, light bulbs or fluorescent tubes, or for replacing an existing garbage disposal or dishwasher of 30 amps or less (see also OAR 918-309-0000). Licensed contractors can use a minor label instead of a permit for eligible small jobs, but not for underground work, work needing a cover inspection or plan review, hazardous locations or pools (OAR 918-309-0220).
• Plumbing: permits are required for plumbing installations; the only statutory exemption is for ordinary minor repairs that do not change the existing system, and it never covers water heaters, underground plumbing or new construction (ORS §447.072).