Inside Waxahachie city limits, building permits come from the City’s Building & Community Services department at 408 S. Rogers Street (469-309-4020), and applications, plans, fees and inspection requests all go through the Citizen Self-Service (CSS) portal. New construction and additions cost $0.60 per square foot plus $0.15 per square foot for plan review, and the City aims to return residential plans within 10 business days. Plans must meet the 2021 International Codes and the 2020 National Electrical Code, in force since June 1, 2024.
What requires a permit in Waxahachie?
The City’s fee schedule and submittal guides cover these permits:
Residential
- New houses, additions and remodels
- Accessory buildings
- Fences and retaining walls
- Roofing
- In-ground and above-ground pools
- Irrigation systems
- Rooftop solar and stand-by generators
- Mechanical, electrical and plumbing work
- Septic systems (On-Site Sewer Facility permit)
- Demolition and moving a building
Commercial
- New buildings and shell buildings
- Remodels and tenant finish-outs
- Certificates of occupancy
- Monument, wall and temporary signs
- Antennas
- Construction and sales trailers
- Fire sprinklers, fire alarms and other fire systems
- Food establishments
Accessory buildings of 700 sq ft or more need a specific use permit first, and no lot may have more than 1,000 sq ft of accessory buildings without one. Fences may not be taller than 8 ft measured from the interior grade.
Who handles permitting in Waxahachie?
Building & Community Services, directed by Jason Watson, runs building inspection, plan review, permitting, code enforcement and health inspection. Its Permitting Division keeps the records, processes permits and staffs the front counter. Planning and Zoning (469-309-4290) handles zoning, platting and site plans.
Short on time to read all of this?
Get a free quote →| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Department | Building & Community Services |
| Office | 408 S. Rogers Street, Waxahachie, TX 75165 (mail: P.O. Box 757, Waxahachie, TX 75168) |
| Phone | 469-309-4020 |
| buildingdepartment@waxahachietx.gov | |
| Portal | Citizen Self-Service (CSS) |
| Inspection line (IVR) | 855-636-0069 |
The City is the state’s authorized agent for septic systems inside its limits, so a house on a septic system needs a City On-Site Sewer Facility permit as well as the building permit. Land outside the city limits is in Ellis County; the City accepts petitions for release from its extraterritorial jurisdiction.
CSS portal and Waxahachie forms
The CSS portal is the City’s system for electronic plan review: you submit applications and payments, upload plans, receive review comments, track status and schedule inspections there. Each submittal guide names the permit type to pick, for example “Building (Residential) – New Construction”.
The City publishes submittal guides for new homes, residential remodels, accessory structures, fences, irrigation, swimming pools, rooftop solar, stand-by generators, construction or sales trailers, certificates of occupancy, new commercial buildings, commercial remodels, antennas and signs. Its forms are the contractor registration, energy code certification and resubmittal forms. Since December 12, 2024 the City has been updating its forms, and any form that cites codes other than the 2021 editions is outdated and only shows the type of documents needed.
From January 1, 2026 the City has noted that home backup power installations, including solar and generators, may go to third-party review and inspection under state law if the City does not act on the permit within 15 days.
Waxahachie permit fees
All construction fees are set in Chapter 11 of the City Code (Ordinance 3376, May 1, 2023).
Not sure this scope needs a permit?
Get a free quote →| Project | Fee |
|---|---|
| New construction, additions, alterations and accessory buildings | $0.60 per sq ft |
| Plan review for those permits | $0.15 per sq ft |
| Mechanical, electrical or plumbing permit (with or without a building permit) | $75 each |
| Certificate of occupancy | $75 |
| In-ground / above-ground pool | $250 / $100 |
| On-Site Sewer Facility (septic) | $250 |
| Fence, roofing, irrigation, demolition or temporary building | $75 each |
| Moving a building | $100 |
| Signs: temporary / wall / pole or monument | $30 / $50 / $75 |
| Contractor registration | $50 |
| Re-inspection | $75 |
| Supplemental plan review | $50 per hour, 2-hour minimum for single-family, 3 hours for other projects |
| Work without a permit | Twice the original permit fee |
At those rates a 2,000 sq ft house pays $1,200 for the building permit and $300 for plan review, plus $75 each for the mechanical, electrical and plumbing permits, or $1,725 in all. Plan review fees are not refundable, and a third-party fee may be added to online payments. Impact fees are charged separately under the update that took effect on September 18, 2025 (Ordinance 3654).
Waxahachie trade permits
Mechanical, electrical and plumbing permits cost $75 each, whether they are attached to a building permit or stand alone. The City’s contractor registration form carries a $50 fee.
Rather talk it over?
Call 1-855-478-4290 →Irrigation permits need a backflow assembly test report entered in the Vepo Envirotrax system. Once it is uploaded, email Building & Community Services with the permit number and address in the subject line, and staff schedule the final irrigation inspection after checking the report.
Fire protection permits are priced separately: for example $75 for a sprinkler system of 1–20 heads and $50 for a fire alarm with 1–10 devices, rising with size.
What to submit for a new home or commercial building
New house
- Site plan with property lines, building lines, finished floor elevation and lot coverage
- Energy code compliance report (REScheck, Energy Star, HERS or similar)
- Floor plan with room uses, egress windows, fire-rated walls and stair details
- Elevations and roof plan with roof slope and exterior materials
- Electrical plan with smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, outlets and GFCI receptacles
- Foundation design letter and foundation plan sealed by a Texas-licensed engineer
- Shear wall, ceiling framing and roof framing plans
New commercial building
- City-approved civil plans, plat, site plan and elevations
- Cover sheet with the code analysis
- Architectural, life safety and structural plans, sealed where state law requires
- Mechanical, electrical and plumbing plans
- COMcheck energy reports
- The state accessibility (TABS) project registration number
A house on a septic lot must say so on the application and needs a separate On-Site Sewer Facility permit. Houses in the infill development area must meet Section 3.25(d) of the zoning ordinance. A commercial shell building permit does not cover the tenants, each of whom needs a finish-out permit. Accessory buildings over 500 sq ft need engineer-sealed foundation plans.
Rather not deal with the building department?
Get a free quote →The City aims to return comments or approve plans within 10 business days for homes and 15 for commercial projects. Resubmit by email with the permit number; if revisions run to more than five pages, send the whole plan set with the changes clouded and a written narrative of what changed.
How to apply: Waxahachie in six steps
Not mandatory, but the City strongly recommends a meeting with staff from planning, building, fire, engineering and utilities before designing a development.
File the contractor registration form and pay the $50 fee.
Follow the submittal guide for your permit type; outdated forms citing older codes only show what documents are needed.
Pick the matching permit type, upload the plans and pay the fees.
Expect comments within 10 business days for a home and 15 for commercial work, and resubmit by email with the permit number.
Use CSS or the IVR line once all fees on the permit are paid.
Inspections in Waxahachie
Request inspections in CSS or through the IVR line at 855-636-0069. On the IVR, enter the IVR PIN printed on the permit, confirm the permit number, press 3 to request an inspection, key in the inspection code (105 is the foundation inspection, for example), choose a date and press 1 for morning or 2 for afternoon. The system reads back an inspection number and lets you leave a callback number and a message for the inspector.
An inspection cannot be requested while any fee on the permit is unpaid. A failed inspection costs $75 to re-inspect.
Want this handled start to finish?
Get a free quote →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
Waxahachie permit search and official resources
- Waxahachie permitting and applications
- Waxahachie Citizen Self-Service (CSS) portal
- Waxahachie Code Chapter 11 fee schedule
- Waxahachie plan review and submittal guides
- New single-family dwelling submittal checklist
- New commercial building submittal checklist
- Waxahachie building inspection and IVR instructions
- Waxahachie Development Review Committee
- Waxahachie development process and impact fees
Inspections are where schedules slip.
Get a free quote →Frequently asked questions
How much is a building permit for a new house in Waxahachie?
$0.60 per square foot plus $0.15 per square foot for plan review, and $75 each for the mechanical, electrical and plumbing permits. For 2,000 sq ft that is $1,725, before impact fees.
How long does plan review take?
The City aims for 10 business days on residential plans and 15 on commercial plans.
Which codes apply in Waxahachie?
The 2021 International Codes and the 2020 National Electrical Code with local amendments, adopted May 20, 2024 and effective for submittals from June 1, 2024.
Do I need a permit for a fence or a new roof?
Yes. Each is a $75 permit, and fences may be no taller than 8 ft from the interior grade.
How do I request an inspection?
Online in CSS or by calling the IVR at 855-636-0069 with the PIN from your permit. Unpaid fees block inspection requests.
Who handles septic systems in Waxahachie?
The City, which is the authorized septic agent inside its limits. The On-Site Sewer Facility permit costs $250.
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More Texas permitting guides
This guide is provided by Alliance Permitting for general information about Waxahachie permitting. Requirements, fees, and procedures change; confirm details with the permitting authority before relying on them.