Malheur County, Oregon Building Permit Guide

The Malheur County Building Department reviews plans, inspects and issues building, plumbing, mechanical and electrical permits for unincorporated Malheur County and for Adrian, Jordan Valley, Nyssa and Vale. Ontario is split: the City issues structural and mechanical permits there, and the county issues the electrical and plumbing permits. On unincorporated land a building permit needs zoning approval from Malheur County Planning and Zoning in Vale first (inside a city, from that city), and the county adds 65 percent for plan review and 12 percent for the state surcharge to the permit fee.

What requires a building permit in Malheur County?

The department’s applications cover building (structural), manufactured home placement, electrical, electrical solar, mechanical and plumbing permits, plus a farm exemption request. Its checklists and handouts cover one- and two-family dwellings, commercial buildings, commercial mechanical systems and egress windows in bedrooms.

These exemptions are written into chapter 1 of the 2026 Oregon Residential Specialty Code, mandatory since October 1, 2026. Farm and equine buildings that qualify for the state’s agricultural exemption use the Farm/Agriculture/Equine Building Exemption request and its covenant, both on the county planning forms page, in place of a building permit. Septic work has its own permit: Environmental Health requires one for new, altered, repaired or replaced system components, and changing the building a system serves may need its approval to keep using the system.

What the county decides and what the state holds

The Building Codes Division sets the codes and the exemptions; the county cannot add to them. The county decides how its program runs: the department’s fee schedule, its checklists, its email inspection requests, and the zoning ordinance that the Planning and Zoning Department applies on unincorporated land. The department says it is fully funded by permit fees.

Malheur County building department: who handles permitting

The county department was set up under the 1974 law that created the Oregon State Building Code, effective July 1, 1974. Its website states that its area of service is all of Malheur County except the City of Ontario, where it handles only plumbing and electrical work, and the Building Codes Division’s directory says the same city by city.

The county’s new-house pamphlet still gives the Building Department’s address as 14 S. 3rd St. in Nyssa; the department’s own site, the planning page and the state directory all place it at 316 NE Goodfellow St. in Ontario.

Permit types and the approvals that come first

Residential permits

For a new house the county’s pamphlet sets the order: zoning first, then septic, then an address, then the building permits. The Building Department’s one- and two-family dwelling checklist (2025) and its “How to Prepare Your Site Plan” handout set out the drawings it reviews, and its typical one-story wall section and egress window sheet show common details. Manufactured homes go on the manufactured home permit application. For shops and garages, the department posts the state’s ready-built plans for pole buildings from 24 by 24 to 36 by 60 feet, one- and two-car garages, a carport and a patio cover; those plans may be shortened or lowered within the state’s stated limits, and other changes need the department’s site-specific approval.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial work follows the Commercial Plan Review Submittal Checklist (2025), with fire and life safety review at 40 percent of the permit fee where required. Projects that need special inspection sign the department’s Special Inspection and Testing Agreement, and commercial heating and ventilation is checked against the state’s commercial mechanical plan review checklist. Electrical and plumbing plans have their own review requirements sheet.

For tenant improvements and new commercial builds, Alliance handles commercial permit expediting through issuance. More on this: commercial building permits explained.

What comes before the building permit

• Zoning permit: the county’s FAQ is direct: zoning approval from the Planning Department is required before building permits can be issued. Bring the structural permit application and a site plan to the courthouse in Vale; a zoning permit is $50, and a permit to remedy a violation is double.
• Septic: Environmental Health permits onsite systems as DEQ’s agent. From July 1, 2026, a site evaluation for a house is $579 and a standard system installation permit $406, each including DEQ’s $159 surcharge. These replace the lower figures still printed in the planning pamphlet.
• Address: the planning office issues the physical address once zoning and septic are approved, and notifies the other agencies.
• Flood and land use reviews: a floodplain permit costs $250, a non-farm dwelling $200 and a variance $125 ($100 when decided administratively). Larger projects can go to the Planning Commission, which generally meets on the fourth Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Vale Senior Citizen Center, and the office also handles Senate Bill 70 projects.

Building permit fees

The department publishes a single Structural Fee Calculation Schedule. Valuation comes from the department’s Building Valuation Table, marked “Updated 4/1/2026.”

The schedule lists the surcharge as its own line, “State Surcharge … 12% of permit fee,” so the band amounts above are before the surcharge.

Worked example: for $150,000 of work, the permit fee is $993.75 plus 50 × $5.60 = $1,273.75. Plan review at 65 percent is $827.94 and the 12 percent surcharge is $152.85, for $2,254.54 before any trade permits or a fire and life safety review. Electrical, plumbing and mechanical fees are set out on their own applications; ask the department for the figures for your job.

County fees outside the Building Department are separate. Planning and Zoning charges $50 for a zoning permit or a sign permit, $100 for a lot of record determination, $25 for an address without zoning approval for construction, and nothing for a land use compatibility statement. Environmental Health’s septic fees follow its schedule effective July 1, 2026, which includes $360 for an existing system evaluation report of the kind lenders and buyers ask for.

Trade permits and who may pull them

The county issues electrical and plumbing permits everywhere in Malheur County, Ontario included, and mechanical permits everywhere except Ontario. Solar arrays use the electrical solar application. A new house therefore carries a structural permit plus separate electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits, all from the same Ontario office unless the house is inside Ontario’s city limits.

• CCB license: anyone building for pay needs a Construction Contractors Board license with the right endorsement. Under ORS chapter 701, each permit applicant signs a statement giving the license number or the reason for an exemption.
• Electricians and plumbers: hired work is done by state-licensed trades.
• Owners: ORS 479.540 exempts an owner from the electrical license when wiring residential or farm property owned by them or their immediate family that is not intended for sale, exchange, lease or rent, and ORS 447.060 excludes plumbing done other than for hire from plumbing licensing. Both still need permits and inspections.

How to apply

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Most delays come from the order of approvals: the department cannot issue a building permit until zoning is approved, and a new house cannot get its address until septic is approved as well. Applicants who send plans to the wrong office lose time too, since the courthouse in Vale does not issue building permits and Ontario city sites go partly to the City.

Inspections

The department asks for inspection requests, general questions and other information by email to BuildingDepartment@bldgmalheurco.org; its phone is 541-372-5460. Its inspectors cover structural, plumbing, mechanical and electrical work on county permits everywhere outside Ontario, and only electrical and plumbing work inside Ontario, where the City’s inspectors handle the structural and mechanical stages.

Septic systems are inspected by Environmental Health, not the Building Department. After the system is built, the installer or owner sends Environmental Health its Final Inspection Request form, which the county treats as the request for the final septic inspection; a re-inspection costs $125 on the July 2026 schedule.

Code editions and flood insurance

The department links to the state’s adopted codes. In force now are the 2025 Oregon Structural Specialty Code for commercial buildings and the 2026 Oregon Residential Specialty Code for houses, with the 2023 residential edition still usable for chapters 2 to 44 until April 1, 2027, and the 2026 electrical and plumbing codes since October 1, 2026. Malheur County and all five cities, Ontario, Nyssa, Vale, Adrian and Jordan Valley, are listed as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program in FEMA’s Community Status Book.

Oregon’s building code and its exemptions are the same in Malheur County as everywhere in the state, and an exemption from the building permit is not an exemption from zoning, land use or a trade permit. Site snow, wind and seismic values come from the state’s Oregon Design Criteria Hub. How Oregon’s statewide code works

Malheur County building permit FAQ

Are building permits issued at the courthouse in Vale?

No. The courthouse handles zoning and septic; building permits come from the Building Department at 316 NE Goodfellow St. in Ontario.

I am building in Ontario. Who issues my permits?

The City of Ontario issues the structural and mechanical permits; Malheur County issues the electrical and plumbing permits.

How much is a permit on a $150,000 house project?

$1,273.75 for the permit, $827.94 for plan review and $152.85 surcharge, before trade permits.

Do I need a permit for a pole building?

Yes, unless it is a one-story, nonhabitable building within the state size exemption or a qualifying farm building with an approved farm exemption. The department posts permit-ready pole building plans.

How much does a septic site evaluation cost?

$579 for a single-family lot on the fee schedule effective July 1, 2026, including DEQ’s $159 surcharge.

Who handles zoning inside Nyssa, Vale or Adrian?

The city does. County Planning and Zoning applies the county zoning ordinance on unincorporated land; inside a city, take zoning questions to that city before filing with the Building Department.

How do I request an inspection?

Email BuildingDepartment@bldgmalheurco.org, or call 541-372-5460.

Permit search and official resources

The department sends permit holders to Oregon ePermitting to see their permit information, and it posts a monthly “Permits Issued Details” report on its news page, with reports for January to September 2026 online. For older building records ask the department; Environmental Health has kept septic permit records since 1974 and uses them to help locate existing systems.

• Malheur County Building Department: applications, handouts and permit-ready plans
• Building Department contact and inspection requests
• Monthly permits-issued reports
• Structural fee calculation schedule
• Building valuation table (April 1, 2026)
• One- and two-family dwelling permit checklist
• Commercial plan review submittal checklist
• Malheur County Planning and Zoning
• Planning and zoning fees
• Permitting steps for a new house
• Environmental Health onsite wastewater program
• Onsite wastewater fees effective July 1, 2026
• BCD Local Building Department Directory
• Oregon ePermitting
• Oregon Construction Contractors Board

Simplify Malheur County permitting with Alliance Permitting

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