North Smithfield, Rhode Island Building Permit Guide

North Smithfield’s Building / Inspection / Zoning department at Town Hall, 83 Greene Street, issues building, plumbing, electrical and other permits through the Building Official’s office, and applications are filed online in the town’s ViewPoint Cloud system. Inspections are booked by calling the Inspection Clerk at 401-767-2200 ext. 309, and the building fee follows the state schedule for the town: $10 per $1,000 of value up to $10,000, with a $50 minimum.

What requires a building permit in North Smithfield?

The town enforces the Rhode Island State Building Code and posts a “Work Exempt From Permit” sheet alongside its forms. Code Chapter 130 requires a permit for erecting, extending, altering, repairing, moving or demolishing a structure, and for structural alterations, reroofing, wiring and plumbing in an existing one; no construction other than preliminary grading may start without it.

Pools have their own Pool Packet, and the town posts a separate sign-off sheet for demolition permits.

What North Smithfield handles, and what stays with the state

The Building/Zoning Official issues and revokes building permits, decides zoning compliance, rules on whether site work needs an erosion and stormwater plan under Chapter 288, and approves any change to a historic stone wall under Chapter 195. The town’s Fire Marshal reviews plans for smoke and carbon monoxide detection under the town’s fee chapter, the Fire Department handles resale smoke and CO inspections, and the online building and trade forms carry a Fire Plan Review from the Fire Department where it applies.

RIDEM keeps septic (OWTS) design approval and freshwater wetlands permits, and a town erosion approval does not replace any state or federal permit. RIDOT approves driveway cuts onto state highways.

North Smithfield building department: who handles permitting

The Town of North Smithfield’s Building / Inspection / Zoning department enforces the state and local building codes and checks that building work complies with the zoning ordinance. Permits are issued through the Building Official’s office. Leo Cote is listed as the Building Inspector, and the department also has an electrical inspector and a plumbing and mechanical inspector.

North Smithfield permit types and online filing

All permits are applied for electronically in the Town of North Smithfield Online Permitting/License System. First-time users set up a profile with an email address and password. Plans can be uploaded, or submitted on paper no smaller than 11 by 17 inches. The Building Department section of the portal lists 16 application types and lets you submit one form for a permit together with any Fire Plan Review from the North Smithfield Fire Department.

Residential permits

• Building Permit for new homes, additions and alterations, with the documents listed below.
• Shed Permit: the portal notes that a freestanding accessory building of 200 sq ft or less, with eaves no higher than 10 feet, does not need frost-protected footings; a larger shed does.
• Fence, Roof, Siding and Windows and Doors permits, each its own form.
• Swimming Pool and Spa Permit, with the town’s Pool Packet.
• Solar Permit, filed by the electrical contractor with the structural cost included.

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

Commercial permits

Commercial buildings use the Building Permit and trade forms with the fire review option; the Fire Marshal’s plan review fee for a commercial building rises with the construction cost. A Tent/Event Permit must be filed at least seven days before the event (for urgent requests the portal gives 401-383-7717), and Dumpster, Demolition and Moving permits are separate forms. A new multifamily development of 12 or more units pays a one-time water supply fee of $2,500 per unit before the building permit is issued.

Forms posted on the department’s Forms, Permits & Applications page include:

• Zoning Compliance Certificate Application, which confirms the accepted use in the zone.
• Zoning Board of Review application for a variance or special use permit, with its schedule of zoning fees; the applicant also pays advertising, stenographer, transcript and abutter-notice costs.
• Historical District Commission Application for a Certificate of Appropriateness, with a Historic Homeowners Guide.
• Erosion and Sediment Control Form, Residential Energy Certificate and Sign-offs for Demolition Permit.
• Inspection Department Checklist, the list of inspections a job will need.

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

North Smithfield permit costs and fees

North Smithfield charges building permits on the schedule the state set for the town in 510-RICR-00-00-21, the State Wide Permitting Fee regulation (last amended effective December 10, 2023):

A $60,000 garage, for instance, comes to $420 plus 10 × $6, or $480. The fee depends on the cost you declare, so a solar application should include the structural labour and materials as well as the electrical work, as the department asks. A state levy of 0.1% of construction cost is added to each permit, capped at $50 per permit for one- and two-family dwellings.

Fire Marshal fees (Code Chapter 177): plan review for smoke and carbon monoxide detection costs $0.15 per interior square foot for a home. For commercial or industrial buildings it is charged on the construction cost: $25 up to $500, $35 up to $1,000, $45 up to $2,000, $45 plus $6 per $1,000 up to $500,000, and $3,033 plus $4 per $1,000 above that. A smoke and carbon monoxide detector inspection is $30.

Electrical, plumbing and mechanical permits

Trade permits come from the same office and are filed in the same online system. They usually need no construction drawings, although the Building Official can ask for plans depending on the scope. Solar permits are pulled by the electrical contractor.

The trade inspections follow the job: electrical underground service (two trench inspections), temporary service, rough wiring before insulation and final; plumbing underground lines before they are buried, rough and final; and mechanical rough before insulation and final, with radiant heat tubing inspected under pressure of at least 60 psi before the pour.

Alliance handles electrical permit filing for contractors here. More on this: who pulls the electrical permit.

Who may pull them

Trade work is done by state-licensed tradespeople — licences can be checked on the state Department of Labor and Training’s professional regulation site — and contractors must be registered with the Contractors’ Registration and Licensing Board. Homeowners can hold permits in North Smithfield: the department’s inspection instructions say inspections are called in by the “contractor” or “homeowner” the permit was issued to.

Application documents

For a new structure, the department’s Permit Processing page asks for:

• 2 copies of a Class I land survey showing the proposed structure and any wetlands, utilities, onsite wastewater system and well
• Construction drawings with a code review page, plan views, interior and exterior elevations, details (foundation, wall types, framing, finishes) and door and window schedules
• Project certifications where R.I. Gen. Laws 23-27.3-128 requires them

Replacement windows, roofing and siding need no plans, but window applications must give the R and U values and the safety glazing stamp where required. The town’s New Construction Information sheet adds that a new house needs either a DEM-approved septic design or a paid site improvement fee for municipal sewer, a site plan with setbacks by a registered land surveyor, and fire department approval of the plans before the permit is picked up.

How to apply for a North Smithfield building permit

Review, corrections and what causes delay

Chapter 130 asks for the application at least seven days before construction starts, and a permit is not valid unless it carries the assessor’s plat and lot number. No permit is issued for new construction or for expanding, improving or repairing an existing building while taxes, assessments, fines or fees on the property are past due. A permit runs for six months unless construction is under way and pursued to completion, and a false statement on the application is grounds to deny or revoke it.

Site work can add a step. Disturbing an acre or more, or any work that needs a RIDEM permit, is automatically subject to Chapter 288 and needs a stormwater pollution prevention plan, prepared by a registered engineer, landscape architect or certified erosion specialist; reviewing departments then have 45 days to comment. A house addition covering less than 1,000 sq ft, more than 100 feet from any watercourse and on slopes of 10% or less, needs no determination.

Inspections in North Smithfield

Inspections are called in by the contractor or homeowner the permit was issued to, at 401-767-2200 ext. 309, with 24 hours’ notice. Have the assessor’s plat and lot numbers, the job site address (and the pole number for a new house) and a contact phone number ready, and make sure the inspector can get in.

The building stages on the department’s checklist are excavation before the footing is poured, foundation forms, damp-proofing before backfill, deck and porch footings, rough framing once the shell is weather-tight, insulation, wallboard fastening and final. Fire inspections at rough and final stages are on the same checklist. Requesting the final when all work is done is the permit holder’s job, and every private well must be tested before a certificate of occupancy is issued.

Local details that matter in North Smithfield

Water Supply Protection Overlay District: the town publishes a separate map of this overlay district; check whether a lot falls inside it before planning a new use.

Historic district: the Historical District Commission decides applications for a Certificate of Appropriateness, and the Zoning Board application asks whether a project also needs the commission’s review. The town posts a guide for historic homeowners.

Flood maps: North Smithfield is a participating community in the National Flood Insurance Program, and FEMA lists June 23, 2026 as its current effective map date.

Erosion control: the department posts an Erosion and Sediment Control Form for site work, and RIDEM’s Freshwater Wetlands program reviews work near wetlands.

Historic stone walls: altering, moving or removing a stone wall built before 1939 needs the Building/Zoning Official’s written approval and a repair plan, and driveway cuts must be no longer than necessary with the wall ends restored. Violations carry a $100 fine and then $100 a day after 60 days.

Stamina Mill district: no well may be installed or used in the Stamina Mill Groundwater Remediation District near the Superfund site on School Street in Forestdale; lots there are on public water.

Permit search and records

The town’s OpenGov portal has a public “Search for Records” tool and a “Claim a Record” option for attaching an existing application to your account.

Rhode Island building code

North Smithfield applies the state’s editions in force since December 1, 2025: the 2021 International Codes with Rhode Island amendments, plus the 2023 National Electrical Code and the 2024 energy code.

Rhode Island has one state building code, kept by the State Building Code Office and enforced by each city or town’s building official; there is no county layer, and appeals go first to the town’s board of appeals, then to the state Building Code Board of Standards and Appeals. Rhode Island rules

North Smithfield building permit FAQ

Who issues building permits in North Smithfield?

The Building / Inspection / Zoning department at Town Hall, 83 Greene Street. Permits are issued through the Building Official’s office.

How do I apply?

Online, in the town’s ViewPoint Cloud permitting system. First-time users create a profile with an email address and password.

How much is a building permit in North Smithfield?

$10 per $1,000 of value up to $10,000, $100 plus $8 per $1,000 up to $50,000 and $420 plus $6 per $1,000 above that, with a $50 minimum. A $60,000 project is $480 before the state levy.

Do I need plans to replace my roof or windows?

No plan submittal is needed for replacement windows, roofing or siding, but a permit is. Windows need their R and U values and any required safety glazing stamp.

How do I book an inspection?

Call the Inspection Clerk at 401-767-2200 ext. 309, giving at least 24 hours’ notice.

What does a new house on a well need?

The well must be tested before the certificate of occupancy is issued.

Do I need a permit for a fence or a shed?

The town portal has separate Fence and Shed permit applications. Sheds over 200 sq ft need frost-protected footings.

Can I get a permit if I owe taxes?

No. Chapter 130 bars permits for new construction and for expanding or repairing a building while taxes or town charges on the property are past due.

North Smithfield permit search and official resources

• North Smithfield Building / Inspection / Zoning
• North Smithfield permit processing and plan requirements
• North Smithfield ViewPoint Cloud permit system
• North Smithfield forms, permits and applications
• New construction information sheet
• Inspection Department checklist
• Zoning Compliance Certificate application
• Zoning Board of Review application with fees
• Water Supply Protection Overlay District map
• 510-RICR-00-00-21, statewide building permit fee schedules
• RI Building Code Commission: laws, rules and regulations
• RIDEM septic (OWTS) permitting
• RIDEM freshwater wetlands permitting
• RI Contractors’ Registration and Licensing Board
• FEMA Community Status Book, Rhode Island
• North Smithfield online Building Department applications
• North Smithfield Code Chapter 130, Buildings and Building Construction
• North Smithfield Code Chapter 177, Fees and Charges
• North Smithfield Code Chapter 288, Soil Erosion and Sediment Control
• North Smithfield Code Chapter 195, Historic Preservation (stone walls)

Simplify North Smithfield permitting with Alliance Permitting

Alliance Permitting is a permit documentation and submission company in Rhode Island. 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 North Smithfield permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.