Cibolo, Texas Building Permit Guide

Building permits in Cibolo come from the City’s Building & Permitting Department at 201 West Loop 539, and every application, payment and inspection request goes through MGO Connect. A new home costs $0.75 per square foot plus a $75 issuing fee and a plan review fee of half the building permit fee, and the City targets 10 business days for the first review.

What requires a permit in Cibolo?

The Unified Development Code requires a building permit before any building or structure is placed, built or altered inside the city limits, and in the extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ) only where a development agreement with the City provides for it. Elsewhere outside the city, the land is unincorporated Guadalupe County. The City’s residential page lists new construction, additions, structural changes and electrical, plumbing and mechanical work.

Cibolo building department: who handles permitting

The Building & Permitting Department reviews plans, registers contractors, issues permits and Certificates of Occupancy, and carries out building inspections. Matt Hanson is the Chief Building Official. The Fire Marshal’s office reviews fire plans and inspects commercial work, and Planning handles zoning, site plans and platting.

MGO Connect and contractor registration

Create an MGO Connect account with the New Account button, using a phone you can answer: the portal verifies the account with a phone call. Contractors then register with the City in MGO, choosing general, electrical, plumbing, mechanical or a specialty trade and uploading the state licence number and insurance certificates. Staff approve the registration before permits can be pulled, and applying before registration only slows the permit down.

Registration is valid for one year. General, commercial, residential, demolition, site development and sign contractors pay $100; licensed electrical, mechanical, plumbing, fire alarm, fire sprinkler and irrigation contractors register free.

The City also offers an optional pre-design meeting with staff before you hire a designer or contractor, and strongly recommends a pre-application meeting with the Building Department for commercial development.

Cibolo permit fees

Fees come from the FY2026 fee schedule adopted as Ordinance No. 1517 on January 27, 2026. Residential building permits carry a $75 issuing fee on top of the square-foot charge.

Commercial permits are priced on the greater of the contract value or $100 per sq ft, plus the $75 issuing fee: $25 up to $500; $25 plus $10 per extra $100 up to $2,000; $175 plus $10 per extra $1,000 up to $50,000; $655 plus $9 per $1,000 up to $250,000; $2,455 plus $8 up to $500,000; $4,455 plus $7 up to $1,000,000; $7,955 plus $5 up to $5,000,000; and $27,955 plus $3 per $1,000 above that. Manufacturing buildings, warehouses and distribution centers pay 0.8 times the table, and multi-family projects of three or more units pay 1.45 times.

Starting work before the permit is issued costs 2.5 times the original permit and plan review fees. Moving into a new home before the Certificate of Occupancy is $500 a day.

Cibolo trade permits

Electrical, mechanical, plumbing and irrigation permits are filed in MGO Connect by a registered contractor. Each carries a $75 issuing fee plus item charges. A new home’s electrical permit is a flat fee by size: $200 up to 1,500 sq ft, $226 for 1,501–2,000 sq ft, rising by $26 for each 500 sq ft to $382 at 4,501–5,000 sq ft. Other examples: $25 to replace an HVAC unit or a water heater, $5.50 per plumbing fixture, $60 for under-slab plumbing repairs, $100 for residential solar and $50 for a home irrigation system.

Minor trade permits, such as irrigation, electrical, HVAC, water heater or water softener work, can be issued the next day when the application is complete. Fire alarm and fire sprinkler systems need their own permits, with plan review charged at half and the full permit fee respectively.

Documents and plan review times

The City’s documents list for a new home asks for:

• Site plan checked against the plat’s lot and block, and an impervious coverage sheet
• Engineer-stamped foundation plan matching the lot, block and unit, with the foundation square footage highlighted
• Address-specific boring log and boring map
• House elevations, framing details and a wall bracing (shear wall) plan
• Electrical layout, HVAC layout, electrical and gas load calculations and attic vent calculations
• Manual J and a signed, dated REScheck, plus the residential plan certification statement
• A sprinkler system where the home is 4,500 sq ft or larger

Smaller jobs need less: a copy of the contract for a re-roof, a site survey and contract for a shed or outdoor structure, an engineer’s letter and contract for foundation repair, and for a pool the contract, specifications and a site survey showing construction access, with an engineer’s letter if the pool is within 10 ft of the house. Commercial permits need plans and COMcheck, plus a TDLR filing when the value is over $50,000.

Applications are processed one business day after they are submitted, and an incomplete package can be rejected with notes from the permit technician.

Cibolo permit application: local workflow

Inspections in Cibolo

Only permit holders can book inspections, in MGO Connect. Requests made before 4:30 p.m. are inspected the next business day, or on the date you choose. Building inspections run Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Type “Call-Ahead” and a phone number in the inspection notes to ask the inspector to call about 30 minutes before arriving. Fire inspections and fire plan review happen only on Tuesdays and Fridays.

A new home is inspected at foundation (post-pour), framing, rough electrical, rough plumbing, plumbing top-out, rough mechanical and insulation, then building, electrical, plumbing and mechanical finals. Under Ordinance No. 1410, the builder must submit foundation elevation measurements, taken at every exterior corner and offset, as a post-pour inspection; homeowners can later get those records through an open records request.

Keep the approved permit and plans on site. If a re-inspection finds the original items still not fixed, a 72-hour notice is needed before the next visit.

Local Cibolo details that matter

New subdivisions: building permits can be released before the public improvements are accepted only as Provisional Field Permits, issued at the developer’s risk, and no Certificate of Occupancy is issued until City Council grants preliminary acceptance of the improvements.

Change of tenant or owner: a non-residential space needs a new Certificate of Occupancy permit and inspection before it is used. Fire review applies to new commercial work, changes of occupancy, tenant improvements in commercial or assembly spaces and any fire alarm or sprinkler work.

Utilities: the Certificate of Occupancy is shared with the City Utilities Department and, where it serves the property, Green Valley Special District Utilities.

Codes: Ordinance No. 1475 adopted the 2021 International Codes and the 2023 National Electrical Code with local amendments.

Texas building code

Texas has no single statewide building code: state law makes the International Residential Code the base code for homes in cities and the International Building Code the base for commercial buildings, with each city choosing the edition and its own amendments, while the National Electrical Code and the energy code apply statewide. Outside city limits most counties issue no building permits for homes. Texas building code rules

Cibolo permit search and official resources

• Cibolo Building Permits & Inspections
• Permit review, issuance and inspections
• FY2026 fee schedule (Ordinance No. 1517)
• Documents required for permits
• Residential projects
• Commercial projects
• Contractor registration
• Inspection types
• Foundation elevation inspections
• Unified Development Code
• MGO Connect portal

Frequently asked questions

How much is a building permit for a new house in Cibolo?

$0.75 per square foot plus a $75 issuing fee, and a plan review fee of 50% of the building permit fee. The electrical permit for a new home is a separate flat fee based on size.

How long does plan review take in Cibolo?

10 business days for a new house or a remodel and 5 for a re-review. Commercial projects take 15 or 20 business days depending on value.

Do I need a permit for a shed in Cibolo?

Not for a portable shed of 100 sq ft or less on skids. A pre-assembled shed is $75, and site-built structures are $125 for 100–250 sq ft and $250 above that.

Does a roof replacement need a permit?

Yes. A residential re-roof permit is $75, filed in MGO Connect with a copy of the contract.

When are inspections done?

Building inspections Monday to Friday; requests in by 4:30 p.m. are done the next business day. Fire inspections are on Tuesdays and Fridays.

Does Cibolo issue permits in its ETJ?

Only where a development agreement with the City calls for it, under the Unified Development Code.

Do contractors register with Cibolo?

Yes, in MGO Connect before applying. General contractors pay $100 a year; licensed trades register free.

Simplify Cibolo permitting with Alliance Permitting

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