Henry County, Virginia Building Permit Guide

Henry County Building Inspection permits and inspects construction in the county from Room 205 of the County Administration Building, 3300 Kings Mountain Road. Building, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, demolition, land disturbance and sign applications are all filed in the County’s online Citizen Portal. A new house costs 8 cents per square foot of floor area, which already covers the electrical, plumbing and mechanical work, plus a 2% state tax.

What requires a building permit in Henry County?

The Citizen Portal says you may need a permit application if you are going to build, demolish, renovate or repair a structure, and gives these examples alongside a short list of work that does not need one. Zoning requirements still apply either way.

An accessory building under 256 sq ft with no trade work needs no building permit, but it still has to meet the zoning setbacks.

Who issues Henry County permits?

The Department of Planning, Zoning & Inspections regulates, permits and inspects development in Henry County, from houses, additions and manufactured home placements to commercial and industrial construction and all land disturbance. Building Inspection is the division that issues the permits. Charles Campbell is the Building Official and Lee H. Clark is the department’s Director.

Local requirements and jurisdiction boundaries

City of Martinsville: the County Administration Building has a Martinsville street address, but Martinsville is an independent city surrounded by Henry County and is not part of it. A Martinsville mailing address does not settle which office permits a site, so check whether the parcel is in the city or the county first.

Town of Ridgeway: Ridgeway is the only incorporated town in Henry County. The Town handles its own rezoning and variance applications at the Town office, 806 Main Street (276-956-2328; open Monday 3 to 6 p.m. and Tuesday to Friday 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.). It publishes no building permit of its own; the County department is responsible for permitting and inspecting construction throughout Henry County.

Land disturbance: the County issues land-disturbing permits and requires a Responsible Land Disturber. A single-family lot in a subdivision can use the residential Agreement in Lieu of an Erosion and Sediment Control Plan, under which all bare areas are stabilized within 7 days of final grading. Commercial and industrial sites file the Application for Land-Disturbing Permit with an approved plan, keep the permit on site and notify the County when work starts and finishes.

Enterprise Zone: a qualified industry building in a Henry County Enterprise Zone can apply for a building permit fee waiver on the County’s Enterprise Zone Program form.

Rezoning, special use permits and variances: the Zoning page carries the applications and the 2026 filing schedules for the Planning Commission and the Board of Zoning Appeals.

Henry County permit types and the Citizen Portal

The Citizen Portal has a separate online application for each of these:

• Permit Application (building): new single-family dwellings, doublewides and mobile homes, residential additions, renovations, detached garages and storage buildings, pools, apartments, commercial and industrial new construction, additions, renovations and re-roofs, change of use and relocation.
• Electrical, Mechanical and Plumbing Permit Applications.
• Demolition Permit Application, with the County’s Asbestos Form.
• Land Disturbance Application, with the printable commercial application or residential agreement uploaded to it.
• Sign Permit Application.

The portal also has a public Permit Search by permit number, date, parcel address or type of work, and a search for complaint and unsafe-structure cases.

Trade permits and other agency coordination

On a new house the 8-cent building fee already includes the electrical, plumbing and mechanical work. Other trade work is priced from the County’s schedule of fees:

The minimum electrical fee is $15, and the 2% state tax is added to every trade fee. The building application asks for the electrical, plumbing and mechanical contractors by name, and for the electric provider: American Electric Power, the City of Martinsville or Danville Power.

Septic and well approvals come from the Henry-Martinsville Health Department, part of the Virginia Department of Health’s West Piedmont Health District. The application asks for the well or septic number, and the County tells applicants to contact the Health Department on 276-638-2311 if the number of bedrooms in a home will change.

Application documents and submission checklist

The online Permit Application will not submit without a property selected from the County’s records and a contractor attached. It then asks for:

• Applicant name, address, phone and email
• The general, electrical, plumbing and mechanical contractors, with licence numbers for any not already in the County’s list
• Project type, description and project cost
• Square footage, number of floors, and porch, deck and garage dimensions
• Disturbed acres
• Number of bedrooms and bathrooms
• Mechanics lien agent details
• Electric provider, American Electric Power work order and well or septic number
• Uploaded files, such as plans, the Asbestos Form for a demolition or the land disturbance forms

A sign permit needs zoning clearance from the Zoning Department (276-634-4624), a copy of the contractor’s Virginia licence, the Commissioner of the Revenue’s approval on the Henry County business licence, the sign plans and, for an internally lit sign, its UL numbers before the permit is issued.

Building permit fees

These figures are from the Henry County Building Inspection Department Schedule of Fees, effective December 13, 2022. A 2% state tax is added to each fee.

For example, a new 2,000 sq ft house is $160, or $163.20 with the 2% state tax, before the land-disturbing permit. On an alteration, the area charged is worked out to the nearest 25% of the building’s total floor area.

Churches, public schools, government agencies and other non-profit organizations pay no sign permit fee but must still obtain the permit. Checks are made payable to the County of Henry, or the office can email a payment link. Visa, MasterCard and Discover are accepted, and every card payment carries a non-refundable service fee of 3.25% or $2, whichever is greater.

How to apply: 6 steps

Inspections and reinspection fees

Building Inspection’s staff, a Building Official and two code enforcement officers, is reached on 276-634-4615. The schedule of fees charges $10 for each extra trip an inspector has to make because:

• the applicant gave the wrong address;
• work was condemned for faulty construction;
• repairs or corrections had not been made when the inspector was called; or
• the work was not ready for inspection when the inspector was called.

Issued permits can be looked up in the portal’s Permit Search.

Virginia building code

Every Virginia locality enforces the Uniform Statewide Building Code, 2021 edition, in effect since 18 January 2024. No Virginia locality can adopt its own building code or amendments, so what varies locally is zoning conditions, historic districts and flood plain rules. How Virginia’s statewide code works

Official Henry County permitting resources

These are the primary sources behind this guide. Codes, fee schedules and procedures change — confirm the position for your filing date.

• County permits and fees
• Planning, Zoning and Inspections staff
• County Building Inspection and portal
• Henry County Building Inspection Department Schedule of Fees (effective December 13, 2022)
• Henry County Citizen Portal: permit applications and permit search
• Henry County Planning, Zoning & Inspections
• Henry County Zoning forms and 2026 application schedules

Henry County building permit FAQs

How much is a building permit in Henry County?

New construction is 8 cents per sq ft of floor area with a $25 minimum, and for a house that includes the electrical, plumbing and mechanical work. A 2,000 sq ft house is $160 plus the 2% state tax.

Do I need a permit for a shed in Henry County?

Not for a one-story detached residential accessory structure under 256 sq ft with no trade work, although it must meet zoning setbacks. Sheds, carports and agriculture buildings over 256 sq ft need a permit.

Do I need a permit to replace a roof?

Not on a house. Re-roofing a commercial or industrial building needs a permit.

Do I need a permit for a fence?

No. Fences are on the County’s list of projects that do not require a building permit.

How do I apply?

Online, through the Henry County Citizen Portal. Building Inspection can be reached on 276-634-4615.

Is Martinsville part of Henry County for permits?

No. Martinsville is an independent city, even though the County’s own offices use a Martinsville address.

Can I pay by card?

Yes, by Visa, MasterCard or Discover, with a non-refundable service fee of 3.25% or $2, whichever is greater.

Simplify Henry County permitting with Alliance Permitting

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